YOUTH PLAYER DEVELOPMENT AWARD
Steven Prater, PGA
Roanoke Country Club, Roanoke, Virginia
Steve was born July 21, 1957 in Radford, Virginia to Jack and Betty Joe Prater. He has a younger
brother and sister. Jack was a football coach at Virginia Tech, University of Miami, and College
of William and Mary so the family moved a lot. Steve learned to play golf when his dad was
coaching at Virginia Tech in the 1960s and would drop him off at the school's golf course, under
head golf professional Earl Spicer, when he went to work. After a football injury in eighth grade
Steve was told he couldn't play football anymore; he decided to turn to other sports and chose golf
and basketball. Steve was one of the youngest juniors to qualify for the Men's VSGA State
Amateur when he was fourteen. He attended Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green,
Kentucky on a golf scholarship and played on the intramural championship basketball team. While
at Western Kentucky University Steve was asked to play on the school's Junior Varsity basketball
team, but he decided to focus on golf.
Steve began working at Brandermill Country Club in Midlothian, Virginia in 1977 as PGA
Professional Tommy Wine’s cart and bagroom attendant. He worked summers as a first assistant
at Misquamicut Club in Watch Hill, Rhode Island from 1981 to 1983 and as a second assistant in
the winters at Jupiter Island Club in Hobe Sound, Florida from 1981 to 1985. He declared his
professional status in 1983. Steve also worked summers as a first assistant at Country Club of
Fairfield in Fairfield, Connecticut from 1984 to 1986. He was elected to PGA membership in
1986. From 1986 to 1994, Steve worked as an Assistant PGA Professional and then PGA Teaching
Professional at Sailfish Point Golf Club in Stuart, Florida. He then moved to the Head PGA
Professional position at Blacksburg Country Club in Blacksburg, Virginia. In 2006, Steve
accepted the Head PGA Professional job at Roanoke Country Club.
In 1993, while at Sailfish Point, Steve developed and produced The Circular World of Golf
Instruction Video. He has also produced brochures on the secret to the golf swing and, in 1996,
developed The Circular World of Golf Junior Academy including logos for Blacksburg Country
Club's junior golf program.
Steve attributes his success to hard work; wanting to make his club proud of him by being a good
person, a good family man, and a trusted friend; and to running a golf operation that offers
programs, events, and daily operations that satisfy the membership. His teaching skills are his best
asset - he's been a teaching professional for over twenty years averaging 2000 lessons a year. Steve
has nine junior golfers ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard and attributes their success over the past
few years to the developmental instruction he provided.
Steve and his wife, Elaine, have been married for 16 years. They met during Steve's term at
Sailfish Point; Elaine was the club's social secretary and executive secretary to the general
manager. They have six children: Jack Prater, 13, a 1-handicap golfer ranked in the top 60 in the
2011 class; Samantha Prater, 15; Daniel Eveleth, 21; Julie Eveleth, 23; Chad Eveleth, 25; and
Kristina Williams, 30. Steve is thankful for Elaine’s patience and believes wives are often
