Mike Whan Wikipedia, USGA, Salary, Wife, Net Worth
Mike Whan Wikipedia, USGA, Salary, Wife, Net Worth – Mike Whan, the CEO of the United States Golf Association (USGA), recently revisited Coldstream Country Club, a place that played a significant role in his early passion for golf. Returning after nearly 40 years, Whan, an Anderson High School graduate, couldn’t help but laugh and reflect on how much the club had changed since his youth.
Mike Whan went back to the site of the first golf job after 40 years
Having spent 95% of his adult life immersed in the golf industry, Whan’s career includes notable stints at Wilson Sporting Goods, TaylorMade Golf Company, the LPGA, and now the USGA. On this particular Friday, the memories came flooding back as he drove down Asbury Road in Cincinnati. Everything felt familiar, yet different, sparking recollections of his youth and the experiences that shaped his journey.
Whan’s fond memories include the time he shocked himself while working on a pump near a lake, only to wake up moments later on his back. Another vivid memory was an encounter with a hornet’s nest while cutting fairway aprons. The furious hornets chased him into the lake, and despite severe swelling from the stings, Whan was determined not to miss a Jimmy Buffett concert later that night. “I wasn’t missing the concert,” he laughed.
Before moving to Cincinnati as a high school sophomore, Whan had caddied in Illinois. Eager for a job on a local grounds crew, he was introduced to Coldstream Superintendent Cal Gruber. Gruber took him to a barn filled with the equipment necessary for maintaining a golf course, but it was all off-limits to the newcomer.
“He (Gruber) goes, ‘Here’s my deal with all my people. You have to make it through one summer as a bunker boy. If you don’t quit, then next year I’ll teach you to ride all that stuff,’” Whan recalled.
Like many high school students, Whan spent his summers working in the sand. From 5:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., he edged, weeded, and raked bunkers, working on drainage in between. “It’s a miserable experience. It’s tough, hourly work,” Whan said, noting that he worked there every summer until he graduated from college.
Fast forward to today, being the USGA CEO comes with its perks. Just a week ago, Whan enjoyed birdies on 9 and 12 at Augusta before the Masters. Reflecting on his early years, he reminisced about the free golf he played in the evenings at Coldstream and the weekly competitions with other grounds crews.
Whan would tee off at 4:50 p.m. on weekdays, completing 18 holes before supper. Playing at local courses like Hyde Park and Camargo, he would impress his father with his skills. “I got to play all these courses that probably wouldn’t have me as a member,” he said. “Those were two great perks as a young kid.”
After graduating from Miami Ohio in 1987, Whan took a job at Procter & Gamble as the brand manager for Crest Toothpaste. However, a recruiting call from Wilson Sporting Goods’ golf division lured him away. “I remember my dad saying, ‘You don’t leave P&G for Wilson. Play golf on the weekends, but have a real job,’” Whan said. But his passion for golf overrode the cautionary advice. “I love P&G, but it’s hard to get passionate about tartar control. I can get passionate about golf.”
This decision reignited Whan’s career in golf, leading to a unique journey across different facets of the industry. Starting on the manufacturing side at Wilson, he later guided the LPGA to unprecedented growth as its commissioner from 2010 to 2021. Embracing international talent and securing million-dollar TV deals, he helped increase the number of tournaments, purses, and the sport’s overall popularity.
Now in governance with the USGA, Whan works to advance, sustain, and make golf more accessible, overseeing a game that is 50% bigger than it was a decade ago. “Usually, people in golf are in equipment, tour work, or governance, but nobody is in all three,” Whan said. “It’s a really weird career path.”
Whan’s love for golf traces back to his Cincinnati days. Watching a grounds crew prepare a hole for a tournament fascinated him, and those early experiences had a profound impact. “I learned to love the game here,” he said, acknowledging that those long hours on hot summer days were more significant than he realized at the time.
Reflecting on his journey, Whan’s passion and dedication to golf have undeniably shaped his career, leading him to the top of the USGA and a lasting influence on the sport.
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