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According to a letter discussing the early history of the
tournament written by then Chairman, A. Hugh Wagner, the pool
amounted from $12,000 to $15,000 in the final year of the
Invitational. The restriction of guests and the presence of
known members of the gambling fraternity in the community
forced a unanimous termination action by the Governors. The
Board realized this was neither good for the club, its members,
the players, or amateur golf.
In 1953, then club President, Charles Kunkle, Jr., and other
club members interested in amateur golf proposed a new tournament
format in amateur golf with the following features:
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72 holes of medal play with the best amateur players |
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An affair which could be attended by all members as
a social event |
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A tournament where participant's wives were encouraged
to come |
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The hospitality of the members would be remembered longer
than the scores of the participants |
After a two-year hiatus, the Board granted permission to
sponsor the Sunnehanna Amateur.
As in the previous Sunnehanna Invitational, every effort
was made to bring the best amateur golfers in the East to
the tournament.
The goal of the revitalized tournament would be to attract
one or more members of the United States Walker Cup Team.
The first player to fit that description would be Don Cherry
of Wichita Falls, Texas.
A caberet singer in the casinos of Las Vegas, he was a member
of the United States Walker Cup Team, as well as the 1953
Canadian Amateur Champion. Possibly, the best part of his
resume was his engagement to Miss America.
After completing a six-week engagement at The Sands in Las
Vegas with Peggy Lee, Cherry headed east. Prior to his arrival
at Sunnehanna, he stopped in Indianapolis to win the Western
Four-Ball Championship with another future Sunnehanna competitor
and Walker Cupper, Dale Morey. An agreement was made with
Don to sing each night as part of the entertainment of the
Amateur and to play in the event. He shot 287 and won the
inaugural Sunnehanna Amateur.
The following year, Don returned to defend his championship
and, once again, to entertain. By this time, he had "Band
of Gold", a record selling over a million copies. <more>
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