Chip Beck Among Newest Inductees into Illinois Golf Hall of Fame

Industry leaders Frank Jemsek and Steve Lesnik will join former PGA Tour member Chip Beck and golf course superintendent Carl Hopphan as the newest inductees into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame.

The foursome will be honored at a ceremony celebrating their achievements in October at the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame exhibit located at the Glen Club in Glenview, Ill.

Hopphan, a 50-year Golf Course Superintendents Association of America Class AA member, is retired but continues to give back to the game by assisting the Sunshine Through Golf Foundation. His career began in 1953 when he took a job in his hometown at Aurora Country Club. Three years later, he was named superintendent. After 31 years at Aurora, Hopphan took over as the superintendent at the Evanston Golf Club in Skokie for 12 years. He also served as development director for the Illinois Turfgrass Foundation and established the Tod W. and Norma A. Hopphan/Illinois Turfgrass Endowment Fellowship scholarship in honor the memories of his wife, Norma, and his son Tod Hopphan, CGCS, who followed his father into the profession.

To some, Charles "Chip" Beck is best known for shooting a 59 in a PGA Tour event, a feat he accomplished in the third round of the 1991 Las Vegas Invitational. It was only the second time a 59 had ever been recorded in PGA Tour history. Beck would go on to enjoy four victories on the PGA Tour, and he was runner-up in the 1986 and 1989 U.S. Open Championships and at the 1993 Masters.

Son of the late Chicago area golf patriarch and charter Illinois Golf Hall of Fame member Joe Jemsek, Frank Jemsek continues to follow in his father's footsteps with his tireless efforts to provide the public golfer with first-class amenities and a memorable golf experience. Jemsek began working in the family business at age 11 and now currently serves as owner of the family corporation, which includes Cog Hill Golf & Country Club.

Lesnik and James Kemper Jr. bought KemperSports from the Kemper Corp. in 1983. The company has grown to include more than 80 golf courses, of which 14 facilities are located in Illinois. He has been named by Golf Magazine among the "Most Powerful People in Golf."