Carson City, Nev.–Golf tournaments are held throughout the year in both Northern and Southern Nevada. Players of all ages–kids, women and men–get the chance to tee it up on some of the best courses around the state while competing for prizes and trophies. But while the players are out on the courses, it’s the many folks behind the scenes who help provide the perfect tournament settings. It’s people like Dana Whaley and the Campagni Auto Group.–by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider
Whaley, who is the fleet manager of Carson City Toyota and oversees the donations for the Campagni Auto Group in Carson City, said the many people and businesses who donate their time and money to the golf cause do it for one simple fact: They love the sport.
Whaley is now excited to support Nevada Golf, a collaborative statewide association formed by the former Northern Nevada Golf Association and Southern Nevada Golf Association, and recognized as the official Allied Golf Association of the United States Golf Association.
“I started getting into the golf scene about three NNGA directors ago,” Whaley said. “They came and asked if we would help with junior golf. It started there and then grew into tournaments. It’s grown a lot since then. We have a junior tournament, a women’s tournament and a men’s tournament that we sponsor.”
Whaley has been teeing it up for 45 years and said the chance to help out the golf scene was one he jumped at … and quickly.
“It’s an important deal,” he said. “With the junior golfers, we may be helping out future golfers we may see competing on professional tours down the line.”
And Whaley knows about competition.
“Yeah, I’m still competitive,” he said of his game. “I play with a group of 16 guys on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. There’s a lot of laughter and having fun…and competing. I really enjoy that and it keeps me practicing for tournaments. I’ve met and played golf with a lot of great people over the last 30 years.”
He added he’s working on one aspect of his game to keep him competitive.
“I’ve been really working on my putting,” he said with a laugh. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve lost distance and that hurts. I’m trying to make up strokes on the green.”
In the end, as with his golf game, Whaley said it’s all about adjustments.
“Dick Campagni (owner of Carson City Toyota) and Jeff Campagni (general manager) have been very community oriented since 1985,” he said. “I’m just the fortunate one who gets to spend their money in the community. They really believe in giving back and donate to about 40 different organizations every year.”
But it’s the golf scene ventures that hit closest to home for Whaley.
“Where I really caught the fever was when I played in an American Junior Golf Association event with a young lady who was our junior player,” he said. “To see how good she was and how excited she was just hit me. That’s when I got excited about seeing younger kids learn the game of golf.”
