Over ten years ago, former PGA Tour pro Adrian Skills was invited to a golf clinic that was held in Las Vegas. He was on the four thee at the Rio Secco Golf Club when another one of the member so his team, Ken Bentley, asked him to explain why it had been a quarter of a century since an African-American had made it to the Tour’s Qualifying School.

And while many are quick to jump to Tiger Woods, who had bypassed the school completely in 1996 and emerged as a world number one nonetheless, but many were left wondering where the other minorities were, and why had none followed in the footsteps of Tiger Woods after he proved to the world that African Americans had the skill to be some of the best golfers on the planet.

Bentley, who was an executive at Nestle USA, couldn’t understand why there were fewer minorities competing at the highest levels of the game than when Stills earned his Tour card during the 1986 season. The odds just didn’t weigh up.

The Advocates Pro Golf Association

Not long after, Stills and Bentley created the Advocates Pro Golf Association, which was designed to provide greater diversity in the game by helping African Americans and other minority’s kick-start their golfing careers.

Stills initially developed the blueprint for his new blueprint, and with the APGA celebrating its 10th season; the program has grown from three events during its debut to become a seven-event series, which includes its first 72-hole tournament, which was won by Brad Adamonis.

Newer schedules include tournaments at TPC Scottsdale and Innisbrook Resort, the same courses that had previously hosted PGA Tour events, which has allowed the APGA to establish a platform for minority golfers to have a shot at succeeding while playing at professional levels, and could see major interest in other international industries, such as Australian sports betting.

Tim O’Neal’s Time with The APGA

Tim O’Neal, a player that has earned privileges from the Web.com Tour and the PGA Tour Latinoamerica during his career, has watched the APGA advance over the years, having finished tied for second place in the event in 2010 that was played at Rogers Park in Tampa, and for winning the Lexus Cup Player of the Year award in 2018.

36-year-old O’Neal has said that it has been huge for everyone participating, and that it’s given them the chance to see where their game is, how it stacks up, and how they need to improve in the future.

O’Neal was also recently selected to become part of the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption by Tiger Woods, an event that’s run by the Woods’ foundation.

The Continued Change to Golf

The APGA started as a small effort that consisted of around 20-30 friends who gathered a few times a year and enjoyed golf outings together. In 2006 they formalized the group as Advocates USA, which was comprised mostly of African American men from across the nation.

Membership has seen steady growth since, with many youngsters coming in for membership. The non-profit has proven that even a small movement can quickly grow to change a sport entirely.