Before you wonder if I have bumped my head, this piece isn’t about a zoo or a circus. This is about three guys who prowl the golf courses of the area to bring a better quality of life to ordinary people.
Tim Lacy
I will start with the Bison. Jimmy Garvin left his home in rural Florida to attend Howard University (home of the Howard Bison) on a baseball scholarship. He was coached by Chuck Hinton, former Washington Senator, and followed Chuck to the golf courses around the area. Chuck had been introduced to golf by my pop, Sam Lacy, and soon Jimmy also caught the golf fever. This is how I met Jimmy, and we became fast friends.
Jimmy was a fireball pitcher and suffered the injury that plagues fireballers: he blew out his rotator cuff.
The next chapter in Jimmy’s life took him back in Florida working for Marriott. A fast rise in the workplace saw him back in D.C., where the golf courses occupied his off time. Another promotion and he was back to Florida, but the downsizing ax caught up with him and he was out of a job. Jim returned to D.C., where he worked part time for Rock Creek Golf Course, enabling him to play for free and pick up enough cash to keep him full of Big Macs and orange sodas.
The word spread, and his bosses shipped him off to Langston Golf Course in Northeast D.C., where his innovative ideas and work ethic led him to a position as the course’s general manager. He soon became a partner and life was groovy. Out of the blue, he hit a bump in the road that required a few sessions with the justice system. Coming clear of that, Jimmy was out of a job. An opportunity opened up at the Marlton Golf Course in Upper Marlboro, Md. and Jimmy became a partner in that operation. In 2006, he was inducted into the African-American Golfers Hall of Fame.
A discussion with a fellow golfer led me to believe that the Marlton Golf Course had closed. A conversation with Jimmy squashed that rumor and all is well in Marlton. Jimmy invites you to come out and enjoy a day of golf.
My first Bear is Tim McCready. Tim was a member of the Morgan State Bears golf team that won the 1967 CIAA Golf Championship. I introduced you to Tim a few years ago when he was inducted into the Varsity “M” Hall of Fame.
His time at Morgan wasn’t entirely spent on the golf course. He received a Preceptorship in Oncology which enabled him to handle health-challenged and medically-compromised golf students. Along with his passion for golf, Tim spent 34 years in the pharmaceutical industry.
I first saw Tim at the driving range. He looked like he was about 5-foot-2-inches tall, but it became clear that the appearance was only an illusion. Tim has shoulders about an ax handle and a half wide which makes his height deceptive. At this encounter I stood and watched him knock ball after ball off the reservation.
A few years later, Tim and I partnered in an Urban League Golf Tournament. It started to rain, but you golfers know a little rain doesn’t stop a true golfer. The rain went from a downpour to a deluge and the club pros came out and invited us to get the hell off the course. We later found out that a tornado took the roof off of a Wal-Mart a half-mile up the road.
Tim is also a member of the African-American Golfers Hall of Fame, and actually just returned from attending the induction of this year’s Hall of Fame class, where he sponsored Al Wilson.
Al Wilson is another Bear, and another member of the 1967 CIAA championship team. Al is partnered with Tim in TeeMac Golf, LLC. This group handles lessons, corporate seminars, youth instruction and event consultation.
Al started out with a rough introduction to golf. He had a two-mile walk to Carroll Park Golf Course and the neighborhood boys were less than friendly. Al made the trek daily during the summer in hope of picking up a little cash as a caddy. He soon caught the bag of Dr. Louis Harmon, who mentored Al in life and golf. When Al attended Morgan on a golf scholarship, Dr. Harmon was the driving force.
Al went to work as a Juvenile Counselor with the Department of Juvenile Services. Al isn’t just a jock, he received a masters degree in Counseling, Education and Corrections from Coppin State University. Al’s passion is geared toward taking the youth of Baltimore out of harm’s way and introducing them to golf.
When I was informed that Al had been inducted into the African-American Golf Hall of Fame, I thought that the name Al Wilson was familiar, but I just couldn’t place him. A conversation with Jimmy Garvin’s wife, Lana, had me realize she had just mentioned “Frog.” It was then the lights went on. Anyone who has had contact with Al knows him as “Frog.”
I am proud to know these three animals and happy to call them friends as they pursue good work and help build a better community.
