(August 11, 2025) — Nolan Clay, a sophomore at the University of Texas, and Daniel Polce, a senior at Florida Gulf Coast University, have been named recipients of the Herbert V. Kohler Jr./GWAA Journalism Scholarship, the GWAA and Kohler Co. announced.
Clay and Polce, who were selected by a seven-judge panel, will receive $5,000 apiece to apply toward the 2025-26 academic year. And in keeping with a tradition launched this year with the inaugural class of Kohler/GWAA scholars, Clay and Polce will be invited to attend one of golf’s marquee professional events in 2026 so that they can network and work alongside golf media.
Clay, of Austin, Texas, is majoring in journalism and minoring in sports production and broadcasting at his hometown university. He grew up playing a game that he calls “my greatest passion,” including time with The First Tee program. During the past summer, Clay served as a counselor at the Verne Lundquist Sports Media Camp in Austin, helping aspiring high school journalists. Clay, who writes for The Daily Texan, is not sure yet which direction his journalism career might take him, but he wants to work in sports media and appreciates that Kohler and the GWAA will help him advance.
“With recognition comes expectation, and I’m excited to expand my knowledge in the world of golf media and live up to those high expectations,” said Clay, who thanked Kohler for “generously donating.” He added: “This funding is incredibly helpful as it allows me to put more focus toward sports media extracurriculars that I otherwise would not have the time for. This is an incredible honor that I don’t take lightly. I look forward to meeting some of y’all down the line to thank you in person.”
Polce, of Brooksville, Fla., is in the Professional Golf Management program at FGCU and minoring in journalism. He created The PGM Post, a digital magazine about the PGM program and students at FGCU, and he serves as the publication’s lead writer and editor. Polce completed his first journalism-centric internship this summer with Global Golf Post and played in USGA and Florida State Golf Association qualifiers in his home state. He will forgo a final year on the FGCU golf team in favor of his studies.
“The award will be critical in financing my final year of education, ensuring I graduate on time from FGCU as a Class A PGA professional,” Polce said. “I cannot thank the Kohler family enough for their generous support of students, aspiring writers, and future industry members such as myself.”
Beth Ann Nichols, a senior writer at Golfweek and former GWAA president who chairs the association’s scholarship committee, applauded the depth of applicants and Kohler’s ongoing support of the initiative.
“As the applicant pool deepened this year, the scholarship committee is once again thrilled with the quality of our two winners,” Nichols said. “Nolan and Daniel could easily step into a full-time position and thrive. We’re grateful for the Kohler family’s commitment to helping the GWAA connect with and support the next generation.”
The Herbert V. Kohler Jr./GWAA Journalism Scholarship is dedicated to the memory of the longtime chairman and CEO of Kohler Co., who died in 2022 and whose manufacturing and hospitality company built a golf empire in Wisconsin.
For more information, contact GWAA secretary Steve Harmon (secretary@GWAA.com) or call 407-920-1194.
About Destination Kohler
The Kohler Co. Hospitality & Real Estate profile includes The American Club and world-renowned championship golf venues Whistling Straits and Blackwolf Run. The Inn on Woodlake in the Village of Kohler is a three-diamond property, and Lodge Kohler in Green Bay’s Titletown entertainment district is a four-diamond property. A sister property, the Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa in St. Andrews, Scotland, is located at the birthplace of golf alongside the 17th fairway of the Road Hole – the most famous and difficult par-4 hole in golf.
The late Herb Kohler created Kohler Co.’s Hospitality & Real Estate Group with the reclamation of The American Club and then built world-renowned championship golf courses, The Straits and The Irish at Whistling Straits, The River and Meadow Valleys at Blackwolf Run, as well as the 10-hole, par-three Baths of Blackwolf Run. The Straits course has hosted three PGA Championships and the 43rd Ryder Cup in 2021. Kohler Waters Spa is the only five-star spa in Wisconsin and has four other locations in St. Andrews, Chicagoland, and Green Bay, Wis. The resort features 12 dining establishments from the remarkable Immigrant Restaurant and Winery Bar to pub fare at The Horse & Plow, to River Wildlife located in a forest next to the Sheboygan River, just outside Kohler.
The resort is located in the Village of Kohler, Wisconsin, one hour south of Green Bay, one hour north of Milwaukee and two and a half hours north of Chicago, just off of I-43.
About the GWAA
The Golf Writers Association of America, founded in 1946, is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit members organization dedicated to the improvement of working conditions for golf writers. We strive for advancement in press facilities at tournaments, hotel accommodations, local transportation, access with players, and work in concert with the Association of Golf Writers, our European counterparts. (Website | Facebook | X)