Renee Powell, PGA/LPGA, Head Golf Professional, Clearview Golf Course, East Canton, Ohio. LPGA Lifetime Tour Member, PGA Class A and R&A Lifetime Member.
When December 31, 2016 closed it ended the first 70-years of Clearview Golf Club and now we are on to the next 70, and beyond. I feel so incredibly blessed to have been born into a family that has contributed so much to the world of golf, not just for black golf, but for all golf.
As a youngster there were not a lot of golf tournaments that one could play in if your skin was not white. Thank goodness for the United Golfer’s Association (UGA). For those who know little about this organization, it was a national organization which had member clubs throughout the country that hosted golf tournaments. I believe it was founded in 1926 in the Boston area. Being in Ohio, we were part of the Midwest District and here at Clearview we had the Clearview Par & Birdie Club. (I like that name).
Clearview Golf Club Historical Marker
Every year, each member club hosted a golf tournament which consisted of a women’s division, men’s, junior (boys and girls) and many had a division for professional golfers. The UGA, although a black organization, was open to anyone who chose to tee it up and participate in the tournaments. Most major cities had two municipal golf courses which allowed us to play their courses. I can remember in those early days–in the late 50’s and early 60’s–we traveled only in the daytime to tournaments because it was safer than night travel. Many of us stayed in Howard Johnson Motels because they were welcoming, mostly we ate at cafeterias. The good thing about staying in the same motels and eating at the same venues is that one had the opportunity to get to know people like Joe Louis and the wonderful singer Billy Eckstine, both who too play these events
My mom was an assistant tournament director in the Midwest Division, so I had a chance to watch the workings of a tournament from a young age. This year, two black organizations that hosted tournaments are celebrating 80 years of existence and both are women’s golf clubs: The Wake Robins and the Chicago Women’s. Hard for most to realize that these two clubs have been striving for 80 years, and, I want to say CONGRATULATIONS to both!!
Clearview Golf Course Layout
Looking at my career–from spending 13 years on the LPGA Tour where I was the second black on Tour after Althea Gibson–and now, I look at the LPGA Tour and there are four young ladies teeing-it-up in 2017 – 50 years after I first did. We have Sadena Parks, Cheyenne Woods, Mariah Stackhouse on the regular Tour and Ginger Howard on the Symetra this year. So hard for me to imagine when there are only two on the PGA Tour, Harold Varner and Tiger woods. There are far more male professional golfers than female, but we seem to be advancing further at this time. In the 1970’s, there were about a dozen blacks on the PGA Tour so, we have unfortunately gone backward in that area.
In Dr. Calvin Sinnett’s book “Forbidden Fairways” he listed quite a number of black-owned golf courses years ago. When we look at what exists today, there are only enough to be counted on one hand. Clearview GC happens to be the only course anywhere in the world to be designed, built, owned and operated by a black man. Such an incredible feat that it is almost hard to really imagine. And the first nine holes was built mostly by hand.
Clearview Golf Course
Today, as we move forward to our next 70 years we want the Legacy of what Bill Powell and his wife, Marcella, did to continue for years like the Old Course at St. Andrews.
Clearview has several immediate goals:
- To find funding to be able to put in an automatic irrigation system to water our fairways
- To build an educational center that will serve as a place to educate individuals about the history of golf and this course, to be able to coach especially young girls in a Renee Powell Golf Academy to groom them to play high school golf, earn scholarships to college and maybe even some will follow in my footsteps to the Tour – and also an area where many archival items can be on display for the public to view.
From the 50’s and 60’s many more blacks have taken up this wonderful game of golf and I often think that if every one of those individuals were to make an effort to donate $20 or more, we could accomplish those goals in record time. It takes pulling together, and those who really want to give a special thank you to Bill and Marcella Powell for the sacrifices they made to try to make golf more fair in this country for all of us.
We have been working on putting together a new website which you may visit. The site is clearviewgolfclub.com. Although it is not totally complete, there are ways that one can donate to the Clearview Legacy Foundation for Education, Preservation and Turfgrass Research, a 501(c)3 tax exempt charitable foundation. Call us to book an outing or bring your group in, participate in any of our events or simply make a donation by mail, by phone (330.488.0404) or online.
My good friend, Debert Cook, publisher of this magazine, is hosting a booth at the upcoming PGA Merchandise Show (Jan. 25-27, 2017) so I will join her there in Orlando, Florida, at the Orange County Convention Center on Thursday , January 26, to autograph a children’s book written about my dad, entitled “Twice as Good” by Rich Michelson.
Let us look forward to a great golfing year. Hope to see you during 2017.
Golfingly yours,
Renee Powell
LPGA Lifetime Tour Member, PGA Class A and R&A Lifetime Member
