Before there was Tiger Woods, there was Jack Nicklaus, and before there was Nicklaus, there was Arnold Palmer. Palmer brought golf into America’s living rooms via television in the early ’60s.
Once, a sportswriter was invited for dinner at Palmer’s residence. He arrived a bit early and Mrs. Palmer met him, invited him in and said her husband would be down in a moment.
The writer asked if, while he was waiting, he could see Palmer’s trophy room. She replied, “Oh, we don’t have such a room.” That night, the writer asked the golf pro, who had more than 60 tour victories, why he didn’t have all his trophies on display.
Palmer looked the columnist right in the eye and replied, “For what? That’s yesterday’s news!”
Then Palmer explained: “I have enjoyed every victory and cherished the memories. I have celebrated those tournaments. But come Monday morning of the next week, I’m no different from the man who missed the cut last week. In fact, he’s probably more hungry for a victory than I. So if I’m to be competitively ready, I must get my thoughts off yesterday and deal with today. There will be a day when I can take the time to look back. But as long as I want to stay competitive, I must never stop and marvel at what I have accomplished, only look forward to my next challenge at hand.”
—Author unknown (various Internet sites).
love it!
with infinite hope, Jim