History

The Professional Putters Association (PPA) was started in 1959, by the founder of Putt-Putt Golf, Don Clayton, in Fayetteville, North Carolina

Fayetteville, North Carolina

Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....

. Originally begun as Professional Putt-Putt Golfers Association in 1959, the name was changed in 1960 to the Professional Putters Association. The organization was formed to provide tournaments and competition for those who viewed putting as a sport. Since 1959, the PPA has held a National Championship Tournament.

The PPA has awarded over $8,000,000 in prize money over the past 40 years. The Putt-Putt Golf Courses Championship TV series has become the longest running syndicated sports program in television history. Billy Packer

Billy Packer

Anthony William "Billy" Packer is a former American sportscaster for CBS Sports and a published author.-Early life:Packer is a graduate of Liberty High School in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania...

, now famous for his work on CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

 during college basketball

College basketball

College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....

 telecasts, and Frank Gleiber were the announcers for the television series.

Timeline

1960 - The first National Tournament Program of the PPA offered $26,000

1961 - The first putting match ever to be filmed for television was the PPA "Parade of Champions" TV Series.

1965 - The PPA expanded to worldwide tournaments. The first foreign tournaments were held in Africa, with Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, and Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 following soon after.

1969 - The Amateur Putters Association (APA) evolved. Today, amateur putters compete in their own division in all PPA tournaments.

1970 - Vance Randall was honored as the 1960s Putter of the Decade.

1973 - The PPA sponsored the World Putting Championship tournament offering over $200,000 in prize money. Mike Baldoza captured the first place money of $50,000.

1980 - Dick and Evelyn Florin were honored as the 1970s Putters of the Decade.

1987 - The PPA inducted its first members into the newly created Putt-Putt/PPA Hall of Fame.

1990 - Ron Frederick was honored as the 1980s Putter of the Decade.

1995 - The PPA TV Series is shown worldwide on ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

.

1998 - Over $7,500,000 awarded in the 39 years of the PPA

2000 - The PPA awards $100,000 in prize money for the 2000 PPA National Championship. Alan Quinnelly's victory makes him the only three-time winner of this event as a professional. The $50,000 first place check made him at the time the sport's all-time career leading money winner.

2001 - Greg Ward was honored as the 1990s Putter of the Decade

2002 - The PPA World Match Play Championship returns to the schedule and is won by Greg Ward in Martinez, Georgia

2005 - Greg Ward surpasses Alan Quinnelly as the sport's all-time leading money winner.