There’s a reason Arnold Palmer is front and center on the “Century of Golf in Colorado” poster that the CGA commissioned for last year as part of its 100th anniversary celebration.

When it comes to the unforgettable fashion in which Palmer won the 1960 U.S. Open at Cherry Hills Country Club — overcoming greats of the past (Ben Hogan) and the future (Jack Nicklaus) — it doesn’t get much bigger in the history of Colorado golf — or golf in general.

It pretty much says it all that a book about that tournament was titled, “Golf’s Greatest Championship”. Golf World magazine later called 1960 “The Greatest Year in Golf”.

There are plenty of places around the world that can draw a major connection with Palmer (pictured in 2009 at Cherry Hills), who passed away on Sunday at age 87. But suffice it to say Colorado would be near the top of the list.

Here are some of the memories which Palmer specifically left us in the Centennial State: 

— My most indelible personal recollection came during a one-on-one interview with Palmer in the player lockerroom at Cherry Hills. In essence, this was The King in his castle, the place where he was coronated.

As we were chatting, Palmer was fiddling with the biggest wad of cash I’d ever see a person carry. It was several inches thick, tightly bound by rubber bands that were stretched considerably. That was Arnie — bigger than life in so many ways.

— Though Palmer won six major championships as a professional besides the 1960 U.S. Open, that event — and the final round on June 18, specifically — seemed to define his career. 

Trailing by seven strokes going into the second 18 of a 36-hole Saturday, Arnie hitched up his pants and let ‘er rip with a drive on the 346-yard first hole at Cherry Hills. 

Despite the green that year being totally surrounded by rough, Palmer’s tee shot found the putting surface and he two-putted for birdie from about 20 feet. He chipped in for birdie on No. 2 and ended up making six birdies on his first seven holes en route to a final-round 65. That was good enough to leave the closest of his late-tournament challengers — Nicklaus and Hogan — in his wake, along with the rest of the field. The 47-year-old Hogan, who had hit his first 34 greens in regulation that day, finished bogey-triple bogey to finish ninth. Nicklaus, a 20-year-old amateur paired with Hogan that day, placed second. In that remarkable final round, the lead changed hands a dozen times.

Palmer punctuated the victory with his famous visor toss on the 18th green. Skip Manning, an 11-year-old at the time, grabbed the visor and held onto it for 48 years until presenting it to Palmer in person in 2008. The headwear then went to the USGA Museum.

Palmer later said of driving the first green that day in 1960, “It took me four days to find that green — but when I did, the whole thrust of my life was altered.”

And it put Cherry Hills, already one of the country’s most notable courses, on another level.

When Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Ron Moore was the general chairman of the 1985 PGA Championship hosted by the club, he called Arnie driving the first green in 1960 “one of the three or four most famous (shots) in golf history. It put Cherry Hills on the map and was one of the most significant features of Arnold’s career. That was the only U.S. Open he won.”

And, of course, Palmer driving the first green has since been commemorated with a plague beside the first tee at Cherry Hills.

Palmer talked about his go-for-broke style on the eve of the 1985 PGA Championship at Cherry Hills.

“My father always told me to ‘go get ’em. It’s not going to come to you,'” Arnie said then. “I would much rather suffer the consequences than to not go at all.

“I always took a shot at whatever I saw. I never thought of it as that big a gamble. I just felt that you did what you had to to win. And that’s the only thing that’s ever mattered to me in golf — winning.”

In the wake of claiming the title at the 1960 U.S. Open, Palmer later in the ’60s became a member at Cherry Hills and he paid periodic visits over the years to the historic club. That included one in 2010, when Cherry Hills celebrated the 50th anniversary of his victory. 

As he said in his 1985 apperance, “I came here for the first time in 1960 and have been a member for about 20 years. There is definitely some sentimentalism to it. I’ve certainly gotten a lot of support here.”

He also was on hand when the Palmer Cup — a Ryder Cup-style competition between college players from the U.S. and Europe — was held at Cherry Hills in 2009. The matches are named for him.

“(1960) was my only (U.S.) Open win; it was the highlight of my career,” Palmer said during that visit seven years ago. “I’d won the Masters in 1958 and 1960 in squeakers, then I won the Open by two shots, and it was a good shot (in the arm) for me.”

Palmer told the story countless times, but he never failed to entertain audiences with his recollections of the final day of the ’60 Open at Cherry Hills.

Trailing leader Mike Souchak by seven shots after the third round, Arnie encountered Pittsburgh Press sports writer Bob Drum, a good friend of Palmer’s, in the locker room before the final 18.

“I said, ‘Bob, if I shoot 65, do you think that will win?'” Palmer recounted. After at first ignoring Palmer, Drum said, ‘”‘Nothing’s going to help you.'”

Palmer noted that at the 1960 Masters, Hogan gave Palmer the Hogan driver that The King used for his famous shot at Cherry Hills. But given his endorsement deal at the time, Palmer admitted “making it look like a Wilson driver.” Then he added, “I’m not sure how I did hit it that far.”

After winning the U.S. Open, Palmer took the step — unusual back then for many American players — of going to the British Open. On his way over to St. Andrews in Scotland, Palmer traveled with Drum, and Arnie noted in a conversation that no amateur was going to duplicate Bobby Jones’ feat of winning the Grand Slam — claiming the U.S. Amateur, British Amateur, U.S. Open and British Open in the same year. So Palmer brought up the idea of a new Grand Slam — the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship. Drum wrote about the notion shortly before the 1960 British Open and “it caught on right away,” said Palmer, noting that that was the genesis of the modern Grand Slam.

Palmer gave that Grand Slam a run in 1960, winning the Masters and the U.S. Open before finishing a shot behind winner Kel Nagle in the British Open. Palmer would win the British Open each of the following two years.

Add in Arnie’s huge charisma quotient in those early days of TV, and he was a figure that may very well never be matched in golf.

“Some guys have got it,” two-time major champion and NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller said once during a TV special on Palmer. “He’s certainly the John Wayne of golf, with a little Clint Eastwood thrown in. … He was the perfect guy at the perfect time to bring in televised golf. We needed a superstar. Arnie was the man.”

— Arnie in Other Colorado PGA Tour Events: Palmer played in The International at Castle Pines exactly once — in the inaugural year of 1986. In fact, the then-56-year-old was done after one official round — and on Wednesday, no less. He scored minus-4 Modified Stableford points that day and failed to advance in the daily-cuts format that was then in place. … Palmer also competed in another PGA Tour event in Colorado during his 50s — the 1985 PGA Championship at Cherry Hills. The previous year, the PGA of America had given The King a lifetime exemption into the PGA Championship. Palmer made the cut in ’85 at Cherry Hills, but finished in 65th place. … At the 1967 PGA Championship at Columbine Country Club, Palmer was more of a factor, placing 14th. … Palmer missed the cut in the 1978 U.S. Open.

— A Colorado King as a Senior Too: Although — for obvious reasons — when people think of Palmer and Colorado, they mostly associate him with the 1960 U.S. Open, that wasn’t his only tour-sanctioned victory in the state. The King also won the first Denver Post Champions of Golf, in 1982 at Pinehurst Country Club, and finished fourth in the same Senior Tour event each of the next three years.

In the last tour-sanctioned tournament he played in the state, Palmer placed 52nd at Cherry Hills in the 1993 U.S. Senior Open that Nicklaus won.

In 2007, Palmer would return to Colorado to be the first recipient — outside Will Nicholson Jr., himself — of the Nicholson Award, given in the Centennial State for a lifetime of commitment and dedication to the game of golf. (At left, Arnie signed a program for the event.)

— Grandson Lived in Colorado: Sam Saunders, grandson of Palmer and a PGA Tour player himself, lived in Fort Collins from late 2012 until earlier this year, when he and his family moved back to Florida — St. Augustine, to be exact.

— Courses Designed in Centennial State: Palmer designed — or co-designed with Ed Seay — several courses in Colorado. Included are Bear Creek Golf Club in west Denver, Lone Tree Golf Club, Eagle Ranch Golf Club in Eagle, and the old South Course at The Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs.

During this month, when March Madness in college basketball is all the rage among sports fans, USGA.org has been running a U.S. Open Bracket Challenge that recently concluded.

The USGA asked readers to rank the most memorable moments in U.S. Open history. Sixteen videos of the top candidates were set up, bracket style, and over the course of eight days, the field was narrowed down to one.

And the winner was none other than the ’60 Open at Cherry Hills, where three generations of golf greats battled it out down the stretch. Forty-seven-year-old Ben Hogan, a four-time U.S. Open champ, was tied for the lead on the 71st tee, But he found water on both 17 and 18, going bogey-triple bogey to finish ninth. Twenty-year-old Jack Nicklaus, winner of the U.S. Amateur the previous year in Colorado, placed second, two back of the champ.

And of course, Arnold Palmer rallied from seven shots back going into the final round, driving the green on the par-4 first hole and chipping in for birdie at No. 2 en route to a 65. It would turn out to be his only victory in the U.S. Open — one he punctuated with his famous visor toss on the 18th green (pictured).

Also making the USGA’s final 16 was another U.S. Open with strong local connections. That was the 1990 version, where University of Colorado grad Hale Irwin made a 60-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole and won in a playoff to become the oldest U.S. Open champion at age 45, a distinction he still holds. Irwin, who claimed his third U.S. Open title, made it into the field via a special exemption.

For the entire USGA U.S. Open bracket, CLICK HERE.
 

This year, those reflections have particularly come into focus.

With the CGA celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, there’s been a concerted look back on the past century of golf in Colorado. That includes a 10-part series of stories on notable people and events from the last hundred years.

Writing that series was illuminating, which brings us back to Thanksgiving. A better understanding of the past can lead to increased appreciation for all we have to be thankful for in Colorado golf.

To wit, here are 10 things that come to mind:

— Rich History of Golf. The Century of Golf Gala held recently at The Broadmoor particulary brought this home, with Jack Nicklaus reminiscing about his strong links to Colorado over the last 60 years. Nicklaus is one of golf’s all-time pantheon to have won significant tournaments in the state, with others being Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Kathy Whitworth, Babe Zaharias, Annika Sorenstam, Gary Player, Greg Norman and Phil Mickelson. For much more about Colorado golf history, CLICK HERE.

— Teamwork. Another thing that the Century of Golf Gala — 1,250 attendees strong — and related activities reinforced is that big things can happen when the Colorado golf community joins forces. Teaming up with the CGA in making it all a major success were the CWGA, Colorado PGA and the Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendents Association.

— Great Venues. The day of the Century of Golf Gala, a golf outing held at The Broadmoor (pictured) demonstrated yet again what stellar golf courses Colorado has produced. On a mid-November day, temperatures reached the mid-60s, and the setting was enough to make any golfer take pause. The same can be said for countless other courses in the state — Sanctuary, Arrowhead, Castle Pines, Ballyneal, Red Sky, Eisenhower, etc., etc. Golfers in Colorado are indeed fortunate.

— Good of the Game Partnerships. The recent creation of a partnership between the CGA and the Colorado PGA will result in a new Colorado Junior Tour and many other advantages for all levels of junior golfers in Colorado (READ MORE). It’s yet another example of how the game can be well served by constructive cooperation.

— Local Players Who Excel. Colorado has a long history of homegrown players hitting it big — with Hale Irwin, Steve Jones, Dale Douglass, Jill McGill, Brandt Jobe, Bob Byman, Kevin Stadler, Shane Bertsch, Bill Loeffler and to some extent Mike Reid, to name some. It’s always fun for Coloradans to have one of their own to root for on the national or international level. And we also have some very promising young players potentially in a similar pipleline with the likes of Mark Hubbard, Jennifer Kupcho, Wyndham Clark and Hannah Wood.

— Highly Regarded PGA Professionals. There are oustanding PGA professionals throughout the country, but members of the Colorado PGA have proven to be high achievers as the Section or its members have won national PGA of America awards eight times in the last nine years. And highly respected instructor Ann Finke was recently voted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, along with Colorado-based Champions Tour player Craig Stadler. And Vic Kline was honored as Colorado Golf Professional of the Century during the Century of Golf Gala.

— Foundations to Support Good Causes. Numerous golf foundations in Colorado do considerable and commendable work in bolstering good causes through the game of golf. Among them are the Colorado Golf Foundation, Colorado PGA Reach, the Colorado Open Golf Foundation, and the Rocky Mountain Environmental Golf Institute.

— Volunteers. While the staffs of the major golf organizations in Colorado do yeoman’s work, those organizations would be a shell of what they are were it not for volunteers. Such volunteerism came to the forefront this past year with the passing of Joe Salvo, and the departure from the Colorado tournament golf scene of Rich Langston and Joan Scholes. Each of them made major contributions — in terms of both time and dediction — to the likes of the CGA, CWGA and Colorado PGA over the years. And many, many others do likewise each year.

— Another Senior Major on the Horizon.This year it was announced that the 2018 U.S. Senior Open will be contested at The Broadmoor the year the resort celebrates its 100th birthday. It will mark the third U.S. Senior Open held in Colorado, meaning only Ohio (with six) will have hosted more. The Centennial State also was home to another senior major, the Senior PGA Championship contested at Colorado Golf Club in 2010.

— Good People. I’ve always marveled at the number of good people you meet through the game of golf. Perhaps it’s part of the significant “self-policing” aspect of the sport that tends to attract people of high character. But whatever the case, it’s refreshing.

And yet another reason to give thanks.
 

After winning 18 major championships — plus two U.S. Amateurs — and 73 PGA Tour events in all, Jack Nicklaus is considered by many to be the GOAT — greatest of all time — in golf.

Still, when he stood over his tee shot on the 72nd hole of the 1993 U.S. Senior Open at Cherry Hills Country Club, a case of nerves set in — and the Golden Bear couldn’t have been happier.

In an all-too-familiar situation, Nicklaus held a one-stroke lead coming down the stretch in a major championship — in this case a senior major.

“On that tee shot on 18, I was half shaking,” Nicklaus recalled later. “And I said to myself, ‘Damn, this is fun.'”

Not surpisingly, Nicklaus turned that fun into a victory. He hit a perfect 1-iron off the tee over the water on the 450-yard, par-4 18th at Cherry Hills, a 5-iron approach to 35 feet, then two-putted for a par and a one-shot win over Tom Weiskopf, who also finished second to Nicklaus at the 1972 and ’75 Masters.

“I knew it was over when he hit it on the green,” said Weiskopf, like Nicklaus a former Ohio State golfer. “Jack is the greatest putter under pressure of all time.”

(Afterward, Nicklaus was congratulated by his son/caddie, Jackie, in a moment pictured above.)

It was yet another stellar performance in a long series of stellar performances by Nicklaus in Colorado. And it was another reason why the Bear will be the featured guest and participate in a fireside chat with noted golf journalist Tim Rosaforte at the Century of Golf Gala that will be held Nov. 14 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. (For more information about the Gala, CLICK HERE.)

Some people may think it’s neat that Nicklaus agreed to headline the event during the year the CGA turns 100 years old, but that the same thing could take place in any number of other states given all that Nicklaus accomplished during his unmatched career. But Colorado truly is the site of more than its fair share of Nicklaus highlights:

— He won eight USGA championships in his lifetime, and the first and last of those came in the Centennial State.

He outdueled defending champion and two-time winner Charlie Coe to win the 36-hole U.S. Amateur title at — appropriately — The Broadmoor’s East Course in 1959, 1 up.

Coe never trailed through the first 31 holes and things were all square going into the 36th hole. Though Coe missed the green there, he almost pitched in for birdie, with the ball ending up on the lip of the cup. The 19-year-old Nicklaus (left in a USGA photo) then drained an 8-foot birdie putt to become the youngest U.S. Am champion in 50 years. He would go on to capture a second U.S. Amateur title in 1961.

“My career basically started right there,” Nicklaus said of The Broadmoor. “That 8-foot putt gave me the opportunity to believe that I could win a championship, that I was good enough to play and I was good enough to win.”

In his 1969 book, “The Greatest Game of All”, Nicklaus said the match against Coe “certainly was both the most exhilarating and exhausting duel I have ever been engaged in.”

(With the Gala taking place at The Broadmoor, the Nov. 14 golf outing appropriately will have a Nicklaus tie-in. Participants will compete, with each group’s net best-ball scores being matched up against the best-ball scores from the Bear’s two rounds — totaling 65 — in the ’59 U.S. Am final. The winning team will be the one which “defeats” the 19-year-old Nicklaus by the largest margin. And players will also have a chance to attempt the 8-foot winning birdie putt Nicklaus stroked on No. 18.)

Then, as noted above, Nicklaus edged Weiskopf for the ’93 U.S. Senior Open championship at Cherry Hills, earning his final USGA title. In the case of both the U.S Amateur and the U.S. Senior Open, it marked the first time each USGA championship had been held in Colorado.

— Thirty-three years before his U.S. Senior Open victory at Cherry Hills, Nicklaus came very close at that same venue to becoming the only amateur since John Goodman in 1933 to win the U.S. Open. But on a leaderboard that featured a confluence of three generations of all-time golf greats — Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Nicklaus — Arnie prevailed by two strokes over Nicklaus in the ’60 U.S. Open at Cherry Hills. The 20-year-old Nicklaus led by two with six holes to play, but two three-putts on the final nine proved very costly. Still, the runner-up showing was the best by an amateur at the U.S. Open in the last 82 years — and his 2-under-par 282 total remains the best ever by an amateur at the U.S. Open. Hogan, paired with Nicklaus for the final two rounds, noted he had just played 36 holes with a kid who should have won by 10 shots.

“I remember not getting a whole lot of respect at the ’60 U.S. Open, and I shouldn’t have,” Nicklaus said in a 21st-century visit to the state. “I was 35 to 1 (to win). My dad came up and said, ‘Do you want a piece of that?’

“It’s the only bet on golf that I’ve made in my entire life. I think I was more excited down the stretch about the $20 bet and maybe winning $700 than about winning the U.S. Open.”

— Besides the 1959 U.S. Amateur and the 1993 U.S. Senior Open, Nicklaus won the inaugural Jerry Ford Invitational in Vail, in 1977.

Another year at the JFI, a major thunderstorm moved through the Vail Valley and Ford, Nicklaus and about 20 other golfers were so far away from the clubhouse that they headed for shelter under an I-70 overpass. The group ended up spending about a half-hour there as perplexed drivers sped by.

— In addition to the 1959 U.S. Amateur, 1960 U.S. Open and ’93 U.S. Senior Open, Nicklaus contended in other major championships held in Colorado. The Bear finished third — one shot out of a playoff — at the 1967 PGA Championship at Columbine Country Club, and sixth at the 1978 U.S. Open at Cherry Hills. For the record, Nicklaus was 32nd in his only other major in Colorado, the 1985 PGA Championship at Cherry Hills, where he was tied for second after a first-round 66.

“There’s no more fun in golf than going up 18 with a chance to win,” he said after his ’93 U.S. Senior Open triumph at Cherry Hills. “I love to be competitive.”

— Nicklaus also advanced to the quarterfinals of the 1960 NCAA Championships at The Broadmoor, though that undoubtedly was a bit of a letdown after winning the U.S. Amateur at the course the previous September.

— Nicklaus and his company have designed — or redesigned — 13 courses in Colorado, making him and Nicklaus Design one of the most prolific course designers in the state, along with the likes of Dick and Rick Phelps, Henry Hughes, Frank Hummel and Press Maxwell. Of course, the most prominent course Nicklaus designed in Colorado is Castle Pines Golf Club, which hosted The International on the PGA Tour from 1986 through 2006. The Bear’s best finish at The International was a ninth in 1989.

Other Nicklaus Design courses in Colorado include Aspen Glen Club; Breckenridge Golf Club; The Bridges; The Broadmoor’s Mountain Course (redesign); the Country Club at Castle Pines; Cherry Creek Country Club; the Club at Cordillera’s Summit Course; Cougar Canyon Golf Links (now closed); the Country Club of the Rockies; Meridian Golf Club; Ptarmigan Country Club; and the Roaring Fork Club.

— And Nicklaus was the third recipient of the Will Nicholson Jr. Award, given for a lifetime of commitment and dedication to the game of golf. Only Nicholson, the Denver resident who served as USGA president in 1980-81, and Palmer previously received the honor. Nicholson, by the way, is the person who deserves credit for receiving Nicklaus’ commitment to attend the Century of Golf Gala. (Nicklaus and Nicholson are pictured together at left at CommonGround Golf Course during the 2012 U.S. Amateur.)

Also in Colorado, Nicklaus learned to ski at Snowmass in the 1970s and owned property for several decades.

In short, while he doesn’t live in the state, Nicklaus may deserve honorary resident status for all he’s done and accomplished here.

Nicklaus won’t be the only luminary honored on Nov. 14 during the Century of Golf Gala. Also in the spotlight that night will be six “People of the Century” in Colorado golf: Judy Bell, Hale Irwin, Charles “Vic” Kline, Dennis Lyon, Barbara McIntire and Nicholson. For more on them, CLICK HERE.

Editor’s Note: With the CGA celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding in 1915, this is the fourth monthly installment of a series of stories looking back on the last century of golf in Colorado. All the articles are being published on coloradogolf.org. This chapter focuses on the period from 1945-54. For the previous installments, CLICK HERE.

When it comes to the first decade after World War II, golf in Colorado received a nice boost from a pair of Babes, along with Bantam Ben. Even Bing and Bob played a role.

Alliteration aside, in some ways the period from 1945-54 was a golden era of sorts for the game in the Centennial State.

Though two major championships had come to Colorado in the previous decade — Cherry Hills Country Club hosted the 1938 U.S. Open and the 1941 PGA Championship — Denver landed a regular PGA Tour event in the post-war era. The Denver Open was held on and off from 1947 to ’63, with Cherry Hills, Wellshire, Meadow Hills and Denver Country Club playing host at one time or another.

Ben Hogan — the aforementioned Bantam Ben — was by far the biggest name to win the event, prevailing in 1948 at Wellshire, marking his sixth consecutive victory on the PGA Tour. The Denver Open was one of 10 PGA Tour wins Hogan posted that year, including both the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship. But Hogan didn’t make any points with event organizers as he failed to show up for the trophy presentation. Apparently, he didn’t feel his 18-under-par 270 total was going to be good enough for victory, so he departed immediately after completing his final round, saying, “I can’t win.”

Though Hogan would come back to compete in Colorado on several other occasions — including the 1952 “Hillsdilly” at Cherry Hills — an even bigger name made her mark in Colorado during this time, one Mildred “Babe” Didrikson Zaharias. (The two are pictured together at left in the early 1950s. Zaharias is also pictured above.)

Zaharias was six times AP’s Female Athlete of the Year, and several of those awards were won while Babe and her Pueblo-born husband, George, lived in the Denver area. They moved to Colorado in 1943. Zaharias went on to win the 1946 U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Women’s Open three times from 1948 through ’54. And in 1947, she traveled to Scotland and became the first American to win the British Ladies Amateur.

When Babe and George Zaharias subsequently returned to Denver, they were given a 250-pound, 15-foot-high key to the city. Some dubbed her “Denver’s Queen of the Fairways”.

It’s said that during the 1946 and ’47 seasons, Zaharias won 17 consecutive tournaments while representing Park Hill Country Club.

Zaharias, who was also a regular at Lakewood Country Club during her years in Colorado, captured one of her major championships in her adopted home state. She defeated Peggy Kirk in the finals of the Women’s Western Open at Cherry Hills in 1950 to claim her fourth and final title in the event, the first three having come as an amateur.

Also in 1950, the Associated Press named Zaharias its women’s athlete of the first half of the 20th century.

In addition to the Women’s Western Open, tournaments Zaharias won in Colorado include the 1946 Women’s Trans National at Denver Country Club and three consecutive Broadmoor Ladies Invitations starting in 1945.

Zaharias, one of the founders of the LPGA and a World Golf Hall of Fame inductee, finished with 41 LPGA Tour victories, including 10 majors, before dying of cancer in 1956 in her native state of Texas. She’s part of the inaugural class of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, being inducted in 1973.

Another inductee that year was Charles “Babe” Lind (left), who likewise made a significant mark in Colorado golf after World War II. Lind has the distinction of being the first Colorado native to compete in the Masters. That berth came thanks to outstanding performances in 1946, most notably at the Trans-Mississippi Championship held at Denver Country Club.

In the first Trans-Miss conducted since 1942 due to World War II, Lind advanced to the final in grand fashion by holing out a sand shot for birdie on the 36th hole of his semifinal match. And though Skee Riegel beat him in the final, it was quite a showing for Lind in one of the nation’s top amateur tournaments of those days.

Lind, a standout player and coach for the University of Denver golf team in the 1940s and early ’50s — he was named the AAU’s Outstanding Athlete of the Year in 1946 — also won the 1946 CGA Match Play and his third CGA Stroke Play, in 1948. He would go on to become director of golf for the city of Denver in 1955, holding that position for three decades.

As for the other folks we mentioned in the first paragraph of this story, two of the biggest celebrities of this period also happened to love golf, and they came to Colorado to play on several occasions. Bing Crosby and Bob Hope participated in the Park Hill Invitational over the years, as did Zaharias, boxer Joe Louis and Dwight Eisenhower, who also became a fixture at Cherry Hills.

Other highlights of the decade from 1945-54:

— One of the top lifelong amateurs of all time, Charlie Coe, had quite a run at the Broadmoor Golf Club. Not only did he win back-to-back Broadmoor Invitation titles in 1947 and ’48, he captured the ’49 Trans Miss at the history-laden Colorado Springs club. Coe also prevailed in the 1952 Trans-Miss, hosted by Lakewood Country Club.

— Wellshire Golf Course was the site of just the second USGA championship held in Colorado — after the 1938 U.S. Open at Cherry Hills — as the 1946 U.S. Amateur Public Links came to Denver. Smiley Quick won his lone USGA title at the course.

— Denver Country Club hosted its first USGA championship in 1950 as the third U.S. Junior Amateur ever held came to town. Mason Rudoph, runner-up the year before, captured the title. He would go on to win five times on the PGA Tour.

— Two people now in the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, Jim English Sr., and Jack Vickers, squared off in the finals of the 1950 Trans-Miss in Omaha, with English winning 11 and 10 in the 36-hole title match.

— Two other significant national amateur events were held in Colorado in 1954, with Bruce Cudd winning the Western Amateur at the Broadmoor and James Jackson claiming the Trans-Miss at Cherry Hills.

— In major statewide amateur championships during the decade, Lou North won three times (CGA Match Plays in 1952 and ’53, and a Stroke Play in ’52) and Jim Vickers captured back-to-back victories in the Match Play in ’49 and ’50. Claude Wright claimed the middle two of his four CGA Stroke Play titles in 1947 and ’53, and Bob Clark Sr., won two of his own, in 1950 and ’51.

— Future longtime state legislator Les Fowler, then the golf coach at the University of Colorado, earned the first of his four major CGA championships at the 1954 Match Play.

— In women’s amateur golf, the CWGA started its Stroke Play Championship in 1948. Mrs. James Roessler was among the top players of the era, winning two CWGA Match Plays (1951 and ’52) and two Stroke Plays (1952 and ’54).
 

Who would have thought that an event summarized in two newspaper paragraphs — fewer than 60 words — would have such a longstanding and ever-growing impact?

On Aug. 21, 1915, a small item appeared in the Denver Post under the headline, “M’LAUGHLIN HEADS GOLF ASSOCIATION”. The “short” — as it is often referred to by newsroom staffers — notes the events of Aug. 20, detailing a newly formed organization called the Colorado Golf Association and the election of its officers, including president M.A. McLaughlin.

The story further reports on the other officers elected and says, “The organization will control the state tournaments, give the cups and appoint the officers, and the winner will be the recognized champion of the association and state.”

One hundred years after that humble beginning, the CGA’s mission has expanded dramatically over the decades, and the association moves forward as a steward for the traditions and future of golf in the state. And now the CGA is gearing up to celebrate its centennial throughout 2015. That will culminate with a Century of Golf Gala, tentatively scheduled for Nov. 14. At that event, a number of Colorado golf’s all-time luminaries will be honored, and both the history and future of golf in the state will be celebrated.

During the coming year, the CGA plans to unveil a new logo along with artwork that will highlight a century of golf in Colorado. Also on the docket are a monthly series of articles — published on COgolf.org and in the first-of-each-month CGA Revision newsletters throughout the year. A decade at a time since the CGA’s founding — 1915-24, 1925-34, etc. — will be focused on in each of the series of stories, with the last article of the year being a look-ahead.

In addition, the CGA will hold a season-long fundraising event that will support the Colorado Golf Foundation and benefit its many programs that foster youth development through golf. That event will be called “100 Holes for 100 Years”, and participants will raise money through donations pledged for a personalized golf-related activity centering around the number 100. For instance, a person could play 100 holes in a day, or in another set period of time. Or participants can add any twist they’d like to the event, as long as it involves the number 100.

“The goal is to raise awareness and engage the golf community to play golf for a purpose,” said CGA executive director Ed Mate. “It will get the whole state involved.”

The CGA plans to set up an internet portal in which the financial aspects of 100 Holes for 100 Years will be handled. Details about that will be forthcoming.

“Why we’re doing all this is to advance golf in Colorado,” Mate said. “It’s not just a celebration, but that’s the driving force behind it all. We want to seize on the centennial to position the CGA, the community of golf and the Colorado Golf Foundation for the next 100 years. We want to make sure that the game not only will be around, but will be thriving.”

As for the upcoming series of stories focusing on the last century of Colorado golf, there is certainly no lack of history having been made in the Centennial State. Just consider this list of golf “firsts” that occurred in Colorado:

— Arnold Palmer won his only U.S. Open in Colorado, in 1960 at Cherry Hills Country Club. (Palmer is pictured at left tossing his visor in celebration on the 18th green.)

— Jack Nicklaus won the first and last of his eight USGA championships in Colorado, prevailing in the 1959 U.S. Amateur at the Broadmoor and the 1993 U.S. Senior Open at Cherry Hills.

— Phil Mickelson won his only USGA event (to date) in Colorado, the 1990 U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills.

— Annika Sorenstam made the 1995 U.S. Women’s Open at the Broadmoor the first of her 72 LPGA Tour victories.

— Frank Woodward of Denver, who won the first CGA championship ever in 1901, was elected the first president of the United States Golf Association from the western U.S.

— In 1959 at Wellshire Golf Course, Bill Wright became the first African-American golfer to win a USGA championship, in his case the U.S. Amateur Public Links title.

— In 1996, Judy Bell of Colorado Springs became the only female president in the history of the USGA.

— And just recently, Colorado Golf Club was the site of the first victory on U.S. soil by a European team in the Solheim Cup.

Winners of big tournaments in Colorado have included a who’s who of golf: Besides Palmer, Nicklaus, Sorenstam and Mickelson, that list features Babe Zaharias, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Kathy Whitworth, Hale Irwin, Greg Norman, JoAnne Carner, Judy Rankin, Juli Inkster, Pat Bradley, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, Hubert Green, Betsy King, Amy Alcott and Davis Love.

The centennial series will explore all that and much, much more. After all, a lot has happened, golf-wise, in Colorado since that two-paragraph story appeared in the Denver Post during World War I.
 

There aren’t too many people living today who can say they’ve personally played golf with Bobby Jones, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson and Arnold Palmer.

Jim English can truthfully make that claim, even though the first four out of that illustrious fivesome were born more than 100 years ago.

The longtime Denver-area resident, who will turn 88 this month, played a couple of holes with Sarazen in Omaha when English was 12 or 13. Then he played three holes with 1930 Grand Slam winner Jones during a practice round for the 1947 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach, where English competed that year but Jones did not.

“When you’re around this number of years, you’re going to have a few stories,” English noted in an interview this week.

Yes, English has lived a memorable life in golf. And with U.S. Open qualifying beginning this month, it’s worth noting that 55 years ago he enjoyed one of his biggest moments in the game, earning low-amateur honors in the 1959 U.S. Open at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

English, who had moved from Kansas to Colorado two years earlier, remembers seeing Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison in “My Fair Lady” — along with a couple of other Broadway shows — that week, making for a “pretty wonderful vacation too.” But it was English’s performance at Winged Foot that’s particularly memorable.

In the U.S. Open, he bettered the likes of then-reigning U.S. Amateur champion Charlie Coe and Jack Nicklaus, who three months later would beat Coe in the final match at the Broadmoor to win the first of his two U.S. Amateurs. Also finishing behind English at Winged Foot were defending U.S. Open champion Tommy Bolt, Bob Goalby and Ken Venturi. Billy Casper won the tournament with a 282 total.

“I played fairly steadily” that week at the U.S. Open, noted English, who shot 74-75-77-73 for a 299 total. “Nicklaus missed the cut and I beat Charlie Coe by two. I chipped in for birdie on 16 in the last round, and I guess that made the difference. That U.S. Open had a pretty good amateur field.”

Though English accomplished plenty in his amateur golf career, that U.S. Open stands out as perhaps the biggest highlight.

“That’s because it was on a national scale,” he said. “Most of the other things I did were on a regional or local basis, though they were good tournaments to win.”

Qualifying for the U.S. Open back then wasn’t quite the task it is now. For instance, there were no “Local” qualifying tournaments, just 36-hole “Sectionals”. But still, 2,385 people entered the 1959 U.S. Open, so making it in the final field of about 150 players was anything but a cakewalk.

Despite that, English said he successfully qualified for nine U.S. Opens over the years. But the odd thing is, he competed in that national championship just five times (1951, ’53, ’58, ’59 and ’60).

There were different reasons different years why he didn’t go to the U.S. Open after qualifying several times in the latter 1940s and in 1950 — he was going to summer school at Creighton a couple of years, his wife was having a difficult pregnancy another, etc. Whatever the case, the USGA apparently took notice and sent English a letter basically asking, why do you bother qualifying if you don’t intend to compete in the U.S. Open?

“After that, they made it a point to ask qualifiers if they would actually go (to the Open),” English recalls. “But one of the reasons I went to the Sectional qualifying was that it was 36 holes at good golf courses and the entry fee was only $10. I liked the competition and I liked to play good golf courses.”

But English finally did compete at the U.S. Open in 1951 at Oakland Hills in Michigan. He missed the cut there, but on a course that allowed only two sub-par scores in four rounds, he was able to follow Ben Hogan during the champion’s final-round 67. That just whet English’s appetite for more.

The 20 years after the end of World War II were a very impressive time for English and his amateur golf career. He won three tournaments with big-time national amateur reputations: the 1950 Trans-Mississippi and the Broadmoor Invitation in 1955 and ’64. In the Trans-Miss, English put together one of the most dominating performances in the history of the championship match, winning 11 and 10.

English also competed in five U.S. Amateurs between 1947 and ’61, with the first and last being at Pebble Beach.

And English really made hay in state and regional tournaments in Colorado and the surrounding states.

He’s won six CGA championships, including three Stroke Plays, two Match Plays and a Senior Stroke Play. (He’s pictured at left with fellow Colorado Match Play champion Joan Birkland in 1960.) He’s claimed two Kansas amateur titles, one in Nebraska, the Iowa Open and Iowa Masters. He even won a championship in a previous incarnation of the Colorado Open.

“For a long time, I just couldn’t get enough golf,” he said.

It’s no surprise, then, that English has been inducted into three state golf halls of fame — for Colorado, Nebraska and Iowa.

In fact, English was so good, he gave some serious consideration to becoming a playing professional. Besides the U.S. Open, he finished low amateur in a PGA Tour event in Kansas City in the 1950s.

“I was sorely tempted to turn pro,” he said. “I competed with the pros successfully. I played four exhibitions with Byron Nelson in the ’40s. He told me I could make money (on the PGA Tour), but I needed to be a better putter to win. But back then, the total purse for tournaments was about $10,000-$12,000. (After learning English had a degree, Nelson) recommended I just stay amateur and enjoy it.

“Later, when Orville Moody was an amateur out at Fitzsimons, he was making a decision whether to re-app (for another Army stint) or turn pro. I told him my experience. I said I’ve got a lot of regrets that I didn’t give it a go. I think I could have made it on the pro tour, but I don’t really regret it now. If I would have (played on the tour), I wouldn’t have the large family I have now.”

English has 11 kids, 25 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

English probably could have added to his list of golf accomplishments, but an injury in the mid-1960s slowed him down. He badly hurt his right hand while hitting a shot on the sixth hole at Denver Country Club. “After that, I was never quite the same,” he said.

While English had a successful career in the insurance business, he still relishes his days as a competitive golfer. Just two years ago (pictured at top), he was among the local U.S. Amateur veterans who participated in a U.S. Amateur Alumni Day leading up to the 2012 championship coming to Colorado.
 

This week marks the diamond anniversary of the first U.S. Open ever held in Colorado, the 1938 version that Cherry Hills Country Club hosted.

In fact, the final two rounds of that tournament were held exactly 75 years ago today (June 11).

When current Cherry Hills head professional John Ogden accepted the Golf Person of the Year Award from the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame on Sunday, he said that June 9, 1938 — the first day of the U.S. Open — “could be one of the most significant days in Colorado golf. … It was the first time that (major) championship golf had ever come to Colorado, and it wouldn’t have come to Colorado if it wasn’t for one person, and that person is Will Nicholson Sr.

“He had the vision and the determination to bring championship golf not just to Cherry Hills but to Colorado. Since then, we know what has happened. Cherry Hills has had numerous championships, the Broadmoor, Columbine (and) The International kind of sprung from that. Without the vision of Mr. Nicholson, none of this would be possible.”

This month also marks a notable anniversary for another Open held in Colorado — the 35th anniversary of the ’78 championship, likewise hosted by Cherry Hills. And three years ago, the club celebrated the 50th anniversary of the unforgettable 1960 U.S. Open, won by Arnold Palmer.

Colorado has also held three PGA Championships (two at Cherry Hills and one at Columbine Country Club), three U.S. Women’s Opens (two at the Broadmoor, one at Cherry Hills), two U.S. Senior Opens (one each at the Broadmoor and Cherry Hills), a Senior PGA Championship (at Colorado Golf Club), along with 23 USGA amateur championships.

With this year’s U.S. Open beginning on Thursday, it’s worth revisiting the three U.S. Opens that have been contested in Colorado. So here are some tidbits from each of those major championships:

1938 at Cherry Hills — This marks Colorado’s first major championship and the first U.S. Open held in the western half of the country. … The USGA required Cherry Hills members to post a $10,000 bond — a huge sum during the Depression — to assure the association a profit in running the championship. … Cherry Hills was just 16 years old when it hosted the Open. … The championship was chaired by Will Nicholson Sr., a USGA Executive Committee member who would go on to become mayor of Denver from 1955-59. Nicholson’s son, Will Jr., would serve as president of the USGA in 1980-81. … Total attendance for the championship was 37,000 over six days, including the practice rounds. … Ralph Guldahl became the fourth back-to-back winner of the Open, posting an even-par 284 total for a six-stroke victory after trailing by four after three rounds. … Ray Ainsley set a still-existing U.S. Open single-hole record by carding a 19 on the par-4 16th hole in the second round, taking whack after whack at his ball, which was submerged in the creek bordering the green. Ainsley shot a 96 for the round. … Paul Runyan, now a member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, tied for seventh place. … 1,223 players entered the event. … The total purse was $6,000, with $1,000 going to the winner. … A weeklong ticket to the tournament went for $6.72, including tax.

1960 at Cherry Hills — How big was the 1960 U.S. Open? Author Julian Graubart wrote a book entitled “Golf’s Greatest Championship: The 1960 U.S. Open”. … Arnold Palmer, victorious at the Masters two months earlier, won his only U.S. Open at Cherry Hills, in remarkable fashion. In the final round, he drove the green on the 346-yard, par-4 first hole en route to shooting a 65 after trailing by seven strokes. In the process, he overcame greats of the past (Ben Hogan) and the future (Jack Nicklaus). Nicklaus, a 20-year-old amateur, finished second, two shots back of Palmer. It’s the highest finish by an amateur in the U.S. Open since 1933. … Hogan, 47, hit the first 34 greens in regulation during the two-round final day and was tied for the lead going into 17, but he spun a wedge shot into the water on the 71st hole en route to a bogey, then closed with a triple bogey. He tied for ninth, four behind Palmer. … Palmer (pictured above celebrating his victory) was later made an honorary lifetime member at Cherry Hills. … Dow Finsterwald, now a member of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, tied for third place, three shots back of good friend Palmer. … H.R. (Potts) Berglund served as the general chairman of the championship. … 2,453 golfers entered the U.S. Open.

1978 at Cherry Hills — Andy North won only three PGA Tour events in his career, but two of them were U.S. Opens. … The first of those Open victories came at Cherry Hills, where North needed four shots to get to the green on the par-4 18th in the final round, then holed a 4-foot bogey putt to prevail by one over Dave Stockton and J.C. Snead. … North finished at 1-over-par 285, which matches the highest stroke total by a U.S. Open champion since 1976. … North led by four with five holes to play, but he went 4 over in those last five holes. … The lowest round posted during the tournament was a 68. … North needed just 114 putts for the four rounds, tying a record set by Billy Casper in 1966. … The prize money for the winner was $45,000. … Former University of Colorado golfer Hale Irwin led after the first round and finished tied for fourth. three back of North. … Also in the top 10 were Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Gary Player, Johnny Miller and Tom Weiskopf. … The total attendance for tournament week was over 132,000. … 4,897 competitors entered the ’78 U.S. Open.
 

A place so steeped in history is reliant on a certain amount of institutional knowledge. That’s where people such as Kaye Kessler come in.

A Colorado resident for the last 28 years, Kessler has been a media fixture at the Masters since the early 1960s. In fact, this week marks the 50th Masters Kessler has covered, which puts him in some pretty rarefied air. Think of it this way: He’s spent almost a year of his life at Augusta National.

In the history of the tournament, no more than 10 journalists have covered at least 50 Masters, and Kessler is joining the half-century club this week at Augusta National.

Many golf fans consider themselves fortunate to attend even a single Masters. Yet, including this week’s tournament, Kessler will have gone to — and covered — 50 of the 77 Masters ever held.

Even at age 89, he wouldn’t miss it for the world.

“It’s the first breath of spring,” he said last week before departing for Georgia. “It’s a coming-out party, a rite of spring. And it’s the only one of the majors that’s anchored. The Masters tries to look better every year — and they seem to do it. It’s just kind of an awakening. And I think it’s still the toughest ticket around.”

Kessler, a member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame (he’s pictured below the sign, above), first went to Augusta National in 1963. He’s missed just one Masters since, though he doesn’t recall which year. That was when his wife, Rosemary (Ro), was hospitalized. Coincidentally, the only Ohio State football game Kaye ever missed from 1946 through ’85 was likewise because Ro was ill.

That Kessler first covered the Masters in 1963 seems only appropriate considering that year marked the first of Jack Nicklaus’ record six victories at Augusta National. Kessler, a longtime sports writer in Columbus, Ohio, chronicled Nicklaus’ golf career starting in 1950, when Jack was 10 years old.

Not only will this year be Kessler’s 50th Masters, but his 120th men’s major championship. He’s also covered 38 U.S. Opens, 12 British Opens and 20 PGA Championships. But the Masters tops the list, and it’s the one that remains on the schedule of this 2001 winner of the PGA Lifetime Achievement Award in Journalism.

Kessler, who served as the first media- and player-relations director for the International PGA Tour event in Castle Rock, has covered the Masters for a variety of publications over the decades. He started the run as a sports writer for the Columbus Citizen-Journal, but he’s also written about the tournament for such national publications as Golf Digest and Golf World, and locally for Colorado AvidGolfer.

While the Masters has long been a springtime ritual for Kessler, it wasn’t until several years ago that he took account exactly how many times he’d been to Augusta National.

On the Wednesday before the 2007 Masters, new chairman Billy Payne unveiled the inaugural Masters Major Achievement Award. That year, it was given to 14 journalists who had covered at least 40 Masters each.

Each of the 14 was given an engraved hardwood plaque made from a large tree which had stood on the second hole at Augusta National. The plaque, which depicts a carving of the clubhouse, looks warped because it’s made of wood peeled off the tree. Kessler’s award hangs in his Littleton kitchen, but there’s a larger permanent one that’s affixed on the Augusta National grounds.

Honored that year, along with Kessler, were current World Golf Hall of Famer Dan Jenkins, Furman Bisher, Nick Seitz, Dave Kindred, Edwin Pope, John Derr, Al Wester, Ron Green Sr., Horace Billings, Hubert Mizell, Dave Moffitt, Dan Foster and Art Spander. In addition to the plaque, each received a commemorative book.

Of the 14, Kessler at that point ranked 10th as far as number of Masters covered, and he’s moved up since because of attrition.

Kessler, who in the 1950s turned down a full-time job offer from Sports Illustrated because it required moving his family to New York City, obviously counts some of his Masters memories among the most notable of his sports writing career.

Asked the favorites among the Masters he’s covered and Kessler first points to the improbable 1986 victory by Nicklaus at age 46 in which he shot 30 on the back nine on Sunday.

Next best in Kessler’s mind was Ben Hogan’s last appearance at the Masters, in 1967. On Saturday of that year’s tournament, Kessler and fellow writer Tom Place decided to follow Hogan on the back nine. It was a decision they wouldn’t regret as the 54-year-old Hogan shot a then-record 30 on the back side at Augusta.

“It was just chilling,” recalls Kessler, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America. “He was damn near dying each hole (suffering the effects of age and his near-fatal head-on accident with a bus in 1949). He was weary as all get-out and was having a terrible time walking. Each hole, the crowds got bigger. It was an unbelievable sight. The word got around, and people know the roars at Augusta. On the (hilly) 18th, he has a 16-foot side-hiller for birdie, and he knocks it in for a 30 and a 66 that got him in the hunt.”

Alas, Hogan couldn’t recreate the magic in the final round and he finished 10th. A couple of months later, he competed in his final major, the 1967 U.S. Open.

All told, it’s been — and continues to be — a great ride for Kessler at the Masters.

“It’s an experience unlike any other,” he said.