Barbara Douglas: The amateur golfer/rules official/realtor from Scottsdale was recently named president of the Junior Golf Association of Arizona. Douglas, who serves as the vice chair of the prestigious Women’s Committee of the United States Golf Association, said her latest job will be worry-free “because we have such an excellent full-time staff at the JGAA.’’

“We are very fortunate to have (executive director) Tom Cunningham and (assistant executive director) Sean Ferris, because they are the very best, and have (the JGAA) heading in the right direction,’’ Douglas said. “My job will just be overseeing the budget and our overall strategic plan, and reviewing our new programs, especially the ones we have targeted for outside the Phoenix metro area. . . . . We feel the more effective we are at introducing the sport of golf to youngsters in Arizona’s outlying areas, the brighter the future will be for our youth.’’

Born and raised in Chicago, Douglas has a long and storied career in the game, even if she didn’t take it up until she was 25 years of age. “I worked with IBM for quite a long time, and when they sent me to Toledo, Ohio, well, what does a single person do in Toledo, Ohio but play golf? So I learned.’’ And it came with relative ease, as Douglas has been a single-digit handicap for much of her golfing life.

Douglas became involved with the USGA when IBM transferred her to New York. After competing in several U.S. Women’s Public Links tournaments, a friend introduced her to golf’s ruling body in America, and Douglas subsequently assumed the friend’s position on a lower-level USGA committee. “I realized it was hard to be competitive when you were working 60 to 70 hours a week,’’ Douglas observed. “So I got involved in another way.’’

Douglas is the first minority to serve on the USGA Women’s Committee, but she has a history of leading the way in such efforts, especially in golf circles. She moved to Phoenix in the late 1990s as the executive director of the Phoenix-based National Minority Golf Foundation, and also has been a prominent member of the Arizona Golf Association, the Executive Women’s Golf Association and the Golf Course Superintendents Association’s Diversity Council. She also serves on the board of directors for the LPGA Safeway International.

“I love the game, and I just wish I had more time to play it,’’ said Douglas, who sells real estate for Russ Lyon. “These days my game is pretty much up and down. But when you don’t get to play much, you really can’t expect much. The last time I looked, I was an 8 or a 9 (handicap), but I probably can’t play to it.’’

NOTEWORTHY

Winners: Several East Valley golfers fared well in last weekend’s Arizona Divisional Stroke Play Championship at the Trilogy Golf Club at Vistancia in Peoria. Mark Sollenberger and Michael Mahoney of Scottsdale claimed titles in the Masters and Senior divisions, respectively. Michael Wysner of Chandler lost a playoff to Cyrus Whitney of Oro Valley in the Masters division.

Setting the pace: Daffodil Sanchez, the 13-year-old phenom from Mesa, has qualified to play in the U.S. Women’s Public Links Championship at Lexington, Ky., on Jun 18-23. Sanchez recently led the qualifying with a 74 at Hickory Stick Golf Club in Greenwood, Ind. The Publinks is the same national championship won by Michelle Wie when she was 13.

Selected: Two collegians from Scottsdale have been selected to play in the USA-China Friendship Cup on July 26-29 at Beaumont, Calif. They are Florida sophomore Tim McKenney and Scottsdale Community College’s Braxton Marquez, who will be a sophomore this fall at Arizona State.

Free lesson: Over two dozen golf facilities in the East Valley are offering free lessons in conjunction with American Express’ National Golf Week For Women. To find out the course nearest you, visit www.playgolfamerica.com.

And finally: The Gateway Tour donated two K-9 working dogs to the Phoenix Police Department during festivities surrounding last week’s Spring Series Championship Pro-Am at Desert Mountain in Scottsdale.