It is ‘Little People’s Golf Week’ in Quincy

The 46th Annual Pepsi Little People’s Golf Championships for boys and girls ages 3 through 18 will be held at Westview Golf Course and The Knights of Columbus par three course in Quincy today through Wednesday. Trophies will be given for 1st through 3rd in all divisions, with medals to 6th place in Divisions 4, 5, 6 and 7 (ages 10-18), and participant awards to all non-trophy winners in Divisions 1, 2 and 3 (ages 3-9).

Today is registration day with an optional practice round day for all participants at their particular course.  Registration is from 9 am until 5 pm today (Monday) at Westview for Little People’s players 3 through 18.

The day concludes with a family picnic co-sponsored by Refreshment Services Pepsi, Hy-Vee, Quincy Herald Whig and WGEM-TV.  Tomorrow the tournament actually begins and will conclude on Wednesday.

The Pepsi Little People’s Golf Championship (LPGC) is an international junior golf tournament for with boys and girls participating from all over the United States and beyond. Some 24,000 plus junior golfers and their families have made the trip to Quincy over the past years. Many of those are now playing on the PGA, LPGA, European, Webcom and Symetra Tours, or are highly ranked college players, or are active as golf professionals or as golf coaches.

The idea for a junior golf tournament in the Midwest began with an off-hand statement by a newspaper reporter to founder Nan Ryan when she was playing in the Quincy Women’s City Golf Championships in 1973. According to the LPGC website,  The reporter stated “It’s too bad there isn’t a junior tournament in the Midwest like the International in Florida”. Nan’s answer was “I think I’ll start one” and start one she did with the first ever Little Peoples Golf Tournament starting in 1974 at the 9-hole Cedar Crest Country Club course in Quincy.  The rest is history!