Stafford, Va. – For his unwavering dedication and service in the Middle Atlantic PGA for almost 20 years, Matthew Schulze has been named the 2017 Professional of the Year, the highest honor paid to an active PGA Professional. Matthew currently serves as the 47th President of the Middle Atlantic PGA.
Matthew Schulze was born to Robert Schulze, Sr. and Mary Schulze in Oak Lawn, Illinois on July 22, 1972. Matthew is the second of four children: Robert Jr. (Robb) his senior, MaryElizabeth and Jonathan his junior. Golf was an integral part of family life as long as Matthew can remember. He and Robb would hit balls and play golf on the local course available through the family back yard. His first job was picking range balls at this course when he was fourteen years old. Matthew played golf on his high school golf team, which won the conference title three times in four years. Matthew was awarded a full golf scholarship to the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay, where he played collegiate golf all four years.
After graduating from UW-Green Bay with a Bachelor of Business degree in December 1994, Matthew worked as an Assistant Professional at a few clubs in Dallas, TX while pursuing his PGA membership. In 1998, Matthew and Lucie relocated to the Middle Atlantic section where he served as the Assistant Professional at The Country Club of Virginia for six years. During this tenure, he started participating in the section and was elected to the southern chapter board to represent the assistants. In 1999, he was elected to PGA membership; In 2002, he received the section’s Assistant of the Year award.
With this experience, Matthew earned the Head Professional position at Richmond Country Club (RCC) where he worked from 2004 through 2013. During this time, he received the specialty certification in Golf Operations, one of the first 100 professionals to do so. As the Head Pro, Matthew knew the importance of keeping things fresh for his membership and the importance to try new things. In 2011, he and the facility were ranked in the Top 100 Facilities in the PGA for Growing the Game, due to his commitment to run each of the PGA’s “Grow the Game” offerings at RCC.
In 2008, Matthew spearheaded the Eagle Classic Tournament, an LPGA Symmetra Tour event, at RCC. This tournament, frequently called one of the best on the Symetra Tour, brought professional golf back to Richmond, creating a venue both for professionals to showcase their talent and for amateur golfers to witness them. The logistics of hosting a professional tournament was an intriguing opportunity for this operations minded professional. It was this experience and the newly found tournament operations passion that lead Matthew to the Tournament Director position for the LPGA Kingsmill Championship at the Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, Virginia, a position he has enjoyed for the past four (4) years. Always looking for ways to grow the game and improve already good golf venues, Matthew worked with a Kingsmill Championship military sponsor to initiate a golf clinic at Fort Eustis the week of the tournament. This expanded the reach of the LPGA players to military families who may not have otherwise had the chance to watch them play while also giving back to those families who serve our country.
Matthew works every day in all aspects of his life to exemplify the PGA of America and the facility that he represents. Whether he’s working at the Kingsmill Championship, observing the excellent play at the Virginia State Open, attending an MAPGA meeting, or watching his children at the PGA Junior League events, Matthew finds a way to serve by sharing his operational expertise, or lending a hand to a fellow professional. Matthew finds most joy in nurturing young golf professionals on their journey to membership. He also has a greater appreciation for the larger golfing community and the importance of all the golf associations, the USGA, the VSGA, and the MAPGA.
Matthew and his wife Lucie reside in Midlothian, Virginia with their son Hogan (13) their daughter Trinity (12), and their black lab Thunder.
Contact:
Ethan Brady
ebrady@pgahq.com
