Press release written by the PGA of America
FRISCO, Texas (September 18, 2023) – The PGA of America today announced the six inductees of the 2023 PGA of America Hall of Fame Class: Robert Dolan, PGA; Don Wegrzyn, PGA; Herb Wimberly, PGA; PGA Past President Suzy Whaley, PGA; LPGA Legend Kathy Whitworth; and CBS Sports’ Jim Nantz. The 2023 Class will be inducted at the 107th PGA Annual Meeting during a special ceremony on Wednesday, November 8, 2023, at the Omni PGA Frisco Resort.
The PGA of America Hall of Fame originated in 1940 at the suggestion of famed sportswriter Grantland Rice to honor and recognize individuals who through their lives, careers, service and support have made significant and enduring contributions to the PGA of America in its mission to grow the game of golf. It is the highest honor that the PGA of America can bestow upon its membership or ambassadors of the game.
The 2023 PGA of America Hall of Fame Inductees fall under four induction categories: PGA of America Golf Professional Category (Dolan, Wegrzyn, Wimberly); PGA of America Past President Category (Whaley); Tour Player Professional Category (Whitworth); and PGA of America Ambassador Category (Nantz).
“It is an incredible honor for the PGA of America to recognize and celebrate our six inductees who have made a real impact on the game of golf and the countless individuals they’ve inspired along the way,” said PGA of America President John Lindert, PGA Director of Golf at The Country Club of Lansing in Lansing, Michigan. “Whether they proudly wear the PGA of America logo in their daily efforts, or have inspired golfers nationwide through their voice with continuous support of not only the sport, but the PGA of America, we honor their contributions to this great game we all love.”
About the 2023 PGA of America Hall of Fame Inductees
PGA of America Golf Professional Category
Robert Dolan, PGA
Middle Atlantic PGA Section
Dolan turned professional and entered the PGA apprentice program in 1983; he was elected to PGA Membership in 1987. He worked at Leisure World Golf Club, Montgomery Village Golf Club and Chevy Chase Club as an Assistant Professional. Dolan served as the Head Professional at South Seas Plantation on Captiva Island, Fla.; Hidden Valley Resort in Somerset, Pa. (1987-1992); and Lakewood Country Club in Rockville, Md. (1992-1994). He then succeeded the legendary “Coach” Bill Strausbaugh at Columbia Country Club in 1995 and moved to Professional Emeritus at the end of 2022 after 28 years as Head PGA Professional. Dolan has received numerous awards at both the Section and National PGA level. Middle Atlantic Section accomplishments include the 1996 President’s Award, 1997 PGA Professional of the Year, 1998 Junior Golf Leader, 1999 and 2010 Bill Strausbaugh Award, 2004 Professional Development Award and 2011 Merchandiser of the Year (Private). National PGA Awards include the 2000 Youth Player Development Award and the 2011 Bill Strausbaugh Award. He is one of the very few PGA Professionals to win two or more National Awards. Bob has held all of the offices in the Middle Atlantic Section, including serving as Section President in 2002-2003. He has served on the Employment, Government Relations and Special Awards Committees of the PGA of America and is a regular attendee at PGA Annual Meetings.
Don Wegrzyn, PGA
Illinois PGA Section
Wegrzyn started his career in golf as a caddie in 1947 at the Onwentsia Club. He began working at the Old Elm Club in 1952, where he advanced from front door attendant to interim General Manager and Director of Golf in the 47 years he spent there. Wegrzyn also served as a managing general partner of The Lakes Golf Club in Virginia. Later, he became President and Director of Golf Development for Old Mill Creek Saddle & Golf Club. A PGA Member since 1962, Wegrzyn became a PGA Master Professional in 1994. While a PGA Board Member representing District 6, he served as the Education Chairman then later as the Member Service Chairman, sitting on a number of other PGA of America national committees. Wegrzyn was on the Illinois PGA Board from 1972-1987, serving as President in 1980-81. He also served as an instructor and coordinator of numerous education activities, including Rules of Golf and Business Schools. Wegryzn organized and operated a junior golf program that would later become The First Tee of Northeastern Illinois. Wegrzyn, a three-time Illinois Section PGA Professional Development Award winner (formally the Horton Smith Award), was voted Illinois PGA Professional of the Year in 1980, was elected to the Northern Illinois University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992, the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame in 1999, received The First Tee Leadership Award in 2004 and has had a scholarship named in his honor from the Old Elm Club.
Herb Wimberly, PGA
Sun Country PGA Section
In 1962, Wimberly was hired as the New Mexico State University (NMSU) men’s Head Golf Coach and stayed for 31 years. Rich Beem, Larry Beem, Bart Bryant and Tom Byrum are a few notable golfers who played for Herb. During this time he was named Coach of the Year six times by the Missouri Valley Conference and once by the Big West Conference. He served as the President of the Southwest Section of the PGA (NM Chapter) and was one of the Founding Fathers of the Sun Country Section of the PGA. Elected as President in 1974 he was, at the time, the first person to ever serve as President for two different Sections. Wimberly was one of the forefathers of the College Golf Coaches Association of America, serving as its President from 1972-1973. In 1987, alongside his brother Guy Wimberly, he was instrumental in the creation of the Professional Golf Management Program at NMSU. He served as the Co-Director until 1993, when he retired. Herb now joins his brother Guy as a PGA of America Hall of Fame Member.
PGA of America Past President Category
Suzy Whaley, PGA
South Florida Section
PGA Past President and Master Professional Suzy Whaley is the President of Golf Nation, one of GOLF’s “Top 100 Teachers in America” and a commentator for ESPN. After serving two-year terms as both PGA Secretary and PGA Vice President, Whaley became the first woman elected to serve as PGA President in 2018. She steered the Association through the onset of the global pandemic, leading to the establishment of the nearly $8 million Golf Emergency Relief Fund for golf industry personnel in need and an unprecedented growth in rounds played, using social distancing protocols established in conjunction with the CDC and Back2Golf. A dual member of the PGA of America and LPGA Teaching & Club Professional division, Whaley was a LPGA Tour member in 1990 and 1993. She famously qualified and participated in the 2003 Greater Hartford Open, becoming the first woman since Babe Zaharias in 1945 to qualify for a PGA Tour event. This occurred after Whaley became the first PGA of America woman professional to win the Connecticut PGA Championship. A 2022 Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame inductee, she is also a Connecticut Golf Sports Hall of Fame and Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame member.
Tour Player Professional Category
Kathy Whitworth, LPGA (Posthumous)
LPGA Tour Professional
It is one of the most famous records in golf: 88 victories over a span of 23 years, an average of 3.8 victories per season starting with the Kelly Girl Open in 1962 and ending with the United Virginia Bank Classic in 1985. In those three decades, Whitworth surpassed the victory totals of Mickey Wright (82) and Sam Snead (82) to lodge herself atop the category of most tournament victories by a professional, man or woman. Born in Monahans, Texas, Whitworth grew up in Jal, N.M. She got her first set of clubs from her grandmother and started playing golf at 15. Two years later, Whitworth won the first of two consecutive New Mexico State Amateur titles. Her start on the LPGA Tour was less than auspicious. She played 26 events as a rookie and made less than $1,300. After playing so poorly, Whitworth considered quitting, but a visit to Harvey Penick convinced her to keep going. Between 1962 and 1982, she won 82 LPGA titles and in 1983 reached 84 official professional golf victories at the Women’s Kemper Open with a 40-foot putt on the 72nd hole. In 1985, she recorded her last official victory and the 88th of her career at the United Virginia Bank Classic on May 12. She was the LPGA Tour’s leading money winner eight times, LPGA Player of the Year seven times and a seven-time winner of the Vare Trophy, the most in LPGA history. Whitworth has been Inducted into the LPGA Tour and World Golf Halls of Fame, New Mexico Hall of Fame, Texas Sports and Golf Hall of Fame and the Women’s Sports Foundation Hall of Fame. In 2006 she was named the PGA of America’s First Lady of Golf, and in 2023 she was given an honorary membership to the Northern Texas PGA posthumously.
PGA of America Ambassador Category
Jim Nantz
CBS Sports
Nantz, a member of the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame and the youngest to ever be inducted into both the Pro Football and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, is a three-time Emmy Award winner and five-time National Sportscaster of the Year since joining CBS in 1985. Nantz has been the lead play-by-play voice for THE NFL ON CBS since 2004. In 2024, Nantz will call his seventh Super Bowl – Super Bowl LVIII from Las Vegas, Nev. This year marked Nantz’s 36th covering NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball. Nantz has called play-by-play on more network broadcasts of the Final Four and Championship game than any other announcer in the tournament’s history. In addition to being the lead play-by-play announcer for the Network’s NFL and college basketball games, Nantz anchors CBS’s golf coverage, having joined the CBS Sports golf team in 1986. Nantz has hosted broadcasts of the Masters since 1988 and the PGA Championship since 1991, and served as anchor of the biennial Presidents Cup in 1994 and 1996. In 2007, Nantz became the first commentator in history to complete the rare broadcasting three-feat – calling the Super Bowl, the NCAA Men’s Final Four and the Masters, all in a span of 63 days. Nantz once again repeated this trifecta in 2010, 2013 and 2016. In 2019 and 2021, Nantz completed an even rarer quintet, calling the AFC Championship, Super Bowl, Final Four, Masters and PGA Championship in a span of 120 days.
For a full list of PGA of America Hall of Fame Members, click here.