Arnold Palmer: Tour Pros remember . . . “I first met Arnold Palmer in..”
Charlie Sifford, prior to World Golf Hall of Fame induction:
"That 1955 Canadian Open, you see, Arnold Palmer just started. I was trying to get started. That’s where we met…. Arnold came off the green, run to the score board, he sees that 63 up there. He said, “Charlie Sifford. How in the hell did he shoot 63? ” I’m standing right behind him. I said, “The same damn way you shot 64.” That’s how we met."
Characterized by Gary Player as the “Jackie Robinson of golf,” Charlie Sifford and Arnold Palmer share honors for transforming the game of golf from a small exclusive club to the game of lifetime that everybody who can swing a stick is welcome and access to the highest levels is based on merit and skill, not money or position.
Of course they met on a Canadian golf course. Where else would two sports giants meet?