Derek Sprague will begin serving as CEO of the PGA of America on January 18, 2025. On Wednesday, the PGA announced Sprague’s resignation.
Sprague notified the PGA Board of Directors in early December of his intention to resign due to the need to provide additional care for his mother and mother-in-law. The PGA of America is expected to name a new chief executive in the coming weeks. In the meantime, Sprague will continue to advise the board of directors and the incoming CEO.
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“At my daughter’s wedding in upstate New York last month, it became clear that my family needed me to be nearby to help care for my mother and mother-in-law,” Sprague said in a release. “Focusing on my family has become my top priority and the best decision for me was to step down as CEO and return home to be with them.
“It has been an incredible honor to serve as CEO of the PGA of America over the past year, and I will be forever grateful to the Board of Directors for their confidence in me and their understanding. I am also grateful to our employees for their tireless dedication. Their passion and commitment inspire me, and I know the Association will continue to thrive as it upholds its honorable mission of serving its members and growing the game.”
Derek Sprague, president of the Professional Golf Association of America (PGA), speaks at the Ryder Cup press conference held at the Hilton Hotel in downtown New York City on August 29, 2016.
Sprague succeeds Seth Waugh, who resigned in June 2024. Sprague becomes the first CEO to have served as president within the organization, holding that position from 2014-16.
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Sprague has been a member of the PGA of America since 1993 and has served as general manager of TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, since January 2018. He turned pro in 1989 and began his career at Malone Golf Club, located in the northern tip of upstate New York, about three hours north of Albany or Syracuse. He grew up on the first hole of the course and spent 27 years at the 36-hole semi-private facility in his hometown.
Sprague was inducted into the PGA Hall of Fame in 2019.
This article originally appeared in Golfweek: PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague resigns. Who will take his place?
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