|
St. Augustine, Florida – October 30, 2006 On a beautiful October evening in St. Augustine, Florida, I finally figured out this whole Hall of Fame business. Since the conception of our magazine more than a year ago, I have immersed myself in the Hall of Fame industry. I have visited numerous Halls of Fame from Cooperstown to Nashville, from Canton to San Diego. I always marvel at the greatness of those memorialized in each exhibit. But it didn’t hit me until Monday night at the Golf Hall of Fame Inductions what these Halls were really about. It all came together that night. It all made sense. One man put it in perspective for me, and then during the course of a memorable evening, others brought it to life. Seminal figures define every sport. Babe Ruth defined baseball. Chamberlain and Russell defined basketball as Bobby Orr did hockey and Ali did boxing. For all the greatness of Tiger Woods, for all the major championships of Jack Nicklaus, the one man who defined golf was Arnold Palmer. On Monday night, I went to the World Golf Hall of Fame, and I saw Arnold Palmer. I said hello and shook his hand, and for one brief moment I was a boy again. That’s when I figured out this Hall of Fame stuff. That’s when I knew. Halls of Fame aren’t about trophies, photographs, or yellowed newspaper clippings. Halls of Fame are about Hall of Famers. People. At the World Golf Village for the 2006 Inductions Ceremonies that night was a who’s who of golfing royalty, from Arnold Palmer to Gary Player, from Big Mama Joanne Carner to Beth Daniel.  Vijay Singh was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame on Monday. While seeing Palmer in person gave me clarity, watching the induction ceremonies provided me definition. Nothing is more impressive than a role call of Hall of Fame members as each is introduced at the beginning of an induction ceremony. I had seen it at Cooperstown as Aaron made way for Mays who made way for Seaver who made way for Carew. I watched it in St. Augustine again on Monday night. The legends came together to welcome the newest members of an exclusive club. Joining the golfing greats on Monday were five who had traveled distinctively different paths to greatness. A poor islander from Fiji, a Wichita, Kansas schoolgirl and a Viet Nam vet who didn’t swing a golf club until he was 21 years old bonded in spirit with a gentleman club pro from South Carolina and another man who created a sporting empire. Yet now they were all together on the steps of golf’s greatest shrine, their legacies forever entwined. Vijay Singh, Marilynn Smith and Larry Nelson in person joined recollections of the late Henry Picard and Mark McCormack, and all were part of something larger than themselves. We heard nothing new in the speeches. Success was attributed to hard work, resolve, a mentor or two and the support of loved ones. The evening ran longer than scheduled, but that too was expected, and no one minded because genuine emotion is always welcomed, even when it’s late. The humanity and civility of it all were the most moving. The humility and humor – yes, the humor of Singh, the spontaneity of Smith, the gentleness of Nelson. Hall of Famers. If you ever have a chance to attend a Hall of Fame induction in person or be at a Hall when a Hall of Famer is present, try to make it happen. The Hockey and County Music HOF inductions are coming up in November. January will surely bring the announcement of Cal Ripken Jr.’ and Tony Gwynn’s election into the Baseball HOF, and won’t that be some shindig in Cooperstown next July. Because of Arnie, Vijay, Marilynn Smith and Larry Nelson, I had an experience in St, Augustine that will last me a lifetime. Thanks to all the Hall of Famers everywhere. You make it all worthwhile. May we all stay forever young. Gil Vieira is the President and Publisher of HOFMAG.com.
He can be reached at
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
|
Newswire 
