ATLANTA, GA – Joshua Deal, PGA General Manager at Bobby Jones Golf Course in Atlanta was elected the 29th president of the Georgia Section, PGA of America on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, at the Georgia PGA Annual Meeting held at The Classic Center in downtown Athens.
Deal is a graduate of the University of Connecticut (2009) and the Professional Golfers Career College (2011). He was elected to PGA membership in 2016. He has been General Manager at Bobby Jones Golf Course since March of 2022 while simultaneously serving as the Vice President of Operations for Bobby Jones Links, a PGA member founded Club Management organization headquartered in Alpharetta. Deal will also serve as the President of the PGA REACH Georgia Foundation. His wife Leann and their two children reside in Buford.
Elizabeth Clarkson, PGA General Manager at The Chimneys Golf Course in Winder was elected as Secretary of the Georgia Section. Clarkson is the first female to be elected as an officer of the Georgia PGA. She has been on the Board of Directors for the last year and is the co-chair of the Employment and Mentorship Committee. She is a native of Braselton and graduated from the University of Georgia where she competed on the women’s golf team. She resides in Braselton with husband, and fellow PGA Professional Gary, and their two young children.
Mike Miller, PGA Head Golf Professional at Big Canoe Golf Club, was elected as the next Vice President of the Georgia Section. Miller has been on the Executive Committee for the past two years as the Secretary in addition to chairing the Georgia PGA Fundraising Committee. Miller also served as the Mayor of Flowery Branch from 2010 – 2021. He resides in Flowery Branch with his wife Diane and two sons.
Outgoing President, Cary Brown, PGA General Manager at Valdosta Country Club, will now serve as Honorary President of the Georgia Section before beginning his service as District-13 Director for the PGA of America. Brown will serve in the National Boardroom beginning in November of 2025 where he will represent 4,647 PGA Professionals working in the Georgia, North Florida, and South Florida PGA Sections. This is the largest constituency of PGA Professionals amongst the 14 Districts. Brown, a Columbus native and Auburn grad, will shadow the current District-13 Director for one year prior to his service at the National level. He resides in Valdosta with his wife Farrar and their daughter.
Additionally, three At-Large Directors were elected to the Board of Directors. Nick Bailes, PGA Director of Golf at Country Club of the South in Johns Creek, Glenn Scapin, PGA Head Golf Professional at Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, and Jabir Bilal, PGA Director of Instruction at Crystal Lake Golf & Country Club in Hampton. They will all serve a three-year term.
About the Georgia PGA
The Georgia PGA is one of 41 Sections of the PGA of America. Its membership includes 970 PGA professionals working at over 300 golf courses, clubs, retail stores, and ranges throughout the state. Additionally, more than 25 Georgia PGA members compete on one of the PGA Tours. In keeping with the fundamental objectives laid down by its founders, one of the Georgia PGA’s primary goals is promoting the game of golf through clinics, junior and minority golf programs, consumer programs, and print, radio, and television media.
CONTACT:
Michael Rakowski
Director of Communications
Georgia Section, PGA of America
mrakowski@pgahq.com
O: 678.461.8600
F: 678.461.0500
