MEET THE STAFF
GARY DESERRANO
CO FOUNDER | MANAGING PARTNER
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Gary was born in Bradford, PA. Gary and Kathy met at the University of Texas, and married in 1998. Gary began his career as a sales executive and manager in the Media Business before he and Kathy launched their sports management company – K&G Sports LLC. Today, they head K&G sports as Managing Partners which operates the All Pro Tour and the Women’s All Pro Tour. Today, K&G Sports is a true family business as their youngest son, Cody joined the company after earning his MBA at the University of Texas Dallas.
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TAYLOR DEIKE
TOURNAMENT OPERATIONS MANAGER
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Taylor was born and raised in Tyler, Texas. After high school graduation in 2017, she decided to take a gap year before enrolling in college. For the next five months she solo traveled in Western Europe and Southeast Asia. After returning from overseas, she attended Texas A&M University and graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sport Management and a minor in Business. Taylor has held several positions focused on hospitality and sport operations. Her career in the golf industry began when her job with the Texas A&M softball team was impacted by COVID-19. With all games being suspended, she applied for a job at a local public golf course in Bryan, Texas. This is where she fell in love with the game of golf and the people involved in it. She then worked as a Tournament Operations Intern with the Northern Texas PGA section before joining the APT full time in January of 2022.
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TULLY GASS
TOURNAMENT OPERATIONS ASSOCIATE
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Tully was born and raised in Branson, Missouri. He graduated from Missouri State University with a BS in Organizational Communication and a minor in Leadership.
He continued on at Missouri State and completed a Master of Professional Studies in Sport Management graduating in May of 2023.
He has completed two long term internship positions with the USGA solidifying his love of the game of golf.
His most recent internship was an 8 month operations internship in 2023 for the 123rd US Open at the Los Angeles Country Club where he was involved in the day to day planning strategy of putting together a large scale golf event.
He is also an avid hockey/St. Louis Blues fan.
Tully joined APT in October 2023.
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TULLY@KGSPORTSCO.COM
KATHY DESERRANO
CO FOUNDER | MANAGING PARTNER
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Kathy was born in Garland TX. Kathy and Gary met at the University of Texas, and married in 1998. Kathy had a brief career as a flight attendant for American Airlines before they decided to start a family. Kathy and Gary launched their sports management company – K&G Sports LLC. Today, they head K&G sports as Managing Partners which operates the All Pro Tour and the Women’s All Pro Tour. Today, K&G Sports is a true family business as their youngest son, Cody joined the company after earning his MBA at the University of Texas Dallas.
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KAELI DESERRANO
MANAGER | AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIPS
MANAGER | PLAYER SERVICES
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Kaeli was born in Memphis, TN and was raised in Sumterville, FL. She began playing golf at the age of 9 but was more interested in horseback riding and karate at that age. At age 11 she picked up golf again and fell in love with it, that’s when she decided that she wanted to play college and professional golf. She was lucky enough to attend high school at the prestigious IMG Golf Academy from 2011 to when she graduated in 2014.
After graduating high school she attended University of South Alabama from 2014-2016. She earned a scholarship to play on the Women’s Golf team where she was the number one player the two years she was there.
She then transferred to University of Central Florida from 2016-2018 where she played on the women’s golf team and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies with a minor in Anthropology. She was a WGCA Academic All-American and AAC All-Conference Team. She also helped assist the UCF Women’s Golf Team win an AAC Women’s Golf Championship. She made two appearances at NCAA Regionals, one as a team member and one as an individual.
After graduating she decided to pursue a career in professional golf where she went on to have 3 professional wins from 2019-2023. Her last win being on the WAPT where she shot her lowest round of a 64 at Wichita Falls Country Club to win by 8 shots in the final round.
She has a love for college sports and always enjoys when the UCF Knights are playing!
Kaeli joined K&G Sports in 2023.
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MARISSA MCCARDELL
MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS
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Marissa was born and raised in Clovis, California. After graduating high school in 2016, she attended California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA for her freshman and sophomore year. While attending Cal Lutheran, she also played on the women’s golf team. She then transferred to the University of Mississippi where she graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and New Media with a minor in English. After graduation she held two internship positions with PGA of America for the 2021 PGA Championship in Kiawah, SC and the 2020 Ryder Cup in Sheboygan, WI. Following her internships, she then became a news reporter and weekend anchor for WDAM-7 in Hattiesburg, MS before joining the APT team in 2023.
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CODY DESERANNO
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
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Cody was born and raised in Dallas, TX and is the youngest son of Gary and Kathy. He attended the University of Tampa for two years studying both Marine Biology and Entrepreneurship. After two years in Tampa, he enrolled at the University of Texas at Dallas. There, he studied Business Administration and Real Estate Management, where he graduated with cum laude in 2017. Not long after, he went back to UTD to pursue his Master’s. He received his MBA with a concentration in Finance in addition to Entrepreneurship & Innovation in 2020. He has always had a passion for entrepreneurship and new ventures, so when the opportunity to join the family business presented itself, he was right on board.
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ABAIGEAL O’NEILL
TOURNAMENT OPERATIONS MANAGER
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Abaigeal was born and raised in Hopedale, Massachusetts. She attended Coastal Carolina University where she pursued a degree in marketing and the Professional Golf Management program. She graduated in December 2023. Throughout her college career, she completed golf-related internships every summer. She worked at Grandfather Golf and Country Club and The K Club as a Golf Operations Intern. With an interest in working golf tournaments, she spent time at The Maine State Golf Association as an intern. This is when she realized she wanted to pursue a career in tournaments. For her final internship, she worked for the Northern Texas PGA section for 7 months as a Tournament Operations Intern. She joined the ANNIKA WAPT full-time in January 2024.
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PAITON HAGA
MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS
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Paiton was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas. After graduating high school in 2020, she attended Newman University in Wichita, KS her freshman and sophomore year. While attending Newman University, she also played on the women’s volleyball team. She then transferred to the University of Central Oklahoma to continue her education and volleyball career. Paiton will graduate from the University of Central Oklahoma in the summer of 2024. Paiton held an internship with the Women’s All Pro Tour and All Pro Tour in the summer of 2023. Following her internship, she then became a full time employee for the WAPT in July of 2023.
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