inspired Curley. After Clark
finished college and became a
school teacher, he decided to leave
the classroom and become a club
pro.
“They [Jay, Lionel, and Frank]
were all funny and sociable, firstclass,” said Curley. “Nothing would
get them upset.”
This was a mindset Curley
adopted, as he and Joyce
maintained operations at three
separate golf courses at the same
time. He leased the Tri-Parish Golf
Course in 1970, Iberia Country
Club in New Iberia, Louisiana, in
1985, and bought Sugar Oaks Golf
and Country Club in 1987, along
with Theodore “Teddy” Sliman.
“We always had help around
there,” said Joyce. “We could not
handle it, the two of us. We always
had an assistant because at the end
of the month, it got kind of hectic.”
For the first five years of running
the golf courses, the pair would
work seven days a week except
Christmas and later, they were able
to take a break for New Year’s Day.
Together, they brought three
girls into the world: twins named
Dana and Dawn and later,
Darlene. While Curley travelled
for tournaments, Joyce flip-flopped
from bookkeeping for the golf
courses to raising the kids at home.
“We were so busy, we did not
realize what was going on,” said
Joyce. “I would go to work, get
them ready for school, take off,
come home, bring them to dancing
in Lafayette, and we would not get
back home until eight or nine at
night. You get in the habit of doing
something, and you just go with the
flow.”
For the most part, Curley stayed
in Lafayette and worked to provide
for his family.
“I have known him over 40
years, ever since I started playing
golf,” said Segura. “He’s a good
husband and father and raised
three beautiful daughters.”
Although Curley’s schedule was
packed, he always made time for
what is important to him.
“He is a very honest, caring
individual,” said Segura. “Golf
meant everything to him; family
and golf was his life.”
Between both of these factors,
the Romeros had their work staring
back at them.
“[Parenting and working] is a
lot of work, but it is worth it,” said
Joyce. “They were hanging around
the golf course.”
This gave their children
opportunities to earn green time in
more ways than one.
“One time, we had the kids
working for us as a part-time job,”
said Joyce. “They started playing
golf, and in one way, it helped
the business because it was very
unusual to see girls playing.”
More young ladies started to
play. Eventually, about a dozen girls
would frequent the course.
“If you go to any club in the U.S.,
you will find very few girls playing,”
said Curley.
The Romeros would bring a
group of about seven girls to state
competitions. Their own Dawn
won junior state and her high
school’s golf competition.
During the time of the year
when the sun shines the longest,
Curley would give lessons to both
boy and girl junior groups.
“Sometimes, some of the girls
were better,” laughed Joyce.
Curley not only taught his
students about golf, but about living
with integrity.
“Then we had the scrambles,
Junior Scrambles as we called
it,” said Joyce. “They were just
learning, but the parents wanted
to play with them. You see them
playing, and the little boys might
miss the shot and throw the clubs
because they think it is the club’s
fault. They curse at home, but on
the golf course, we would call them
down and tell them to act decent.”
Some of Curley’s students include
Douglas Bulliard who played at the
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
on a golf scholarship and became
the assistant golf professional at
Oakbourne Country Club and
later the head golf professional
at Squirrel Run Golf Course.
Another was Doug Oubre who
was an assistant golf professional