History

Conceived by course designer Jack Miller and Houston sportswriter, Jack Agness, the Texas Golf Hall of Fame was founded in 1978 at The Texas National Golf Club located outside of Willis, Texas. The first class of Inductees was comprised of eight of the greatest names in golf, including Jimmy Demaret, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Babe Zaharias and Lee Trevino. Other early honorees included Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite, Joe Black, Betsy Rawls, Tod Menefee, Bruce Crampton and Kathy Whitworth.

In 1988, the Woodlands Corporation bought the rights to the Hall of Fame and carried on the torch. In 1992, The Houston Golf Association took over operations and continued the inductions until 1996, when it inducted Tommy Aycock and Tommy Bolt. During that time 77 golfers were inducted and the Brackenridge Park Golf Course in San Antonio was inaugurated.  Ms. Frances Trimble was executive director and curator of the hall of Fame throughout.  In 1997, after relocating the Shell  Houston  Open to the Redstone Country Club, the Houston Golf Association mothballed the Hall of Fame.  The original Texas Golf Hall of Fame was dissolved in 2001.

In 2008, as part of the restoration of the historic Brackenridge Park Golf Course, designed by famed golf course architect A.W. Tillinghast, Texas Golf Hall of Fame member and former President of the PGA of America, Joe Black, contacted San Antonio golf officials about reconstituting the Hall of Fame at Brackenridge Park, the birthplace of public golf in Texas. To help the new Hall of Fame endure, Black recommended that it should be governed by a board of directors comprised of multiple major golf organizations of the state of Texas.

The Texas Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is now a reality both online and at the Brackenridge Park Golf Course.  Mr. Black is its Honorary Chairman.

Mission

The mission of Texas Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is to honor and celebrate individuals and historic golf courses that have made outstanding accomplishments in, or contributions to golf in Texas; and, to collect, preserve, and exhibit artifacts, memorabilia and literature that depict Texas’ rich golf history and traditions and legacy of its participants. To that end, we are dedicated to maintaining the highest quality collections and presenting educational and engaging permanent and traveling exhibitions that highlight and pay tribute to the unique role that Texas has played in golf history.