Wow. He lived a full life but this is sad. There's an old interview from Phil back in his ASU days where he was saying that he wanted to conduct himself like Arnold because it's good for the sport. Arnold basically invented the whole concept of golfers being walking billboards, good or bad. Thing with Arnold is he could maintain his integrity while doing it. Seems like everyone else has fallen short. But that takes away from his game.
I love that one. People say "keep your head still!" His head is all over the place. He was a beast built like a NFL linebacker that wanted to crush it. That's just pure power and that's the great thing about Arnold. Only Arnold could swing a club like he did and get away with it.
My dad had the privilege of playing a round of golf with Arnie about 20 years ago. He still has the picture hanging in his den. He said it is one of his favorite memories.
Dam Arnie!...thought we were gonna get thru this "loop at the top of my swing thingie"...no worries, Jack N said he would pickup my lessons from here on out.
My dad had the privilege of playing a round of golf with Arnie about 20 years ago. He still has the picture hanging in his den. He said it is one of his favorite memories.
I can't say I've ever met the King, but I was in his presence at the '08 Masters on the 1st tee as he hit the honorary opening tee shot. It was Arnie who convinced Jack (who was such a competitor that said he never wanted to be an honorary anything) to join him as the honorary starter which he did in '10 and later Player also joined him in '12.
Arnie was not the best golfer of the modern era, Jack owns that title, Palmer was the 1st golfer to transcend the sport and laid the foundation for golf superstars to make millions off the courses.
A lot of the players say they thank Tiger Woods for increasing the TV revenue and the purses, but they should be thanking Arnold Palmer for them making tens of millions of dollars off the golf course.
Arnold Palmer was the right guy at the right time. Just when television began covering the game, he was the fearless, no-holds-barred player that fans adored. He probably was one of the first athletes in any sport that became a brand onto its own. He was the best player during his peak.
But by all stories, he was a far better man than he was a golfer.