Arnold Palmer, Dwight Eisenhower and Joe Dey
In the late '50s and throughout the '60s golf exploded in the United States. New courses were built, the number of rounds played went up, along with the number of players. There are many reasons for the boom in golf. However, there were three people that did more to popularize and lead the game during this period than others. Without Arnold Palmer, Dwight Eisenhower and Joe Dey, golf might not have the same level of popularity it has today.
The biggest personality in golf post-World War II has been Arnold Palmer. While there were always great players on tour, nobody captured the interest of the public like Arnold from 1958 until Tiger Woods came on the scene in the late '90s. With his athletic, attractive appearance he looked great in the early days of golf on TV. He had a magnetic, charismatic personality and with his great play, everybody loved Arnold. The fans, the press, the sponsors. Arnold elevated the visibility of the game, much like Tiger did at his peak. New players came to the game because of watching Arnold. He was a great golfer and had a wonderful personality.
At the time Arnold turned professional in 1954, golf was considered by many to be an elitist game of the wealthy. Arnold's father was a superintendent at his hometown golf course. With this common man persona and background, Arnold brought the game to everyone.
With Jack Nicklaus in the antagonist role, the media had a storyline, mixed in with Gary Player and Lee Trevino, which extended for two decades. The huge galleries nicknamed "Arnie's Army" swarmed him on and off the course. Always with a bright smile, darting eyes, animation, and showing positive emotion, he was the fan favorite and the darling of the press.
Peter Jacobsen tells a story about being a young tour pro at an autograph signing with Arnold. After watching Peter sign his name illegibly, Arnold pulled him aside saying, "Always sign your name so that it can be read." I have an autograph from Arnold Palmer when he signed my cap at the Dayton's Challenge. It is perfectly legible. It was that kind of attention to detail which made him known to fans as the "King".
Arnold loved people. There are many stories about fans approaching Arnold and having him respond by going over and above what would be expected. He treated the public and the game with respect. He did everything correctly in the game. Fulfilling sponsor obligations, starting a PGA Tour event, playing late into his life, always having time for the press and the fans. Arnold Palmer was instrumental in bringing people to golf.
There has never been a President who did more to grow the game of golf than Dwight Eisenhower. First elected President in 1952 he played over 800 rounds in the eight years he served. Fred Corcoran, a golf promoter of the day called him, "the greatest thing that ever happened to the game".
In 1953 Eisenhower wrote, "It is a sport in which the whole family can participate....It offers healthy respite from the daily toil, refreshment of the body and mind." At a time when his popularity was at an all-time high and the public trusted what our leaders said, people flocked to the game. There were twice as many golfers at the end of his two terms as there were at the start. It was why families like ours started playing golf.
Ike was a golf nut. He installed a 3000 square foot putting green outside the Oval Office. During breaks in his day, he would go out from the glass doors in the office and putt. He had a practice range on the south lawn of the White House. While he dictated letters he frequently held a club. His handicap moved up and down from 14 to 18. He was a member of Augusta National and Eldorado in Palm Springs and played twice a week at Burning Tree in Washington DC. With the difficult courses he played, his handicap index today probably would have been in the 11-12 range.
Ike and Arnold became fast friends after Arnold won the Masters in 1958. The press loved the feel good story of the President and Arnold Palmer. In addition, Ike played golf with Bob Hope, Sam Snead and Ben Hogan which further promoted the game.
For Arnold's 37th birthday his wife, Winnie, sent Arnold's plane to fly the former President to Latrobe, Pennsylvania for his birthday party. When Arnold arrived home to find Ike on his front porch, the President reportedly asked a shocked Palmer, "Say, you wouldn't have room to put an old man up for the night, would you?" Together Palmer and Eisenhower kept the game in a positive light throughout the country.
The World Amateur Team Championship trophy is named after Eisenhower who said, "I visualize it as a potent force for establishing friendship between yet another segment of the populations of nations."
Joe Dey (rhymes with rye) has had the greatest influence on the game of any golf administrator. As the Executive Director of the USGA from 1934-1968, he oversaw the rules of the game and how they were applied for over 44 years. He is credited with unifying the rules between the USGA and Royal and Ancient (R & A) in 1951.
Known as Mr. Rules of Golf, he popularized knowledge of the rules with various printed pieces highlighting common rules. He brought stability to the rules. "From the moment I met him I could tell he was in charge of the game of golf," said Jack Nicklaus, at Dey's passing in 1993.
In 1969 he became the first Commissioner of the PGA Tour. He brought instant credibility to the fledgling organization with public relations problems, triggered by the split with the PGA of America. In the five years he worked for the PGA Tour he started the Players Championship, hired an agronomist to standardize playing conditions, and started the secondary tour now known as the Web.Com.
After becoming a member of the USGA Mid-Amateur Committee in 1981 I was interested in attending a USGA/PGA rules school. The school was four days of studying the "Rules of Golf" book followed by a four-hour test. They were led by a rules expert from the USGA or the PGA. In looking at the schedule of classes in the winter of 1982 I noted that Joe Dey would teach a class in San Francisco. I immediately signed up. Joe Dey teaching the rules. Wow.
He always dressed smartly in a blue sports coat, crisply starched white shirt and rep striped tie. Joe Dey spoke with a clipped eastern prep school accent, probably acquired during his time at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. I was anxious to talk with him and found my opportunity at breakfast. An early riser, he would head for the restaurant to read the paper and eat.
Inviting myself to join him, I spent two mornings before class asking him every question I could. He was cordial, but I'm sure by the end of our second meeting, tired of me. Joe Dey was formal. The class was a reflection of his personality. It was punctual and precise on the rules. It was a fascinating school. With his background knowledge, he was able to cite the incident that caused the particular golf rule to be written as it was. The other schools I have attended have been structured the same way, however not with a leader who had actually written the rules.
Golf exploded in the late '50s, '60s, and '70s. Arnold Palmer and Dwight Eisenhower were out front in bringing the game to the populous. It was fueled by television and a positive press. Joe Dey was back stage, making everything work and unifying the rules. The three of them did more to grow the game than anybody in A Life In Golf.
