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PGA America CEO Derek Sprague is stepping down after a year to help his mother and mother-in-law.
Sprague said he realized he had to spend more time at home after his daughter’s wedding.
“At my daughter’s wedding last month in upstate New York, it became clear that my family needed me nearby to help care for my mother and mother-in-law,” Sprague said in a statement. “Focusing on my family has become my priority, and the best decision for me is to leave my role as CEO and return home to be with them.”
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Derek Sprague announces the first hole during morning foursome matches for the 2020 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wisconsin on September 24, 2021. (Montana Pritchard/PGA of America)
Sprague took over in January 2025, becoming the club’s first professional in 20 years and the first PGA president appointed to the position. He informed the PGA of America board of directors in early December that he was scheduled to return home to Malone, New York, and said he would remain in an advisory role until his successor was found.
Sprague, who served as PGA president from 2014 to 2016, was chosen as CEO to replace Seth Waugh, the former CEO of Deutsche Bank Americas who was lured into retirement in 2018.
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Derek Sprague, CEO of the PGA of America, speaks to the media before the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Country Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, May 13, 2025. (Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
Waugh had groomed Craig Kessler, the PGA’s director of operations, as a potential replacement, but the PGA board opted for one of its members. Kessler was named LPGA commissioner last summer.
Sprague’s resignation continues golf’s executive leadership turnover. Brian Rolapp took over in August as CEO of PGA Tour Enterprises, Kessler joined the LPGA in July and Mark Darbon has been in his role as CEO of R&A for just over a year.
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PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague attends a press conference next to the Black Course at Bethpage State Park Golf Course on September 17, 2025 in Farmingdale, NY (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Sprague was the PGA of America executive who contacted Rory McIlroy to apologize for the verbal abuse he and his wife suffered at Bethpage Black during the Ryder Cup. McIlroy’s wife, Erica, previously worked at the PGA of America, and McIlroy said Sprague “could not have been more gracious” in what he described as a “beautiful letter.”
He was inducted into the PGA of America Hall of Fame in 2019.
