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October 19, 2007
USGA Museum And Arnold Palmer Center On Schedule For 2008 Opening
E-mail address: mediarelations@usga.org
Far Hills, N.J. - Extensive progress has been made in the renovation and expansion of the United States Golf Association Museum in north-central New Jersey, where the new home for the world's premier collection of golf artifacts, memorabilia and historical items is on track to open in the spring of 2008.
Located adjacent to the USGA's headquarters, the fully renovated Museum, together with the new Arnold Palmer Center for Golf History will comprise a 33,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility that will display more than 2,000 of the USGA's most treasured artifacts.
"The development of the Palmer Center is just one step -- albeit the most critical one -- in our effort to strengthen the Museum, its programs and its role within the USGA," said USGA President Walter Driver . "Our goal moving forward is to develop and brand the Palmer Center as the premier institution in the world for the study and education of golf history."
Construction of the Palmer Center began in December 2006 and is now more than 70 percent complete. With the exterior of the structure now fully enclosed, workers are focusing on the installation of the building systems and the construction of the interior walls, floors and ceilings.
The Palmer Center will offer more than 7,500 square feet of public space, with more than 5,000 square feet of that space devoted to permanent exhibitions discussing key moments in USGA Championship history. A collection of the nation's most significant golf artifacts and documents also will be displayed here. Many of these artifacts will be on display to the public for the first time.
The museum's galleries will provide visitors with engaging displays enhanced by multi-media elements and interactive kiosks. Collectively, the exhibits will present a new history of golf in the United States , focusing on the relationship between the game and the major historical, political and cultural events of the nation.
The signature architectural feature of the Palmer Center, the Hall of Champions, will celebrate every USGA champion and championship, beginning in 1895 with the first U.S. Amateur. A rotunda, illuminated by a clerestory, will feature all 13 USGA trophies, while listing winners of every championship on bronze panels that encircle the hall. Several kiosks situated throughout the exhibition galleries will host a new USGA Championship database that will allow visitors to search every championship by player, site and year.
Renovations to the interior of the existing museum, which has been closed since March 2005, are concurrently underway. Home for the past 35 years to the USGA Museum (the oldest museum in the country dedicated solely to sports), the renovated building will house offices and meeting rooms on the upper level. The main level will continue to function as a public space, featuring galleries devoted to the accomplishments of BobJones , BenHogan and Arnold Palmer. The Museum will continue to serve as the main focus for visitors to USGA headquarters and the gift shop will offer newly created products derived from the exhibition experience and world-class collection.
The new USGA Museum and Arnold Palmer Center for Golf History will open to visitors in spring of 2008. A grand opening celebration is planned for June.
Media Note: Images are available on a designated lightbox.
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Media Contacts:
Craig Smith, Director, Media Relations and
Rand Jerris, Director, Museum and Archives
U.S. Golf Association
(908) 234-2300
Posted by scurry at 10:15 PM
October 10, 2007
"Legendary" Palmer Scores on Influential List
Business Week Ranks him among top 100 in all sports
The Business Week list of the 100 most influential people in the world of sports contains all the job descriptions you’d expect. There’s commissioner, owner, president, CEO, chairman and other titles drawn straight from corporate elite’s financial reports.
But one title stands out for looking like it was lifted from fables about King Arthur or Harry Potter. The title?
Legend.
That’s what Business Week chose to put beside Arnold Palmer’s name (and only one other) when it dubbed Palmer the 76th most influential figure in 2007 sports: Arnold Palmer, PGA Legend.
Great work, if you can get it.
Palmer’s name is unique to the list in that he’s nearly four decades removed from the heydays of the profession that first made him famous. The other 98 are still actively engaged in their life’s pursuits. Fellow “legend,” Earvin “Magic” Johnson, comes in at 95.
According to Business Week, the top 10 are:
1. Roger Goodell Commissioner, NFL
2. Tiger Woods Golfer
3. David Stern Commissioner, NBA
4. George Bodenheimer President, ESPN, ABC Sports; co-chairman, Disney Media Networks
5. Bud Selig Commissioner, MLB
6. Brian France Chairman, CEO NASCAR
7. Dick Ebersol Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics
8. Phil Knight Chairman, Nike
9. Sean McManus President, CBS News and Sports
10. Rupert Murdoch Chairman, CEO, News Corp.
Besides Palmer and Woods, the only other golf-associated names to make the list are PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem, no. 34, and IMG Senior Vice President and global managing director of golf, Mark Steinberg, no. 72.
Palmer’s lucky, too, in that his is the only occupation on the list where if he says, “Hey, I’m taking the day off to play golf,” he’s not going to hear any griping from angry shareholders. In fact, people get upset if Palmer’s not golfing enough.
If that’s, indeed, the case then all is right in the Palmer world. After a recent working vacation to Pebble Beach, Palmer has confirmed he’ll be playing in the following events: On Thursday, October 11, he’ll be in the pro-am at the Administaff Small Business Classic at the Augusta Pines Golf Club near Houston; and he’s looking forward to joining his grandson, Sam Saunders, now a sophomore at Clemson University, again at the Father-Son tournament at ChampionsGate Golf Club Nov. 28 through Dec. 2 near his Bay Hill winter home in Orlando.
A legend’s work is never done.
Posted by crodell at 09:42 AM