The PGA of America announced that CEO Seth Waugh has decided to step down and shift to an advisory role.

“On behalf of the more than 30,000 PGA of America Golf Professionals, we are grateful for Seth’s leadership and for all that he accomplished for our members, our game, the business, and our people,” said PGA of America President John Lindert, PGA Director of Golf at The Country Club of Lansing in Lansing, MI. “He skillfully led us through incredibly challenging times and was always a great partner. We are fortunate to be able to call on him going forward for his always helpful advice and counsel.”

A national search for a new CEO, including internal and external candidates, is underway. During the transition, Chief Championships Officer Kerry Haigh will serve as interim CEO. Haigh, a key PGA of America leadership team member since 1989, is not a candidate for the CEO position.

Waugh was named CEO in August 2018 following a three-year term as an independent director on the PGA of America Board of Directors. He has served the Association for nearly nine years.

“I recently informed the board that I would not be renewing my contract that is set to expire on June 30, but am honored to continue to serve the Association as a Senior Advisor,” said Waugh. “It has been an absolute privilege and honor to serve as the CEO of the PGA of America for the past six years,” said Waugh.

Waugh’s list of accomplishments include:

  • As a board advisor, he was key in developing the PGA of America’s l11-year media rights agreements with CBS and ESPN.
  • As CEO, he completed complex agreements on the $500 million public/private partnership with Omni Hotels & Resorts, the City of Frisco, its Economic and Community Development Corporations, and the Frisco Independent School District that made the PGA Frisco and home of the PGA of America a reality.
  • He helped advance the PGA of America business, including partner deals with Rolex and T-Mobile.
  • He helped expand the PGA of America Reach Foundation’s impact by spearheading a $100 million capital campaign to “Impact Lives Through Golf.”
  • Fulfilling a promise made when he was named CEO, Waugh engineered the first deferred compensation retirement plan for PGA of America Members.
  • During Waugh’s tenure as CEO, the number of PGA of America golf professionals surpassed 30,000 for the first time, the average compensation has never been higher, and member satisfaction scores have reached an all-time high.

Waugh led the PGA of America during the pandemic.  Under his guidance, the PGA reportedly

  • Led to establishing the nearly $8 million Golf Emergency Relief Fund.
  • For the Back 2 Golf initiative, important safety protocols were developed with the CDC, which led to historic rounds played growth.
  • Waugh also reached across the industry to jointly repackage the golf events schedule, which included the PGA Championship being the first major championship to return to play without fans in 2020 and rescheduling the Ryder Cup to “unprecedented success” in 2021.

Waugh and the PGA of America also inspired the leading entities in golf to develop six industry workgroups that designed the “Make Golf Your Thing“ movement to take advantage of the moment to grow the game and advance DEI in the golf industry. Under Waugh’s leadership, the PGA “advanced its inclusionary practices to help grow the game while providing community access to golf through the launch of ‘PGA Places to Play’ for underserved populations, where $1.75 million in grants has led to more than $35 million raised in support of projects across the country.”

In 2022, Waugh was recognized by the One Hundred Black Men of New York with the Judge Robert Mangum Diversity Champion Award. He was also honored with the 2022 Sports Leadership Award for his “caring and transformational leadership“ at the 39th Annual March of Dimes Sports Luncheon.

Images courtesy PGA