How Sweet It Is! ⛳
Thursday, March 18, 2021 Sign Up
The Honda Classic was born from one of the handful of PGA tournaments that featured a celebrity affiliation, in this case, Jackie Gleason. Let's do a Tour Backspin rewind and see how Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic got its start, and why he decided to pull his name from the event.
Congrats to John Stewart, a member of the Society of Golf Historians Facebook group, for winning WHAT HOLE IS IT? from last week. The hole was #5 at the Victoria Country Club. There were 11 correct answers. Scroll down to test your golf course knowledge with this week's hole (a "guest post").
This week's vintage ad features a branded golf bag that I saw everywhere back in the day.
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Okay, we're on the tee, let's get going.
How Sweet It Is!
Jackie Gleason was not one to miss out on the fun. He regularly played in the Bob Hope Desert Classic, often teamed with Hope himself. He enjoyed that pro am event as well as the other ones associated with his fellow entertainers like Bing Crosby, Andy Williams and Glen Campbell. He wanted a tournament, too.
In 1972 the National Airlines Open Invitational (in this era a tournament could be both an "open" and an "invitational" which doesn't make much sense) at the Country Club of Miami in Hialeah was replaced on the schedule with Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic at Inverrary Country Club in Lauderhill, FL.
Gleason didn't do anything unless he could do it big. The first thing he did was put a call into the PGA to discern what was the biggest purse then offered on tour. The answer was $250,00 at the Westchester event. He would outdo that with his tournament. His tournament would not only feature one of the most outsized personalities in show business, it would also be paying out the biggest purse on tour -- $260,000 with the winner pocketing $52,000. The home he built at Inverrary was described by his wife as "Merely three town houses put together." How sweet it is.
Gleason moved his Jackie Gleason show to Miami Beach in 1964 after he took up permanent residence there. He was already a longtime fixture at the Doral event on tour and jumped at the chance to host the new tournament at Inverrary Country Club. And away we go!
The winner of that first event in 1972 was Tom Weiskopf who defeated Jack Nicklaus by one stroke.
"It's just wonderful to beat you Jack," Weiskopf said to his fellow Ohio State alumni. "You'll go down as the greatest golfer ever . . . and today I beat you."
Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic became the American Motors Inverrary Classic after a dispute over the naming rights caused Gleason to pull his affiliation with the tournament. Today it is the Honda Classic played at the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens.
Check out the bonus fact about the Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic below.
Our playlist this week is spinning the tunes to you from Jackie Gleason. His musical career was quite substantial. Listen on Spotify.
This week's vintage ad features a poster promoting the Open Championship at Muirfield in 1972. Looks like a poster to promote a heavyweight fight for the championship belt.
This is the third Thursday of the month so the WHAT HOLE IS IT? photo is a "guest post" from one of our readers (a big thank-you to Thomas Jackson). Send your pictures of your favorite golf holes to larry@9acespublishing.com. If we use your pic for the WHAT HOLE IS IT? contest, you'll win a prize.
Enjoy!
Larry Baush
WHAT HOLE IS IT?
YOUR PICTURE COULD BE FEATURED IN WHAT HOLE IS IT?!
Send us your picture of your favorite hole and if we feature it, you win a prize.
Email to larry@9acespublishing.com
We'll post guest submissions on the third Thursday of the month.
Our up-to-date leader board for 2021 WHAT HOLE IS IT?
Do you recognize this clubhouse? Find the answer below.
Eagle | Birdie | Par
We give you some recommendations to check out around the web.
Eagle: This looks fun. See high speed video of long drive champion Jeff Flagg destroy stuff. Watch it HERE.
Birdie: Bet against your friends on pro golf tournaments, rounds and shots. Win real prizes. More info HERE.
Par: Now that you've tasted a bit of gambling, read about the amazing Titanic Thompson HERE.
Bonus Fact
The pro am day at a PGA tournament is a low key, fun event for recreational players to play alongside their favorite pros and this is especially true at a tournament that has a celebrity as a host. This 1973 home movie shows how relaxed all the participants are as they tee off in Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic pro am. Watch it HERE.
