Arnold Palmer: King of the Course and Pitch!

Palmer who passed on Sept 25 at the age of 87 from heart complications was a Ryder Cup stalwart a twotime captain and played in six of the biennial events winning 22 matches the most ever by an Americanamp160 Players from the US and European sides are wearing pins in his honorThe influence of the man known as quotThe Kingquot manifests in all of the athleteendorser ads you39ll see on the golf baseball football and other sports telecasts this weekend think Peyton Manning39s pitches for DirecTV Nationwide and Papa Johnamp8217sFollowing a threeyear tour of duty in the Coast Guard Palmer teed off his Hall of Fame golf career by winning his first pro tournament the Canadian Open in 1955 But Palmer really burst onto the scene and American consciousness a few years lateramp160 He captured all seven of his majors from 1958 through 1964 and came up a few strokes short in othersHis ascendancy coincided with the rise of televisionamp160 Palmer39s attacking style demanded by his father Deke a golf pro in Latrobe Pa good looks and everyman sensibilityamp160drove golf39s appeal beyond the country club set His rivalries with Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player the Big Three popularized the sportI never got to see Palmer at the peak of his goforbroke powers but my father who instructed me as a youngster that Nicklaus was the better player nonetheless enlisted in Arnie39s Army A friend of mine a native southern Californian told me his favorite sports memory as a youth was not of watching Sandy Koufax dominate for the Dodgers or Lance Alworth electrify for the Chargers but Palmer on the move at The Riviera Country ClubPalmer39s oncourse prowess was amplified though by Mark McCormack the pioneering sports agent who found the International Management Group Togetheramp160they ushered in the new world of sports marketing Palmer39s affability and ability led to an array of deals over the years including Pennzoil United Airlines Hertz CocaCola and Xarelto His legendary mix of iced tea and lemonade the Arnold Palmer lives on in stores through a deal with AriZona Beverage CoThe public39s embrace of Palmer far outlasted his time as a top player the last of 62 PGA Tour victories recorded in 1973 Forbes ranked Palmer 28 years removed from the last of his 10 Senior PGA Tour titles as the thirdhighestpaid retired athlete in 2016 His 40 million fueled in part by the deal with AriZona and his ownership of Bay Hill golf resort trailed only Michael Jordan and David Beckhamamp160 Palmer whose legacy also includes the 300 golf courses he helped design and develop only earned 18 million in winnings during his PGA careerWhile Joe Namath OJ Simpson Jim Palmer Julius Erving and Magic Johnson followed in Palmer39s national endorsement footsteps it wasn39t until Jordan with an assist from Spike Lee39s Mars Blackmon character and Phil Knight39s checkbook in the late 1980s and early 1990s that athletic endorsement ads began to follow the path trod decades earlier by Palmeramp160 Jordan now the owner of the NBA Charlotte Hornets still pulls out his annual spots for Hanesamp160and Jordan XXXI sneakers were released on Sept 3Manning39s retirement after his Denver Broncos won Super Bowl 50 is front and center of creative of campaigns for Nationwide DirecTV and Papa Johnamp8217s LeBron James has a number of endorsement deals of his own including a 1 billion lifetime deal with Nike a television production company Spring Hill with series on Starz Survivor39s Remorse and CNBC Cleveland Hustlesamp160and is currently developing a Space Jam reprise with Warner Bros The King of golf would be proud of The King of the hardwood39s diversified interestsPalmer39s profile and portfolio can be viewed as a primer for all athletes looking to maintainfurther their brand after the sunset of their playing daysamp160 Of course advertising was not the only club Palmer pulled from his TV bag While ESPN is credited with creating the 247 sports cycle Palmer along with Joe Gibbs now the former Washington Redskins coach and NASCAR team owner brought the dedicated sports channel to the dialamp160 Golf Channel aided by cable operators including Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts himself a member at Augusta National launched in 1995 It was the forerunner to Tennis Channelamp160and leagueowned services from the NFL NBA MLB and NHLHow long those entities will last in a digital age that is reshaping the media landscape and habits that could lead to directtoconsumer distribution of the games we love remains to be seenamp160 Palmer39s legacy though seems certain to endureamp160 His is a grand American story a tale of how hard work perseverance talent and good timing brought the son of a golf pro to worldwide acclaim and famePalmer39samp160passing has inspired a litany of moving farewells from myriad notables he touched in some wayquotHe was and likely will remain the most importantamp160golferamp160of all timequot said Golf Channel president Mike McCarley pictured above left with Palmer quotHe will be remembered for popularizing the game ofamp160golfamp160and revolutionizing the business of sport but for those who were lucky enough to meet him they will always remember how special he made them feel amp160He was always genuine and generous with his time no matter if the cameras were rolling or notquotPalmer was as advertised amp160Astute respectful earnest and nice a true gentleman I can see why so many called him The King Long may he reign on that course in the skyThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet management or associated bloggersamp160Photos courtesy of Golf Channelamp160

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Arnold Palmer: King of the Course and Pitch!

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