Mark E. Darnell
Mark E. Darnell, a PGA Master Professional, was born in Indianapolis, Ind. At age 14, Mr. Darnell was one of the youngest Eagle Scouts in the country. At Purdue University, he was selected as an All-American and captained the golf team that won the NCAA Team Championship and two Big-10 Championships. During one NCAA Championship, Mr. Darnell was medalist runner-up to Jack Nicklaus. Mr. Darnell was named Head Golf Professional at West Lake Country Club in the fall of 1968, and served as the club's Head Golf Professional for 34 years. In the process of becoming a nationally recognized leader in the golf industry, Mr. Darnell has conducted over 250 educational seminars and workshops throughout the United States and Canada. He was awarded the PGA's National Horton Smith Award, an award given to an individual PGA golf professional for outstanding and continuing contributions to golf education. Mr. Darnell won another major PGA award when he was named the National PGA Merchandiser of the Year. The West Lake Country Club Golf Shop was named one of America's 100 best for 10 consecutive years. As an icon of the industry, Mr. Darnell was selected to become the principal author of the PGA Merchandise Manual. Mr. Darnell has trained 22 assistants who have become Head Golf Professionals.

Mark E. Darnell was inducted into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame on
January 8, 2000.