Arnold Palmer, “The King” of golf, died Sunday at the age of 87.
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Milfred J. “Deacon” Palmer was a greenskeeper, golf pro and, Arnold often said, the man who taught him everything he knew. Palmer had won Seven Majors and 62 PGA Tours in his lengthy legendary career. He was one of my best friends, closest friends, and he was for a long, long time. Palmer passed away Sunday at the age of 87, but “The King” will be remembered forever for his character, class, and of course, his game. He was an icon.
But that was only part of what transformed admiring fans into a devoted following that became known as Arnie’s Army.
Nicklaus, who enjoyed a long, friendly rivalry with Palmer, said: “I wish I had another chance to talk to him, but I am so glad we talked a couple weeks ago on his birthday, when he sounded great. She had deep, meaningful relationships with everyone, and I think she knew what my father needed and was willing to take a back seat anytime she needed to make sure to put everybody else out front, when in fact she was the one that was so often the person behind the scene and I think she did fantastic things juggling and raising a family and trying to be there for my father”.
Payne said the club will pay tribute to “our game’s finest ambassador” at next year’s Masters, adding, “Most importantly, we, his friends at Augusta National, will always love him”. What is important is that we just lost one of the incredible people in the game of golf and in all of sports.
Palmer was among the first to be given the hint, and in 2002, he was set to play his last round – at age 72.
Like everywhere he played, Palmer left a special mark on the hearts of Australian golf fans including one of our own legends, Peter Thomson. Palmer’s health has been in decline for some time.
By then Palmer was already his sport’s biggest star, his breakout moment coming at the 1958 Masters when soldiers from nearby Fort Gordon adopted Palmer and roared as he captured the first of his four green jackets as Masters champion. And he was just a different golfer. It’s fairly unanimous that Arnold Palmer was, true to his nickname, the King. He appeared at the Masters for his 50th time, his last, in 2004, and retired from professional golf two years later.
“The announcer Vin Scully once said: In a sport that was high society, Arnold Palmer made it “High Noon”.
Palmer was one of a kind, and if you ever met the man, he was as genuine as they would come.
“He was a guy I looked up to when I was a kid playing golf”, Brown said.
One of my most cherished photographs is a snapshot someone took of me interviewing Palmer when he came to Saukville in 1995 to open The Bog, which he helped design. Brown covered that U.S. Senior Open in 1999 along with Peterson and saw him play again two years later in the first Champions Tour event. Together with The R&A, the USGA governs the game worldwide, jointly administering the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, equipment standards and World Amateur Golf Rankings.
Thankfully, Palmer’s playing partners that day – Rocco Mediate and John Mahaffey – milked their pre-shot routines to the max, and all was fine for Palmer, who hit his first shot at 2:03 p.m. for what was, officially, a 2 p.m. tee time.
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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told Palmer, “Golf made you famous, but your tireless efforts to save lives, not your short game, will make you immortal”.
