22 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY february 2-8, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com It’s 16 days before the first group tees off at the AT&T Pebble Beach ProAm and Mary Dubé has a brief window of free time. She is in fine spirits, even as the calendar tries to mock her. With each day in the countdown comes a reminder of the possibilities looming. The Pro-Am is a massive undertaking for those operating behind the scenes—156 professional golfers, another 156 amateurs; tens of thousands of fans each day milling between three golf courses. Just about anything can go wrong. One year it hailed, causing a delay in play. On another occasion a truck became wedged in mud, blocking a parking area just as people were leaving for the day. Then there was the caddie who realized he had forgotten to pick up a required bib, just minutes before his golfer was scheduled to tee off. And that’s just on tournament days. Volunteers can fall ill, phone lines go down, a global pandemic… Sixteen days. “Don’t say that,” Dubé chimes in with a calm smile. “I kind of wish it was still December,” she adds, now chuckling. “I would be fully caught up.” If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes volunteers—an army of 1,800 of them, from all over the country—to run the Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Everyone from players to fans rely upon these volunteers at some point. Perhaps the only people who don’t benefit from their labors directly are the television crew and the audience watching at home. Dubé is at the center of this. As volunteer program manager for the Monterey Peninsula Foundation—the nonprofit organization in charge of the event—she brought the army together. Even though she spent the last decade helping out in various capacities, the scale of what happens just off the fairways didn’t strike her immediately. “I didn’t have a concept that volunteers run the tournament,” Dubé observes. “It’s crazy to think about—a huge event.” Run is an encompassing term, as several entities have a hand in the outcome. Nothing functions on course without the team of officials from the PGA Tour. The Monterey Peninsula Foundation assembled the contractors to put up stands and suites, pulled the field of celebrities and amateurs together and takes responsibility for the event. Yet the legion who donate their time and effort to the Pro-Am ensures that all runs without too many hitches. Volunteers fill a surprising number of roles, each critical in their own way. Walking scorers keep up with each group of golfers. The boards they tote inform those in the gallery where each golfer stands on the leaderboard. Also on course are those waving orange paddles, indicating when a player is over the ball and if the following shot is on line. Drivers are dedicated to shuttle players, officials, fans and media between Spyglass Hill, the Monterey Peninsula Country Club and Pebble Beach Golf Links. Others spend the day providing spectator information or staffing hospitality tents. In all, there are 30 different roles— referred to as committees, each with a chairperson (who also volunteers). “Everyone has an opinion on which one is the best,” Dubé observes, adding that there is little movement after a volunteer settles into their task. “People tend to stay. Once you’re a shuttle driver, you don’t switch.” The largest committee—some 500 people—is dedicated to gallery management. It’s not as ominous as it sounds. But over three courses and four days, there are many opportunities for fans to stray into the wrong place, touch an errant ball or simply need some guidance. Despite the focus on tournament week, much of Dubé’s heavier lifting actually takes place in the months leading up to the Pro-Am, such as encouraging people to apply as volunteers. During this process, she lays out just what each position entails. In some cases they might be standing or walking all day. Certain posts require extended hours, while others can be broken into short stretches. Potential volunteers list their top three options. From there it becomes a multi-tiered Sudoku puzzle, as people are slotted in, repositioned and perhaps lined up again in competing efforts to fill all needs while fitting people into one of their top three choices. Perhaps that’s why she appears so relaxed two weeks before potential chaos. A lot of tumult is already behind her. Dubé is in her first year as volunteer program manager. Under other circumstances, a newcomer to such a complex and comprehensive post would not be so assured. Despite facetiously—somewhat—wishing for more time as Feb. 2 approaches, she benefits from 10 years as a volunteer herself and some advice from her predecessor. Suzanne Overton held down the Time Management An army of volunteers make the Pro-Am possible, and one person brings it all together. By Dave Faries Golf Mary Dubé outside the pavilion set up for volunteers at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The new volunteer program manager coordinates close to 2,000 people who help put on the event. “Volunteers could write a book.” Daniel Dreifuss Daniel Dreifuss Dubé inspects progress as facilities are assembled in January, before the first Pro-Am events tee off on Feb. 2.
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