LEMONT, Ill. – The Illinois Junior Golf Association welcomes two new full time staff members in 2016. Liz Healy is now the manager of marketing and communications and Ben Suchomski as the coordinator of programing.

As a former Playing Member and MAJGT intern (2013), this is far from Liz’s first experience with the IJGA.

Liz attended Rosary High School in Aurora where she was a member of the golf team all four years. During her junior and senior years, she began playing in the IJGA and the MAJGT. When asked about her time playing junior golf Liz had this say:

“Honestly, I was never the best golfer out there, but I was always ready to give it my best shot and not give up. I met so many different people from all over the Midwest at the events.”

Liz went on to play collegiate golf at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, Ill., receiving NAIA Scholar Athlete recognition, while earning a degree in Mass Communication and a minor in Visual Arts. It was during her college career that Liz interned with the MAJGT, where she learned that working in junior golf would be what she ultimately wanted to do.

“Watching these young players, and knowing that they are the future of the game, has really touched me,” said Liz. “I knew how much golf has impacted my life. I wanted to be able to share that experience with other people.”

Before returning to the IJGA in March 2016, Liz spent nine months interning with the American Junior Golf Association in Braselton, Ga., traveling all over the country running various tournaments.

Follow Liz on Twitter @IJGAliz

Ben, who has played golf from a young age, also played in the IJGA as a junior golfer. As a member of the golf team at Conant High School, Ben help his team to the school’s first regional win in 20 years during his senior year. When asked about what he could remember about his time play in the IJGA he said:

“I was mediocre. Anything in the 80s around that time was a pretty solid round for me but I loved every second of it. I played in as many tournaments as I could and never had a bad experience.”

Ben went on to play collegiate golf at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, while earning a degree in Sports management with minors in Public Relations and Business Management. Ben completed an internship with the IJGA the summer before his junior year.

“My favorite part of my internship with the IJGA was getting to know the players by the end of the summer and being able to make their experience as fun and enjoyable as ours.”

It was after his internship that Ben realized that he wanted to work in golf. Last summer Ben interned with the Illinois PGA before returning to Loras for his senior year. The recent grad had this to say about starting with the Association:

“Although the tournament season can be a struggle/challenge, there’s no better place to be doing it than with the IJGA.”