These outstanding LPGA Professionals represent the Hall of Fame Class of 2024
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., September 4, 2024 – Marvol Barnard, LPGA Professionals National President from Green Valley, Arizona; and Cindy Miller, LPGA Professional and former LPGA Tour player from Buffalo, New York have been elevated to the elite company as 2024 inductees to the LPGA Professionals Hall of Fame for their extraordinary dedication, outstanding achievement, and steadfast commitment to encouraging golf enthusiasts worldwide. These two women are considered among the greatest professionals in the game of golf.
Marvol Barnard
As someone who discovered the game in 1996 during an off-season winter in Arizona, Marvol Barnard has excelled in every aspect of golf from the very beginning. After a career as a dispatch supervisor with the Alaska State Troopers in Fairbanks, Alaska, and a co-owner/operator of a charter fishing business in Ketchikan, Alaska, Barnard found her unwavering passion for golf later in life. She quickly grew into a skilled amateur before becoming a member of the LPGA Professionals in 2002 and then joining the PGA of America in 2005.
Barnard is the Director of Instruction at the Country Club of Green Valley in Green Valley, Arizona. She graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Public Administration degree and a master’s in organizational leadership. Her love of learning and commitment to service is unwavering, having earned countless education credits and service hours, indicating her ongoing drive to benefit herself and, most importantly, her students.
Few match her enthusiasm for growing the game for girls and women, or are as focused on introducing them to the endless business and social benefits from participation in golf. An accomplished teacher, she serves her students with an incredible love of the game and a deep willingness to care for her students.
Barnard understands the deep impact one simple invitation can make when introducing women to the game, and as a result, has devoted her career to developing and leading women’s programs worldwide. She is most proud of launching an LPGA*USGA Girls Golf program in her area, bringing previously underserved local girls into the game of golf. She also led educational efforts introducing Girls Golf programs to the LPGA Professionals in Korea to expand the program’s global reach. In addition, her Marvol Putzier Barnard Scholarship awarded $9,000 in funding for female high school graduates and Girls Golf members to attend the LPGA Leadership Academy in San Francisco, California in 2024.
Barnard is a courageous leader considered a powerful voice and influential advocate for the LPGA Professionals. Her ability to listen and lead allows her to unify the membership. During the pandemic, she was a beacon of inspiration, admired for building community and ensuring the organization thrived during uncertain times.
She has held nearly every leadership position in the LPGA, including Section President and Secretary, Member Advisor, Chair for various National Committees, and multiple terms on the LPGA Professionals Executive Committee.
Since 2019, she has served two consecutive terms as National President for the LPGA Professionals. She spearheaded the first LPGA Professionals Virtual Conference, which continues today, and was instrumental in growing the LPGA Professionals Virtual Pro-Am and LPGA Amateurs Virtual Scramble, raising more than $100,000 for the foundation supporting the Dana Rader Leadership Fund and the Renee Powell Scholarship Grants. Barnard was responsible for the first-ever purse increase for the LPGA Professionals National Championship in over twenty years, the creation of the Women’s Empowerment program, and the recent updating of the LPGA Professionals governance structure.
She elevates the visibility of the LPGA Professionals representing her fellow members on the LPGA Board of Directors ensuring that the complex organization understands the value and importance the LPGA Professionals bring to a rapidly evolving organization.
No one takes greater pride than Barnard in representing the LPGA, which she considers the greatest women’s golf organization ever created. She has become a respected leader within the LPGA and the golf world for the past two decades. Her tireless efforts in recruiting and mentoring women within the LPGA have resulted in the highest membership numbers in the LPGA’s history. She believes no other organization offers opportunities for networking, engagement, and the ability to work with other women for the betterment of the game. There is no question that Barnard has made a lasting mark on the organization, leaving the LPGA much better than she found it in 2002.
Barnard is one of the most awarded and celebrated professionals in the golf industry. Among her many distinctions are the LPGA’s National Teacher of the Year, the PGA’s National Player Development Award, the Nancy Lopez Golf Achievement Award, named Golf Digest's Top 50 Women Teachers, Golf Digest Best Teachers in Arizona, and the LPGA’s Top 50 Teachers.
She’s received the PGA’s Southwest Section Player Development Award and several PGA Chapter awards, including Teacher of the Year, Player Development Awards, and the Distinguished Member Award. She has appeared regularly in LPGA telecasts to celebrate outstanding women in golf and has been featured in nationally televised commercials during major PGA golf tournaments. Her tireless efforts to grow the game are unparalleled.
"Being named to the LPGA Professionals Hall of Fame is, without a doubt, the honor of my life,” expressed Barnard. “To have my name join the ranks of the remarkable women who have grown, led, and nurtured our organization is beyond my wildest dreams and something I could never have imagined when first becoming a member. When I began teaching golf as an unexpected and happy second career, I could never have anticipated the incredible journey it would take me on, the inspiring people I would meet and be mentored by, and the lasting impact it would have on my life. I am profoundly grateful to the LPGA for this amazing honor."
Cindy Miller
Cindy Miller has been called a Master of Mulligans; an underdog and leading expert at taking another shot. For most of her life, she was used to people telling her she wasn’t good enough. Those words would generally inhibit some, but for Miller, it motivated her to achieve more.
Miller has had a distinguished career as an accomplished player. She started as a walk-on at The University of Miami and graduated as an All-American captaining her team during two NCAA Championships. She played on the LPGA Tour for three years, competing in five U.S. Women’s Opens, before losing her card. Twenty-five years later, she hoped to compete on The Legends Tour of the LPGA Tour, but again, was told she was not good enough. She later qualified, and in 2005, finished second on their money list. Her motto - it’s never too late to take another shot.
In 1983, she became an LPGA Professionals member and for more than 40 years has taught thousands of golfers from beginners to the PGA TOUR Comeback Players of the Year. As a Top 50 Master U.S. Kids Instructor certified in TPI and Golf Psych, she also runs the LPGA*USGA Girls Golf Program of Buffalo and is League Director of the Under Armour Junior Tour of Buffalo.
Miller is now a Top 50 Elite LPGA Teacher in the World and has made it her lifelong mission to help those who want to get better and become better. She and her husband, Allen Miller, a PGA TOUR Past Champion & Life Member, teach golf in Buffalo, New York. They also administer golf Bootcamps in Florida in the off-season months.
This LPGA Professional is not only a respected instructor but a skilled communicator. Miller is an author, radio co-host, and a highly sought-after speaker and corporate trainer. She is a regular contributor to instructional programs on Golf Channel and can be seen on NBCUniversal’s GolfPass. Miller also appeared on Golf Channel’s hit series Big Break III, Ladies Only for several seasons and returned for the Big Break 7 Reunion, reaching a new generation of golfers.
Her commitment to service is another reason Miller is an influential leader. She has served her section and given back greatly to the LPGA, holding many leadership positions. She was elected President for six years and Vice President for two separate terms in the Northeast Section. She was Chairman of the Professional Development Committee and the Education Committee.
Her list of accolades is impressive. She was the recipient of the Nancy Lopez Golf Achievement Award in 2021. She was named the LPGA National Teacher of the Year in 2010, as well as the LPGA Northeast Section Teacher of the Year on four separate occasions (2001, 2005, 2007, 2010). She won the LPGA National Professional Championship in 2004 and the LPGA Northeast Section Player of the Year in 2005 and 2007. She was named a Women of Influence by Business First in Buffalo and an Ignite Award recipient by the Women’s Business Center in 2023. She was also inducted into the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame and Chautauqua County Sports Hall of Fame.
But even more impressive is her ability to transform lives through the game. A lifelong learner, Miller is a Certified Behavior, Motivation, and Emotional Intelligence Professional and an entrepreneur who has dedicated her career to helping people unlock their game and reach their true potential. Knowing how to motivate, communicate, and empower her students is paramount to helping them find their true purpose. She believes that if you have a big dream, it is worth all the effort to go after it. Miller realizes that her impact goes way beyond the LPGA and the golf industry, it has grown beyond the game.
Her non-profit, The Pursue Your It Foundation is a 501c3 organization aligned with the New York State School’s social and emotional learning benchmarks. The program teaches social awareness, interpersonal skills, establishing and maintaining positive relationships, decision-making skills, and responsible behaviors. It provides you with the opportunity to succeed by finding your purpose.
“I am humbled and thrilled to be inducted into the LPGA Professionals Hall of Fame,” shared Miller. “I remember when I first started learning to teach after playing on the LPGA Tour and was in awe of the knowledge of Ellen Griffin, Kathy Murphy, Debbie Crews, Jane Frost, and so many others who helped me in my journey. Thank you so much for giving me the knowledge and love for what I do. I hold this honor as one of the highest of my lifetime.”
)
)
)
)
