Dallas

Chapter Leaders

Jeannen Provost – President

Jeannen is a Native Texan, Cajun heritage, born in the oil refinery town of Port Arthur. She grew up in San Antonio but spent most of her time on a ranch in The Hill Country where she barrel raced in local rodeos.

She graduated from Dallas Baptist University with a bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration. Jeannen has worked the past 30 years for Quest Diagnostics. Prior to Quest, she was an “on air personality” disc jockey for a radio station in Terrell Texas.

Jeannen first started playing golf in 1979 but was sidelined with a knee injury in 1985 and stopped playing for 13 years. In 2016, while volunteering at the LPGA Volunteers of America North Texas Shootout she met several awesome ladies that were members of EWGA, joined the organization that is now LPGA Amateurs, and has been a member ever since.

Jin Koo – Finance & Records Director

Jin is experienced in the world of accounting and finance as she has worked (and currently still is working) in the public accounting sector for approximately 20 years. She has a keen sense of financial budgeting/forecasting and will apply this to the Finance Director role. Jin is a principal at her firm, BDO USA P.C., and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

Further, Jin started playing golf at 9 years old and has seen the growth of the sport over the years, in particular with ladies and girls, and is inspired by the support of LPGA in this aspect. She loves the sport and the wonderful ladies she has become friends with through the LPGA Amateurs Dallas Chapter thus far. With this inspiration, she wants to be involved more intimately and directly with the Chapter by being part of the Board.

Heather McDaniel – Marketing Director

Heather is originally from Pinckneyville, IL and graduated from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2017. She was a student athlete, studying Finance and golfing for the Lady Cougars. Heather moved to Dallas in 2022 to follow her dreams of building an all-female financial empire. In doing so, a connection introduced her to the LPGA Amateur Golf Association. Her passion for female empowerment on and off the golf course, excites her deeply about joining this organization. Heather is a fur mom to 2 Dobermans, Dak and Jax, and loves a good time with friends and family.

Wendy Vannatta – Golf Events Director

Wendy is a natural born Texan and has lived within an hour of downtown Dallas most of her life. She has two grown sons (29 & 32). She has been playing golf seriously for about the past 10 years. She joined the LPGA Amateurs 2 years ago.

She has participated in one Cup Qualifier and her first Lone Star Cup this year. She was the Captain of a Cup Qualifier team this year. Wendy volunteers for all the pro golf tournaments in the area doing everything from Walking Scoring, Shotlink and working with the Golf Channel.

She was a 3 sport, 4 year all district athlete in high school and played college volleyball. She graduated with a BA from University of North Texas. Wendy spent her career working in the defense industry, consulting in Human Resources and International Sales. She is an avid Dallas Cowboys & Dallas Stars fan. Golf has become her passion in the past couple of years since joining the organization.

Kim Benton – Golf Programs & Services Director

Kim L. Benton is Vice President, Product & Marketing at Frontier Communications. She is a senior executive responsible for overseeing and managing the development and marketing of the Wholesale segment products and services. She has spent over 25 years in the telecommunications industry holding various executive leadership roles.

Kim attended Tennessee State University where she received both her BBA and MBA. During her undergraduate studies, she joined the United States Naval Reserves. She spent 11 years in the Reserves as a Cryptologic Technician.

Ms. Benton serves on the Board of Directors for several non-profit organizations that align to her passions and enjoys mentoring others in their careers.

She is a new author with the recent release of her first novel, An Unseemly Love. This is an exciting writing journey that has been a dream achieved.

Ms. Benton founded Turning Pages Book Club and enjoys golf as a member of the LPGA Amateur Chapter in Dallas, TX. She is committed to her church and community.

She is married to Mr. Antonio Benton. They have a son Shane, and a daughter Samantha.

Kensey Walker – Member Recruitment Director

Kensey is a life-long Texas resident. She has been in the Dallas area since 2018.

Kensey is a Technology consultant for Southwest Airlines, where she is focused on creating efficiencies with new technology products within the Fuel and Finance spaces. She also leads the Technology Culture Committee. She is passionate about creating events to foster inclusivity and togetherness. She enjoys volunteering her time to organizations such as The Dallas Salvation Army and Meals on Wheels.

As a young athlete, Kensey was missing a competitive outlet, which led her to golf. She played her first round of golf in September of 2021 and hasn’t looked back. She joined the LPGA Amateur’s Dallas Chapter in 2022 and quickly became passionate about growing the women in golf community. She is excited for the opportunity to recruit more women and grow our membership base. She’s looking forward to rolling out new recruiting and member retention programs.

Kensey enjoys spending time with her Great Dane, Major, hiking local trails and taking advantage of her fly benefits to travel the world.

Kim Smith – Member Services Director

Kim was born and graduated high school in Oklahoma. She moved to Texas in 1983 and started working for a CPA Firm in 1989. Kim acquired a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1996. This coming tax season will be her 35th year in public accounting and she has owned her own tax business for almost 20 of those 35 years. When you love what you do it does not seem like work!!

Kim has one daughter, three grand-daughters and another grand-daughter on the way.

After Kim stopped playing and coaching softball her parents and late husband talked her into trying golf which was about 8 years ago. Kim fell in love with the game!!! Two great friends encouraged Kim to join the LPGA Amateurs a little over a year ago and she has not looked back. The ladies in this group are wonderful.

Priya Hebbar – Communications Director

Priya spent majority of her childhood growing up in Tucson, Arizona, but her Midwestern roots took her back to the University of Kansas for college. She moved to Dallas in 2019 and found the LPGA Amateurs just recently.

Priya has been playing golf on and off her throughout her life but became seriously obsessed during the pandemic. The LPGA Amateurs group has made such a positive impact in a short period of time, by giving her a community of likeminded women.

When Priya is not golfing or working, you can find her spending time with her sweet corgi, Miller, and fiancé or cheering on her favorite Kansas City Chiefs.

Kelly Campbell – Handicap Chair

Kelly is originally from Ormond Beach Florida and attended the University of Florida graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Physician Assistant studies. She spent her early years at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville doing General surgery until she met her husband and moved to Dallas. She has been involved in Cardiothoracic Surgery for the last 28 years.

She is deeply passionate about golf since the young age of 10. The sport quickly became more than just a pastime; it became part of her identity.

With her two children grown and flown, she finds herself at an exciting juncture in life. It's a stage where she can truly focus on her golfing ambitions and aspirations. She has been a member of the LPGA AMATEURS for 3 years and has enjoyed the introduction to more competitive play.

Volunteering as a Handicap Chair with LPGA AMATEURS is a wonderful opportunity for her to give back to the golfing community and contribute to the sport she is so passionate about. Her role will involve ensuring fair play and accuracy in handicaps, which is crucial for maintaining the integrity of the game.