The present OGCOA beginnings can be traced back to the early 1960's when groups of golf course operators discovered the value of networking - of joining fellow operators monthly to exchange ideas, to recap successes and ask questions.

How do you handle leagues? Where do you get sand, fertilizer, pesticides, grass seed, mowing equipment, rental golf cars or tax service? How do you reduce no-shows? What about irrigation and drainage? Which banks lend money? - etc. and ad infinitum.

Soon the local groups were drawn together by statewide concerns. Greenbelt legislation in the early 1970s brought fired up course operators to the state house. On two occasions threats of sales taxes on green fees made operators hunt for their legislators and follow them to Columbus.

Having first proved the surprising value of networking, the course operator next found the mechanics of statewide cooperation. So they incorporated to preserve their unification. Final papers were approved by the State of Ohio , May 24, 1979.

In the 80's, course owners, realizing that today's school children would be tomorrows customers, emphasized our junior golf program. The first Junior State Championship was hosted in 1982. Others followed each summer and continue today.

In 1986 the general membership meeting was moved from December to early March to motivate the spring start of a new season and have rotated geographically.

New worker's compensation group savings legislation, effective in late 1989, enabled us to have 83 employees receive 80% discounts in their worker's comp manual rates beginning with fiscal year '92-'93. This 83 employer figure has increased to 182 for the year '95-'96.

Effective March 17, 1994 we officially changed our name to Ohio Golf Course Owners Association. Why? Because insurance agents representing private courses wanted to get their clients into our worker's compensation program.

Networking is communicating between course operators. Sharing good ideas makes everyone's job easier and more successful. In 2014, we changed our business name to the Buckeye Golf Association to better represent all of the golf business in Ohio and to bring them more benefits within a more inclusive organization.