Maryland State Golf Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
521326177
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-T 2025
Location
Lutherville, MD, USA
Phone
410-928-7890
Rating
65
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Amateur Sports Competitions

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,278,694
Expenses
$2,494,291
Assets
$3,231,199
Liabilities
$4,966

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SINCLAIR EADDY (PRESIDENT)
  • MIKE HINKEY (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • KELLON NEWLAND (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • KELLON NEWLAND (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $185,561 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To serve, grow, and advance the game of golf in Maryland and the District of Columbia

What it reported doing in 2025

Support for enhancing and improving the game of golf in the state of Maryland: -the msga sponsors the emmet gary scholarship which is presented annually to agronomy students at the university of Maryland. Since 1969, there have been 166 recipients who have received scholarships totaling over $405,000. Many of the students have gone on to become golf course superintendents in Maryland and across the country.-the msga became a co-sponsor of the first tee metro tour in the state of Maryland in 2013. The first tee metro tour is a developmental tournament series that is open to the first tee participants from the greater Washington, d.c., howard county, baltimore, prince george's county and montgomery county chapters. The participants must be an active first tee participant, at least 12 years of age and a birdie level participant. Msga contributes $5,000 per year.-since 2006, the msga has awarded educational scholarships to individuals employed by msga member clubs and/or their children, and to students having completed their junior year of high school with a bona fide connection to the game of golf. Scholarships to date have totaled $330,625 to more than 83 students.-the msga is offering support to junior golfers in their pursuit of obtaining a golf scholarship. This program started in 2015. Five $500 grants were awarded in 2025.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 85% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 96% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 50
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 79
  • Sustainability: 64
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 52.2%; rating input score 52
  • Program expense ratio: 63.1%; rating input score 63
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 18th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 68.8%; rating input score 69; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 23.9%; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.3; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 87; 87th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 8.1% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7.8% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 12.8% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 6 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 52.2% of revenue deployed · 63.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 4 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 6 filed program accomplishments · $1.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $186K · 16 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 33 of 34 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 52/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 7 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 43/100.