News

Charles Genter, PGA, Inducted into Philadelphia PGA Hall of Fame

Lower Gwynedd Township, Pa. (September 28, 2022) — The Philadelphia PGA Section and its Hall of Fame Committee has inducted PGA Member Charles Genter into its Hall of Fame as the class of 2022. He is the 46th member of the Philadelphia PGA Hall of Fame.

Genter, born in Daytona Beach, Fla., in 1940, was elected to PGA Membership in 1966, and worked as the PGA head professional at Tavistock (N.J.) Country Club for nearly 30 years before retiring in 2000. Working at one facility for decades is generally a rarity in the golf industry in the present-day.

“This honor belongs to my family,” Genter humbly said after receiving the news of his induction.

Prior to earning his PGA Membership, Genter worked as an assistant professional at various clubs in Florida, Michigan, and New Jersey, before serving in the U.S. Army for two years. While in the Army, he managed the Cole Park Golf Club on the Fort Campbell military installation on the Kentucky-Tennessee state border. Following his service, Genter worked in Indianapolis, and in New Jersey, before accepting his position at Tavistock. Two of his students went on to have successful playing careers, including Betsy Haag Manderino and Leslie Smith, winning 15 total club championships, five South Jersey Ladies Amateurs, and two Philadelphia Ladies Amateurs. In his own right, Genter qualified for the 1969 U.S. Open at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas. Genter went on to earn his PGA Master Professional status, becoming the Section’s third PGA Master Professional in 1990.

Throughout his career, Genter served the Philadelphia PGA Section, and the PGA of America, in various capacities, including in senior leadership positions: Section president, 1990-92; Section Secretary, 1989; Section secretary, 1985-88; and Section District Director. In addition to his role as a Section officer, Genter served on the PGA’s national Membership Committee, taught PGA education in their then Business Schools I and II, and was a member of the PGA’s Membership Task Force, and the PGA of America Presidents Society. He was also a member of the Section’s Nominating and Long-Range committees, and served as the Long-Range Committee chair.

Furthermore, Genter was enlisted by Tavistock members to design a nine-hole executive golf course in Cape Hatteras, N.C., named Ocean Acres.

Outside of his official PGA duties, Genter was a merit badge counselor for the Boy Scouts’ Troop 65, worked with blind golfers and students with Down Syndrome on their games, and worked to improve and promote the International Four-Ball Tournament, and West Jersey Hospital Foundation Tournament.

“We take great pride in welcoming Mr. Genter to our Hall of Fame,” said Philadelphia PGA Section Executive Director Geoffrey Surrette, PGA. “Our Section would not be as successful, or well respected, without his leadership and dedication to the game and fellow PGA Professionals.”

About the Philadelphia PGA Section
The Philadelphia PGA Section, covering eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware, is one of 41 geographical managing entities of the PGA of America. This Section manages nearly 900 PGA Members and Associates who are employed at over 590 golf facilities in our region.

Contact: Matt Frey, PGA, Communications Director, mfrey@pgahq.com