One of the greatest players ever to step up to the green, Arnold Palmer was born in Latrobe, PA - a city which is justifiably proud of its most famous native son. Ever since his first major tournament win all the way back in 1955, Palmer has been one of the biggest names in golf - many fans refer to him as "The King". Along with Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus, Palmer is one of the Big Three names in the golf world. Palmer's playing was in large part responsible for the increased interest in golf as a spectator sport once games began to be televised in the 1950s.
Arnold got his passion for playing golf from his father Deacon Palmer who was a professional greens keeper at Latrobe Country Club. Remarkably, at only age seven, Arnold golfed an impressive 70 at Bent Creek Country Club. Even though his father worked at the Latrobe Country Club, which was only nine holes back in the day, Arnold was only allowed to play in the early mornings or late afternoons, when club members weren't using the course.
Palmer attended Wake Forest University on a golf scholarship and later served three years in the Coast Guard, during which he married Winifred Walker (whom he met while playing in a Pennsylvania tournament). In his first season as a professional player, Palmer won the Canadian Open, which helped spark interest in the career of this rising young star.
His first major championship win came in the 1958 Masters - within two years he was one of the biggest names in the game. One thing which helped was his signing on with the agent Mark McCormack. Asked later on what it was he saw in the young Palmer, he answered: "his good looks, his modest background, the way he played golf, his risk taking and wearing his heart on his sleeve, and his involvement in so many exciting early televised finishes." One of the first US golfers to win the English Open, Palmer quickly became an international golf superstar and won the Masters in the years 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964. He also won the US Open in 1960 and the English Open again in 1961 and 1962. However, his best years were 1960 through 1963. In this time period, Palmer won 29 PGA Tour Events in only four seasons of play.
Arnold Palmer was the 1960 Sports Illustrated pro athlete of the year; 1960 also saw him winning the coveted Sportsman of the Year award. He continued to win a dedicated fan base (so dedicated, in fact that they came to be known as "Arnie's Army"). In 1967, Palmer became the first professional golfer to earn more than one million over the course of his career. It is a testament to Palmer's ability that he continued to win at least one PGA tour event every year until 1970, even against competition from Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus - and in 1971, he won four PGA tour events.
Arnold won the Vardon Trophy for low score average four different times and played on six Ryder Cup teams. By 1980, the acclaimed golfer was eligible for the Senior PGA Tour and with his name alone, helped make the tour successful. The tourney would eventually be renamed as the Champions Tour. On the Senior Tour he won ten events on the tour and with the help of his agent McCormack, Palmer became tops in pay for endorsements, sponsorships, and charity events. He has also won the revered Presidential Medal of Freedom Award presented to him by George W. Bush.
Palmer's last appearance in the Masters was in 2004; this was his 50th appearance in the tournament. He decided to opt out of future Senior Majors after failing to make the cut for the 2005 US Senior Open. Palmer however went out on top - in the 2004 Bay Hill Invitational, he got his second shot onto the 18th green using a driver from 200 yards away! It was the kind of shot only he could make; and this time, he seems to have impressed even himself.
Arnold Palmer remains active in the golf world, being involved in the Bay Hill Club and Lodge (which is where the Arnolf Palmer Invitational is held), being one of the driving forces behind the Golf Channel and assisting in the building of one of China's first golf courses. Palmer also started the Arnold Palmer Design Company and since 1971, he has been owner of the Latrobe Country Club where he got his first taste of the game. Golf Digest ranked Palmer as one of the top ten players of all time and is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and a winner of the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award (which he won in 1988). Palmer lives in Orlando, Florida where he still enjoys getting in a round of golf - and being an ambassador for the game of golf to the world.
