It dawned on me recently, I have written many artist statements about the Pop Art Golf collection. The one missing part I have not fully revealed is how I came to love golf. Loving golf takes on many meanings to many people. My family, for four decades beginning in the 1890’s, has not only produced four generations of golfers, it created many lifetimes of memories. A family whose dedication to the game, on and off the course, has followed many fairways. It has been a personal journey for all of us. It has been an adventure in learning. A place where we could go as a family to relax and connect with one another outside our daily lives. It has been a home away from home, a touchstone in our hearts, a world where we each found our own path and personal way to make an impact on the game that has given us so much.
Our family golf legacy is a culmination of fellowship and friendship. It is about education of thegame and the preservation of the history of those who have played before us and those will come to know and love the game after we have moved on to a new fairway. It is about sharing and connecting with others so they will in turn have the opportunity to explore its wonders.
It is my hope that as you read this family history, you will see how anyone can be a part of the game. It is open to all. Golf offers more possibilities than one can imagine. When I was handed my first set of clubs, about the time I was big enough to carry a junior set, I never knew what I was being given. 55 years later, I realize I was being given the chance to be me. Not just my great uncle, grandfather or father. Not their expectations that I would become the next Jack Nicklaus, Club President or Club Champion. I was being given the chance to become myself, find my own relationship with the game and set free to walk the fairways of life.
The artistry of the game has in effect become the artistry of my life. Not only as a golfer and artist, but as a man who has learned that giving back, paying it forward and having an impact far beyond striking a little white dimpled ball is what matters.
The truth remains, had it not been for the generations before me, who each found their own place in the golf community, I wouldn’t be who I am today. I am an amalgamation of my past. My present is shaped by family history and daily life. As I celebrate the past, it is the future I protect.
Our family golf legacy was never carved in stone. It has been as free flowing as the golf swing. Like the first golf instruction book, Ben Hogan’s Five Lessons, my grandfather slipped into my golf bag on the driving range, each moment in time has led to the next. What was once the original swing sequence sharing the wisdom of Mr. Hogan’s quest to impart his knowledge of the golf swing to help others improve their own has now become the Fluid Swing Sequence of Life.
Art reflects life as life can also reflect art. There is always a takeaway. A transition is sure to follow. One can reach the top and no sooner find their way into action. Having an impact and follow through are direct results of taking action. This is not just a golf swing. It is life. A life that for four generations, I call home and give thanks for being a part.
