Seth Waugh stepping down as PGA of America CEO after six years but will remain in advisory role

LOUISVILLE, KY - MAY 14: PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh speaks at the PGA Works Beyond the Green during the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club on Tuesday, May 14, 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky.

Seth Waugh, the longtime PGA of America CEO, announced Wednesday that he would not continue in that capacity with the organization starting in July. Waugh, who began his tenure in 2018, has presided over events like the Ryder Cup and PGA Championship for the last six years.

Prior to his run at the PGA of America, Waugh served as an executive at Deutsche Bank. That was where his time in professional golf took off. Waugh worked with the PGA Tour to create the Deutsche Bank Championship, a playoff event that ended in 2018. Bryson DeChambeau was the last champion of that tournament.

"I am proud of all that we have accomplished for our more than 30,000 PGA of America golf professionals and the game," Waugh said in a statement. "I have enjoyed every moment serving alongside all of my colleagues, all the various officers and board members and getting to know so many of our dedicated members who are on the front line of the game that we love every day of the year.

"The day-to-day game has never been stronger, more beloved or better positioned for the future because of their passion and how we have all worked together to make millions of lives better through our remarkable sport."

Waugh has been coy at a fraught time for the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. During the 2021 PGA Championship, just before LIV launched, Waugh offered some interesting comments at his annual press conference.

"[The professional game is] not perfect," he said. "If you were doing it today, you wouldn't have all these bodies, but it doesn't mean you can't make it very functional and work well. ... Look, I come from a world of disruption, and I think it's inevitable -- I actually think it's healthy. You either disrupt or you get disrupted. That's what this is."

Waugh has worked closely with all the stakeholders in the game -- including the USGA, R&A, Augusta National and the PGA Tour -- to navigate the last few years. The PGA of America has not been supportive of LIV Golf, but it has not gone out of its way to keep LIV players out of its tournaments, either. Just this year, it invited Talor Gooch to play the PGA Championship at Valhalla.

"Our invitation process has been pretty much the same for many years," Waugh said. "We have 15 criteria that are pretty much set, and then there's an opportunity for us to invite those players who may not be in those 15 criteria. ... That process over the years has made us be able to have what we feel is a field we are really proud of. It brings the best players in the whole world together to compete on a great golf course for a major championship."

Where Waugh lands next will be intriguing. He will remain in the golf world as an advisor for the PGA of America, but the sport needs leadership as the PGA Tour tries to work out its framework deal with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. How that transpires will affect the sport's landscape for a long time.

"I hope there's a deal," Waugh said last month. "I think both sides are not only committed to trying to find a deal but really need a deal, and in my history of deal making, when both sides kind of need something to happen, it generally does. I don't know the timing. I don't have any insider information that you all don't have. But I'm hopeful that there will be a deal over time.

"And what I would say, I hope there's urgency because I do think it's doing damage to the Tour, to the game. As I said earlier, I hope it's short-term damage as opposed to permanent damage, and so, I hope there's some urgency in the timing around it because I just don't think it's a healthy situation right now."

Kerry Haigh, the PGA of America's chief championships officer, will serve as interim CEO.