Club loans artifacts for 'Legends and Lore' program

The Atlanta Athletic Club loaned some of its artifacts, including the Grand Slam Trophies won by Bobby Jones in 1930, to the “Legends and Lore” presentation held at TPC Sugarloaf in conjunction.

The program featured major champions Ben Crenshaw, Larry Nelson and Larry Mize and was one of the featured events held during the Greater Gwinnett Championship.

Crenshaw, who is considered the preeminent historian among professional golfers, was in awe of the Bobby Jones memorabilia that was on display.  Moderator Dave Marr of Golf Channel joked about the difficulty of pulling Crenshaw away from the trophies and scrapbook that commemorated Jones accomplishments.

“He transcended golf,” Crenshaw said. “He was entirely unique.”

After the program, Crenshaw spoke about the upcoming U.S. Amateur Championship, which will be hosted by the Atlanta Athletic Club from Aug. 9-17.

Crenshaw never won the Amateur Championship. He was runner-up to Vinnie Giles in 1972 and turned professional the next year rather that waiting until after the Amateur.

“I loved playing amateur golf and I wash I’d been able to win the Amateur,” Crenshaw said. “That’s a great championship and I know it’s going to be especially great this year at the Athletic Club. I’m sure Bobby Jones would be happy to have that event hosted by his home club.”

In addition to the four Grand Slam trophies, the Atlanta Athletic Club also provides several photographs of Bobby Jones, framed newspapers chronicling the Jones victories, a Bobby Jones scrapbook, a copy of the PGA’s Wanamaker Trophy and the enlarged scorecard from Larry Nelson’s 1981 PGA Championship.

The Atlanta Athletic Club will host the U.S. Amateur Championship for the first time this summer. The club has hosted three PGA Championships, the U.S. Open, the U.S. Women’s Open, the U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Mid-Amateur.