Wade Merry is in his fifth season as the head coach of the University of Sioux Falls men's and women's golf teams. A respected figure in South Dakota golf, Merry brings decades of experience and leadership to the Cougar program.
From 2005 to 2018, Merry served as the Executive Director of the South Dakota Golf Association (SDGA) and the South Dakota Junior Golf Foundation, a tenure marked by unprecedented growth in the state's golf landscape. Under his leadership, the SDGA:
- Expanded its slate of state championships
- Developed the Junior Golf Tour
- Established The First Tee of South Dakota, providing youth access to the game
- Launched the Great Plains Golf Expo, the only golf show in the country solely owned and operated by a state golf association
- Created a permanent home for the South Dakota Golf Hall of Fame
For his contributions to the game, Merry was inducted into the South Dakota Golf Hall of Fame in 2019.
A 1979 graduate of Dakota State University, Merry was a three-sport athlete, competing in golf, tennis, and baseball. As a member of the 1977 DSU tennis team, he helped lead the Trojans to an undefeated season and the school’s first conference championship. That team was later inducted into the Dakota State Athletic Hall of Fame in 2016.
USF Coaching Achievements
- 9× tournament championships
- 8× individual titles
- 9× NSIC Golfer of the Week honorees
- 7× All-NSIC selections
- 2 NCAA Central Region Championship qualifier
- 27× NSIC All-Academic Team members
- 23× NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence honorees
- 13× Division II ADA Academic Achievement recipients
- 1× NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award winner
- 8× Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) All-American Scholars
- Top-10 ranking in NCAA Division II for the WGCA All-Scholar Team GPA Award
Beyond golf, Merry is a proud father of two. His son, Benjamin, is an attorneyand Vice President of Benefits Compliance at NFP, an AON company in Washington, D.C., and his daughter, Alexandra, is the Senior Director of Social Media for the Kansas City Chiefs and resides in Roeland Park, Kan.
Updated: 8/2025
