David Jacobsen was not in a good mood. It was 6 a.m. on Jan. 2, the morning after his Oregon Ducks had lost to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl game. He sat at his dining room table watching highlights when he got an email from Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA, asking Jacobsen to call him.
The purpose of the call: Jacobsen had been selected as the recipient of the 2025 USGA Joe Dey Award, an award that recognizes service to the game of golf as a volunteer.
“I was speechless,” said Jacobsen, who will be formally recognized at the USGA Annual Meeting in Pinehurst, North Carolina, on Saturday. “I didn’t know what to say and I honestly started to cry. The game has meant so much to me that to be recognized for what little volunteer work I do stunned me.”
It would be difficult to find anyone who loves golf more than the 71-year-old Jacobsen, the older brother of seven-time PGA Tour winner and longtime TV analyst Peter Jacobsen. A Portland, Oregon, resident, David has played competitively as a junior, amateur and senior amateur. He has volunteered at tournaments since the 1980s. He seeks to make golf more enjoyable and affordable for young golfers.
Although he briefly pursued a professional career, David has made a mark on the game at the grassroots level. News of his award elicited a proud reaction from his better-known brother.
“I was really excited for David,” Peter said. “He’s always been someone who loves the game of golf and who loves the people in the game of golf. He’s always given his time, blood, sweat and tears for the game of golf. I felt it was the most appropriate award for my brother.”
David’s love of golf and desire to spread it to others can be traced back to his father, Erling.
“Dad instilled in us the values, tradition and etiquette of the game,” Jacobsen said.
The son of Norwegian immigrants, a college football player at Oregon and World War II naval aviator, Erling loved golf. He started as a caddie, learning to appreciate the game and leave the course better than he found it. Naturally, he taught his four children the same way.
David, the oldest sibling, says his dad loved golf but not competitive golf. Erling believed it was more important to enjoy and respect the game than to beat other players. Perhaps no story encapsulates this more than the time Erling taught Peter a lesson for slamming a club.
Despite his dad not loving competitive golf, David enjoyed it. The tournament he saw that inspired him to pursue a professional career was the same event where he was first exposed to USGA volunteer work.
Every year the Jacobsen family went on a two-week vacation on the Oregon coast to play golf. On the back nine during one of these rounds, Peter slammed his club after a bad tee shot.
“Dad says, ‘You’re done,’” David recalled. “You go sit by the car and your brother and I will finish the round. You do not behave that way on the golf course.”
David and his dad finished the round without Peter. When they approached the parking lot, they saw Peter sitting by the car, just as Erling had instructed. Erling saw a chance to further drive home his point.
“Let’s teach your brother a lesson,” Erling told David. “Let’s go play another nine holes.”
Despite his dad not loving competitive golf, David enjoyed it. The tournament he saw that inspired him to pursue a professional career was the same event where he was first exposed to USGA volunteer work.
While spectating at the 1970 U.S. Amateur at Waverley Country Club in Portland, a 17-year-old David watched not just the players, but the volunteers.
“Whether it was volunteers at the club or the USGA committee people I observed, I saw things come together that were just really remarkable,” he said.
The first event David volunteered for was the inaugural U.S. Mid-Amateur in 1981. While playing in the U.S. Amateur earlier that year, he had met USGA regional director Ron Reed who asked him if he wanted to help promote the new tournament. David says his main job was to identify players in the Northwest to play in the event.
“I had a whole lot of fun telling my friends and mailing out entry forms,” he said.
David says his love of the game amplified his love for volunteering.
“Putting something together that is special for the competitors is really rewarding because I was one of those competitors,” he said.
David continues to volunteer for USGA championships, but his involvement in the game goes even deeper. After his father died in 1992, it became David’s goal to teach young golfers the game the same way his dad taught him and his siblings.
“Golf can be very intimidating. Competition adds intimidation and can chase some people away. The best part about golf is being with your friends.” – David Jacobsen
In 1996, along with the Oregon Golf Association, the Jacobsen family established the Erling Jacobsen Tour, a program for youth golfers with an emphasis on non-competitive golf.
“Golf can be very intimidating,” David said. “Competition adds intimidation and can chase some people away. The best part about golf is being with your friends.”
In 2012, the Erling Jacobsen Tour combined with the Youth on Course program to become the Jacobsen Youth Initiative. According to David, 70 courses in Oregon accept the Youth on Course card, which allows kids to play golf for $5. Jacobsen says accessibility is key to fostering a love of the game.
“I believe if you provide an opportunity for a young person to play golf at a reasonable amount, they will fall in love with it,” David said. “They’re going to learn the life skills that I was so fortunate to have been exposed to through my dad.
According to the Oregon Golf Association, more 77,000 rounds totaling over $460,000 in green fees have been subsidized for kids since 2014.
David says receiving the Joe Dey Award in recognition of his work is an incredible feeling, but the work isn’t done.
“I’m humble to be recognized but it takes a village to make this thing work,” David said. “I want to help move the game forward, make sure the game is available and open for everyone and share the sheer joy that hitting that square shot can bring.”