Tony Decker and Norm Dougherty received awards last week from the Maine State Golf Association for their dedication to the game of golf in Maine. Decker was named the recipient of the 2016 Thomas “TK” Kimball Award, with Dougherty getting the distinction as 2016 Dave Child Volunteer of the Year.

Decker, the head golf professional at the Purpoodock Club in Cape Elizabeth, was the eighth winner of the TK Award. The award goes annually to the individual who best exemplifies the values that former MSGA Junior Director Tom Kimball stood for, including honesty, integrity and humility. The award’s recipient is one who demonstrates their love of the game and promotion of the sport and its values to junior golfers and others who may benefit from golf’s life lessons.

In addition to his duties at the Purpoodock Club, Decker is a former Operations Manager for the Maine Chapter of the New England PGA. He also volunteers for Junior Golf Maine, an initiative of Maine’s governing golf bodies working together to grow and foster the game among junior golfers here in the Pine Tree State.

Dougherty is the third winner of the Dave Child Volunteer of the Year award, named in honor of the late Dave Child, a longtime volunteer for the MSGA. Through the years, Dave served as a volunteer for nearly every department of the MSGA, including the Board of Directors, Rules, championship events, course ratings, scoring and junior golf.

Dougherty of Lisbon, was never an avid golfer, but he was nonetheless taken by the game and all it exemplifies. That certainly doesn’t keep him away from the golf course, though. At many of this year’s MSGA Championships, Norm was among the first to arrive and last to leave, doing whatever tasks the staff needed help with. At times a spotter on the course, at others a personal driver of the media at Championship events, he always went above and beyond in whatever role he was in for that day, all the while doing so with a smile on his face. He attended every MSGA Championship this season, including taking on the role of Volunteer Coordinator at the Maine Amateur Championship at York.

The MSGA would like to congratulate both Tony Decker and Norm Dougherty for their hard work and selfless efforts that help make the game of golf better for everyone here in Maine. Both exemplify the values and efforts of the namesakes –Thomas Kimball and Dave Child — for these awards they’ve won.