Judy Rankin becomes the first LPGA professional to earn more than $100,000 in a season.
(1976)

Richard Stanwood sets the record for fewest putts in one round-15- at Riverside GC in Pocatello, ID.
(1976)

The USGA institutes the Overall Distance Standard-golf balls that fly more than 280 yards during a standard test are banned.
(1976)

Al Geiberger shoots 59 at Colonial CC in the second round of the Memphis Classic, to set a new PGA TOUR 18-hole record.
(1977)

Bing Crosby dies after completing a round of golf in Spain. His Bing Crosby National Pro-Am continues for several years, but after relations sour between the PGA TOUR and the Crosby family, AT&T takes over sponsorship of the event.
(1977)

The "sudden-death" playoff is used for the first time in a major championship, when Lanny Wadkins defeats Gene Littler for the PGA Championship played at Pebble Beach G.L.
(1977)

In what has been described as the most exciting tournament in history, Tom Watson defeats Jack Nicklaus by one stroke in the British Open, at Turnberry. They were tied after the second and third rounds, and were paired with each other during the final 36 holes.
(1977)

The Legends of Golf is inaugurated at Onion Creek C.C. in Austin, Texas. Its popularity leads to the formation of the Senior TOUR two years later.
(1978)

The Ryder Cup is reformatted to add European continent players to the British-Scottish-Irish side, making the event far more competitive.
(1979)

Taylor Made introduces the first metal woods.
(1979)

Tom Watson is the first golfer to earn $500,000 in prize money in a single season.
(1980)

The PGA Senior TOUR is born, with four official events.
(1980)

The U.S. Senior Open is instituted. Roberto De Vicenzo is the first winner.
(1980)

Jack Nicklaus sets a record of 272 in the U.S. Open at Baltusrol. His mark is equalled in the 1993 U.S. Open by Lee Janzen, also at Baltusrol.
(1980)

The USGA introduces the Symmetry Standard, banning balls such as the Polaris which correct themselves in flight.
(1980)

Gary Wright completes 18 holes in a record 28 minutes 9 seconds at Twantin Noosa GC, Australia (6,039 yards).
(1980)

The Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass opens, with its controversial island green 17th hole, and immediately becomes the permanent host of the Tournament Players Championship. The TPC at Sawgrass becomes the prototype for a dozen "stadium" TPC courses around the United States, built specifically to host PGA TOUR co-sponsored events and affording better viewing for spectators.
(1981)

The USGA institutes the Mid-Amateur.
(1981)

Kathy Whitworth becomes the first woman to earn $1 million in career prize money.
(1981)

Kevin Murray double-eagles the 647-yard second hole at the Guam Navy GC, the longest double-eagle ever recorded.
(1982)

The PGA TOUR introduces the all-exempt Tour, with the top 125 players exempt from qualifying tournaments.
(1983)

Desert Highlands opens in Phoenix from a design by Jack Nicklaus utilizing only 80 irrigated acres for 18 holes, instead of the typical 100-150 for a major course. The success of Nicklaus' concept of "target golf" ushers in the era of environmentally-sensitive desert design.
(1984)

Nancy Lopez sets the LPGA 72-hole record with 268 in the Henredon Classic.
(1985)

The United States loses the Ryder Cup matches for the first time since 1957, to the expanded European team.
(1985)

The USGA introduces the Slope System to allow golfers to adjust their handicaps to allow for the relative difficulty of a golf course compared to players of their own ability.
(1985)

Bob Tway sinks a miracle bunker shot to beat a stunned Greg Norman in the PGA Championship. Norman had held the lead on Sunday morning in each of the four major championships of 1986, but was able to win only in the British Open. Only Bobby Jones had previously held the Sunday morning lead in each Grand Slam event. Tway's stroke inaugurated a celebrated series of miracle shots holed by various golfers to defeat Norman.
(1986)

The Pete Dye-designed PGA West opens amid great controversy concerning the difficulty of the course.
(1986)

The Panasonic Las Vegas Invitational offers the first $1 million purse.
(1986)

The PGA TOUR Team Charity Competition debuts. By 1987, TOUR-related contributions to charity exceed $100,000,000, and by 1992 they reach a total of $200,000,000.
(1986)

The Links at Spanish Bay opens, the first true links course in the Western United States. It is a co-design by Robert Trent Jones, Jr., Tom Watson, and former USGA President Frank "Sandy" Tatum.
(1987)

Judy Bell becomes the first woman elected to the USGA Executive Committee.
(1987)

The Nabisco Championships (later the TOUR Championship) debuts as a season-ending event for the top 30 money winners. The first winner is Tom Watson, breaking a three year victory drought.
(1987)

Walter Dietz, a blind golfer, aces the 155-yard seventh hole at Manakiki G.C., California.
(1987)

Links Magazine is founded (originally Southern Links), with Mark Brown as editor-in-chief.
(1988)

Lori Garbacz orders a pizza between holes at the U.S. Women's Open to protest slow play.
(1988)

Square-grooved clubs such as the PING Eye2 irons are banned by the USGA, which claims that tests show the clubs give an unfair competitive advantage to PING customers. The PGA TOUR also bans the clubs in 1989. Karsten Manufacturing, maker of the clubs, fights a costly two-year battle with both the USGA and the PGA TOUR to have the ban rescinded after winning a temporary injunction. Eventually both organizations drop the ban, while Karsten acknowledges the right of the organizations to regulate equipment and pledges to make modifications to future designs.
(1988)

Curtis Strange wins the season-ending Nabisco Championships at Pebble Beach, and his $360,000 paycheck lifts his official 1988 TOUR earnings to $1,147,644, and thus he becomes the first player to win over $1,000,000 in a single season.
(1988)

Four golfers, Doug Weaver, Mark Wiebe, Jerry Pate and Nick Price, hit aces on the par-three sixth hole on the same day in the U.S. Open at Oak Hill.
(1989)

Nick Faldo sinks a 100-foot birdie putt on the second hole at Augusta National in the Masters, the longest putt holed to date in a major tournament. Faldo goes on to win the Masters.
(1989)

Hall Thompson of Shoal Creek GC, on the eve of the PGA Championship at Shoal Creek, defends his club's policy of not admitting black members. Amidst a public outcry, Shoal Creek 1990 is forced to change its policy and the PGA TOUR and the USGA insist that in future all clubs submit to a standard set of guidelines on membership policies. Cypress Point Club and Aronimink, among others, decide they are unable to comply and withdraw from the professional tournament arena.
(1990)

Bill Blue resigns after a short reign as LPGA Commissioner. Charles Mecham is selected as his successor.
(1990)

Construction begins on Shadow Creek Golf Club, the most expensive golf course ever built, with cost estimates ranging from $35 to $60 million as Tom Fazio creates an oasis in the Las Vegas desert . The club in 1994 vaults into eighth place on the Golf Digest top-100 course rankings, sparking controversy.
(1990)

The R&A, after 38 years, adopts the 1.68 inch diameter ball, and for the first time since 1910 The Rules of Golf are standardized throughout the world.
(1990)

The initial Solheim Cup is played at Lake Nona G.C., Orlando, commencing a biennial USA vs. Europe competition for women, a recognition of the growing strength of women's golf on both sides of the Atlantic.
(1990)

The Ben Hogan Tour is launched as a minor league for the PGA TOUR, following the increased success of mini-tours such as the U.S. Golf Tour in 1989.

The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, S.C., the first course to be awarded the Ryder Cup Matches before the course has been completed, is the scene of the United States' first victory in the event since 1983. The competition comes down to a twisting seven-footer on the 18th hole missed by Bernhard Langer in the final match (against Hale Irwin).
(1991)

John Daly wins the PGA Championship at Crooked Stick when, as ninth alternate, a slot in the tournament opens up for him on the night before the Championship began. The golfer who withdrew and gave Daly his place, Nick Price, wins the PGA Championship in 1992 at Bellerive.
(1991)

Phil Mickelson, an amateur, wins the PGA TOUR's Northern Telecom Open.
(1991)

Oversized metal woods are introduced, with Callaway Golf's Big Bertha quickly establishing itself as the dominant brand, the Big Bertha driver becomes one of the biggest-selling clubs of all time.
(1991)

Harvey Penick's Little Red Book becomes the all-time best selling golf book.
(1991)

Simon Clough and Boris Janic complete 18-hole rounds in five countries in one day, walking each course. They played rounds in France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Holland, and Germany, and completed their journey in 16 hours, 35 minutes.
(1992)

Brittany Andres, age 6 years 19 days, scores an ace at the 85-yard second hole at the Jimmy Clay G.C. in Austin, Texas.
(1992)

An ownership group led by Joe Gibbs and Arnold Palmer announce plans for The Golf Channel, a 24-hour, 365-day cable service.
(1993)