ELMSFORD, N.Y. (February 12, 2013) - The new issue of The Met Golfer has a profile story on new PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua, who was hired in November 2012. Bevacqua, a native of Bedford, N.Y., got his start in golf as a caddie at Bedford Golf & Tennis Club, and in this exclusive interview with Met Golfer editor Greg Midland, he discusses how growing up in the Met Area shaped his appreciation for the game and inspired him to pursue his career path.

Q: Congratulations on your new role. How have the last two months been for you?
A: It has been incredibly busy but unbelievably exciting. Beacuse of the relationship I’ve had with the game since such an early age, this job is literally a dream come true.

Q: What are your goals for your first year in the job?
A: I would tell you that I said from the outset that we need a long-term strategic plan but simultaneously a short-term strategic plan, especially in that first year. Right out of the gate, I want to improve communications with our members and make it as efficient and effective as possible. I want a healthy back and forth, so we’re not just communicating to our members but seeking information from our members. I think re-establishing a priority that we are here to represent the needs of those 27,000 PGA members. Every decision we make, every stance we take on issues, we always have to be aware that we basically work for those members—we represent them and are their voice in the industry.
   I think two things that have happened already will help us: Promoting Darrell Crall and naming him our COO. To me that was very important and something I was very vocal about early on. So if you look at the critical areas that we have, which are Golf 2.0 (growing minority participation, Get Golf Ready, etc.) and then of course the unbelievable importance of our membership, Darrell brings such credibility to both of those. First, he’s a Duke scholarship golfer, he was an Executive Director at the section level, and he was one of the major architects of Golf 2.0 and Get Golf Ready. And putting him in the COO position signals that they are critical priorities. And then you look at what else is of the fabric and the essence of what we do, it’s championships, the most visible of which are the PGA and Ryder Cup. So elevating Kerry Haigh to the role of Championship Officer says that he is critical to the game and that we’re going to make better, smarter, more informed decisions with Kerry at the table. So those are some early moves we’ve made that we’re already proud of.

Q: What kind of reception have you received so far from PGA professionals?
A: It's been very good. I spent a lot of time at our Annual Meeting [last November] talking to so many of our members, and addressed the full group along with Ted Bishop, our president, and it really has been just a warm reception. I think the membership as a whole understands that I love the game, that I’m passionate about the game, knowledgeable about the game, and as I said to the group at the meeting, I learned so much about the game from Walt Ronan at Bedford Golf & Tennis and all the years I worked there and worked for him.

Q: What in your view is the state of the game right now, and what can be done to help make things better?
A: The state of the game is fine. And fine, meaning it’s not terrific but it’s also not in dire straits. It’s relatively healthy and we’re in a good position. But golf needs to grow. We need to get more people involved in the game, and we need to get more diversity and minority participation. We need to be cognizant of the way society and culture are changing and make sure golf stays ahead of the curve, or at least keeps up with those changes. We have to be aware of the fact that we represent those PGA members, those business owners, athletes, teachers, psychiatrists, rules officials, and it’s such a unique profession. We need to be aware that small and medium-size businesses are facing challenges, and therefore our members are facing challenges. This is a critical time and golf needs to better position itself for future growth. More women, more minorities, more exposure to the game. And we need to realize that people’s time is more precious than ever. The competition for their disposable income is more intense than ever. Research shows that golf is hard and that there are time issues, and we need to be aware of the weaknesses and the challenges, and to combat those and come up with solutions.

Q: Whether it’s through the setup of major championship courses or efforts to grow the game, the PGA seems to have been on a roll lately. How do you keep it going?
A: Certainly we need to carry on that momentum. That’s why it’s so important that we have the most senior staff working at the most critical positions of the organization. Growing the game and championships are so important. PGA Championships have continued to elevate themselves. I’m certainly biased, but I think the Ryder Cup is the most exciting event in golf and arguably one of the most exciting events in all of sports. It’s only going to continue to grow in scale, scope and importance. So it’s an exciting time for the PGA of America, and frankly for all of golf, but we can’t get carried away with the success. We have to be mindful of the challenges out there, and if we’re not focused on those challenges, all of this success and momentum could be lost.

Q: How much of your job is in the office and how much will involve traveling around the country?
A: I'm still figuring that out, but it’s critical to me that I spend a significant amount of time in the office. Certainly, as CEO I need to be out visiting with our sections and visiting with the golf industry at the critical events in the calendar year, but it’s also important that I’m spending the needed time here and getting things done and interacting and understanding what our staff is doing with all times. I think the travel issue is another example of why the COO role is so important. While I’m on the road, Darrell can handle things in the office, and vice versa.

Q: Most importantly, what are your plans to turn around the U.S.’s recent Ryder Cup performances?
A: I think we started that with naming Tom Watson the next captain. Ted Bishop, our president, walked me through the rationale behind that selection. We had a great conversation about that and showed me the statistics and the data, and when you think about the fact that Watson was the last U.S. captain to win on foreign soil, and then you think about the type of competitor he is, his place in the game, and then you need to acknowledge that since the early 20th century that no one had even approached the success he had in Scotland. And so it became apparent that Tom Watson was the perfect choice for this particular Ryder Cup in 2014 at Gleneagles.

Q: Tell us about how growing up in the Met Area has molded you as a person.
A: Certainly it’s such a golf-rich area and the golf in the area is so amazing. Having played and worked and growing up at Bedford, playing countless rounds with my dad and friends at Bethpage, at Mohansic, having the opportunities through high school golf to play courses like Stanwich and Yale, you are just bombarded with the tradition and history and heritage and the unbelievable number of quality courses, private and public. It’s like nothing else. And then always being an aspiring competitive golfer and trying to qualify for the Met Open and Met Am and the Ike, and interacting with the MGA. I grew up a combination of in awe and in fear of Gene Westmoreland [laughs], and it’s funny now he’s a dear friend. I would see Gene and immediately get nervous thinking about trying to qualify for one of those championships. One year, I think I was trying to qualify for the Ike, it must have been 1991 and 1992, and I had one of the worst cars of all time, the Cadillac Cimarron, and my dad and my friend Larry and I were driving up to Grossingers for a qualifier and the engine seized. That didn’t deter us, though. My father called a tow truck and I was up in the front and they were both riding in the Cadillac being towed, and we pulled into Grossingers, and Gene saw me, and I think he realized the nature of the hardship and he didn’t penalize me. He put me in a later group that was open. But the combination of the courses, the tradition, the number of great golfers, both amateurs and professionals, add up to it being such a great place to interact with the game.

Q: Who first introduced you to golf, and did you take to the game right away?
A: My father. His passion for the game rubbed off on me. He and I played thousands of rounds of golf together. He introduced me to it, taught me, encouraged me to caddie as a summer job, dropped me off at Bedford every morning. Certainly he was the primary factor in me loving the game and being involved with the game, by a mile. And then certainly Walt Ronan, in terms of the other side of the game, the business of the game, the culture of the game, Walt was such a great influence.

Q: You started as a caddie at Bedford Golf & Tennis Club and eventually took on other roles. What does the club mean to you?
A: It’s golf in my youth. I equate it with the innumerable rounds I caddied there, the times I had in the golf shop with colleagues and the interactions with members, and the countless Mondays of playing that course with my father, walking 18, 36, sometimes 54 holes. He’d always carry his Notre Dame golf bag and I’d carry mine and we’d just play round after round after round. Then as I got older and worked at the golf shop, every day at 6:00 we’d shut down the range and close things down and a bunch of us in the shop would head out there and play these great 18-hole matches. It’s such a beautiful place, and one of the guys I’m closest to is [head superintendent] Bob Nielsen, and to see the changes to this great Devereaux Emmet course and the way they’ve made the back nine more difficult…it has such a special place in my heart because it reminds me of everything I did when I was growing up.

Q: You and your family have longstanding ties to the Met Area. Was it difficult to decide to move to Florida?
A: Absolutely. I love the Met Area for a host of reasons, golf being toward the top of that list. You have the best of both worlds because of the serenity of towns like Bedford and the closeness to the city. But this job and this role was literally a dream come true, but after thinking about it for a few minutes it was a fairly easy decision. But we’ll always love the Met Area.

Q: You were an accomplished athlete at the Brunswick School in Greenwich. What was it like to go to Notre Dame, and did you consider going anywhere else?
A: First, I want to make clear that I absolutely was not recruited by Notre Dame, not even for a second! I was a decent high school quarterback, looked at by some schools, all-league football, basketball and golf. Brunswick was a great place to play all those sports.

Q: Do you get back to Notre Dame often? How many games do you typically attend every year?
A: I get back at least once a year. I have four older sisters, and my one sister lives about a mile from campus and she and her husband, who is a professor, work for Notre Dame. They have kids and we get out there to visit them and go to a game. My family, golf and Notre Dame are huge parts of my lfe.

Q: How excited were you to attend the national championship game?
A: It was great until the game started! But it was a great season and we're certainly headed in the right direction, so all of that is exciting.

- Greg Midland