All of the replies on this thread are pretty accurate.
It has been my experience that the position and title of Director of Golf is a needed, legitimate entity only at a handful of facilities. Not sure how the title evolved, but I'm fairly certain that it is a peculiar response to all of the big-budget real estate/high end clubs that have been the norm since the mid-80's.
I'm no historian, but I cannot think of too many of the old, well known clubs that ever employed a golf professional with a title other than either "Head Golf Professional" or simply "Golf Professional"...even today you can look at many of these clubs that have survived for decades with strong memberships and a certain cache due either to social standing or a great golf course/courses...Bill Stines at Scioto, Scott Nye at Merion, and John Buczek at Winged Foot all possess the title of "Head Golf Professional" at their respective facilities. Nye, Buczek and even Bob Ford work at facilities which have more than one golf course but an enhanced title is unnecessary because everybody understands who is in charge of the operation.
Almost all of the clubs that I am familiar with who employ a "Director of Golf"...have an individual who rarely interacts with the day to day operation of the facility. The merchandising, phone answering, lesson scheduling, and sweater folding is typically done by the assistant golf professionals...with the "Head Golf Professional" serving as the main supervisor. The DOG's main function, in my experience, is to spend his days in budget meetings and returning phone calls...having very little to do with member service as it relates to his own day-to-day schedule.
So why should a club like Colleton River need a "Director of Golf", when a 'Head Golf Professional" is enough for Winged Foot, Merion, Oakmont, and Scioto? My answer is simple...REAL ESTATE.
When your average wealthy guy retires and decides to look around in the Hilton Head area for a place to retire and play golf at a private club, he might visit and investigate Colleton River, Belfair, and Berkeley Hall. All of these are great facilities, but would Berkeley Hall be perceived differently by a prospective member/real estate investor if it only employed a "Head Golf Professional" whle the other two had DOG'S? What if it were the Assistant Golf Professionals out giving lessons at that incredible practice facility...instead of a "name" Director of Instruction? Would you be more likely to invest in a facility that was upscale enough to employ a "DOG" and a
"Director of Instruction"...or a facility that had a "Head Golf Professional" and several assistants to take lessons from? I'm here to tell you, that distinction makes a huge difference to many people. It simply sounds more prestigious to have a "Director of Golf" than a "Head Golf Professional"...but that's just my own opinion. There is NO enhanced benefit from having a position above that of a Head Golf Professional...save the vanity of the membership/developer. Also, the enhanced title has undoubtedly led to higher compensation for those individuals, but I would argue it also has the effect of pushing down the salaries of anyone subordinate because there IS a budget to adhere to...if you are paying your DOG $160-225K per year (which CR, Belfair, and BH certainly do), and since he is pretty removed from member service day-to-day - you have to pay a "Head Golf Professional" $45-65K to to run things (considerably less than what he would make if it were his own facility). That leaves $28-35K for assistants...most of whom have both a bachelors degree AND an advanced professional certification (PGA membership).