Following in his father’s footsteps, James M. Popa dedicated his life to the game of Golf. He led both the Columbus District Golf Association (CDGA) and Ohio Golf Association (OGA). He sat on the Board of Governors of the Ohio Golf Association and retired from the CDGA in 2015 and OGA in 2018 With over 30 years serving the game of Golf, Popa has conducted hundreds of Tournaments, Qualifiers and Championships. This calculates to more than 1,400 tournament days of competitive golf while Jim was at the helm. In addition, Jim volunteered his time and expertise for countless other golf events that served the community of Columbus, Ohio. Under Jim’s leadership, Ohio Golf Association grew to over 200 member clubs and added the Ohio Senior Amateur Championship and Ohio Two Man Best Ball Championship to the annual schedule. In 2006, Jim was the leader of the One Ball Tournament that was conducted in Ohio to show that the Committee of a Competition could use a Local Rule to have all competitors play the same golf ball. Popa becomes the third child of a Ohio Golf Hall of Fame member to be selected for the Ohio Golf Hall of Fame. Jim and his wife Martha have lived in Upper Arlington for 45 plus years and have three children, J.W., Cathy and Samantha, all of whom are married with families. In addition to the Ohio Golf Hall of Fame, Jim was the recipient of the Southern Ohio PGA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 and the 2017 USGA Ike Granger Award for longtime commitment to golf.
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