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The Golf Association of Philadelphia, also known as GAP, is the oldest regional golf association in the United States of America. Members of four different clubs — Aronimink GC, Merion Cricket Club, Philadelphia Country Club and Philadelphia Cricket Club — founded the organization in 1897. It currently has 140 member clubs that stretch across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

The Golf Association of Philadelphia conducts more than 60 tournaments annually from April to October. The GAP Team Matches, originally known as the Interclub Matches, kick off each season. They served as the basis for the founding of the Association in 1897.

Squads compete in a four-team sectional round-robin format (essentially three matches in three weeks). A total of 12 players per team participate with six players staying home and six traveling to the opponent’s club. Clubs are divided and placed in Divisions AA through F based on the previous year’s results. Playoff and Challenges determine the top divisions’ clubs. The GAP Team Matches are the single-largest golfing team competition in the country.

The season also features events available for players of all ages (Junior, Amateur and Senior) and skill level (championship and handicap). It also includes the Association’s four Majors: the Middle-Amateur Championship, Amateur Championship, Open Championship and Joseph H. Patterson Cup. Additionally, the Association administers qualifiers for USGA events, such as the Open and the Amateur.

At the season’s conclusion, GAP awards a “Player of the Year” on four levels: Amateur, Junior, Senior and Super-Senior. It also acknowledges a Junior Sportsman of the Year, Volunteer of the Year and Distinguished Service Award recipient.