Feb. 9, 2022
Since about 1990 until around 2016 or so, Randy Jensen of Omaha, Neb., won darn near every hickory tournament he entered – multiple early Golf Collectors Society national championships, several National Hickory Championship titles and goodness know how many others. One magazine called him “The Hickory Tiger.”
Randy recently shared a note about a very special trip to Palm Beach, Fla., where he had the opportunity to talk and play hickory golf with a few people of whom you may have heard.
To begin with, Jensen was in Florida partly to oversee the auction of a very rare historical artifact that had been authenticated to the ownership of one Napoleon Bonaparte. It was a lovely bit of jewelry, a talisman, that Bonaparte had gifted his beloved Josephine. But that is another story.
Here is Randy’s brief account of the highlights of his whirlwind Florida trip (Feb. 1-7) which wound up being a high-level promotional tour for hickory golf.
My cousin, Dr. Gary Wiren, took me to Trump International where he is the director of golf for Trump properties and the former president’s personal golf instructor. In a remarkable coincidence, former President Trump, with several Secret Service agents, pulled right up to where we were standing outside the clubhouse. Gary introduced me to “45” and we talked for several minutes about hickory golf. Sandwiched in with my hickory golf explanation were these highlights: I handed him my Calamity Jane putter and he set it down at address; he asked me how much shorter the hickory driver hits and I told him about 30 yards; and he wanted to know if I thought Bobby Jones would be a great player on today’s Tour – and I emphatically said ‘Yes!’ The short chat concluded with a fist bump!
Randy Jensen, left, has the ear of Barbara and Jack Nicklaus on the subject of hickory golf. (The armed guards, by the way, were there as security for the auction of a priceless historical piece of jewelry.)
On Feb. 4, we held a fundraiser for charity and I had the opportunity to visit with both Jack Nicklaus and his wife, Barbara, as well as Nancy Lopez. We talked extensively about hickory golf.
The day concluded with a visit to Gary’s home where Jack, Barbara, and Nancy got a tour of Gary’s world class golf collection, which they had never seen before. Jack said the collection and explanations provided by Gary were just amazing!
Pat Boone and Randy Jensen prepare for a round of hickory golf on the Champion Course at the PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
The next day, I played hickory golf with legendary celebrity entertainer Pat Boone, who was playing hickory clubs for the FIRST TIME in his life! We played the PGA National Resort on the Champion Course in Palm Beach Gardens where the Honda Classic is contested. Pat is 87 years old. He’s a mid-handicapper and he hit four excellent drives with a MacGregor Master Model Spoon and holed numerous putts with an original Spalding Kro-Flite Robt. T. Jones Jr. Calamity Jane putter. He loved playing the hickories!
I finished the week with a round at Trump National, where Gary and I ran into Tour player Fred Funk, who also had never heard of hickory golf, but was intrigued by the idea.
A world class golf teacher and golf collector, a former U.S. president, two legendary tour golfers – Jack and Nancy, and golf with a legendary singer/entertainer…. now that was a fun week of hickory golf!