The origins of the PGA may be traced to Charles Campbell Worthington, a successful businessman and owner of the Worthington Pump and Machinery Corporation. He built the Buckwood Inn, an exclusive resort near Shawnee on Delaware, Pennsylvania, with an eighteen-hole golf course. It was completed around 1910. In 1912 Worthington invited a group of professional golfers to compete on his course. This group was a forerunner of the Professional Golfers' Association of America. On January 17, 1916, department store manager Rodman Wanamaker hosted a luncheon at the Hotel Martinique on Broadway on West 32nd street for a group of New York-Area golf professionals and well-known amateur golfers at the Taplow Club in New York City. The purpose of the assembly was to converse on the subject of forming a national association that would promote interest in golf, as well as to help elevate the vocation of golf professionals. Subsequent meetings were held over the next two months, and on April 10, 1916, The PGA of America was created via the 35 charter members signing the constitution and bylaws.
