St. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Comedian George Lopez is a funny guy. Obviously. He’s made a career out of making people laugh.

Vijay Singh, on the other hand, has made a career out of golf. At 6-foot-2, the one-time bouncer and workout extraordinaire can look intimidating and plays a mean game of golf. So it might come as a surprise to find that at Monday’s World Golf Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Singh actually got as many, if not more, laughs than Lopez.

On a crisp October night, the greats of the golfing world dressed in their finest to see five new members receive one of the sport’s highest honors. Lopez, the host of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and master of ceremonies at the induction, kicked off the evening with several audience-pleasing jokes.

The first inductee, Marilynn Smith, was introduced by Kathy Whitworth, who shared how, during the early years on the LPGA, the female golfers ran the show, as the president was essentially both commissioner and Tour star. Smith, who served in that capacity among many other achievements, came onto the stage and stood for over 10 minutes, despite bad knees that now mostly keep her confined to a wheelchair.

Smith, named Miss Personality on the LPGA Tour because of her warm and friendly nature, charmed the crowd. One of her close friends, Patty Berg, was honored next with a tribute by Judy Rankin. Both Berg and Byron Nelson passed away this year, and the two Hall of Fame members were recognized with video tributes and speeches by Rankin and PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem, respectively.

Larry Nelson during Monday's pre-ceremony press conference. (Levy/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

The late Henry Picard was inducted after Smith and presented by LPGA star Beth Daniel. As an 8-year-old, Daniel took lessons from the tall and handsome Picard, a man of few words but many lessons. He would come to her in the morning with a simple question, like “How do you hit the ball in the air?” The young girl wouldn’t know the answer, so she would spend all day trying to figure it out. If at the end of the day she got it right, Picard would simply say, “Thank you.” The golf world said a big thank you back to Picard with the induction, recognizing him for what he brought to the game through his 26 victories, participation on two Ryder Cup teams and encouragement for several famous pros, including Ben Hogan and Sam Snead.

Speaking of legends of the game, Arnold Palmer soon came to the stage to recognize his friend, the late Mark McCormack.

“I can't begin to guess how many times I've shaken people's hands around the world. Thousands perhaps, maybe millions, with a man on the street and some of the most important people in the world,” said Palmer.

“One of those handshakes, though, I can't think has meant more to me and my career than the one I had nearly 50 years ago with Mark.” Palmer related this story of his famous handshake with McCormack, which sealed their partnership and effectively began the sports marketing industry. McCormack and his company, International Management Group (IMG), would later represent such legends as Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tiger Woods.

It was Player who then followed Palmer, though not to speak about his friend McCormack but to introduce the next inductee Larry Nelson, a man who picked up the game late at the age of 21 and still managed to win three major titles.

Nelson’s more proud of his family and faith, though, than his TOUR victories and this was evident in his address to the crowd. Several of his stories involved his family and he said, despite being fortunate enough to play with all of the game’s greats, it was his father who really had an impact on him. His dad didn’t pick up the game until his 50s and did not know much about the sport. Always one to offer advice, though, the elder Nelson felt the need to give his son some instruction following a particularly bad round.

Vijay Singh enjoying himself during Monday's ceremony. (Levy/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

"Son, I don't know much about golf, but if I were you, I'd try to hit it a little closer to where those flags are,” Nelson recalled, saying it was some of the best advice he had ever received.

Finally, after a dozen people had taken the stage, including his presenter and close friend Ted Forstmann, it was Singh’s turn in the spotlight.

“What part of 10 minutes do you guys not know?” joked Singh, which brought on laughs from the audience who had been sitting for nearly three hours through speeches that, understandably, lasted much longer than their allotted time. The native of Fiji discussed all of the hardships he faced along the way to becoming the top golfer in the world in 2004 and of course, thanked his family and friends for sticking by him through the years, affectionately teasing several of them.

As the night came to a close, a colorful fireworks display lit up the sky and reflected off the lake in front of the Hall of Fame, where the sounds of bagpipers, clinking glasses and people mingling could soon be heard from inside. Special guests were allowed in the museum to view the exhibit area, where the five new members' memorabilia is on display.

All of the members have made their mark both literally and figuratively on the game, as there is now evidence to prove just how much they meant -- and still mean -- to the sport at the Hall of Fame exhibit.