One of my best mashie shots ever, near kick in on the 9th hole for a deuce!
Boy, what a way to celebrate my birthday on October 15th! Playing hickory golf at Glen Echo CC where golf was last played in the Olympics in 1904. And to top that off the Golf Channel was there to film it and I nearly aced the par-3 ninth hole with my very first swing of the day!
When I woke up at the Union Station Hotel in downtown St. Louis the weather was awful, a dreary raining fall day. But as I drove out to the club in Torch (no I didn’t take the train like they did in 1904) the skies brightened up quite a bit. In reality the day that George Lyons won the Golf Olympic Gold Medal it rained a bit too. Glen Echo’s GM Rod Stewart took care of every detail.
With future movie stars Ron Cobb, Mike Leuken and Jim Storey. We were on the golf course most of the day, played little golf and had a lot of fun!
I was excited as the club to have the Golf Channel along for the day as we officially kicked off the “Journey to Olympic Golf.” After all the journey is all about following the spirit, tradition and history of the game of golf from being played in the Olympics in 1904 to 2016 when Olympic Golfers will tee it up in Rio de Janeiro. I wasn’t familiar at all with the programming side as I was with the live golf production so it was an interesting day of learning how they shoot these sort of features. Unfortunately what we learned, even though it was fun, is that there is a lot of repetition and time needed to get the exact takes desired. Between inside interviews in the clubhouse, lunch and the outside shots, club president Jim Storey and I were lucky to get nine holes in. I am not sure when or if the journey part of the day will be televised, I did see parts of the club history and an interview with Rod Stewart on the premier of the ‘In Play with Jimmy Robert’ show.
The Olympic Rings are at home at Glen Echo CC and so was I!
I did a lot of videotaping myself and feel like I captured the Spirit of Olympic Golf from that era. My videos and video editing were quite premature early on the journey and that is not to say they are perfect now. My reward for working with the Golf Channel was a pair of Go-Pro cameras and a pair of external hard drives to mount on the dash of Torch. As you will see in the weeks ahead they captured some great moments going through borders (I filmed most everything), minor fender benders and even pulling over on the side of the road to let some young soccer players take a few swings with my golf clubs. Thank you Golf Channel!
Here are videos on the club, the golf course, interviews with GM Rob Stewart and Golf Course Superintendent Joe Wachter and long time members Bob Sido and Ernie Coe:
Arriving Union Station Hotel and driving out to Glen Echo CC.
Journey to Olympic Golf begins at Glen Echo CC in St. Louis.
Rob Stewart GM Glen Echo CC St. Louis Host of 1904 Olympic Golf.
Joe Wachter, Golf Course Superintendent, Glen Echo CC, St. Louis.
Part 1 of 2 Bob Sido Long time member of Glen Echo CC St. Louis.
Part 2 of 2 Bob Sido Long time member of Glen Echo CC St. Louis.
Ernie Coe Part 1 of 2 Glen Echo CC.
Ernie Coe Part 2 of 2 Glen Echo CC.
Andy Reistetter nearly acing the par-3 ninth at Glen Echo CC with a hickory-shafted mashie!
Tribute to Olympic Golf Gold Medalist George S. Lyon Walking on His Hands at Glen Echo CC.
After the long day at Glen Echo, Jim Storey and I finished up as the sun went down. Changing our shoes in the locker room we decided to swap our shirts, his Glen Echo CC for my PLAYERS. Though sweaty, this shirt is one of my favorite memories of the ‘Journey to Olympic Golf.’
If these videos don’t capture the Spirit of Olympic Golf at Glenn Echo in 1904 that is carried on to today that I don’t know what would! Many thanks to Glenn Echo, The Golf Channel, the Union Station Hotel in St. Louis for such a wonderful start to my journey south to Olympic Golf in Brazil.
I am looking for 100 new friends in the next 100 days to make a $100 donation (or any amount that you are able to make) to The First Tee. Each day I will be reliving the original “Journey to Olympic Golf” and hope to find a new friend in golf. Is that you? Please join me in giving back to the game we all love.
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Thank You!
With Rob Stewart, the General Manager of Glenn Echo CC.
With Bob Sido and his niece Peggy Marley.
Sitting down with Ernie Coe was very enlightening!
