Scott Simmons, the man who has led the governing body of golf in this country for the past decade, is stepping down. Simmons will transition out of his job as chief executive officer of Golf Canada in February 2017. 

“I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Simmons said in a conference call, “but this is the time to step down and pursue the next chapter of my career.”

Under his tenure, the organization went from being the Royal Canadian Golf Association to Golf Canada, after a significant corporate rebrand.  

As well, it went from being simply a governing body to the National Sports Federation for golf with ties to funding and support from the federal government ahead of golf’s inclusion in the Rio Olympics. 

Simmons also oversaw a change in the governance model, streamlining the board of directors from 35 to 11. He leaves with new sponsorship agreements in place for both the RBC Canadian Open and the CP Canadian Women’s Open that run through 2023 and 2018 respectively. 

When asked what of what he is most proud, Simmons pointed to the PGA Tour victory on Monday by Mackenzie Hughes as an example of how the development of golf in Canada has grown under his watch. 

“Seeing the Golf Canada logo on his sleeve, was really special,” said Simmons. “And that pointed to our strong development program that extends from our Golf in Schools program that’s in 3,000 schools through the Long Term Player Development right up to the Young Pro program, none of which was around 10 years ago. It’s all been built with the help of our staff and partners.”

Simmons took over in 2007 when the association was suffering from a lack of sponsorship for its major events and a weakened leadership position. It was floundering in corporate Canada and looking for a renewed mandate with golfers. Simmons managed to bring new life into the organization by cleaning house as well as initiating new programs. 

While there have been many wins during his tenure such as the development programs and the new-look Golf Canada, Simmons has also struggled to find a revenue model for the association which has seen a decline in members and battled through a number of significant year-end losses, including more than $2 million combined the last two years. The association has had to dip into its reserve fund, created from the sale of Glen Abbey in 1998, to keep operating costs balanced. 

Simmons did say the association will announce a surplus for 2016 at its annual meeting in January. 

The search for a new leader will begin immediately, said Golf Canada president Roland Deveau. Simmons said the new leader’s biggest task will be to continue to build the partnerships with provincial associations, and other golf governing bodies, both Canadian and international.

Whoever takes over that position will be in a difficult spot. In years gone by, much of the association’s revenue came from golf club members who paid dues. But those numbers have gone down drastically as fewer golfers join clubs and those who aren’t members don’t see a benefit in paying to become a member. Other financial streams such as selling logoed clothing and public player memberships have not gone well despite earnest efforts.