The PGA of America has named Derek Sprague — TPC Sawgrass‘ general manager and a former PGA of America president — its next chief executive officer, the association announced Friday.
Sprague will succeed Seth Waugh, who stepped down in June after a six-year run at the helm. Kerry Haigh, the PGA of America’s chief championships officer, has been serving as interim CEO.
Sprague has held his TPC Sawgrass post since 2017; in that role he helped steward the Players Championship’s move from May to March and, according to his LinkedIn profile, has delivered a more than 30 percent increase “in revenue and multi-million-dollar improvement” to the property since he was hired.
Before joining Sawgrass, Sprague was the PGA of America president from 2014-16. In that capacity, he helped bolster the PGA Junior League and also the association’s charitable foundation, PGA Reach. In 2014, Sprague established and co-chaired the Ryder Cup task force, which, in the wake of three consecutive U.S. losses, was designed to optimize how U.S. teams operate and are assembled. In the years since the task force’s formation, the U.S. has won two of four Ryder Cups.
Earlier this week, the PGA of America announced a new compensation package for U.S. players. Beginning with next year’s Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, U.S. players will be paid $500,000 each; $300,000 of that sum will be directed toward charities of players’ choosing with the remainder serving as a stipend. It’s unknown what, if any, role Sprague played in that decision.
From 2016-17, Sprague was the general manager of Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J.; during his tenure, the club played host to the 2017 Presidents Cup. Before Liberty, Sprague served as general manager and director of golf for more than 25 years at Malone Golf Club in his hometown of Malone, N.Y.
Sprague graduated in 1988 from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va., where he played on the golf team and earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing.
“The club took a chance on a 21-year-old kid,” Sprague once said. “I guess it paid off.”
The PGA of America had been aiming to appoint a new CEO before the association’s annual meeting in early November. At that point, Roger Warren, president of Kiawah Island Golf Resort, was the leading candidate, as GOLF.com reported. But the recruitment process continued, with the PGA of America ultimately landing on Sprague.
Sprague’s appointment comes during a period of great change and instability in the upper rungs of golf governance.
The PGA Tour, which remains deep in negotiations with the Saudi PIF and LIV Golf about a path forward together, announced this week it is seeking to fill a newly created CEO position. The LPGA is also looking to fill a big role after its commissioner, Mollie Marcoux Samaan, said earlier this month she will step down in January. Across the pond, the R&A has a new boss after Mark Darbon last month succeeded Martin Slumbers as the organization’s chief executive.
