Talking Golf With The Golf Guy-Season 5 Episode 14 With Doctor Kurt Bernhisel
in Blog, Podcasts by Jeff Waters

Talking Golf With The Golf Guy-Season 5 Episode 14 With Doctor Kurt Bernhisel

As the President of the 40,000 plus membership of the Utah Golf Association, Kurt Bernhisel is responsible for overseeing the administrative working’s of the Association’s Membership, whose stated objective is to “promote interest in the game of golf by encouraging, organizing, supporting, sponsoring and administering golfing activities and programs without regard to race, color, or creed, and to engage in educational and good will activities that further the game.”

Doctor Kurt Bernhisel

As a Board Certified Practitioner in Internal and Emergency Medicine at the University of Utah Medical Center, Doctor Bernhisel is a committed upholder of the Hippocratic Oath and, “will always remember that I do not treat a fever chart, or a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person’s family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick.”

As a lifelong golf junkie, Kurt Bernhisel grew up at Bonneville Golf Course working as a range rat, golf cart runner, starter, and player, while learning to compete under the tutelage of legendary professionals, Dick Kramer, Tommy Reese, Marlow Quick, and Ernie Schneiter Jr.

Kurt Bernhisel

He starred for Highland High School when they won the Utah State High School Golf Championship and he was the medalist. He went on to play for the University of Utah, competing in, and winning numerous tournaments including the Salt Lake City Amateur and was low amateur at the City Parks Open. He also qualified for the prestigious United States Golf Association’s Senior Amateur.

When you add up the sheer abundance and substance of his acquired knowledge and experience, there is no-one in the State of Utah, or beyond its borders, more qualified to lead and administer the game of golf during a global pandemic, than Doctor Kurt Bernhisel.

I sat down with the good Doctor after a long day of his completing his rounds at the University of Utah Hospital and discussed the state of golf, the COVID-19 virus, shelter-in-place restrictions, and the surprising fact that golf, as a sport in these troubled times, is booming.

Please listen to our conversation here.

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Jeff Waters, MBA, is a PGA Master Professional and the President/CEO of Rocky Mountain Golf Enterprises, a Utah-licensed and registered corporation that uses golf as a marketing tool. With over fifty years of experience in the golf industry, Jeff has worn many hats in diverse roles, including as a player, teacher, Head Professional, administrator, and small business owner. Jeff's extensive background includes ten years as a competitive player, ten years as a Head Golf Professional, overseeing the entire golf course operation, three years as the Director of Player Development for Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation, managing, directing, and supervising multiple golf course programs, and over thirty years as a golf coach and instructor at Rocky Mountain Golf Academy, teaching the game. His elite professional status as a fully trained and certified PGA Master Professional highlights his commitment to the sport. This prestigious designation is merited by a small and exclusive group of Golf Professionals worldwide. This wealth of experience in both the sport and business of golf has established Jeff as a highly skilled and knowledgeable expert and one of America's most qualified and accomplished Golf Professionals. In addition to his practical experience, Jeff has a robust academic background, including a BS in Political Science from the University of Utah, graduate studies in Economics and Commercial Recreation, at that school, and a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. He has also taught undergraduate courses at the University of Utah's College of Health and served as an adjunct professor at Granite Peaks Community School. As a well-known media personality, Jeff's versatility in the golf industry is evident through his work as a celebrated broadcast journalist and radio host. He has traveled extensively nationwide, announcing major sporting events at arenas, ballparks, stadiums, and golf courses for national media outlets and syndicated on the Rocky Mountain Golf Radio Network. A member of the Golf Writers Association of America, Jeff regularly contributes editorial pieces to national print publications and has authored multiple books, essays, and short stories. His work has appeared in numerous domestic and regional periodicals and magazines, such as Utah Golf News, Rocky Mountain Golfer, Golf Today, Utah Fairways, Jackson Hole Golf News, and Utah Golf Magazine. He has also contributed to blogs, podcasts, internet forums, and his website at www.jeffgolfguy.com. Jeff's unwavering dedication and service to the golf industry continue to inspire others, underscoring his deep commitment and affection for the sport, business, and recreation of golf.