BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Board of Directors of the State of Alabama Sports Hall of Fame is proud to announce that Bob Barrett and Mark Womack will be recognized as the 2023 Distinguished American Sportsmen at the State of Alabama Sports Hall of Fame 55th Annual Induction Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, May 13, 2023.
Bob Barrett is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Honours Golf, recently acquired by Troon. He has over 46 years of experience in developing and operating golf facilities including Shoal Creek, Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail and Augusta National where he began his career. Bob is responsible for the overall direction along with the development and operational activities of Honours Golf Company which manages a diverse portfolio of award-winning properties from daily fee golf courses to resort courses and private country clubs to athletic sports complexes.
From 1977 through 1991, Barrett was club manager and head golf professional at Shoal Creek Golf Club in Birmingham. Barrett was instrumental in hosting the 1984 and 1990 PGA Championships and the U.S. Amateur held at Shoal Creek. In 1986, he was honored by the National PGA of America as Merchandiser of the Year and selected as President of the Dixie Section of PGA. A native of Augusta, Georgia, Barrett began his career as an assistant golf professional at Augusta National Golf Club.
Mark Womack has spent over four decades of his professional career as a member of the Southeastern Conference staff, including the last 30 years as Executive Associate Commissioner. Womack serves as Chief Financial Officer, a liaison to the SEC’s athletics directors, and he spearheads scheduling efforts for the sport of football. He also works with the SEC’s football bowl partners and television partners to go along with his general administration duties of SEC football and the SEC office. In Womack’s time as CFO, the SEC has distributed as much as $650 million annually among its 14 universities. A portion of this revenue is used to fund a wide range of academic and campus improvement initiatives, including academic scholarships, endowed faculty positions, student wellness programs, research programs, and forward-looking building projects.
Womack has twice served as acting commissioner, first in 1986 before the SEC hired Harvey Schiller, then again in 1989 prior to Roy Kramer being named commissioner. He has worked alongside five of the SEC’s eight commissioners. Womack joined the SEC in 1978 as Assistant Public Relations Director under then-SEC publicist Scoop Hudgins. The following year, he became Assistant to the Commissioner for Administration and Information. In 1981, Womack was promoted to Assistant Commissioner, a title he held until 1988 when he was promoted again to Associate Commissioner. Born in Scottsboro, Alabama and raised in Tuscaloosa, Womack earned his bachelor’s degree in Public Relations from the University of Alabama in 1978.
Barrett and Womack join an impressive list of others who have been honored as Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Distinguished American Sportsmen. They are: Bob Hope (1988), Hugh Culverhouse (1991), Former President George H.W. Bush (1992), Charles O. Finley (1993), Larry D. Striplin, Jr. (1998), Bill Ireland (2000), Roy Kramer (2003), Jim Wilson, Jr. (2005), Michael E. Stephens (2006), Joseph Gibbs (2008), Nick Bollettieri (2009), Rick Woodward (2010), Don Logan (2011), Ron Froehlich (2015), Mike Slive (2015), Edgar Welden (2016), Pete Derzis (2017), Jimmy Rane (2018), Daniel Moore (2019), Robbie Robertson (2020), Angus R. Cooper II (2021), John McMahon, Jr. (2021), and Gene Hallman (2022).
The 55th Annual Induction Banquet and Ceremony will be held in the Birmingham Ballroom, at the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel, on Saturday, May 13, 2023. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Museum at (205) 323-6665.
###
