The Arkansas State Golf Association is excited to announce the 2026 Arkansas Golf Hall of Fame inductees.

By Frankie Frisco, for the Arkansas Democrat Gazette

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Dec. 27, 2025) — The current success of the PGA Tour Champions' Simmons Bank Championship at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock has spread to the Arkansas State Golf Association with the addition of its 2026 hall of fame inductees.

Simmons Bank Chairman and CEO George Makris Jr. and Pleasant Valley Director of Golf Chris Mayes have been elected to the ASGA Hall of Fame and will be inducted at a date and location to be announced later in 2026. Their recognition comes at the conclusion of the PGA Tour Champions season where the Simmons Bank Championship was again recognized as one of the circuit's premier tournaments in just its second year on its calendar.

ASGA Executive Director Carson Roberts said the addition of Makris and Mayes to its hall of fame further strengthens the organization's history, which dates to its founding in 1915.

"We're honored to have two great and deserving individuals who have done so much for golf in Arkansas and advanced golf through their PGA professional career or have the vision to bring events and sponsor and develop golf through other facets," Roberts said. "The scene and what they have been able to create for golf in Arkansas through the Simmons Bank Championship has been unbelievable."

Makris, 69, officially steps away from his executive roles at Simmons this week, but his behind-the-scenes presence will be felt at the Simmons Bank Championship as he assumes the role of chairman of the Arkansas Champions Trust, the fundraising arm of the tournament that distributes money to area charities.

Makris said a spontaneous lunch meeting with PGA Tour Champions member Glen Day of Little Rock at a tournament in St. Louis was the spark for getting the 50-and-over event to Pleasant Valley, where it won the 2024 Players Award and the 2025 President's Award in its first two years of a five-year sponsorship.

"When you start something new you always hope that it turns out the way you envision, and I would have to say this particular tournament has met those expectations, but it has been because of a lot of good, dedicated folks," Makris said. "We got off to a good start. We got good advice from Glen Day, from Ken Duke, from Miller Brady, the president of PGA Tour Champions and other folks who have been through this before."

"It's always better to learn from other people's mistakes. When someone tells you I wish we had done this or I wish we had done that, you better pay attention, and I think we did a pretty good job of paying attention when we started this endeavor."

Makris said one factor to the success of the tournament, which serves as the second of three playoff events for the Charles Schwab Cup, is the buy-in from the Central Arkansas community.

"Unfortunately, we don't have any professional sports teams in the state," Makris said. "The Razorbacks are generally the state's athletic team. This tournament gives people something to sink their teeth into that this is really a big-time event. The guys who play in this tournament are the folks we grew up idolizing, wishing we could play like a Lee Trevino or a Stewart Cink or a Bernhard Langer or any of those other guys out there."

Mayes, 53, is set to begin his 26th year at Pleasant Valley. After graduating from Mississippi State, he went to work at TPC Southwind in Memphis. Couple that stay with a stint at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., and his time in Little Rock, and Mayes said he relishes choosing golf as his career path.

"At the age of 24 I had a very good opportunity to be, at the time, the youngest head professional in the TPC network," Mayes said. "At 24 years old, that kind of paved the way for me to be in the golf business.

"To be a part of nine tour events so far in my career, that's good. I never really went into the business of I am really running a tour event. I just like being at a private club. I like talking to members. I like people to be happy and play golf and enjoy playing golf."

Ensuring Pleasant Valley was ready for prime time of Golf Channel's three-day coverage and the prestigious Simmons Bank Championship field led to some concern, but Mayes said he was confident the private Little Rock course could handle the spotlight along with an assist from veteran course superintendent Don Armbrust and others.

"The surreal moment for me about hosting the Simmons Bank Championship is I always thought, though it sounds biased, that Pleasant Valley was one of the best courses I have ever worked at," Mayes said."My biggest anxiousness leading up to the first tournament was, were the worthy tour players going to think of Pleasant Valley the way I thought of Pleasant Valley? And so that created a little bit of anxiousness in me. For the golf course to be in great shape for the two years, and for the players to really love it, it really says a lot about the golf course.

"It's outstanding the tournament has won some prestigious awards the first two years. They are certainly collective awards. It has a lot to do with Simmons Bank, who had a big part bringing the tournament here. It has as lot to do with Pro Links and their staff, who do a great job running a event. It says a lot about Don Armbrust and how he gets the golf course ready to play. And it also speaks for the membership who are committed to doing this event. It's a collective deal, and it wouldn't be a success without all parties. It's not just one. They all have to work together."

Mayes and the Pleasant Valley golf staff also have the opportunity to host the high school Overall tournaments each fall in conjunction with the ASGA. For the second consecutive year, the winner and runner-up in the boys and girls tournaments were paired with a PGA Tour Champions player during the Simmons Bank Championship Pro-Am. Roberts said that opportunity speaks to Mayes, PVCC and Simmons Bank's commitment to the state's junior golfers.

"You get to reward your kids and give them a chance to propel them when they see a professional, and they say, 'Hey, that can be me one day,' " Roberts said. "That might propel them over the edge to go play college golf and maybe take the leap to try to play professional some day. Those are memories you can't put a price tag on."

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Thank you to Frankie Frisco and the Arkansas Democrat Gazette for announcing our 2026 Hall of Fame inductees. Congratulations to both!