An Unconventional Lifetime Journey

Ohio Fun Times #106 Business aside, our family had a very good seven years in Chagrin Falls. We lived in a very nice small development with only 21 homes and everyone got along just fine. Our immediate neighbors, the Porter’s and the Turley’s were really great. I have to say that because the Porter’s receive my daily emails! Seriously, if they weren’t what I am saying about them they would not be on that list. Hi Chic (Chuck) and Rita! It has now been 44 years since we left Twilea Park! Hard to believe isn’t it. Remember out New Years Eve parties? Our kids still talk about their seven years in Ohio. Our dog, Kola, became famous while there also. This was back in the day dogs were on their own, we didn’t walk them and pick up after them as everyone does today. If I had to do that, I would not have had a dog. Unfortunately, Kola was a roomer, she went everywhere. The dog catcher in the area would call about every two weeks for us to come pick her up at the dog pound in Chardon, a small community nearby. Funny, the dog catcher really liked Kola. He would pick her up, and instead of putting her in the cage in the back of his truck with other dogs, he would put her in the front seat and rather than take her to the dog pound and call us, he would just drive to our place and drop her off, saying, “Why don’t you tie her up?” No way, I didn’t believe in tying dogs up it they were harmless. How did she become famous? She was a National TV star. The year the Cleveland Open golf tournament was being played across the road at Tanglewood CC, unbeknownst to us, she was mingling with the players on the course. The TV cameras at one point put her on the air. When we found that out, we did contain her for the rest of the tournament. She looked good on TV. A pretty dog, Dee eventually taught her to play the piano for our quests as well, but that is another story/ Halloween was fun in the neighbor hood also. For the kids and adults as well because after the kids were done trick and treating it was the adults turn. Going door to door with an empty shot glass was my costume. Knock, knock, trick or treat? It was safe because I didn’t have to drive home. No, I didn’t get that shot glass filled at all 21 homes, if I had I would probably still be there somewhere in the bushes. One of the local Golf Professionals we became very close friends was Jim Chapman and his wife Sharon. Jim was Head Pro at the Chagrin Valley Country Club. He got there by the way of Scotland, to the Detroit area and finally ended up in Chagrin. His accent was not to bad, just certain words. Jim was about six year younger than I, so he was a head professional at a very young age. The membership liked Jim and Sharon so much that he spent his whole life at that very nice club. When Jim retired the members voted to give Jim and Sharon life membership to the club dues free. They are still very active and Sharon became an accomplished player herself and won the ladies championship quite a few times. I believe Jim is still playing gin rummy in the men’s lounge drinking his scotch with milk since he has stomach ulcers. Probably got them playing all that golf with me. I played a lot of golf at that club as a guest of Jim’s. Jim’s assistant professional at the time was a young man by the name of Mike Limback. Mike was a very good player and we played together as partners in many local Pro Amateur tournaments. Mike was also an excellent Ten Pin bowler whose average was over 200. He bowled a little professionally but never really hit the big time. Mike later became a head professional at a club in Indiana. My own golf game kept getting better. Chagrin CC was a very nice rolling tree lined course. To play that course well you had to learn how to hit the drive off the tee in the fairway or the ball would have a lot of bark marks on it. Good course, very pretty and very fast bent grass greens. Jim and I ended up playing a lot of golf with another Pro, Bob Hamrich and the Cleveland Browns quarter back, Bill Nelsen. Bob was a good player, he and Jim played about equal and so did Bill and I. Bill had a good golf swing but as big and strong as he was, he did not hit the ball a long way and that was due to his very bad football knees. He could not put a lot of pressure on his left side due to those bad knees, but he was very accurate and had a good short game. Bill was continually having his knees drained between games and sometimes had a hard time walking let alone play and throw a football. Joe Namath had nothing on Bill when it came to bad knees, you just heard about Joe’s more because he played in New York. Bill may not be that well know as a quarterback but he led the Browns for about five years as I recall, maybe more. Bill had a big ego but was a really nice guy and fun to be around. I have found almost all successful athletes have rather large egos that are part of what sets them apart from being mediocre. Bill was a leader and you could see him take complete charge of the team on the playing field. The real interesting thing about Bill is, at least I think so, he was not the starting quarter back in college, he played at USC under coach John McKay who eventually ended up as head coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers professional football team, a team Bill Nelsen also joined at one time as it’s quarter back coach. Pete Brethard was the starting QB in college and Bill was his backup, so having not been a first string starting QB in college and still making it as a starting QB in the Pros I think is pretty unique. Bill also had another talent in college as he married Sue who was the college football queen one year. Another interesting thing about Bill Nelsen and me is the last year Dee and I lived in Pittsburgh Bill was drafted by the Steelers. I moved to Cleveland and Bill was traded to the Browns. I moved to Mass, and Bill became the QB coach for the New England Patriots in Mass. I moved to Florida and Bill told me at the time maybe he would continue to follow me and end up in Miami with the Dolphins. He came pretty close as he did come to Florida and ended up with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Then we became separated when he left Tampa to become QB coach for the Detroit Lions football team for Monty Clark, the new coach and teammate of Bill with the Browns. When that happened I talked to Bill and bid him farewell, we were done following each other around the country at that point. I spent enough time in Detroit as a sales manager and that was it. Good by Bill Nelsen, but not really, Bill now resides in Orlando. The last time I talked to him was last year. I better sit down and call him and catch up on some old times, fun Times. We played matches against each other once in a while, Bill Nelsen and Bob Hamrick against Jim Chapman and me. We played often but there were two big ones each year that were classics and even hit the sports page, but that’s something you have to wait to hear about…More fun times.. ..Tomorrow… Classic Golf Matches #107 May 7, 1971 in the sports page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer Tom Place the Golf writer in his column “ON THE TEE” wrote; Bob Hamrich, Head Pro at Mayfield, and quarterback Bill Nelsen of the Browns will be featured on TV-3’s “Golf with the Pros” show at 5:30 p.m., Sunday. Incidentally, one of the fieriest rivalries in the district matches Hamrich and Nelsen against Jim Chapman of Chagrin Valley and Spalding’s Bill Faulhaber several times a year. The losers buy the dinners. There are no “gimmes” in this one. I still have that newspaper clipping and it is so old and brown I can hardly read it. Tom Place became a close friend as well and he along with Hamrich, Nelsen, Chapman and wives always attended our News Years Eve Parties. Tom Place went on to head up the PGA Golf Tour’s press room for years, so even when I left Cleveland I would always see Tom at the various tour events I attended over the years.