Alastair Johnston, CEO of Arnold Palmer Enterprises, confirmed that Palmer died Sunday afternoon of complications from heart problems. He was 87. He was admitted to UPMC Hospital in Pittsburgh on Thursday for some cardiovascular work, then weakened.
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Palmer also presided over the Arnold Palmer Invitational every March, the only living player with his name attached to a PGA Tour event. He came off as an “everyman”, as he hitched up his trousers, flicked away a cigarette and attack the flags. Two years ago, when the PGA Tour stopped at the iconic course near Denver for a tournament, pros were given a chance to duplicate Palmer’s shot using persimmon and balata, the way he did back in the day.
“Thanks Arnold for your friendship, counsel and a lot of laughs”, wrote Woods on Twitter.
“When Arnold came over in the 60s and wins two in a row, that I believe saved the (British) Open championship, or globalized it as you call it now”.
He played on six Ryder Cup teams, and was the winning captain twice. We were always there for each other. “So Barbara and I are just in shock and incredibly saddened”. Palmer also lost three U.S. Open playoffs, including in 1966 when he failed to hold a seven-stroke lead with nine holes to play. Like much of the golfing public, he was trying to make sense of the US Golf Association ruling that had almost cost Dustin Johnson the title at nearby Oakmont Country Club a day earlier. Police say the driver abandoned the vehicle a couple of blocks away and took off on foot, they are in the process of finding the owner of the auto.
Palmer was born on September 10, 1929, in Latrobe, a small industrial town east of Pittsburgh.
GQ Magazine named him one of the “50 most stylish men of the past 50 years” and Esquire had him in a list of the “75 best-dressed men of all time”. He piloted his first aircraft in 1956, and 10 years later had a licence to fly jets that now are the standard mode of transportation for so many top players, even though the majority of them are merely passengers. A friendly woman, golf historians say Doris Palmer gave Arnold his people skills, which were a critical part of his legacy.
In fact, he was one of the first pro athletes to turn his athletic prowess into big business. He won numerous games in the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour dating back to 1955. Palmer was McCormack’s first major client.
It was Deacon who introduced Arnold to golf, with the instructions “hit it hard, boy”.
When Arnold Palmer Course Design opened the Mill Cove Golf Club in Arlington, Palmer was there to play in the opening round. She died of ovarian cancer in 1999 and in 2005, he married Kathleen Gawthrop. They had two daughters, and his grandson Sam Saunders plays on the PGA Tour.
Still, Palmer and Arnie’s Army endured their share of disappointments, including a double-bogey on 18 that enabled Gary Player to win the 1961 Masters.
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“Not a single modern golf fan would be a fan without him”. I will never forget the bear hug in front of the clubhouse at Augusta, to watching you hit your final tee shot there, and to spending time with you in the locker room at Bay Hill… thank you for being you and giving me the opportunity to do what I get to do everyday!
