Recently saw a profile of the life of Arnold Palmer on the Golf Channel and it was probably too short of program to cover all his accomplishments of his life. Arnold Palmer, who is fifth on the all-time wins list with 62 career PGA Tour victories, had just $1.9 million in career earnings but he went on to do monumental things outside of golf that speaks louder than his golf including building a golf equipment empire, architect of countless golf courses and resorts, hospitals, founded the Golf Channel and the list goes on. Add to that his strong devotion to his wife Winnie Palmer for 45 years and the fact that he is probably one of the most solid individuals known in our country….and was the first sports figure to develop the now expanding personal aviation industry. He wasn’t rich from golf but rich from what he did with his golf career after golf.
We can all name great architects but can we name an architect that went beyond architecture in their life that can even hold a candle to Arnold Palmer? And if you can’t then why not?
chigurh
Sep 26, 14 7:19 pm
Nah, architects rarely think outside of the field, plus nobody makes enough money to be philanthropic, we can do work for organizations that are, but they low-ball our fees...Ha!
quizzical
Sep 26, 14 8:59 pm
Not sure our profession can be compared in this way to Golf. It's very much an "apples to oranges" comparison.
In golf, you tend to peak physically at a fairly early age -- 30s and 40s. Then, when you can't compete on the tour any more, you have no choice but to move on to other things.
Architecture is notorious for requiring decades of practice before any real recognition and success becomes evident. Moreover, most architects (in their minds at least) plan to practice architecture until they die - for that reason, we rarely, if ever, venture beyond the boundaries of the profession.
Any graduate architect who managed to make a great name in another field probably left architecture behind at a fairly early age - without creating much of an architectural reputation before departure.
Now, having said all of that, I guess you could consider someone like John Portman -- who parlayed his architectural ability into stunning success as a real estate developer -- as a candidate for consideration.
Recently saw a profile of the life of Arnold Palmer on the Golf Channel and it was probably too short of program to cover all his accomplishments of his life. Arnold Palmer, who is fifth on the all-time wins list with 62 career PGA Tour victories, had just $1.9 million in career earnings but he went on to do monumental things outside of golf that speaks louder than his golf including building a golf equipment empire, architect of countless golf courses and resorts, hospitals, founded the Golf Channel and the list goes on. Add to that his strong devotion to his wife Winnie Palmer for 45 years and the fact that he is probably one of the most solid individuals known in our country….and was the first sports figure to develop the now expanding personal aviation industry. He wasn’t rich from golf but rich from what he did with his golf career after golf.
We can all name great architects but can we name an architect that went beyond architecture in their life that can even hold a candle to Arnold Palmer? And if you can’t then why not?
Nah, architects rarely think outside of the field, plus nobody makes enough money to be philanthropic, we can do work for organizations that are, but they low-ball our fees...Ha!
Not sure our profession can be compared in this way to Golf. It's very much an "apples to oranges" comparison.
In golf, you tend to peak physically at a fairly early age -- 30s and 40s. Then, when you can't compete on the tour any more, you have no choice but to move on to other things.
Architecture is notorious for requiring decades of practice before any real recognition and success becomes evident. Moreover, most architects (in their minds at least) plan to practice architecture until they die - for that reason, we rarely, if ever, venture beyond the boundaries of the profession.
Any graduate architect who managed to make a great name in another field probably left architecture behind at a fairly early age - without creating much of an architectural reputation before departure.
Now, having said all of that, I guess you could consider someone like John Portman -- who parlayed his architectural ability into stunning success as a real estate developer -- as a candidate for consideration.
Gehry Technologies
lemonade + ice tea = GENIUS!
and Sink would argue that by playing golf, Palmer oppressed women and minorities his entire life ...
[sink, as in donna?! pfffft.]
i'd propose david rockwell as palmer-ish re: extra-architectural accomplishment.
Actually Jack Nicklaus or Tom Watson would be better examples.
A more current take on this idea would be who is the Tiger Woods of architecture?
Charles and Ray Eames, John Portman, Gehry Technogies are all good examples, thanks.
Nicklaus & Watson are classy guys equal to Palmer - all of the same cloth.
Tiger Woods? That list of whores would be too long.
how about a bobby jones of architecture? much more storied than those other old guys.
I was wondering who would Tom Wait be in Architecture?
Sorry that is Tom Waits.....lol...