The
World Golf Hall of Fame recently made
big (and controversial) news. As
backdrop, in 2013 the WGHOF elected Fred Couples and Colin Montgomerie for HOF
honors.
Montgomerie was added to the WGHOF despite never having won a major championship. In addition, Monty had never won a PGA tournament
in the United States, and had never reached the No.1 spot in the world
rankings. The only other modern golfer
in the WGHOF with the same equally unimpressive trifecta of failure is Masashi
“Jumbo” Ozaki. However, Ozaki won 94 Japan Golf
Tour tournaments, at least 40 more wins than his closest competitor (and more
than Sam Snead’s American record of 82 Pga Tour wins.) Given his considerable achievements in Japan,
Jumbo might be considered the Sadaharu Oh of Japanese golfers, and worthy of
enshrinement in the WGHOF.
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| The Full Monty |
Montgomerie
does have a stellar Ryder Cup record. (This
will become more important later in this post.)
A member of the European team eight times, five of those resulting in
victory by Europe, Monty has never lost a singles match. He has accumulated 23.5
total points, only 1.5 points behind the all-time record held by fellow Britisher
Nick Faldo. As a non-playing captain, he led the Euros to
victory in 2010 at the Celtic Manor Resort in Wales.
Montgomerie
was never a popular figure Stateside. His
nickname was Mrs. Doubtfire in certain quarters – they were rumored in some
circles (e.g. Golf.com) to be separated at birth
-- and he was the target of
the boobirds in the galleries at many U.S. tournaments, most notably the U.S
Open at Congressional G.C. in 1997, in which he finished second to Ernie Els by
one stroke to the delight of the home crowd taunting him the entire
tournament.
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| Separated at Birth? |
Perhaps in response to
the criticism in the press over these selections (HOFer Raymond Floyd was particularly
upset), the World Golf
Hall of Fame cancelled the 2014 HOF
elections. A statement issued by the World Golf
Hall of Fame said, in part:
“Following the conclusion of the 2013 World Golf Hall of
Fame induction ceremony, the World Golf Foundation board of directors
instructed the Hall of Fame to begin a comprehensive review of several of its
processes.
“The review has focused on an
evaluation of the criteria and process for electing/selecting all five avenues
of induction and a review of the production of the annual induction ceremony,
including date, location and presentation.
“At this time, the strategic review is ongoing. The process
of electing and selecting inductees and planning the induction ceremony takes
several months and includes the coordination of the game’s professional tours,
governing bodies and allied organisations.
“Therefore, in fairness to that process, the board of
directors and the Hall of Fame have agreed to forego the 2014 induction
ceremony.
“The review is expected to be complete in early 2014 and an
announcement will be made after the Golf Hall of Fame Board of Directors
approves any changes to be made.”
Golf.com regularly conducts an email
roundtable with writers from Sports Illustrated and Golf Magazine. During a fairly recent discussion of the
WGHOF’S decision to delay the next election, Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated
said “I've
been saying for a few years that the Hall of Fame induction shouldn't be an annual
event. They're out of players to enshrine.” (My emphasis.)
I
vehemently disagree. The WGHOF is not
out of players to enshrine. There is one
former PGA Tour member whose absence for the Hall of Fame is blatantly conspicuous
and needs to be remedied immediately.
His name is Tony Lema. He was
known to the golfing world as “Champagne” Tony Lema, and he was one of golf’s
budding superstars before a plane crash
ended his life entirely too soon.
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| Champagne Tony |
I
have written about the Westchester Classic earlier in this blog. Westchester Country Club in Harrison, New
York, has hosted a PGA golf tournament almost continuously for most of the past
45 years. The home of the Barclays
Classic until 2008, the tournament began in 1967 and was called the Westchester
Classic. But prior to its life as the
Westchester Classic, the club hosted a predecessor tournament, the Thunderbird
Tournament.
The
Thunderbird Tournament moved from New Jersey to Westchester Country Club in 1963.
The total purse was $100,000, with the first prize of $20,000, an astronomical
sum for a regular tour event in those days.
For example, the same
year, the first prize for the US Open was $17,500 and for the Masters was
$20,000. The British Open title in 1963 was
worth 1,500 Pounds Sterling or approximately $4,000.)
Arnold
Palmer took home the $20,000 first prize from that initial Westchester Country
Club event, beating Paul Harney in a playoff. The following year,
"Champagne" Tony Lema nosed out burly Mike Souchak for the winner's
check. I was there, at the 18th
green. It had begun to rain, it was late
in the day and evening was setting in. The sky was also darker because of the
umbrellas that had been opened as the crowd waited at the 18th green
for Lema to finish. As I recall Lema
holed a 7-8 foot putt to secure his one-stroke victory over Souchak.
Tony
Lema was called “Champagne Tony” because he would buy a case of champagne after
his tour victories for the ink-stained wretches who covered the tournament,
thus ensuring good press for a small investment. The ritual came about at the Orange County
Open Invitational in 1963, where Tony jokingly promised to buy champagne for
the press if he won the tournament. Lema
did win the tournament, bought the press the champagne, and a legend and
nickname was born. Champagne Tony with
his good looks and engaging personality was enormously popular with golf fans
before his untimely death in 1966. In
fact, his Tour contemporary, Kermit Zarley, in his blog post in May, 2013, entitled
‘the Beloved Tony Lema”, wrote that Tony Lema may have been the most well-liked
professional golfer by his peers of anyone who played the PGA Tour regularly
during the second half of the twentieth century.
Lema’s
bubbly win sparked a remarkable performance over the next four years. During that time span Lema won 12 PGA tour
events, finished second eleven times, and third four times. From 1963 through
1966, Lema finished in the top ten in eight of the fifteen majors in which he participated,
and won the British Open in 1964. His
five PGA Tour victories was the highest total among all golfers in 1964. He was a member of the 1963 and 1965 United
States Ryder Cup teams, and his Ryder Cup record (9–1–1) is the best all-time of
any player who has played in two or more Cups. At
the time of his death he ranked tenth on the PGA’s all-time earnings list.
Before you scoff at the feat
winning twelve PGA tournaments in four years let’s take a look at the WGHOF
members who have achieved that milestone (or not).
HOFers
with 12 wins in four years on the PGA Tour:
Walter
Hagen
Ben
Hogan (13 in one season 1946)
Byron
Nelson (18 in one year 1945)
Jack
Nicklaus
Arnold
Palmer
Gary
Player
Gene
Sarazen
Sam
Snead
Billy
Casper
Lee
Trevino
Jimmy
Demaret
Cary
Middlecoff
Tom
Watson
Johnny
Miller
Nick
Price
Vijay
Singh
HOFers
with 12 wins in four years not on the PGA Tour:
Seve
Ballesteros (European tour only)
Bernhard
Langer (European tour only)
Greg
Norman (Tour of Australia only)
Ernie
Els (PGA and European Tours combined)
Jumbo
Ozaki (Japan Tour only)
Colin
Montgomerie (European Tour only)
HOFers
Who Did Not Post 12 wins in four years:
Ralph
Guldahl
Julius
Boros
Raymond
Floyd
Gene
Littler
Hale
Irwin
Chi
Chi Rodriguez
Nick
Faldo (on any tour)
Payne
Stewart
Ben
Crenshaw
Tony
Jacklin (on any tour)
Tom
Kite
Larry
Nelson
Hubert
Green
Curtis
Strange
Tommy
Bolt
Jose
Maria Olazabal
Lanny
Wadkins
Doug
Ford
Phil
Mickelson
Sandy
Lyle
Fred
Couples
The
list of HOF golfers who won twelve times in four years includes the greatest
golfers of all time, with no pretenders (well, maybe Vijay Singh) in the
lot. On the other hand, some very
distinguished golfers have not achieved this litmus test of greatness,
including Phil Mickelson, Sir Nick Faldo and the aforementioned Raymond Floyd,
who perhaps doth protested too much about the 2013 WGHOF election results. (While Floyd did win four majors, he won only
18 other PGA tour events in a competitive career that spanned 30 years.)
The day the golf died for Tony Lema was July 24, 1966. In the cruelest of ironies, he and his wife, along with the pilot and co-pilot, died in the crash of their small plane on a golf course. They were on their way to a one-day tournament in Joliet, Ill. The twin-engine plane’s engine experienced mechanical trouble, and the pilot tried to crash land the plane. However, the plane disintegrated on impact, coming to rest in a small pond on the very golf course Lema had been scheduled to play the next day. Published reports indicated that the carefree Lema died with $23,000 in his briefcase, mostly in the form of uncashed tournament checks dating back six months. Lema was just 32 years old.
Anthony
David Lema was a remarkable golf story. He
rose from a background of abject poverty in Oakland, California, to the highest
pinnacle of the golf profession. His
career ended just as he stood on the brink of greatness, if not with one foot
inside the boundary of golf immortality.
The aforementioned Kermit Zarley also wrote in his blog that “At the
time (of his death), he (Lema) was one of the four best golfers in the world,
behind Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player.” However, given that a golfer clearly does not
have to be great to merit induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame, I believe
Lema accumulated sufficient credentials in his shortened career to merit a
place alongside the likes of Gene Littler, Hale Irwin, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Payne
Stewart, Tom Kite, Larry Nelson, Hubert Green and the aforementioned Colin
Montgomerie. (If Monty is in largely
because of his Ryder Cup record, then Champagne Tony deserves inclusion on the
basis of his unsurpassed Ryder Cup record as well.) Throw in his magnetic personality, his
popularity with the fans, one of the greatest nicknames in sports history, and
the tragic circumstances of his untimely demise and Lema clearly is worthy of
inclusion in the WGHOF. (This video clip
of Lema being interviewed by Howard Cosell here (!) is a marvelous glimpse into the
man, his personality and his character.)
So
storm the social media ramparts! Rescue Champagne
Tony from golf obscurity! Read the
Sports Illustrated archived articles about Lema and discover one of the game’s
brightest stars. Then inundate the WGHOF
with emails and tweets! Start a petition on the
We The People house website and swamp it with signatures. (The Golf Album Blog tried to start a petition,
but failed. They don’t call me an Analog
Guy in a Digital World for nothing.) Forget
deporting Justin Bieber, regulating premium cigars and brewing beer in the White
House; this is serious business ! So petition
the Leader of the Free World and let’s get Champagne Tony Lema elected to his
proper place on the walls in St. Augustine, whenever the next election is.
And
while we’re at it, let’s raise a glass of bubbly to Champagne Tony’s memory and
raise our voices in song.
Original Song: Candle
In the Wind
Music and lyrics by Elton John and Bernard Taupin
Publishers; Universal Songs Of Polygram International Inc.
Goodbye Champagne Tony
Though I only saw you once
You had the grace to hole a putt
While those around you hushed
They held up their periscopes
And cheered as the putt dropped
They set you on a pedestal
And gave you your nickname
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a flagstick in the wind
Always standing high and strong
When the pressure came
And I would have liked to seen you
Play many more years
Your golf game snuffed out long before
Your legend ever should
The early Tour was tough
The toughest time you ever had
Focus, a wife, created a superstar
And death was the price you paid
After you died
Oh the game forgot about you
All the papers had to say
Was Tony Lema’s plane crashed on a golf course
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a flagstick in the wind
Always standing high and strong
When the pressure came
And I would have liked to seen you
Play many more years
Your golf game snuffed out long before
Your legend ever should
Goodbye Champagne Tony
Though I only saw you once
You had the grace to hole a putt
While those around you hushed
Goodbye Champagne Tony
From the young man in the back row
Who saw you sink a winning putt
Better than almost any pro
And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a flagstick in the wind
Always standing high and strong
When the pressure came
And I would have liked to seen you
Play many more years
Your golf game snuffed out long before
Your legend ever should
AMDGTM
© 2012-17 R.E. Kelly
