Who Dreamed That Up?
The Organization
Originally named the Houston Municipal Golfer’s Association, the HAGA was founded in May 1952 by Roy Breedlove, Jerry “Snuffy” Smith, Ed Stutts, Granny Harbor and Fred Lundy. The name was changed to the Houston Amateur Golf Association in 1959.
Life Membership
Life Membership was suggested by Cal Self in 1969. It was then awarded to one of our founding members - Roy Breedlove.
Houston Golf Association
Our relationship with the Houston Golf Association (HGA), through handicap service, and a sponsorship to the HGA’s Houston Open, now the Shell Houston Open, has been nurtured by Cal Self since the ‘60s. Handicaps are now provided by the Golf Handicap and Index Network through our affiliation with the Texas Golf Association.
Scott Willis Fourball
Was founded in 1973 by Mac Hairston as a tribute to Scott Willis (Tournament Director from 1969 to 1971) and all subsequent tournament directors. The HAGA was at a “low point” in finances and organization as the 1969-70 golf year began, when Scott Willis “literally” stepped from the membership to take charge. Scott died in his home, one summer evening, after working at the HAGA sponsored Pub-Links qualifying tourney held at Herman Park in 1972.
Match Play
Was dreamed-up by C.B. Redman in 1976. Being a new member on the board, he wanted to make a positive contribution by providing an opportunity for head to head competition. After waning for a few years, it was revised in 1985.
Kelly Memorial Spring Best Ball Tournament (Later renamed Kelly-Kasavage)
Was founded in 1981 by Walt Kasavage to honor his dying, and long time friend & playing partner Pat Kelly. Interestingly, Pat played in his own memorial tournament having fought off his cancer long past his expected date of demise. The name of the event was changed to the Kelly-Kasavage after Walt’s untimely death in 1982 at Sharpstown CC. Pat Kelly was Tournament Director from 1976 to 1977, and President from 1978 1980. Walt Kasavage was tournament director from 1977 to 1978.
Winter and Spring Tournaments
The Winter and Spring Tours were founded by the team of Bob Rankin and Bob Boyd in 1982. It rewarded those who played in golf’s “slow-season” with the possibility of winning a trophy. These tourneys were expanded to include a trophy for low gross by the former president Marty Smithson.
The HAGA Masters Tournament
The Masters (and Player of the Year) was the brain child of Butch Davenport, 1983. The idea was to have an “invitational” tournament that honored those who participated and excelled. Also, using the “point system” of accomplishment, a “Player of the Year” was determined. The tournament also offered the opportunity for a Fall Vacation weekend at beautiful Waterwood C.C.
The Presidents Trophy
The Presidents Trophy was given to the organization in 1974 by John Jeanes, Cal Self, L.G. Markley and Mac Hairston, to record the winners of the Club Championship and the Presidents of our organization.
The HAGA Trophy Case
The original trophy case was donated to the, then, new Club House at Brock Park in 1979. When it became apparent that our trophies were in danger of vandalism, Dennis Wood secured a new case at Texas National in 1985. After a number of years at the Texaco Country Club, the trophy case was moved to the Sienna Plantation Golf Club the new home of the Houston Amateur Golf Association.
The Houston Amateur Golf Association Web Site
Scott Peterson first told William Condra about his idea for a Houston Amateur Golf Association Web Site in 1996. The idea was kicked around for a couple of years but nothing was done. Later, while trying to learn HTML, William created a simple HAGA web page for experimenting and testing. That grew into the site it is today. In January, of 1998 the web site was approved and financed by the Board of Directors. In 2007, David Salvati assumed the duties of webmaster. Using the basic design developed by William Condra, he added a mySQL database to the web site. Combined with PHP the web site is now database driven significantly reducing the maintenance of the site. We can now display complete results of every tournament.