Jeff Johnson is one of the two men who started this thing. Three decades ago, he and Pat Bangasser put a calendar together, mailed some checks, and decided to travel to a different Puget Sound course every month — and what they built became the Eastside Traveling Golf League. The mailing address still goes to Jeff. The membership renewals still go to Jeff. Everything goes to Jeff.
He has also won three Match Play titles (2009, 2013, 2023), two Green Jackets (2011, 2012, in consecutive seasons), and shown up to thirty straight seasons. In 2023, his runner-up was his own son, Trevor — the only family-finals matchup in league history. He's still teeing it up in 2026, currently in the Bandon Dunes Match Play region, where he was drawn directly opposite Trevor in the bracket. The universe enjoys its work.
Three things: a long career of being the most prepared player in the field, the patience of a man who has watched everybody else's swing change three times while his stayed the same, and the institutional memory of every dispute, ruling, and bad bounce since 1997. If there's a question about how the league has ever done something, the answer is "ask Jeff."
"Good people. Bad golf. The rest fills itself in." — Jeff Johnson, on the founding philosophy
The 2023 Match Play final between Jeff and his son Trevor remains the most-watched (and most-debated) match in league history. Jeff won, 2&1, in front of basically the entire field. There has not been another father-son final since, but the 2026 bracket has them drawn into the same Bandon Dunes region, which means it could happen again. The league office has no comment.
"I didn't start this thing to win anything. I started it because I wanted somewhere to play in March." — Jeff Johnson
Players in the same conversation, on the same boards, chasing the same trophies.