NOPGA's Cundari takes home National Award

CPGA Professional and NOPGA Member Glenn Cundari of North Bay has recieved National recognition in recieving the 2006 Jack McLaughlin Jr. Leader of the Year Award from the CPGA.

Dan Garagan President of the CPGA of Northern Ontario "is very proud to have one of our members (Glenn) recieve this Honour. His dedication to teaching young golfers is well documented throughout the North. We have many great members of the CPGA located in Northern Ontario and commend Glenn on recieving this award".

This synopsis taken from cpga.com lists many of Glenn's talents and why he is the 2006 recipient of The Jack McLaughlin Jr. Leader of the Year Award.

Take one quick look at Glenn Cundari’s resume and it is no wonder that he has been named as the Jack McLaughlin Jr. Leader of the Year. Nominees for this award are judged on their contributions to the development of junior golf in terms of their leadership, inspiration and promotion of the game.

Cundari has gone above and beyond this role. In addition to organizing and facilitating nine different junior programs for about 225 girls and boys between the ages of 4 and 16, Cundari miraculously still has time to spare to be a volunteer, a member of various committees, a spokesperson and facilitator of charity events, a weekly editorialist for the local Amateur Sports News, and also launch a new golf radio talk show.

To top it all off, Cundari does not brag about his accomplishments. “When I first heard that I won the award, I was both surprised and overwhelmed with enjoyment. At the end of the day it was really humbling to hear the news. There are so many others who could have won this award. You see I’m not that great at talking about myself so, I just don’t do it. As a result this whole process was really quite difficult for me to do.”

Cundari allocates his achievement to the support he has received from his family. “I could not have achieved this award without the love and support of my wife, children and parents. As a kid, my parents were never judgmental about my golf performance. Whether I shot a 110 or a 65, all I ever felt from them was pure unconditional love. It’s the same with my wife and kids now.”

Cundari knew he wanted to be a golf professional at the age of 9 as a direct result from his childhood teacher. “When I was 9,10,11, I told my dad I wanted to be a pro. At the time, I didn’t know what it meant or how I would become one. I just knew that I wanted to be one. It was because of Jeff Rogerson. He was my first golf pro as a kid. I’m not exactly sure what he did or how he encouraged me but, he did and I hope to inspire the kids that I’m teaching in the same way that Jeff inspired me.”

Cundari is seen by his peers and comrades as a golf professional who “sets the standard” for junior golf development. Much of his teaching is not working with elite level tour players, but specializing in the development of juniors who want to start to compete locally, regionally or provincially. Cundari has single-handedly identified the development of junior golfers as a niche market that is currently not being filled in his region. For this reason, Cundari is a leader in the industry who has introduced juniors and their families to training programs, development techniques and competition preparation. His programming is inclusive and helps support children with all types of needs including those who face both physical and mental challenges.

Cundari is a man who is driven by continuing education and utilizes state of the art coaching and teaching techniques to work with each child on a one-on-one basis. “The challenge that golf creates is self-development. There is always room for improvement in the game and I love learning, researching and observing how kids grow and develop their skills. With this information, I can help them with their own personal levels of self-development. It’s great to be able to pass my enthusiasm for the game on to them.”