As the popularity increased among the state’s public links players, the desire for competition increased as well. However, the WSGA’s policies severely limited the majority of these players from competing in WSGA events. As a result, the public players decided to form their own organization and conduct their own tournaments.

A previous effort to organize public players in 1938 never achieved official status and eventually dissolved in 1941 with the onset of World War II.

In November of 1951, the fortunes for public links golfers would change when a group of avid public players met in Oshkosh to form the Wisconsin Public Links Association. Ed Hoffman of Oshkosh Lakeshore GC was elected president and Ray Fischer of Whitnall Park GC was elected vice president. Frank Schultz of Oshkosh Lakeshore GC was elected secretary.  John Thomas of Janesville Riverside GC and Doc Womzer of Appleton Reid GC were elected directors. (Orv Luedtke of Lakeshore GC later became secretary/treasurer after the death of Frank Schultz in 1965.)

It was at this meeting that the first WPLA tournament was organized, which was held in 1952 at the Oshkosh Lakeshore GC, with a field of eighty participants.

Also at that meeting, the WPLA agreed to oversee the USGA Amateur Public Links qualifying, assuring that Wisconsin would annually send a representative three-person team to the national tournament. This policy remained in effect until 1961, when the Milwaukee County Public Links Association decided to leave the organization, after becoming upset with the WPLA for its failure to fund five players to the 1960 APL in Honolulu. When the USGA announced Hawaii as a site three years earlier the WPLA agreed to send three representatives. A huge qualifying turnout resulted in the USGA allotting five spots to Wisconsin, but the WPLA balked at providing the additional funding required. This led to the MCPLA clubs dropping their WPLA affiliation and deciding to conduct their own USGA Public Links and WSGA State amateur qualifying. Both the USGA and the WSGA supported the WPLA, but verbally asked the public organization to mend their disagreement.

The rift was finally settled in 1963, through the efforts of Jim Hall of Brown Deer Park GC and Gene Haas of Whitnall Park GC by restructuring the WPLA board of directors and the financial procedures. Both organizations continue to have a harmonious relationship to this date.     

(Information extracted from “Playing Through” by Mr. Gene Haas)