Arnie was one of the all-time greats

ARNOLD Palmer, the father of modern day golf, passed away on September 25 the Sunday before the Ryder Cup bringing a great sadness to all who love the game and its traditions.

A flamboyant character who got people interested in golf again in the late 50’s and early 60’s, Palmer was the “People’s Champion” and played the game with a smile on his face, unlike many of today’s robots. He was everything that most of today’s professionals are not and his huge fan base known as Arnie’s Army loved him for it.

His passing no doubt acted as a huge incentive for the USA team to win back the trophy at the recent Ryder Cup and practically everybody attending was given a complimentary badge to wear which simply stated “I’m a Member of Arnie’s Army”.

Palmer’s presence was everywhere at Hazeltine with huge posters of him all over the tented village which people signed, posted messages on and posed in front of for photographs.

Hundreds of people were wearing Arnold Palmer Tribute shirts and his name was dropped into every conversation. Of course, he will always be loved and remembered here in Kerry for his design of the fabulous links at Barrow for Tralee Golf Club which is now ranked among the best in the country and no doubt there are many members of Tralee who will all have their own individual memories and stories about him.

I was most fortunate to have met him on two occasions and was able to spend a little time in his company during both encounters. The first was back in 2000, when I was the Golf Correspondent for Radio Kerry and through the good offices of the late Ted Keane, I was afforded the opportunity to interview the great man for radio in the clubhouse at Tralee.

On that occasion he was most polite but very business-like, answering all of my questions fully, without being too friendly, but I suppose when there is a microphone connected to a tape recorder in front of you, then you have to be on your guard. However, on the second occasion that we met, some eight years later at his Bay Hill club in Orlando, it was different story entirely.

I had played the course with three friends from Ballybunion including our Head Professional Brian O’Callaghan who had arranged through a mutual friend that he (Palmer) would have lunch with us after golf in the Men’s Grill of the Clubhouse.

Arnie arrived in after his own game and was a completely different person entirely to the man I had interviewed some eight years before. He was charming, witty and very chatty indeed as he spoke to our small group about a range of golfing subjects. He posed for pictures with us, signed hats and really could not have been any nicer than he was on that occasion.

They told us at Bay Hill that he just rolled up every Wednesday and put his name into the hat to be drawn out to play with a group of elderly men who gathered once a week.

He didn’t care if they could play or not, he just put his $20 into the pot like everyone else and went out to have some fun and enjoy the banter at the bar afterwards. Can you imagine some of today’s top professionals doing that?

I would consider him the mostloved golfer and arguably one of the most-love sportsman of all time alongside Mohammed Ali. He may have won every honour in the game, thrilling the galleries along the way with his flamboyant style of play but at the end of the day he was a man of the people and we in Kerry are fortunate to have an everlasting piece of his memory.

Dunne appears to be Safe

PAUL Dunne’s 25th place finish over the weekend at the Dunhill Links Championship has all, but guaranteed his Tour Card for next season.

The €41,000 cheque that the Wicklow man collected pushes him up to 99th on the Race to Dubai (Money List) and well inside the top 110 who get cards for next season.

He is currently not in the field for the British Masters this coming weekend, but as the player who finished 110th and took the final card last season did so with €250,000 it is safe to assume that Dunne currently with €260,000 is safe.