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 Some want their children to be the next Nicklaus, others want to shape the character of their children through rules and etiquette, but most just want to be able to play the game of a lifetime with their son or daughter. When it comes to golf, fathers know best. It’s a special bond, playing with dad; a time to express affection and emotion without writing a sappy sentence on a greeting card. A simple gesture like pulling the pin or tossing a divot back to pops can really say, and mean, a lot. Taking a quarter out of his pocket isn’t such a bad thing either. The competitive spirit of our youths knows no age limit when it comes to dad vs. child. Playing golf is a great bond, but working in the golf industry is another thing altogether. In Southern California, many sons’ and daughters’ connections to the game and their family is so strong that they’ve followed in dad’s spike marks and entered the same line of work. Whether working at a family business or carrying a PGA card, the Southland has numerous fathers and children who are keeping golf in the family. CRAIG and KEVIN STADLER One of the most exciting father/son combinations to emerge in the last year is the duo of Craig and Kevin Stadler. The two USC alums not only share similar physiques, but the ability and determination to win, too. Sometimes they play in the same tournaments, sometimes they partner up in charity events, and sometimes they capture championships in the same week, like last year when dad snagged the Bank of America Championship just minutes before son captured the Lake Erie Charity Classic. Speaking at this year’s MCI Heritage Classic, Kevin said: “If I wanted to ask [my dad] about something, I could — and I’d probably be stupid not to. But he doesn’t follow me around going, ‘Do this, do this, don’t do this.’’’ TED ROBINSON SR. and TED ROBINSON JR. Ted Robinson Sr. may be known as the “King of the Waterscapes,” but to his son and partner Ted Jr., he’s simply known as “dad.” Ted Sr. has designed approximately 170 courses around the world with many in Southern California. Before joining his father’s firm, Ted Jr. spent 14 years in real estate construction financing. Even though Ted Jr. hung around his dad’s business as a kid — and got paid 25 cents for each routing sheet he colored in — he didn’t join the family business until he was in his late 30s. “It was the last thing in the world I wanted to do,” he said. However, after becoming disenchanted with the banking business and, perhaps, more importantly, after a frank conversation with his mother about joining the business, the younger Robinson teamed up with his dad. When he did, he discovered he had a great knack for golf course design. “He had me do a routing plan for a project in Walnut. I spent two weeks on it,” Ted Jr. said. “My drawing ability was nil, but when I showed it to my dad he thought it was pretty good. He asked if he could redraw it and send it to the client. The client called him back and said he liked mine more than my dad’s.” The two have been working closely ever since. TOM and BRYAN ADDIS Tom Addis III is one of the most active members in the San Diego golf community. The elder Addis is owner and president of Medallion Golf, a past president of the PGA of America, and can be heard on the San Diego radio show “Golfing Around.” His son Tom IV is a “master shaper” of golf courses (currently working in Cambodia), and his other son Bryan is the general manager at Soboba Springs Golf Course in San Jacinto in Riverside County. Bryan made the decision to follow in his father’s footsteps while still in college. “It’s in my blood,” he said. Bryan and his father remain in close contact, speaking twice a day, with many of the questions coming from the son about golf course operations. What bit of dad’s advice does Bryan follow most closely? “No matter what the situation, keep a smile on your face and be friendly,” he said. RICK and PAT REILLY Rick Rielly, head professional at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, and Patrick Rielly, the former head professional at Annandale Country Club in Pasadena, have had the privilege of working at two of the finest private clubs in Los Angeles County. Patrick, who’s now retired, was recently named a “Legend of the PGA” and served as the group’s national president from 1988-90. Rick, who learned the game from his father and played golf at the University of Arizona, turned pro shortly after graduating college. “[My dad’s] big thing was ‘there’s the right way and there’s the Rielly way.’ You always had to work a little bit harder than the other guy,” said Rick, who inherited his father’s work ethic but doesn’t see the PGA presidency in his future — yet. After all, Rick has four children to raise — just like his father. JERRY, TOM, TOMMY and JEFF BARBER If Griffith Park were England, the Barber family would be the Windsors. Jerry Barber, the oldest first-time winner of a major, started running Griffith Park Golf Shop in 1965 when his wife became ill. His son Tom took over operations in 1972 and opened Tom Barber Golf Center in Moorpark in 2000. Tom’s son Jeff works with him at the golf course, while his oldest son Tommy plays on the AG Spanos Tour and won the Stead Motors Shootout last year. While growing up, Tom frequently asked Jeff if he was sure he wanted to work in the golf business. Depite trying other lines of work, Jeff always came back to the family business. “I tried the film industry, plumbing, construction, I worked in sales, but I just couldn’t get out of golf,” Jeff said. AL and BRENT GEIBERGER “Mr. 59” Al Geiberger is another former Trojan to pass along the golf gene to his children. Brent, who played collegiate golf for Pepperdine, has played successfully on the PGA Tour for years, winning the 1999 Greater Hartford Open and last year’s Chrysler Classic of Greensboro. In 1998, Al and Brent made PGA Championship history when they became the first father and son to play in the season’s final major at the same time. “I always — and I still do — look up to my dad,” Brent told PGAtour.com after winning the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro last fall. “Especially when I was a little kid. I watched him play and I’d run around here and climb out in the trees and stuff when he was playing here in the late ’70s.” DAVID and JOHN WURZER David and John Wurzer love to teach. Both taught at the Mulligan Practice Center prior to David opening Golf Excellence International in Santa Fe Springs where John does double duty as general manager and teaching professional. The father/son team also has shared their love of the game within the academic world. David has a Ph.D and taught at Long Beach State, while John currently coaches the Torrance High girls and boys golf teams. “I perceive hard work differently than my son perceives it sometimes,” David said. “I was born and raised on a farm, cutting wood and putting in 20,000 bales of hay during the summer, so it’s kind of difficult to say that some of the business work we attend to is hard work. Hard work is relative.” RON ROBINSON and JASON TAYLOR Jason Taylor didn’t take golf seriously until he turned 20, which is a surprise given the fact that his stepfather, Ron Robinson, held court for many years at Jurupa Hills Country Club in Riverside. Taylor, the 2004 SCPGA Golf Professional of the Year, is now one of the most respected professionals in the Southland, holding the head professional position at Jurupa. “My [stepdad] always made golf available but he never pushed,” Taylor told this magazine in December. “He was no little league dad by any stretch. Looking back, I wish he would have pushed harder, but there’s no telling how that would have turned out. He might have turned me off completely.” BILL and CRAIG ORR Craig Orr joined his father Bill six months after the elder Orr started what’s now known as Orr’s Custom Golf. That was in 1970. When Bill retired at the end of 1998, Craig took over the Orange business and has been running it ever since. “Treat every club like it was your own,” said Craig, recalling his father’s mantra. Bill, now 80 years old, still stops in once a week to “tweak his clubs so he can hit it an extra 10 yards,” Craig said. ERNIE, ANDY, EDDIE and JUDY VOSSLER Ernie Vossler started working in the golf business in the 1960s when club pros owned their golf shops and families helped stock the shelves with balls, clubs and apparel. Things have changed quite a bit since then, but not for Vossler, who thinks business should remain close to home. He’s surrounded himself with his sons, Andy (owner/vice president) and Eddie (director of acquisitions), and daughter Judy, another vice president. The foursome runs Landmark Golf Company, one of the country’s most successful real estate and golf course development companies. “We’ve always had a very open communication that is built on trust and honesty,” Judy said of the company’s success. “We have healthy debates, but have never had a cross word or a heated argument.” JACK and DAVID KRAMER “Golf and tennis are two sports that have a lifetime recreational benefit,” said David Kramer, general manager at Los Serranos Country Club. Kramer should know; he’s a former tennis instructor and son of Jack Kramer, the owner of Los Serranos and one of the greatest tennis players to come out of Southern California. David’s not the only Kramer son to punch a time card at the Chino Hills golf course. His younger brothers, Ron and Mike, work as director of golf operations and in the accounting department, respectively. Growing up in West Los Angeles kept the Kramer boys away from dad’s course, except for the occasional weekend visit, so the boys picked up tennis. Still, the early days of visiting Los Serranos made a strong impression on the youngsters. “There was pretty, green grass and it smelled like watermelon,” David said. Once a great place to visit, Los Serranos is now a great place to work. BOB, J.R. and DIANE THOMAS Bob Thomas started Electric Car Distributors in 1961 and captured the growing demand for golf cars on desert courses. Now his empire pulls in about $17 million a year, thanks to the family-owned and operated business he’s developed. Son J.R. serves as president, while daughter Diane is vice president of the Rancho Mirage company. J.R. recently recalled a memorable exchange with his dad. “Early in my career I wanted to climb the company ladder faster than I deserved,” he said. “I complained that I wasn’t being paid as well as someone above me. My dad told me, ‘It’s not what you do, it’s what you know.’ I didn’t get it. So he came back with, ‘You don’t want to start at the top and work your way down, do you?’ That was a great one.” KEMP RICHARDSON and KEMP RICHARDSON JR. When Kemp Richardson won the U.S. Senior Amateur in 2001, he and his late father John became the first father and son to win USGA titles. John won the same tournament in 1987 at Saucon Valley Country Club. “You know he meant everything to me,” the younger Richardson told PGAtour.com after winning the event in 2001. “He introduced me to, and taught me, the game.” |
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