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About

Preserve the past, support the present, and invest in the future of Georgia golf.

Our Story

Joey Kaney, the man behind mr. stat, started the Georgia Golf Champions Foundation in 2026. Joey has kept a record of Georgia tournament golf since 1996. It has been online at mrstatgolf.com since 2018, with 37,000 results and 15,000 players. The earliest is the 1900 Macon Golf Club championship, won by J. C. Wise. Every Georgia champion worked for that win and deserves to be remembered. Every champion is family to someone who cares.

Tournament golf gave Joey competition, friendships, memories and the chance to be part of something bigger than himself. Thousands of Georgia juniors are falling in love with the game today. They deserve to know who came before them. They deserve the same chances, too. So he started a foundation that would do more than keep the records. We put every open tournament in Georgia on one schedule. We send Georgia juniors to Fellowship of Christian Athletes Golf Georgia summer camps.

Our First Year

We organized in June 2026 with a Board of Georgia golfers. The IRS approved our 501(c)(3) status that August. Our Board Chair, Gregg Wolff, has been Joey's best friend since 1975. mr. stat is our partner. It stays Joey's, free and open to everyone. Our own charitable work goes to the tournament schedule and the camps.

Our first year is about relationships: the clubs, the organizations that run Georgia golf, and an Advisory Council drawn from across the state. This is about all of Georgia. Nobody gets left out.

I have been blessed to have participated in way more than my fair share of those tournaments. We want these juniors to have opportunities to experience the same things that golf has given us.

Joey Kaney, Executive Director

Board of Directors

Gregg Wolff

Board Chair

Metter, Georgia

Gregg was born and raised in Philadelphia and moved to Georgia in 1975 to attend Georgia Southern, where he played on the golf team and was named an NCAA Golf Independent All-American in 1976.

After graduating, Gregg moved to Hilton Head to begin his PGA apprenticeship under instructor Bob Spence at Palmetto Dunes. While there, he assisted Bob Toski, Davis Love Jr. and Peter Kostis with the Golf Digest Instruction Schools, an experience that shaped his own teaching methods and philosophy.

After three years competing on national mini-tours, Gregg took the manager and head professional position at Willow Lake Golf Club in his wife's hometown of Metter in 1981. He held that position for 41 years before retiring to focus on his lifelong passion of teaching others the art of golf at The Gregg Wolff Golf Academy.

In 1990 Gregg became the second person, after DeWitt Weaver, to win the Georgia PGA Grand Slam. He is a seven-time Georgia PGA Player of the Year and was inducted into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame in 1999. He has been a PGA of America member since 1984 and a committee member for the Billy and Shirley Weir Scholarship since 2010.

Gregg is married to Jerri. They have three children and two grandchildren.

John Shurley

Treasurer

St. Simons Island, Georgia

John's hometown is Warrenton, Georgia. He is a graduate of the University of Georgia's Tull School of Accounting.

He started his career with the international firm Ernst & Young and completed it with Warren Averett, a southeast regional firm, where he served as Managing Partner of the Atlanta office. He was a member of the audit division with a concentration in construction, manufacturing, hospitality, nonprofits, forensic accounting and litigation support.

John retired after a 45-year CPA career and moved to St. Simons Island in January 2022. He continues to consult on general business issues on a limited basis.

John and Marcia were longtime residents of Dunwoody and members of Dunwoody United Methodist Church and Dunwoody Country Club, where John retains a non-resident membership. They are active members of Wesley Church at Frederica and the King & Prince Golf Club on St. Simons Island.

John is married to Marcia. They have three children and eight grandchildren.

Jim Foote

Board Member

Gainesville, Georgia

James "Jim" Dean Foote is a lifelong resident of Gainesville, Georgia. He recently retired after 35 years as President and Co-Owner of Milton Martin Honda. Throughout his career, Jim was known for his commitment to customer service, strong community relationships, and leadership in the automotive industry.

Jim has remained active in the Gainesville community through civic and church involvement. He is a past member of the Gainesville Rotary Club and currently serves as a Deacon at Lakewood Baptist Church.

A passionate supporter of the game, Jim established and maintains the Footehills Chip & Putt golf course, where he enjoys introducing and encouraging others in the game. He is a member of Chattahoochee Country Club and was the 2025 Georgia PGA Senior Division Tour Senior Amateur Player of the Year.

Jim is honored to serve on the Board of the Georgia Golf Champions Foundation and looks forward to supporting its mission and its impact on young golfers throughout Georgia.

Jim is married to Malinda. They have three children and twelve grandchildren.

Sissi Gann

Board Member

Kathleen, Georgia

Sissi grew up in Atlanta and attended the University of Georgia. She has been a member of Houston Lake Country Club for 56 years, winning 19 Women's Club Championships.

A GSGA volunteer for 30 years, Sissi has served on the Executive Committee, the Championship Committee and the Hall of Fame Committee, and as a Rules Official. The GSGA awarded her the Bill Todd Award in 2013. She won two USGA National Championships, in 2009 and 2011, while serving as Captain of the Georgia team in the USGA State Team Championships.

Sissi volunteered for the Georgia Women's Golf Association for 12 years in various roles, including President in 2021. She won the GSGA Team Championship four times with Lee Kaney Burton.

Sissi was married to Stan Gann, who has passed away. She has one son and two grandchildren.

Rusty Strawn

Board Member

Eatonton, Georgia

Rusty was born and raised in McDonough, Georgia. He was Owner and CEO of Strawn & Co. Insurance until 2024, when the company was acquired by Oakridge Insurance, and he continues his career in insurance sales. He is Chairman of the Board for United Community Bank in East Metro Atlanta.

Rusty is Co-founder and Chairman of the Reynolds Senior Amateur, an event benefiting junior golf in Georgia.

A scholarship golfer at Alexander City Junior College and Georgia Southern University, Rusty was a two-time TAAC All-Conference selection and the 1993 Georgia Mid-Amateur Champion. In 2022 he won both the United States and Canadian Senior Amateur Championships and was named Global Golf Post World Amateur Player of the Year. He was inducted into the National Senior Golf Hall of Fame in 2025.

Rusty has competed in 19 USGA Championships, nine British Senior Amateur and Open Championships, and three Canadian Senior Amateur Championships, and has represented both the state of Georgia and the United States in numerous team competitions.

Rusty and Jennifer are members of Lakeside Church at Lake Oconee. They have three children and three grandchildren.

Joey Kaney

Executive Director

Warrenton, Georgia

Joey was born and raised in Warrenton, Georgia. A four-year golf letterman at Georgia Southern College, he graduated in 1977 with a degree in General Business. He was an assistant professional at Palmetto Dunes on Hilton Head from 1977 to 1979 and managed Super-Sod in Fort Valley, Georgia from 1983 to 1991.

Joey founded mr. stat, inc. in 1996 and created mrstatgolf.com in 2018. He founded the Georgia Golf Champions Foundation in 2026 and is honored to be named its Executive Director.

As a player, Joey was the 1971 high school state champion, the 1972 Georgia Jaycee Junior Champion and the 1979 Hilton Head Open Champion. He won the 2021 Georgia Super-Senior 4-Ball Championship with John Foster, was the 2024 Georgia Open Super-Senior Co-Champion, and was the 2024 Georgia PGA Senior Division Tour Super-Senior Player of the Year.

Joey served on the Georgia State Golf Association's Historical Preservation Committee from 2022 to 2026.

Joey is married to Marie. They have four children and eight grandchildren.

Advisory Council

Golfers from across Georgia who advise us and put us in front of people we could not reach on our own.

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Be part of the Foundation's first year

Give today and your name joins our first supporters.