The British Open is the oldest golf tournament in the world played on the most historic course of all – the Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland.

In April 2005, it was announced that, for the first time, women may qualify for a spot in the 2006 Open. The qualifying rounds are played at several locations around the world.

Another route to the British Open is through winning a prior tournament such as the Masters or a PGA Tour event. In fact, if Michelle Wie had won the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic this year, she would have been invited to the British Open and been the first woman ever to play in it.

The British Open is one of the four “major” tournaments that men have historically competed in. The others are the PGA Championship, the Masters at Augusta National, and the U.S. Open. The women’s best golfers have their traditional majors as well. They are the LPGA Championship, the Kraft-Nabisco Championship, the U.S. Women’s Open and the Weetabix Women’s British Open which is organized by the Ladies Golf Union of Britain.

If you are a little confused, it’s not surprising. The bright line between all-male tournaments and all-female golf tournaments is becoming blurred. For example, Wie made headlines the week of July 4th playing in the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic – as the only woman golfer. Although the PGA Tour does not prohibit women competitors, only three women in recent history have played in PGA Tour events.

What about the USGA sponsored U.S. Women’s Open? The USGA is organized to maintain the rules of golf in the U.S. including the Handicap System) and to promote fair competition. Its members are golf courses and individual golfers.

The U.S. Women’s Open – sponsored by the USGA, is one of the most famous women’s tournament. The U.S. Women’s Open is organized differently from the LPGA and PGA Tour events. The “Open” is exactly that – all over the country there are regional qualifying events that are “open” to both amateur and professional women. in addition, the USGA invites other golfers who have won or qualified through other tournaments. The British Open and the Women’s British Open also use the “open” qualifying format.

The PGA Tour sponsors about 20 major tournaments each year – many are televised and net proceeds are donated to charity.

In addition to tour events, the PGA Tour also owns golf courses: The Players Championship courses – often called TPC courses. The Champions Tour is for senior golfers and is also organized by the PGA Tour.

The PGA Tour logo has a male golfer, but female golfers have played on PGA Tour events. The first female golfer to play in a PGA Tour event, was Babe Didrickson Zaharias – over 50 years ago. There are no rules prohibiting women from PGA Tour events if they qualify or receive an exemption from the tour sponsor.

The PGA

First of all, it’s important to know that the PGA Tour and the PGA are two different organizations. The PGA is devoted to training professional instructors and managers in the golf industry.

There are about 28,000 members of the PGA. Although the PGA permits women to become members (unlike the LPGA, which currently does not allow men to become members), there are only about 800 female members of the PGA. Many of those 800 PGA women are also members of the LPGA.

The PGA sponsors many golf competitions at the regional level and one major national competition – the PGA Championship. The PGA also sponsors the Ryder Cup team matches played alternately in the U.S. and Europe. The LPGA sponsors a similar women’s team event called the Solheim Cup.

The LPGA stands for Ladies Professional Golf Association and is the longest-running women’s sports association in the world. The LPGA is a “ladies” golf association. Under its charter, men may not join. The LPGA was founded over 50 years ago by a group of dynamic and talented women golfers.

The LPGA has two major divisions – the Tour division and the Teaching and Club Professional Division. The LPGA Tour is very international. Many LPGA Tour events are played outside of the U.S. and the women competitors come from many countries.

In order to play on an LPGA Tour event, a female golfer must be 18 or over, declared herself a “professional” and have demonstrated the required skill through previous tournament play. Amateur golfers are not allowed to accept prize money or commercial endorsements.

In addition to LPGA tournaments, there is also the LPGA Teaching and Club Professional Division, which is led by my friend, Dr. Betsy Clark, Vice President of Professional Development. There are only about 1,200 female LPGA instructors. It is difficult to get accepted into the program so, when you link up with an LPGA teaching pro, consider yourself fortunate.

World Golf Hall of Fame is the place where we recognize golf’s greatest players and contributors and serves as an inspiration to golfers and golf fans throughout the world. It is a non-profit organization and opened its doors at World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla., in 1998.

Supported by all of the world’s leading golf organizations, the Hall of Fame combines historic artifacts and personal memorabilia with interactive exhibits to tell the stories of the members and the history of the game.

World Golf Foundation is a non-profit organization and was created in 1994 to unite the golf industry and those who love the game. The board supports initiatives that promote, enhance the growth of, and provide access to the game of golf, while preserving golf’s traditional values and passing them on to others.

Under the World Golf Foundation is the World Golf Hall of Fame, The First Tee and GOLF 20/20: Vision for the Future.

The First Tee: Impacting the lives of young people by providing learning facilities and educational programs that promote character development and life-enhancing values through the game of golf.

GOLF 20/20: Aligning the golf industry behind a plan that addresses the future of golf with an emphasis on accelerating growth, participation and diversity, and creating new avenues of access into the game.

The word ‘golf’ is Dutch and means club. Some people suggest that the Dutch game of kolf which is played with a stick and ball on frozen canals in the wintertime, was brought by the Dutch sailors to the east coast of Scotland, where it was transferred on to the public linkslands and eventually became the game we know today.

More information at the USGA website.

The Professional Golfers’ Association of America was started in 1916 and is a large organization of professional golfers. It is also known for its great teaching professionals who help to grow the game of golf. The PGA like the LPGA conducts many tournaments throughout the year. Its headquarters, like most golf associations, is in Florida. It is said that the PGA was started by some golfers in New York who go together and decided that they needed a national organization that would promote interest in golf and elevate the vocation of golf professionals.

Take a look at their site to see all that they have to offer.

The United States Golf Association was formed in 1894 and is the governing body of golf in the US. It’s a non-profit organization that conducts 13 national championships each year. It also writes all of the rules for golf and maintains the national handicap system. The USGA conducts equipment testing and started a grant program called “For the Good of the Game”. This grant program, part of the USGA Foundation, makes the game of golf more affordable and accessible to children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and people with disabilities.

The USGA also is golf’s historian in the US. In the Museum and Archives in Far Hills, NJ you will find many artifacts and memorabilia that tell the history of golf.

All of the USGA tournaments are open for amateurs and professionals hence the names of three of the championships have open in their name (U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Open).

The USGA often sponsors many events. Check out their website for more information.