Nedved Named Max Shields Scholarship Honoree-
Riverside, Iowa – John Nedved of Coal Valley, Illinois has been named the 2026 Iowa PGA Max Shields Scholarship honoree by the Iowa PGA Scholarship Committee. The Max Shields Scholarship awards a $2,000 scholarship each year to anyone wishing to get into the golf business as a PGA Professional, Golf Course Superintendent or as a Club Manager. The criteria for recipients include interest and potential for future contributions to the game of golf in any of these fields in the golf business. They may be a graduating high school senior, post-graduate or even someone looking into golf as a second career.
The story below is a significant part of its history, as a fond remembrance for those who knew Max Shields and to pass along the story of a much-loved man to those who came along later.
Max Shields was born on December 1, 1931, in Ottumwa, Iowa. He passed on Sunday, August 15, 2021, at the Crystal Heights Care Center in Oskaloosa. He graduated from Oskaloosa High School with the class of 1950. On March 10, 1951, he was united in marriage to Marilyn Allgood in Oskaloosa. To this union three children were born, Steve, Michael, and Becky. To learn more about the story of one of Iowa PGA’s unsung PGA Golf Professionals…click here.
When asked what winning this scholarship means to Nedved, “I am extremely grateful to receive the Max Shields Scholarship. I am looking forward to beginning my studies to pursue my goals of becoming a PGA Tour course superintendent. I hope throughout my college and professional career I can inspire people of all ages to love the sport of golf, as the scholarship awarded in honor of Max Shields demonstrates.”
John will attend Iowa State University next year. John is a senior at Orion High School, where he has been involved in many school and community activities. He has been an active member of his school’s FFA chapter for the past four years, serving as the Student Advisor in 2025-2026 and currently serving as the Vice President for the 2026-2027 FFA year.
He started working at Oakwood Country Club in 2023 as a lifeguard and then transferred to the grounds crew for the past three years. This fall, while he is in school, he will be working weekends at Oakwood Country Club and working at Quality Repair Inc. as part of his co-op job through the school district.
His ultimate, long-term, future career goal in his journey would be to become a head superintendent of a PGA Tour-level golf club. He knows this is a big career goal. A short-term goal in his journey is to complete his degree in turf grass management with at least one internship at a prestigious golf club in the southern area so he can experience working with Bermuda grass. As a turf grass student, this would push him to become more knowledgeable in the turf world because Bermuda grass is very different from working with cool-season Midwest grasses. Bermuda grass is much more technical and takes different agronomy skills compared to the common bentgrass we have in the Midwest. Landing an internship in the South would help him understand the process and care Bermuda grass requires. This would be beneficial to reaching his long-term career goal.
His ultimate long-term goal is to get the opportunity to become a professional head superintendent of a PGA Tour course. Growing up with the John Deere Classic, 15 minutes from his house, has given him the chance to see a presentation of the course during a tournament. It is his dream to be able to take pride in his work with his team and create a course that is not only a challenging and fun place to play for the best players in the world, but also for the whole world to see. Golf courses are not only a place to play golf, but they are also a place to enjoy and socialize. Playing beautiful courses makes the game of golf more enjoyable at the end of the day.
Christina Zevenbergen, Agriculture Teacher of Orin Ag Department has this to say, “John has consistently demonstrated his love and respect for the game of golf through his participation in high school golf and through his employment at Oakwood Country Club, where he works as a member of the grounds crew. In this position, John takes great pride in maintaining the course and helping ensure that the grounds are in the best possible condition. He demonstrates a strong work ethic and is willing to put in the time and effort necessary to do the job well.”
The Iowa PGA Congratulates John Nedved as our 2026 Iowa PGA Max Shields Scholarship.
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