Press Release

JOHN PETRIE TO BE NEW CHIEF EXECUTIVE
OF ENGLISH GOLF UNION

John Petrie has been appointed by the Board of the English Golf Union as its Chief Executive Officer to succeed Paul Baxter on his retirement in February 2008.
Mr Petrie will take up his new role on January 2 and will work alongside Mr Baxter to ensure a smooth handover.
Until May of this year John was General Secretary of the British Greyhound Racing Board where he developed and introduced a five-year strategic plan for the industry, which obtained support from all stakeholders. He is currently Executive Director at the Aegis Trust, which is a charity focused on the prevention of genocide and crimes against humanity.
Aged 48 and born in Bradford, John served for 18 years in the army from 1985 to 2003, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. During his service he held a series of command and international army staff appointments in which he was involved in operations in East Timor, Sierra Leone, Iraq and the Balkans.
He was awarded the MBE for leading a strategic planning and policy unit for international policing operations in the Balkans and the Queens Commendation for Bravery for action in East Timor.
In 2000 he was given responsibility as Project Officer to organise The Queen Mother’s 100th Birthday celebrations.
An all-round sports fan, John has competed at national level in swimming and modern pentathlon and played representative cricket and rugby. He took up golf at the Northcliffe Golf Club in Bradford, his lowest handicap being 14. He continued to play golf around the world during his various overseas postings and became the 1st Armoured Division Champion during his posting to Germany in 1988.
Speaking about his appointment, John said: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining the EGU. Golf is a fantastic game and I am excited to be getting involved in the administration of the sport.”
John has been married to Jo for 23 years and has two sons, Harry, 18 and Guy, 17, both of whom play golf. He has a BA (Hons) in Business Studies from Liverpool University, a BA (Hons) Democracy and International Relations from the Open University, and has a Graduate Diploma in Law from Nottingham University.
Max Kaye, Chairman of the EGU Board commented, "We are delighted that John is joining us. He brings a wealth of organisational and planning experience, is clearly skilled in diplomacy and benefits from having worked within a national sports governing body. We are sure he will bring leadership and vision to the EGU's future development and growth."