Lawrence, Kan. – Brothers Bob and Joe Alonzi, both members of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA), have been named recipients of the association’s 2026 Col. John Morley Award. They will be formally recognized on Feb. 3 during the Opening Session at the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show in Orlando.
The award, named after GCSAA’s founder, was elevated to GCSAA’s pinnacle level alongside the Old Tom Morris Award in 2021 and is presented annually to an individual who is, or has been, a GCSAA Class A or B superintendent member and has made a significant contribution to the advancement of the golf course superintendent’s profession. The Old Tom Morris Award is presented to those outside GCSAA membership who have helped mold the welfare of the game. The Alonzis’ win is the first time the Morley Award has been given to a set of brothers.
Both Bob Alonzi, a 55-year GCSAA member, and Joe Alonzi, a 50-year GCSAA member, are retired Certified Golf Course Superintendents (CGCS). They each had long careers at famed golf courses in the Northeast. Bob at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y., where he hosted the 1984 U.S. Open and 1997 PGA Championship, and Joe at Westchester Country Club in Rye, N.Y., where he hosted 17 PGA Tour events and the 2011 Senior Players Championship. In addition to their long careers at high-profile golf courses, the Alonzi brothers are also renowned for their willingness to give back to the industry and for mentoring many younger golf course management professionals who worked under them over the years.
They were born in Picinisco, Italy, and moved to the United States when Bob Alonzi was 12 and Joe Alonzi was 6. Their introduction to the golf world came as teenagers, when each worked as a caddie at Taramack Country Club in Greenwich, Conn.
“Throughout their careers, Bob and Joe raised the bar for the profession both in how they maintained the courses under their care and how they helped the development of so many others who crossed their paths,” said GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans. “While they are most known for their work in the Northeast, their impact and the network of superintendents they mentored has made a difference around the country. We often speak of GCSAA as a family, and Bob and Joe have lived that on so many levels.”
Bob Alonzi was the first brother to make golf course management his profession. After graduating from Rutgers University and serving in the U.S. Army, Bob Alonzi worked as a foreman at Taramack before landing his first superintendent job at Rye (N.Y.) Golf Club in 1967. He did stints at Burning Tree Country Club and Fairview Country Club before he replaced legendary superintendent Sherwood Moore at Winged Foot in 1984. He left Winged Foot in 1999 for Fenway Golf Club in Scarsdale, N.Y., and retired from there in 2011.
“Hopefully, my legacy will be that I was just a guy who had great opportunities,” Bob Alonzi said. “I shared everything I experienced. I tried to contribute to research. I think we’re all just one big family. This is the best profession in the world, and we’re all working toward a goal of perfection. It’s not achievable, but you’re always striving for it. I just tried to be approachable. I value the hundreds of friends I made in the industry. There’s a lot of unity there, and we all share.”
Joe Alonzi took a less traditional route to the superintendent profession. He earned a degree in electrical engineering from RCA Institute of Technology in 1971, and his first job was working on the radar system for the F-111 jet. Joe Alonzi yearned to work outside, so Bob Alonzi, who was by then superintendent at Burning Tree, added Joe to his crew. Joe graduated from the Rutgers turfgrass program in 1973. A year later, he was hired as head superintendent at the Huntington Crescent Club in Huntington, N.Y. Joe Alonzi’s career took him to Fenway GC in 1984, and then on to Westchester CC eight years later. He retired from Westchester in 2015.
They followed a similar path of service to the industry. Both brothers were highly engaged in the Metropolitan Golf Course Superintendents Association. Each Alonzi served on the GCSAA-affiliated chapter’s board and as its president. Each earned the MetGCSA’s Sherwood A. Moore Award — Bob Alonzi in 1991 and Joe Alonzi nine years later.
The family legacy carries on through their sons. Robert B. Alonzi is a 33-year GCSAA member who succeeded his father, Bob Alonzi, as superintendent at Fenway GC in 2011 and remains there. Joe Alonzi’s son, Christopher, is the superintendent at The Summit Club at Armonk (N.Y.). The Alonzi brothers’ legacy also includes the many crew members who worked under them who eventually made a career in the industry.
“Way too many to count,” Joe Alonzi said. “I’m so proud of all those superintendents out there who worked for me at one point or another. I take that as one of my greatest contributions to the industry. That’s how I’ve tried to give back to the industry, whether they learned from me how to do it right or how not to do it. That’s great, as long as they learned something from me.”
Read more about the Alonzi brothers in the December issue of GCM magazine. See past winners here.
About GCSAA
The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) is a leading golf organization in the United States. Its focus is on golf course management, and since 1926 GCSAA has been the top professional association for the men and women who manage golf courses in the U.S. and worldwide. From its headquarters in Lawrence, Kan., the association provides education, information and representation to 20,000 members in more than 78 countries. The association’s mission is to serve its members, advance their profession and improve communities through enjoyment, growth and vitality of the game of golf. Visit our industry-leading magazine at GCMonline.com.
The GCSAA Foundation is the philanthropic organization of the GCSAA. Its mission is to secure funding and support to strengthen advocacy, education, and research that advances the work of golf course management professionals. Visit the Foundation at www.gcsaa.org/foundation
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