Emily Palmer

Emily Palmer joined the USGA in 2012 and became the Chief Member Services Officer in late 2021. In this role, Emily is responsible for the USGA-Allied Golf Association relationships and services; USGA committee relationships and assignments; the USGA Green Section; USGA Transformational Initiatives and serving as the Executive Committee Liaison for the senior leadership team.

Emily has been with the USGA since 2012, when she joined the organization as the senior director for regional affairs. She later served as Chief of Staff, where she worked closely with the Executive Leadership Team and the Executive Committee on strategic initiatives across the Association and in service to the game.

Previously, Emily was a staff member at the Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) from 2003 to 2011. As SCGA director of club services, she counseled the SCGA board and executive staff, administered the club delegate program, handled amateur status inquiries, organized SCGA member outings and managed the SCGA member advantage program. From 2007-11, she also served as managing director of the International Association of Golf Administrators, representing more than 100 state, regional and national golf associations, the IAGA board of directors and other golf industry leaders.

Emily has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Northern Arizona University where she was a member of the Lumberjacks’ golf team from 1999-2003. Upon graduating, she was awarded a USGA P.J. Boatwright Jr. internship. She and her husband live in Bedminster, N.J.

Jill Headley

Jill Headley is Vice President at Buffalo Agency, a full-service marketing agency specializing in golf and golf-adjacent industries. In her role, she leads Client Strategy and Service teams to develop and execute integrated marketing plans for global brand leaders including the USGA, LPGA, ECCO Golf, Omni Hotels & Resorts and Worldwide Golf Shops.

Leveraging nearly three decades of experience across myriad marketing disciplines, Jill combines broad cross-functional perspective with a deep knowledge of the golf media landscape to build brands and drive results for Buffalo Agency clients. Her work includes marketing and communications initiatives for global golf championships, consumer product launches, eCommerce, advertising campaign development, earned media activations and paid media campaigns.

After graduating cum laude from Wake Forest University where she was a member of the Demon Deacon women’s golf team, Jill began her career at Golf for Women magazine. Prior to joining Buffalo Agency in 2013, she worked as Director of Marketing for Billy Casper Golf, one of the largest golf course management companies in the United States, and Internet Shopping Network, where she was part of the team that launched and built Home Shopping Network’s first eCommerce operations.

In addition to being an active community volunteer, Jill is passionate about girls golf and professional mentorship. She served on the board of the First Tee Greater Washington D.C and the Wake Forest University 50th Anniversary of Women’s Athletics Committee and participated in a variety of female-focused golf industry groups and initiatives.

Jill lives in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband and two college-aged daughters.

Karen Moraghan

Karen Moraghan, President of Hunter Public Relations • Special Events (HUNTER), is a seasoned expert in hospitality marketing and strategy development, a long-time producer of national events, and one of the golf industry’s leading media-relations specialists.

Widely known and respected by industry leaders, the media, and golf executives, Karen’s media-relations strategies have enhanced profits and visibility for an international client roster, which includes golf courses, private clubs, resorts, communities, products, and special events. The firm’s client list reads like a who’s who of golf, propelling HUNTER to land top-level assignments and forge lasting relationships.

Prior to forming HUNTER and opening bi-coastal offices, Karen served as Vice President, Public Relations and Special Events for Pebble Beach Resorts and was Championship Director of the 1992 U.S. Open Championship.

Karen is a member Golf Writers Association of American and Metropolitan Golf Writers Association. She has served on the boards of the Raritan Headwaters Association, the Executive Women’s Golf Association, University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Alumni Association, Golf Kitchen, and ClubsHELP, a national organization that works with clubs to fund raise and support causes in their local communities.

Roberta Bowman

Roberta Bowman has had a distinguished career in business and in golf. Originally from West Hartford, CT, Roberta graduated with honors from Tufts University. She spent most of her business career with Duke Energy in Charlotte, NC, where she progressed through a number of leadership roles, including serving as the company’s first Chief Sustainability Officer. Following her retirement, Roberta served on the LPGA’s Board of Directors from 2011-2017.  At the request of the Commissioner, she had a “second career” with the LPGA as their Chief Brand and Communications Officer from 2018-22. She operates a boutique consulting company, Bowman Strategic Advisors, providing counsel in leadership, corporate strategy and ESG issues.  And, she currently serves as an advisor in private equity as well on the boards of the ANNIKA Foundation, Blue Cross of North Carolina and UPL, a global agrichemical company.

Sarah Hirshland

Sarah Hirshland began her term as chief executive officer of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee in August 2018. As CEO, Hirshland oversees the USOPC in its stewardship as both the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the United States, while leading the organization in delivering on its mission to empower Team USA athletes to achieve competitive excellence and inspire Americans. She also serves as a member of the IOC Olympic Programme Commission and president of the Panam Sports Marketing and TV Commission.Prior to her role at the USOPC, she served as the chief commercial officer for the United States Golf Association after working as the senior managing director for business affairs for USGA. Hirshland was responsible for the company’s global media and content distribution, corporate partnerships, merchandise and licensing, marketing, communications, community outreach and Golfer Handicap Information Network.

Among her accomplishments at the USGA, she established a centralized marketing function, transformed relationships and service offerings with the Allied Golf Associations, oversaw media rights negotiations, secured and managed global partnerships and guided the transformation of tournament management software services.

Prior to joining the USGA in 2011, she was senior vice president for strategic business development at Wasserman Media Group (now Wasserman). She also previously worked in Wasserman’s consulting division, leading the development of sports marketing strategies for clients such as American Express, Nationwide, Nokia, Scotts and Wachovia. In addition, Hirshland has served in key executive positions with sports and entertainment firm OnSport, and sports news and technology company Total Sports.

Hirshland is a graduate of Duke University. She and her husband reside in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and have three children and two grandchildren.

Suzy Whaley

PGA Master Professional Suzy Whaley is the President of Golf Nation, an online and connected TV OTT channel that brings golf lifestyle and premium videos together on a shop-able streaming content platform. She is also one of GOLF’s “Top 100 Teachers in America and as a commentator and television analyst, she will continue to expand golf’s reach around the world with her endeavors.
Whaley became the first woman elected to serve as PGA President in 2018. She steered the Association through the onset of the global pandemic, leading to the establishment of the nearly $8 million Golf Emergency Relief Fund for golf industry personnel in need and an unprecedented growth in rounds played, using social distancing protocols established in conjunction with the CDC and Back2Golf.

Tamera Green

Tamera Green joined Tepper Sports & Entertainment in March 2023 as the Senior Vice President, Chief Communications Officer. In her role, Green oversees public and media relations, brand marketing, digital media and broadcasting for the organization and its properties.

Green has more than three decades of experience in strategic marketing, communications and sports-related marketing. She comes to the Panthers from VIRIDIAN Marketing, a company she founded in 2012, where she won a “Crowns of Enterprise” award from the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. Previously, Green held leadership roles with GMR Marketing and IMG, directing marketing and communications efforts for clients including Gillette, Best Buy, HBO, Cintas, VISA, Comcast and Coca-Cola.

Green is a member of The Sports Business Journal’s inaugural class of “Game Changers: Women in Sports Business.” She was named “40 Under 40” by the Charlotte Business Journal and was selected as a “Woman Extraordinaire” by Business Leader Media.