Award- Winning Golf Writer Irwin Smallwood reflects on the life and legacy of golf's greatest friend. 

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What Follows is what I saw and heart and came to understand about the man who is responsible for making golf the sport it is today. And how does one begin when writing about Arnold Palmer? By using what I call the Bob Drum rule, of course, and therein lies a story. Perhaps a half-century ago, in the late 1950s or early 1960s, some wag in the press room at the Masters decided to have some fun and expose the provincialism of those of us laboring at our typewriters (yes, typewriters). When he got around to Drum, a Pittsburgh golf writer widely known as Palmer’s man, it was easy.

Every story he wrote began the same way. “Arnold Palmer,” — no more, no less. Just his name, a comma, and whatever The King happened to be doing, whether he was leading some tournament by a dozen or lagging behind.

So now, after golf’s greatest friend passed away, let us not be different.

“ARNOLD PALMER,”

Arnold Palmer was born and bred and remained a Pennsylvanian to his death, though he lived much of the year at Bay Hill in Orlando, and with his substantial fortune and jet could live for spells wherever in the world he desired. But, to our good fortune, he was also “one of us.” 

The Arnold Palmer we all knew was raised, to a large extent, at Wake Forest University. Just ask any Deacon die-hard you know. He tops everybody’s list of most important Wake alums. 

He also was a great friend of the Wyndham Championship’s illustrious forbear. Only Sam Snead contributedmore to the success of the old Greater Greensboro Open in its salad days. Wyndham executive director Mark Brazil puts him in a threesome with Snead and “possibly Davis Love III” as the tournament’s most important figures from the past, with little fear of contradiction.

The fact that he never won the GGO always nagged him. I mean, really nagged him. To the end, few things haunted him more than the mistake he made on the 70th hole of the 1972 tournament. He was leading by two strokes with two holes to play when he hit his tee shot on the par-three 16th at Sedgefield (No. 7 as they play it today) into the branch and suffered a triple bogey. Dream dashed.

When the Wyndham moved back to Sedgefield, it was an historic event. And who was there for the occasion? Arnold Palmer, of course. All the ceremonies were taking place in the clubhouse that in 1953 was the Sedgefield Inn and scene of the founding of the Atlantic Coast Conference. A year later, in the spring of 1954, Palmer won the first ACC golf championship at Old Town Club adjacent to the Wake Forest campus. And just like that, his storied career as one of the game’s fiercest competitors and most successful players was off and running.

WAKE FOREST ROOTS

Just listen to what he had to say in his 2005 commencement address to the university: “I have had a love affair with Wake Forest since my undergraduate days, but I didn’t realize until many years later what I had truly learned at Wake Forest, both in and out of the classroom, about the meaning of a productive and meaningful life.”

Actually, if it had not been for Wake Forest and its then-athletics director Jim Weaver (later, the first ACC commissioner), there might never have been an Arnold Palmer as we have known and loved for all these years.

I remember Jim telling the story years later, when he was presiding over the ACC from his office on the mezzanine inthe old King Cotton Hotel in downtown Greensboro. His duties at Wake included coaching the golf team.

“I got tired of Dumpy Hagler and Chuck Erickson beating my brains out,” he said, recalling Hagler as golf coach at Duke and Tar Heels coach Erickson. “I decided I was going to get me a golf team, and somebody told me about this kid named Buddy Worsham.”

Worsham was the young brother of 1947 U.S. Open champion Lew Worsham and a hot prospect. Weaver offered him a scholarship. But Worsham said he’d come only if Weaver ive his best friend a scholarship as well.

“I asked Worsham if his friend could play golf, and he said yes, so I said bring him along,” Weaver said. His friend, of course, was Arnold Palmer.

Weaver was a strong father figure for Palmer for years to come, but admitted that he did little or no coaching. “I mainly had to carry a trunk load of putters in my car,” I remember Jim telling me one day. “In those days, Arnold would change putters on every hole if he

GROWING DEACON GOLF

Palmer’s Wake Forest connections are many and well documented: three terms a member of the board of trustees, recipient of an honorary doctorate, fundraiser par excellence, and generous contributor, including one of the finest practice facilities in collegiate golf.

The most celebrated of these, however, are the scholarships that he has endowed. The first was born of tragedy. His close friend Buddy Worsham was killed in an automobile accident returning from a dance in Durham (Palmer had turned down a ride and went to a movie instead, the story goes). The grief of this largely led to Palmer’s withdrawal from school and three-year stint in the Coast Guard, and he promised himself that he would memorialize his friend as soon as he was able.

Thus evolved the Buddy Worsham Scholarship, and later an Arnold Palmer Scholarship, and the two of them (and six added later) have played a significant role in the success of the Deacon golf program: three NCAA titles and 18 ACC championships.

In addition to present Deacon Coach Jerry Haas, his brother and PGA TOUR veteran Jay and nephew Bill, a former FedEx Cup winner, these scholarships have produced three major champions: Lanny Wadkins, Curtis Strange, and still-competing Webb Simpson, as well>as former PGA Tour winners Billy Andrade and Joe Inman.

Among the permanent campus tributes to Palmer are a residence hall and one of collegiate golf’s best practice facilities that bear his name. But my personal favorite is his statue in front of the practice facility. I’m told that it is the only statue on the Wake campus, an in the days following his death, among the items placed at the statue was a can of Arnold Palmer iced tea, his favorite tea-and-lemonade drink that helped make him one of the richest athletes of all time, and Wake Forest one of his prime beneficiaries. 

LASTING LEGACY

In 1958, the Azalea Open in Wilmington wasthePGA Tour stop just ahead of the Masters. It was a fun time, with Palmer as the defending champion and looking good for Augusta. That is,beforeHowie Johnson tied him at the end of 72 holes, forcing a playoff that ended with Palmer shooting 78 and losing to Johnson’s 77. All was forgotten, however, the following Sunday when Palmer won his first Masters. Ah, those were the days. There were no entourages. Just players, wives, and writers, most of them staying at the old Richmond Hotel in downtown Augusta. On Sunday morning before the final round, as I entered the hotel dining room for breakfast, there sat Arnold and his wife Winnie.

“Come join us,” he said, and we did. Such was the friendliness and charm that made them both the envy of the sports world. No wonder that when Palmer died, most of the tributes from around the world seldom mentioned his exploits on the golf course that won him four Masters titles, two British Opens, and one U.S. Open.

The remembrances mainly told stories of little things, warm and fuzzy gestures that endeared Arnold and Winnie to those around them. And, of course, their financial generosity in the untold millions that helped build two hospitals in the Orlando area, and cancer centers in his hometown of Latrobe, PA, and another in California.

Among the many stories of Palmer’s connection with the common man, none tells it better than the one of the man who was eating a ham sandwich while watching from the tee box in some tournament while a hungry Palmer was waiting to hit. The man offered up his sandwich, and Palmer came over and had a few bites.

Personally, I’ll always remember the day in Augusta when I needed to talk with him about something regarding the GGO. I figured the best place to catch him was coming off the par three after the traditional competition. The teeming crowd engulfed him on the golf cart. Seeing the throng ahead, he hollered, “Just hop on the cart and ride with me.”

I did, and for the next few minutes, I just rode there on the back of the cart waving to the thousands around us. Nobody had the faintest notion who was waving at them, and I wasn't about to let on that I was a nobody myself. 

Arnold Palmer, ... RIP.

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How to make your golf game last between seasons

With short days and colder weather, wintertime usually means retiring your clubs and hunkering down, at least for a few weeks. Yet it can be a time of opportunity. “When we’re in the spring and summer months, we focus on what the golf ball’s doing,” says Wakefield Plantation Director of Golf Josh Points. “In the winter months, you have an opportunity to focus on how your body shifts and rotates during a swing. What can you do to improve your personal mobility and physical fitness?”

As it turns out, you can do plenty — in much less time than a round on the course would take.

Time to Focus

Points knows firsthand how beneficial the winter can be. At the Wakefield Plantation Learning Center, two indoor-outdoor bays and an indoor putting area are equipped with video technology to offer players instant feedback on their swing. “Carl Pettersson, David Mathis, Cameron Percy — in the winter months, we see a ton of our tour players use the indoor practice ranges,” Points says. “It takes them out of the elements and into a more controlled environment.” Points says that, once there, “they can focus on the things they’re trying to change in their golf swing.” Likewise, he says golfers of every level can treat the off season as a “time to change things physically in your game. Winter is a great time to focus on certain changes that you postpone all spring and summer.”

Sedgefield Country Club Director of Fitness Sherri Tallant agrees. Tallant is not just a personal trainer but is TPI certified, which means she’s gained a deep understanding of how the body’s strengths and weaknesses affect a golfer’s swing. “In the spring and the summer, most of our members’ time should be spent playing golf,” she acknowledges. “But in the winter, don’t just put your clubs away and forget about your golf game until spring.” Tallant recommends going to your club’s fitness center or multi-purpose room — any space outfitted with mirrors. “Just watch your golf swing,” she advises.

“When you have that time in the winter, you can focus on practicing and changing small movements,” Points agrees. He recommends investing in (or borrowing from a fellow member!) a weighted club. “Practicing your swing with it throughout the winter is a nice way to keep your game in shape and prepare for your schedule in the spring.”

Even more specifically, Tallant says cooler months are the best time to start working on your short game. “Putting and chipping tend to be the two things that get rusty the fastest,” she says. “Stick to practicing in the mirror and you’ll stay tee-time ready come spring.”

Be Flexible

Less time on the course also means more time to spend on stretching and strengthening. “In the off season, golfers should spend more time in the gym doing things like yoga classes,” Tallant says. Sedgefield offers a six-week yoga program that meets for an hour once weekly, and most of her members sign up for two back-to-back six-week sessions. “Through yoga, you’re not necessarily making your muscles longer, but you’re keeping them from getting shorter, which they would do if you don’t use them,” Tallant explains. “Strength training and stretching lengthens that muscle right back out and helps with rotation, which speeds up your clubhead speed. It’s absolutely awesome for golfers to do in the off season. There’s a lot of really good things about yoga.”

If your club doesn’t offer yoga opportunities, focus on flexibility and mobility in any way possible. Points says it just takes a moment of self-scanning. “What parts of your body make-up need improvement? Are your hips tight? Are your abs weak? If you’ve had back pain throughout the season, it’s probably not going to go away. Now is an opportunity to get a little bit stronger and alleviate any pain. You have time to focus on body movements, from big muscles to small rotations.” Hip stretches, core strengthening, and a combination of leg strengthening and stretching are crucial, whether you’re a beginner or seasoned player.

“It does not have to be very time consuming,” Tallant insists. “You don’t need hours in the gym or a lot of heavy weight lifting in order to get huge benefits.”

Beyond group classes or home stretching, your club’s pro team is a great resource for ideas to stay tunedup. “This is a time to reset and prepare for next year,” Points says. “Your golf swing, your golf game, your flexibility, everything else.”

Video Series: Tips from the Pros

Visit the McConnell Golf You Tube channel or watch below for step-by-step instruction from Josh Points as he and Assistant Golf Professional Erica Britt explain indoor practice tips to keep your golf swing in good shape during the winter months. 

 

 

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McConnell Golf is thinking creatively to expand and enhance premium fitness facilities.

Resourceful planning has yielded impressive improvements at four McConnell Golf Clubs. Thanks to ingenious use of clubhouse spaces, the Country Club of Asheville and Holston Hills Country Club have brand-new fitness centers; and Old North State Club has significantly renovated its center with Providence Country Club soon to follow suit. Here’s a look at how each property made it happen.

Scenic Workout

In the mountain clubs of North Carolina and Tennessee, there were rooms with a scenic view that no one could appreciate. “We had an old dining space that wasn’t used that often,” says Country Club of Asheville Club Manager Michael Methot about the spark of an idea. “We converted it – completely transformed it – into a fitness center.” Now, the 2,800-square-foot space is decked out with treadmills and resistance weight machines, a “one-stop-shop facility,” Methot says. What’s more, another spare room was outfitted with mirrors and a new floor to become an exercise studio. There, eight group fitness classes happen each week, and members often use it for stretching and personal exercise routines. “We had the facilities, they just weren’t fitness facilities,” Methot says. The center opened in October 2015. “We’ve been able to create a really great center for our members.”

Likewise, one of the first renovations made to the clubhouse at Holston Hills Country Club was a similar extra space overhaul. With new flooring, lighting, and equipment, a former dining room has become that club’s state-of-the-art fitness center.

At both clubs, the new space has opened the door for exciting new programming. At Holston Hills, new activities director Katelyn Graham was brought on board to oversee an active group fitness class schedule and personal training sessions. At the Country Club of Asheville, a robust fitness class schedule has been so popular that they’re now offering unique activities like chair yoga and a multiweek dance class series. At both places, “we have a good mix of equipment and programs for everyone,” says Corporate Director of Member Activities and Wellness Natalie Clemens. Clemens was instrumental in both overhauls, but turned to each club for specific details. “We really took our members’ thoughts and inputs into consideration,” Methot says. “It’s another way to engage and offer them more.”

On the Move

Sometimes small changes can make a big difference. Such was the case at Old North State Club, where the fitness center received a relocation and renovation. “We had a fitness center, so this isn’t new,” club manager Frank O’Hara explains, “but it is new in the sense that it’s a new space.” The former fitness center had been near the pool, accessible but slightly disconnected from the hub of clubhouse activities. Now, it’s almost twice as large and in the clubhouse. “It’s more centralized and therefore offers itself to more of our membership,” O’Hara says. A new location has made existing equipment feel fresh, and a key-fob system allows members 24-hour access (a feature at the Country Club of Asheville and Holston Hills centers, too). “It’s been really well-received,” O’Hara says.

Soon, a similar facelift will be underway at Providence Country Club. “We’re excited to be doubling the footprint of our existing fitness center,” says general manager Howard Murphy. The plan is to swap the locations of the clubhouse’s golf shop and fitness center, and also add a kids’ zone adjacent to the new fitness location. “We’ve never had a kids’ zone before, and we’re really looking forward to that,” Murphy says. Murphy anticipates a late spring 2017 debut for the new center.

 

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At McConnell Golf, the game is more than just a leisure activity. Members across all 12 clubs train competitively in the hope of one day playing among their idols. Two McConnell Golf Scholars have progressed to amateur and professional levels, and we’re proud to share the recent success of Raleigh Country Club's Grayson Murray and Carter Jenkins.

After receiving a McConnell Golf Junior Scholarship in 2008, Grayson Murray has wasted no time ascending the ranks to the PGA Tour. After the 22-year-old started the year with conditional status on the Web.com Tour and missed the cut in his first event, he tied for 10th place at TPC Wakefield Plantation and then tied for eighth at the BMW Charity Pro-Am. He earned his full-time PGA Tour card for the upcoming season in mid-October by finishing among this year’s top 25 money winners on the Web.com Tour.

“I received the McConnell Golf Junior Scholarship in the eighth grade, and it was perfect timing. It elevated my game so much just getting to go out to Raleigh Country Club every afternoon after school,” said Murray. “I don’t think I would have been the player I am without that scholarship.” The MCG Junior Scholarship is a program designed to offer instruction, practice, and playing opportunities to young golfers who may not have the financial ability to work on their games at first-class facilities. Murray was selected based on his level of talent, need, and commitment to the sport - as well as his proven dedication and value to the future of golf.

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With nearly 9,000 wineries in the United States wine enthusiasts seemingly have an endless assortment from which to choose. But do they? It surprised us to learn just five companies control nearly 80% of every wine label you see on retail shelves and restaurant lists! A virtual company, Cellar Angels, is looking to change that by making higher quality wine more accessible and also benefitting charities in the process. We sat down with founder Martin Cody after hearing high praise for the wine seminar events Cellar Angels has held at various McConnell Golf locations including Raleigh Country Club, Grande Dunes, Sedgefield Country Club and Old North State Club.

The people we’ve spoke with indicated they’ve never heard of the wines you poured and they were all fantastic. Why is that?

I owned a bricks and mortar wine store in downtown Chicago for seven years and learned firsthand how the 3-tier (wine producer, wine distributor and wine retailer/restaurant) system operates. It’s an efficient system for the mass produced wines which grace every wine store, big-box chain and often restaurant list across the country. If you make 50,000 cases or more it’s a terrific system. If you produce under 5,000 cases, for example like 90% of the 900+ wineries in Napa, the system is terrible. Anyone who has been to Napa or Sonoma has seen this up close when the fall in love with a winery and ask “Why can’t I get this back home?” We solve that problem.

How do you find the wines Cellar Angels features to their members? Also, how much is membership?

Membership is currently complimentary and anyone of legal drinking age can sign up at www.cellarangels.com. I’ve been traveling to California wine country, specifically Napa and Sonoma for over twenty years. Since founding Cellar Angels in 2010 I’ve averaged about 4 trips per year and have amassed extensive relations with the artisan, small, handcrafted and boutique wineries. Many of these wineries only make their wines available to their private mail list customers, however they love the opportunity to benefit charity and Cellar Angels affords them the best chance to both grow awareness among fine wine enthusiasts and raise money at the same time. Some wineries produce under a 100 cases and we’ve actually poured some of these at McConnell clubs during our private seminars and the feedback has been sensational. It’s just a fantastic opportunity for members to both taste and order something so exclusive that few people will have access to. And raise funds for charity at the same time.

Numerous current and former PGA tour players have wineries or actually make wine. Why do you think golf and wine make such a good, shall we say, ‘pairing’?

Well played! Golf is a special, special game and when you have the privilege of playing it on courses like those in the McConnell Golf stable, the excitement, enjoyment and fulfillment are all greatly enhanced. The same is true in wine. You could play run-of-the-mill golf courses your entire life, but when you step to the first tee at Sedgefield, Treyburn or Old North State, your pulse quickens and you know you’re in for a treat as great attention is given to every detail. It is truly golf at its finest. The same is true in great wine - why drink mediocrity when excellence can be delivered to your door via the click of a mouse? The attention to detail and quality by someone actually walking the vines each day, hand harvesting and hand sorting to select the best grapes, comes through in the bottle. For those aspiring to the luxury lifestyle, great golf and great wine go hand in hand. Membership in McConnell and Cellar Angels indeed has its privileges.

Coming to a club near you

Cellar Angels will be providing several private wine seminars across McConnell Golf clubs in 2017. These are guided seminars tasting through five exclusive wines not available to the general public and expertly paired with small plates from the respective club’s chef. 

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McConnell Golf’s tennis program brings all the clubs together.

Each August since 2011, tennis fans have gathered at Wake Forest University for the Winston-Salem Open. The last men’s tournament on the Emirates Airline US Open Series circuit before the US Open, this event draws top pros and a large, enthusiastic crowd.

For the past couple of years, McConnell Golf members have joined in the fun. “It’s a good event,” says Kyle Thortsen, McConnell Golf director of tennis. “We start out with a tailgate in the parking lot. We have a tent, and cornhole, and food, and everyone hangs out until the gates open.”

Member Jill Uttridge agrees. “I attended the WSO with my husband and sons, who are 13 and 9. While the boys enjoyed cornhole in the parking lot, we mixed with friends from our club, Wakefield Plantation, and met members from other McConnell clubs. It was fun to hang with the pros in a non-instructional capacity.” The highlights for the kids? “My 9-year-old loved watching the players practice a few feet away and getting autographs on his big tennis ball. We love the small tournaments because you can really get up close to the players.”

Once inside, the group gathered at center court for a photo. “That was really cool,” smiles Thortsen. “Last year, we had 25 members, and this year we had 50. We hope it will continue to grow and grow.”

The Country Club of Asheville trip took place in the spring, with members from the Raleigh area heading to the mountains. Member Mary Beth Corbin recalls, “We brought a lot of energy and were greeted with sincere enthusiasm. Everyone was so welcoming, and the clinic with the pros was well-designed to meet the levels of the different participants.”

These excursions also involve entertainment and local college players coming out for some sets. An event at Old North State Club in New London, North Carolina happened in November, and it was anticipated from more than just a skill standpoint. Corbin says, “Our group was discussing what our outfits would be — and we asked our coach to have us McConnell-clinic-ready!”

 

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Whether it’s a cup of coffee or an intimate in-kitchen dinner, McConnell Golf’s culinary innovations are hitting all the right notes.

Premium Coffee

When Raleigh Coffee Company wanted to upgrade the quality of its coffee, they knew just where to turn. “Today, anybody can get a coffee roaster, get their hands on decent coffee beans, and roast them up. We wanted to take an extra step and be more genuine,” says Raleigh Coffee Company Owner Joseph Bland. That meant illuminating the face behind the bean — since September, all coffee served at McConnell Golf clubs comes from the same source, Leonel Vindas’ Costa Rican farm. “Through this single-source farming, we’re able to guarantee consistent flavors to members and also consistent business and support for Leonel’s estate,” Bland says.

Raleigh Coffee Company has sourced McConnell Golf coffee for a few years, always with an emphasis on quality. Only in the past year has Bland begun partnering specific farmers to specific accounts. “McConnell Golf is about networking and connection. They’re building their community across the region and three states, and we knew this would be the right program to introduce.”

Single-sourced coffee stands out for its commitment to a particular farmer. In tropical coffee-growing regions, many farmers struggle to make ends meet. Even the fair-trade market is crowded; to keep up, growers have to produce “mediocre coffee,” Bland says, in order to meet demand. The assurance of a large account — like that of a set of country clubs — gives a farmer peace of mind. In turn, Leonel Vindas is empowered to focus on growing practices that result in a premium crop.

“We’re putting people over profit,” Bland says. “It’s just coffee, but many people do consume it every day. For us, it’s about transparency and knowing where your food comes from.” It’s a committed attention to detail perfectly suited to McConnell Golf clubs.  

Wine and Dine

Joseph Bland likens the coffee sourced from Leonel Vindas to fine wine: “A small producer farm is much like an independent winery or vineyard,” he explains. “These are your small, family-owned plots committed to quality rather than quantity.”

At the Country Club of Asheville, members enjoy tastes of fine wine alongside gourmet paired bites at Chef Bruce McIntosh’s dinners. It’s a more informal take on the same attention to detail behind McConnell Golf’s single-source coffee: chef-led cooking demos. “I call them demos instead of classes,” Chef Bruce explains. “I prepare the food in front of members, so they can see what I’m doing and learn from it, but then it’s plated for them to enjoy.”

The dinners began by happenstance and as an extension of the club community. Chef Bruce knew a group of men at the club who wanted to have a special celebratory dinner on Tuesday nights, when dinner service is closed. To make the meal memorable, he thought to utilize the club’s spacious kitchen outfitted with a large wooden block table. Members sat around the table, and Chef Bruce made every course to order right there in the kitchen.

The evening was a success, and the men raved about it enough to spread the word. Soon, another group wanted a private kitchen dinner, and then another. Chef Bruce decided to make it a regular occurrence. “But I wanted to take it a step further,” he says.

Now, demo dinners involve five or six small-plate-sized courses and shared bottles of wine. When they arrive, members receive a printout with the recipes for a few of the courses (never all of them, because “I like to keep an element of surprise for a few of the courses,” Chef Bruce says). There’s also a space to take notes on any tricks and techniques gleaned from watching the chef at work. Some members take ample notes and others sit back and enjoy — both are welcomed and encouraged. “It’s a real social event,” Chef Bruce says. Between the convivial gathering, the quality time with the chef, and the ability to recreate recipes at home, the dinners are truly something special. “We’re enjoying offering something different to our members.”

 

 

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