Frank Jemsek’s checklist of accomplishments in 2009 alone reads more like an impressive lifetime resume.

• The CEO of Cog Hill Golf & Country Club in Lemont reopened his premier course — No. 4 Dubsdread — last week after a year-long, $5 million makeover.

• The PGA Tour’s BMW Championship returns to Dubsdread in September.

• Finally, in October, Jemsek will be inducted into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame.
Jemsek said this year ranks right up there with the best of his life.

“It’s probably going to be the top, after (the year) my wife (Pat) said ‘yes’ to marrying me.”

Jemsek certainly won’t be alone in the Hall of Fame. In addition to the three other 2009 inductees, Jemsek joins his late father, Joe, forming the Hall’s only father-son tandem. Frank Jemsek began working for his father at age 11 and has since carried on the family mission to provide public golfers with a championship-golf experience at Cog Hill, Pine Meadows in Mundelein and St. Andrews in West Chicago.

In March, Golfweek ranked Dubsdread No. 1 on its list of “Best Courses You Can Play” in Illinois. Pine Meadow was No. 6. Golf Digest rated Dubsdread No. 45 among the 2009-10 “America’s 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses.”

“He helped me a lot by being there (Hall of Fame),” Jemsek said of his dad. “He put me in a position to be there.”

Jemsek’s lifetime list of achievements goes on. He initiated the No Embarrassment Golf School, which strives to promote better understanding of the game for new golfers. Cog Hill received the Junior Golf Development Award from Golf Digest.

Jemsek has long been a supporter of the Western Golf Association Evan Scholarship Foundation, which provides college scholarships to caddies. Jemsek brought the PGA Tour’s Western Open and BMW Championship to Cog Hill, with proceeds benefiting the foundation. He also donated 15 acres of land to the Chicago District Golf Association to build the Midwest Golf House, home to the CDGA, Illinois Junior Golf Foundation and Sunshine Through Golf Foundation.

“Frank has touched all levels of the game, from hosting the BMW Championship for the top players in the world to introducing the game to beginners through their No Embarrassment clinics,” said Robert Markionni, CDGA executive director. “One would be hard pressed to find another person in golf that has done more.”

And he’s modest, too.

“I’m very flattered,” Jemsek said. “It’s something I never expected.”