December 31, 2011

Centennial Address

In 2012, The Aiken Golf Club will accomplish a milestone by entering her 100th year. I will celebrate this achievement; I will congratulate her on her longevity. I will also pause to reflect and remember the journey she has taken.

The Highland Park Hotel golf course, the Aiken Municipal golf course, and the Highland Park Country Club are yes, the same wonderful course we know today as The Aiken Golf Club. I'm also proud to call her a survivor. Our Club has braved two World wars, the Great Depression, natural disasters, and most recently the real estate crash that has thousands of golf courses nationwide teetering on insolvency.

We have not survived because of good fortune or luck. The Aiken Golf Club is a story of perseverance, struggle, dedication, determination, and leadership. I wish I had known Mr. John R. Inglis. His contributions over his 24 year tenure as our golf professional from 1915 to 1939 are legendary. He served as the co-designer, builder, teacher, club maker, golf promoter, and guided the Club through the Depression years. Mr. Joe Frasca championed major improvement projects in the 1940's; Orville White brought notoriety to our Club as one of South Carolina's greatest players in the 1950's. Each of these special men steered our Club through four decades; each were leaders that shared a common bond: They dedicated their lives to their craft and we still benefit from their stewardship today.

In 1959, a talented young golf professional named James McNair, Sr. realized his lifelong dream to own a golf course. His passion to teach, his embracing smile, and his welcoming demeanor endeared him to so many who were fortunate enough to know him during his 27 years "behind the counter" and on the course.

I become emotional when I recall vivid childhood memories of my first introduction into the life that my father led, and the hardships he overcame seemingly on a daily basis. At age 8, my father bestowed upon me the job of "irrigation engineer" – a title which had no meaning to me, but I soon realized what an important position I held. The irrigation system in 1965 consisted of 18 hoses and sprinklers, one at each green. I can still feel the cool, wet grass under my bare feet as I ran from his pickup truck to position the sprinklers with his headlights illuminating my way. I soon became so proficient at my task I needed no instructions from my father as to their proper placement on each green. Unknowingly, a lifelong bond was being forged with my father that only strengthened as the years passed. We were like two soldiers, side-by-side, battling to save our turf.

Today, a keystroke on my computer signals irrigation heads to water anytime, anywhere I need. I look back and marvel at where we have been, and I prepare myself for the challenges that I know lie ahead. The hardships and sacrifices that have been made over the last 100 years will never quite balance out on a list of pros and cons, but those special moments alone at dusk watching the mist of the irrigation reflect in the sunset give me a quiet satisfaction that my father and I have played a small part in "her" survival.

Happy 100th birthday to The Aiken Golf Club!
Sincerely,
Jim McNair, Jr.