David S. Downing II, CGCS, GCSAA President in 2008, will be the new president of Signature Golf Group, a Myrtle Beach-based golf facility management company.

In an interview with Golf Course Management magazine, Downing said he was in the midst of a transition to become president of the four-year-old firm, replacing one of its founders, Steve Taylor.

"Basically, I have the title and I'm moving forward, but it'll probably take four or five months to get me up to speed with everything Steve did," Downing said.

Taylor, who helped form Signature Golf in 2005, will become the company's chairman of the board. He intends to complete the transition while Downing is still a member of GCSAA's Board of Directors as Immediate Past President.

The Signature Golf Group hired Downing as superintendent of one of its management properties, Rivers Edge Golf Club in Shallotte, N.C., in late 2005. A little more than a year and a half ago Downing was promoted to vice president of operations and construction at Signature Golf. Last summer he became a partner in the firm.

As president of Signature Golf, the 29-year GCSAA member said he plans to continue his emphasis on building the company's future.

"One of the things I want to try to do is grow the business," he said. "We have a good base, now is the time to stretch our wings a little bit. My focus will be on expanding that base."