The Arizona Golf Hall of Fame Committee recently announced the five inductees for the 2018 Class; three candidates selected by the Voting Delegates, and two Legacy candidates selected by the Selectors Committee. The Legacy Division recognizes those in Arizona who have made contributions to golf, but because it occurred many years ago, their impact is not known to the modern voters and their significance has gone unnoticed.

The dinner and induction ceremony will be held Tuesday, November 20. Please contact the Arizona Golf Association for information.

Robin Farran has been an influential member of the Arizona golf community since moving here in 2003. On average, Robin spends between 100-120 days a year on Arizona golf courses, either as a rules official or preparing the course for competition. His humble beginnings as a volunteer holding the “quiet” sign have transpired into a lifetime of commitment to the game. Robin admits to quitting his day job in order to feed his admitted “addiction” to the Rules of Golf – “experience is the best teacher!”

The name Robin Farran is synonymous with the Rules of Golf, not only here in Arizona, but on a national level as well. Robin has served on the USGA Senior Amateur Championship Committee since 1998 and was invited to officiate his first USGA Championship (U.S. Senior Open) in 1999. To date, he has participated in editing several Rules of Golf revisions and, most recently, the 2019 Rules of Golf modernization project.

Lynn Marriott & Pia Nilsson are co-founders of VISION54, a break- through program and golf school based at Talking Stick Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. Lynn and Pia are internationally recognized, are the two highest ranked female instructors in America, and are both regularly featured among Golf Digest’s Top 50 Greatest Teachers.

VISION54’s Golf Schools, 54GOLF, have been awarded the “Best Golf School in America” multiple times. VISION54’s Coach Programs, 54COACH, have repeatedly received the highest marks by peers of training for teachers/coaches.

Lynn and Pia have coached players to well over one hundred Tour victories on the LPGA Tour, PGA TOUR, European Tour, Ladies European Tour, and Japan Tour. They’ve coached nine different major winners and four #1 ranked players in the world. They are the authors of four bestselling books, including their newest release, Be A Player. They have also created MYGAME, an online Golf School and iPhone app to give golfers easy access to VISION54 skills.

Legacy Division

Bill Johnston, born in 1925, has had a diverse career as a player, a club professional, tournament director, and golf course architect. He also served in the U.S. Navy and graduated from Submarine and Torpedo Schools.

As a Professional golfer for 40 years, Johnston had 15 career wins, including the 1954 Utah Open, the 1958 Sahara Pro-Am, the 1961, 1967, and 1972 Arizona Opens, the 1972 Colorado PGA Championship and the 1973 Colorado Open. 

As a member of the PGA TOUR, Johnston won the 1958 Texas Open Invitational and the 1960 Utah Open Invitational.

His first club professional job was at Dinaland Golf Course in Vernal, Utah. He later became a professional at Timpanogos Golf Course in Provo, then at Orange Tree Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. 

Johnston is known for designing several well-known golf courses in Arizona and Texas including: Dominion Country Club in San Antonio, Texas; Tapatio Spring Resort in Boerne, Texas; Lookout Mountain Golf Club in Phoenix, Arizona; Rancho Manana Golf Club in Cave Creek, Arizona, and the Links Course at the Arizona Biltmore Golf Club.

Johnston was honored as the 1963 Southwest Section PGA Golf Professional of the Year. He was inducted into the University of Utah Sports Hall of Fame and the Utah Golf Hall of Fame in 1994.

Paul Rowe has been a valued member of the USGA Green Section Committee for more than 15 years. He cares deeply about the game of golf and has taken the time to learn about the care and maintenance of golf courses. He has put this information to good use as a standing member of the Arizona Country Club Green Committee, but also to advise green committees throughout the region.

Paul has given several presentations at USGA Regional Conferences throughout the Southwest and Northwest Regions about the role of the green committee and how to be a productive green committee member. 

Paul studied dental surgery at the University of Nebraska and did his residency with the US Military while serving our country. Afterward, he settled in Phoenix, Arizona and started his professional career in dental surgery while staying close to his passion for the game of golf. His friend and mentor, Bob Laubach, got him involved on the green committee at the Arizona Country Club and it has remained a passion of his for approximately 35 years. He is referred to as “America’s Green Chairman”.

As a USGA volunteer, Paul has taken the time to reach out to golf course officials in both Arizona and Minnesota to listen to their concerns and report those issues to the USGA staff in the hope of making meaningful changes. He cares about the game, he cares about grass, he cares about golf course superintendents, and most importantly – he does his part to step forward and do what he can to share information and make the game better both now and for future generations.

Hall of Fame Committee
The Hall of Fame Committee consists of representatives from six of the allied golf associations serving golf in Arizona; Arizona Golf Association, Arizona Women’s Golf Association, Cactus & Pine Golf Course Superintendents, Club Managers Association, Junior Golf Association of Arizona, and the Southwest Section PGA.