I Remember The Rise of a Sport

article by PAUL LIPE
opinion expressed is that of the writer

I REMEMBER when golf was a sport that was dwarfed by other professional sports such as football, baseball, or basketball.  It was considered an elitist, country-club sport and was of little interest to the average sports fan.  This all changed, primarily due to the arrival of Arnold Palmer on the golfing scene.  He began his professional career in 1954 and as the result of his humble beginnings, his willingness to take risks on the course, and his spectacular victories, he soon was regularly surrounded by his admiring “Arnie’s Army.”  Tim Finchem, PGA Tour Commissioner, asserted that no one had impacted the sport of golf like Palmer, and that without him, there would be no PGA Tour and no Golf Channel.  Palmer made a huge difference!

Due to the much smaller purses of his day, it took him a while, but Palmer eventually became the first pro golfer to win one million dollars.  However, his impact in making golf so popular was recently evidenced by the winner of the Tournament Players’ Championship (contested in the Atlanta area) being awarded first-prize earnings of 18 million dollars!  That’s right; eighteen million dollars!  And the player who finished last received over half a million!  That’s not a bad payday for spending four days knocking a golf ball around the course!

This situation poses a question: Did Arnold Palmer do too good of a job making golf such a popular sport?  Most of us labor a lifetime and do not even come close to amassing such a fortune.  How, then, can we justify giving so lavish an award for what seemingly is a rather insignificant and soon forgotten sporting victory?  What has happened to our value system? Compare this bonanza with what we pay our soldiers, our policemen, our teachers and the like.  It seems that something is out of balance.

There is no doubt but that the sport of golf has dramatically changed due to the charisma of Arnold Palmer, and it is not unusual that current members of the PGA frequently express their gratitude for the changes that the golfing world has experienced as the result of this singular man.  In addition to the remarkable increase in tournament purses, the popularity of the sport has grown immensely as evidenced by the TV ratings, the large number of individuals who play the game, and the number and quality of golf courses around our nation, such as the Black Bear venue in Delhi.  Golf has changed and golf has grown in that change.  

I confess that I have not been unaffected by the game of golf.  In truth, I currently watch much golf on TV, spending more time than I do relative to any other sport.  Part of my appeal to the game has to do with the professionals who compete in the contests.  In most other sports, the participants often fail to conduct themselves like ladies or gentlemen.  Additionally, unlike leaders in other sports, pro golfers, when interviewed, talk about golf and do not view themselves as agents of change.  This is encouraging to me, because I don’t see how hitting a home run, or scoring a TD, or throwing in forty points on the basketball court qualifies one to tell me how I should think about a specific issue.  

Therefore, when professional golfers succeed in their tournaments and are rewarded with unbelievable amounts of money, I plan to bite my tongue and offer my sincere congratulations. 

If we think pro golfers are favored with over-the-top prizes for their accomplishments, just consider the awesome gift that is offered those who trust in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. That “prize” is eternal life in heaven.  And the recipient does not do anything to receive that gift.  Jesus earned that blessing for us when He sacrificed His life on the cross. When we compare that gift with the prizes golfers are given, eighteen million dollars doesn’t mean so much after all!  Do you agree that if golfers thank Arnold Palmer for how he helped transform golf, we Christians ought to thank Christ for how He has transformed us?