John Kennedy’s contributions to the game of golf, the PGA, and the Met Section are innumerable. Kennedy spent the majority of his 45-year career as the Director of Golf at Westchester Country Club, a position that thrust him into a leadership role of one of the largest, most active clubs in the United States while hosting 18 PGA Tour events and the inaugural KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Kennedy took advantage of his status as a PGA Professional emulated by his peers, making it his mission to elevate the status of the club he served and the golf professionals in the Met Section. Where it is viewed as a career defining moment for a PGA Professional to be recognized for contributions in a specific area, Kennedy has won every major Section award (some multiple times) for impacting all aspects of the golf profession in the Met Section. For his work with education, mentorship, governance, junior golf, military veterans, and so much more, Kennedy was recognized by the Section with: 1983 & 1991 Merchandiser of the Year Awards, 1985, 1988, & 2009 Horton Smith Award, 1997 PGA Professional of the Year Award, 2005 & 2014 Bill Strausbaugh Award, and the 2012 Patriot Award. Additionally, Kennedy was honored by the PGA of America as the National recipient of the: 2010 Horton Smith, 2012 Patriot, and 2017 Bill Strausbaugh Awards. Kennedy’s contributions also included: serving three terms on the Section’s Board of Directors, over 20 years as a member (many as chairman) of the Education Committee, over 20 years as a member of the Employment & Club Relations Committee, host of Junior Golf Schools, annual Girls to the Tee Clinic, as well as a wide variety of events that have supported the Section, women professionals, juniors and various golf related charities and programs. Starting in 2009, Kennedy led a project that amassed a wealth of materials and resources in the creation of the “Head Professional Handbook,” an undertaking intended to assist recently appointed head professionals with the transition to a new position. John is also the author of two books about golf and life lessons that can be learned through the game. In 2014, Westchester Country Club named their newly constructed learning center the John Kennedy Learning Center – a lasting honor for their long time professional.