Golf Hall of Fame

Rick LeHew started playing championship golf as a teenager and never stopped, becoming one of the most accomplished players in area history and competing in the Senior British Open. A two-time “Outstanding Peoria Junior Golfer,” LeHew captained the 1981 Dunlap High School team that took second in the IHSA state tournament and placed seventh individually. He earned all-America honors at Illinois Central College in 1982 and 1983, leading the Cougars to seventh in the national tournament in ’82 and 15th in ’83. At the time of his Hall of Fame induction in 2022, LeHew had won a record-tying seven Peoria Men’s City championships and finished runnerup four times; won five Tri-County match play championships; played in every River Cup (26) and was the Peoria points champion seven times. LeHew was Illinois State Mid-Amateur champion in 2004, runnerup in 2003 and 2011 and runnerup in Illinois State Amateur Championship match play in 2005. From 1987-89, LeHew played on the J.C. Goosie Space Coast Pro Mini-Tour. He became a seven-time USGA National qualifier and played in seven Radix Cup matches (top Illinois amateurs vs. top Illinois pros). He was one of eight amateurs to qualify for and play in the 2014 Senior Open Championship, a.k.a. the Senior British Open.