PGA President Bishop to be Inducted into Indiana Golf Hall of Fame


Ted Bishop, the 38th president of the PGA of America and former PGA Tour professional Chris Smith will be inducted into the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame Tuesday night, October 22, at Meridian Hills Country Club in Indianapolis.

In 2012, Bishop became the third native of Indiana to be elected president of the PGA of America, the world's largest sports organization, joining Indiana's Don Padgett II (1977-78) and Mickey Powell (1985-86).

"I got a call from Chip Essig right before I got on an elevator heading to do an interview with Tom Watson about becoming the 2014 Ryder Cup captain," said Bishop. "I had not experienced an emotional reaction to anything since becoming president. But when I hung up the phone with Chip after hearing the news, and was riding up in that elevator, it was like I had this emotional release, and I can't think of any other way to describe it."

Essig, the 2011 PGA Golf Professional of the Year, was a 2012 Indiana Golf Hall of Fame inductee.

A native of Logansport, Ind., Bishop graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor's Degree in Agronomy in 1976, and began his career as a professional and superintendent at the Phil Harris Golf Course in Linton, Ind. He was elected to PGA membership in 1985, and has served in a leadership capacity at either the Section or National levels since 1989. He was the 1991 recipient of the Section Horton Smith Award and a two-time (1996-97) Section Bill Strausbaugh Award recipient.

From 1997-98, Bishop served as president of the Indiana PGA Section, and was the 1998 Indiana PGA Golf Professional of the Year. He has twice been awarded the Sagamore of the Wabash by the Governor of Indiana, for service to the communities in which he has resided.

Bishop, 59, is the general manager at the Legends Golf Club in Franklin, Ind., where he oversaw construction and development of the facility in 1991. He was instrumental in the process that saw the Indiana Golf Office move to its current location, which provided space for the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame.

"Based on the fact that the Hall of Fame is here at the Legends makes it all that much more special to be inducted," Bishop said. "For me to know that in some small way I had something to do with it, being here makes it even cooler."

Well-versed in virtually every aspect of association governance, Bishop has served since 2006 on the PGA Board of Directors. Prior to joining the PGA Board, he served on the PGA Board of Control from 2002-05, where he evaluated hundreds of membership cases. He later served as chair of the Board of Control while secretary of the PGA.

During his first year as PGA president, Bishop oversaw the hiring of the PGA of America's new CEO, continued to champion growth of the game endeavors and been the voice of the PGA concerning vital issues affecting the golf industry.

Smith, 44, is a native of Indianapolis and the 1991 Big Ten Conference champion while completing an All-American career at Ohio State University. Smith turned professional in 1991 and was the 1997 Nationwide Tour Player of the Year. He won the 2002 Buick Classic and completed his Tour career in 2005.

Bishop and Smith will become the 101st and 102nd members of the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame, respectively.

The above story is courtesy of the PGA of America. For more information, visit www.pga.com.