Founded in 1916, the Professional Golfers' Association of America is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, United States and claims to be the second largest working sports organization in the world with more than 28,000 members. The organization is now primarily a representative body for club and teaching professionals, as elite tournament golf in the United States is run by the PGA Tour, which became independent of the PGA of America in 1968. There is a separate organization for female professional golfers, both tour pros and club and teaching professionals, called the LPGA. The governing body for the game of golf in the U.S. is the United States Golf Association.
The association conducts 40 tournaments for its member professionals each year including events which attract elite tournament golfers:
- Ryder Cup Matches (in cooperation with the PGA European Tour)
- PGA Championship (one of men's golf's four major championships)
- Senior PGA Championship (one of the five senior majors)
- PGA Grand Slam of Golf (a match exclusively for the winners of the four major championships)
The PGA of America no longer operates the main U.S. professional golf tours, which are run by an affiliated organization now known as the PGA Tour. The tour separated from the PGA of America in 1968.
The PGA of America also operates the PGA Professional National Championship for its club and teaching professionals.
