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World Golf Hall of Fame

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The World Golf Hall of Fame is located in St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site serves both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 golf organizations from all over the world.[1]

The Hall of Fame Museum Building is designed by the museum architecture specialist firm of E. Verner Johnson and Associates of Boston, MA. They also produced the museum master plan that established the overall size, mission and qualities of the overall museum and the surrounding facilities and site.

The Hall of Fame Museum features a permanent exhibition and a rolling program of temporary exhibitions. Designed by museum design firm Ralph Appelbaum Associates, the Hall of Fame and exhibition area contains exhibits on the game's history, heritage, and techniques; major players and organizations; golf course design, equipment, and dress; and new directions, such as ecological concerns in course management.[2]

History

The World Golf Hall of Fame was originally located in Pinehurst, North Carolina, and was privately operated by Diamondhead Corp., then owners of the Pinehurst Resort. It opened in September 1974 with an initial class of 13 members.[3] To start with it was a local project, but the PGA of America took over management in 1983 and acquired full ownership in 1986.

Two other halls of fame have been merged into the World Golf Hall of Fame. The PGA of America established one in 1940, which was merged into the Pinehurst Hall in the 1980s. The Hall of Fame of Women's Golf was established by the LPGA in 1951, with four charter members: Patty Berg, Betty Jameson, Louise Suggs, and Babe Zaharias. It was inactive for some years, but in 1967 it moved into its first physical premises, which were in Augusta, Georgia and was renamed the LPGA Tour Hall of Fame. In 1998 it merged into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

In 1994 the global golf industry established a non-profit making body called the World Golf Foundation to promote the sport, with the creation of an enhanced Hall of Fame as one of its main objectives. Construction at the new site in St. Augustine began in 1996 and the new facility opened on May 19, 1998.

The World Golf Hall of Fame is a Founding Sports Partner of the Sports Museum of America, joining more than 50 other single-sport Halls of Fame, National Governing Bodies, Museums and other organizations across North America to richly celebrate the history, grandeur and significance of sports in American culture. Set to open in New York City on May 7, 2008, the Sports Museum of America will showcase the World Golf Hall of Fame in its Hall of Halls Gallery (along with providing an annual donation) in return for sharing some of the museum's valuable golf artifacts and its support of the creation of the Nation's first all-sports museum experience.

Membership categories

Members are inducted into the Hall of Fame in one of five categories: PGA Tour/Champions Tour, LPGA Tour, International, Lifetime Achievement, and Veterans.

PGA Tour/Champions Tour ballot

Current and former PGA Tour and Champions Tour players are eligible for this ballot if they meet the following requirements (beginning with 1996 election):

  • Champions Tour
    • Champions Tour member for five years
    • 20 wins between PGA Tour and Champions Tour or five wins in the majors (regular or senior) or Players Championship

Election requirements:

Years % of returned ballots needed for election
1996-2000 75%
2001-2003 65%
2004- 65%, in the event that no candidate receives 65%, the
nominee receiving the most votes with at least 50% is elected

Voters may vote for up to 30% of the players on the ballot. If a player is named on less than 5% of the ballots for two consecutive years, they are dropped from the ballot. Players not elected can remain on the ballot for up to 15 years (prior to 2007 the limit was 10 years).[4]

LPGA point system

LPGA Tour golfers are eligible through a point system. Since 1999, LPGA members automatically qualify for World Golf Hall of Fame membership when they meet these three criteria:

  1. Must be/have been an "active" LPGA Tour member for 10 years.
  2. Must have won/been awarded at least one of the following - an LPGA major championship, the Vare Trophy or Player of the Year honors; and
  3. Must have accumulated a total of 27 points, which are awarded as follows - one point for each LPGA official tournament win, two points for each LPGA major tournament win and one point for each Vare Trophy or Rolex Player of the Year honor earned.

Before 1999, players had to win 30 tournaments, including two majors; 35 tournaments with one major; or 40 tournaments in all to automatically qualify. At one time, players had to win two different majors to qualify with 30 wins, but this was changed earlier in the 1990s.

International ballot

Men and women golfers not fully eligible for PGA/Champions Tour ballot or the LPGA Tour point system are eligible for the International ballot if they meet the following requirements[5] (beginning with the 1996 election):

Election requirements: same as PGA Tour ballot.

Lifetime Achievement category

There is also a "lifetime achievement" category through which anyone who has made a major contribution to the organization or promotion of the sport may be selected, for example, Bob Hope. These members are chosen by the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors. Naturally they all played golf, in some cases with some competitive success, but it wasn't their play which won them a place in the Hall of Fame.

Veteran's category

The last category was created to honor professional or amateur players whose career concluded at least 30 years ago. These members are also chosen by the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors.

Membership

New members are inducted each October or November, and by November 2008 there were 126 members. The results of the annual ballots are announced each April. New entrants in the Lifetime Achievement and Veteran's categories are announced at irregular intervals.

Men

Unless stated otherwise these men were inducted mainly for their on-course success. The exceptions mostly correspond with the lifetime achievement category, but not quite. For example Charlie Sifford was notable as a player but was inducted for lifetime achievement.

Future inductees

Women

The first five women on this list were grandfathered in from the Hall of Fame of Women's Golf, which was founded in 1951, via the LPGA Tour Hall of Fame, which was inaugurated in 1967. The list shows the years when they were originally inducted into the Hall of Fame of Women's Golf. Unless stated otherwise the women on the list were inducted primarily for their on-course achievements.

Possible future inductee

  • 2012 Mexico Lorena Ochoa (qualified in April 2008, but cannot be inducted until completing 10 seasons on the LPGA tour)

Notes and references

  1. ^ "World Golf Hall of Fame Supporting Organizations".
  2. ^ "Ralph Appelbaum Associates Project Description".
  3. ^ "World Golf Hall of Fame History".
  4. ^ "About the PGA Tour Ballot". January 31, 2007.
  5. ^ "About the International Ballot". January 31, 2007.
  6. ^ This specifically refers to events recognized as majors by the U.S. LPGA. The three richest women's tours each recognize a different set of majors, although the U.S. LPGA set is by far the most significant on a global scale. See women's major golf championships for a fuller discussion.
  7. ^ The Women's British Open was first recognized as a U.S. LPGA major in 2001.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=World_Golf_Hall_of_Fame&oldid=297650806"