Golf mourns Arnold’s passing
By Carr McCalla, LGA Executive Director
28
I heard the news on my way to the gym
... Arnold Palmer had passed away. I’m
sure I’ll never forget the moment. I knew
he wasn’t well – anyone who had seen him
recently knew that in the last year or so he
simply looked older and more tired than
ever before.
That said, it was still a shock, something
that we hoped would never come to pass,
even though we knew it was inevitable at
some point in time.
Almost everyone has an ‘Arnold Palmer
story.’ I was fortunate enough to meet Mr.
Palmer on a couple of occasions, once
at his Bay Hill Club in Orlando. I was
in Orlando for a USGA Rules of Golf
meeting in 2004. After the meeting, Tom
O’Toole (who was to become USGA
president in 2014-2015), and I arranged
to play at Bay Hill.
About three or four holes into our
round, we realized that a familiar face was
playing in the group behind us ... it was
Arnie! We continued our round but I’ll
have to confess, I couldn’t resist the urge
to watch the group behind us at every
opportunity. Arnie didn’t appear to be
playing too well, but what was apparent is
that he was having a wonderful time, out
playing our great game with three of his
friends.
When we reached the 18th tee, we
had to wait for the fairway to clear before
hitting our tee shots. As we were waiting,
Mr. Palmer arrived on the 17th green and
made a point to come visit with us briefly.
He knew Tom and simply wanted to say
hello and give us a hard time about the
USGA’s penchant for setting the U.S.
Open up so difficult for “all those years.”
After we completed our round, we went
to the 19th hole to have lunch and take in
the ambiance of the club. Arnold and his
group came in after their round and sat at
a table close to ours.
After ordering a few ‘Arnold Palmers,’
(as well as some other, stronger, post-round
drinks), they went about the business of
settling their bets, the winners continually
giving the losers a hard time ... just like
we’ve all done a million times over our
golfing careers. As they got up to leave,
Arnold stopped at our table and asked,
“Did you guys enjoy yourselves?” After
we assured him that we had, he expressed
his appreciation to us for playing and for
all the USGA does for the game.
The remarkable thing about my
experience that day was that I am convinced
that he visited with us on the 18th tee and
again in the 19th hole because he was
sincerely interested in whether or not we
had a good day at his club ... not because it
was the correct thing to do ... not because
he wanted us to say good things about him
... it was simply because he cared.
I remember remarking to Tom that
the thing that endears him to us is simply
that he is ‘one of us.’ With all the money
won and accolades received, he never
lost the common touch. His humility,
generosity, and ability (and desire) to make
others around him feel comfortable and
important were his greatest gifts.
He was (and is) the fabric and soul of
our game, and he will be missed. The
game will always remember him with
fondness, and the legacy of the game will
always be punctuated with his memory.