The McGladrey Classic, mid-OctoberOne legend for sure is Jim Brown, <strong>the</strong> famousathlete turned actor who spent his early childhoodyears being raised by his grandmo<strong>the</strong>r onSt. Simons before moving up north. He wasoutstanding at Syracuse University, and in a trulyremarkable nine-year pro career for <strong>the</strong> Cleveland,Brown made 126 touchdowns for <strong>the</strong> Browns andaccumulated 15,549 yards. In 2002, <strong>the</strong> Sporting News hailedhim <strong>the</strong> “greatest pr<strong>of</strong>essional football player <strong>of</strong> all time.” Laterin life, Brown credited St. Simons for teaching him a lesson in“self-reliance.” He has gone on to be a major motion picture starand businessman.Show Golf Some Love!Let’s begin with <strong>the</strong> world <strong>of</strong> localpro golfers… Quite an impressivelist, indeed! Everyone salutes DavisLove III as a hometown hero on <strong>the</strong>PGA circuit and a model citizen.Recently, <strong>the</strong> Sea Island touringpr<strong>of</strong>essional received <strong>the</strong> ultimatehonor by being named 2012Captain <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> USA team for <strong>the</strong>upcoming Ryder Cup at MedinahCountry Club in Chicago. Andas you might expect, he is a member <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> <strong>Sports</strong> Hall<strong>of</strong> Fame. The <strong>Glynn</strong> Academy alumni attended <strong>the</strong> University<strong>of</strong> North Carolina where he was a three-time All-Americanbefore turning pro in 1985. He is credited with 34 pr<strong>of</strong>essionalwins, including 20 PGA triumphs, including <strong>the</strong> 1997 PGAchampionship and <strong>the</strong> prestigious Players Championship in both1992 and 2003. He has been a member <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Ryder Cup teamon six past occasions.In an inaugural 2010 PGA tour event last fall, <strong>the</strong> McGladreyClassic, host Davis Love III played with many <strong>of</strong> his PGA tourfriends on <strong>the</strong> beautiful seaside course at Sea Island Golf Club onSt. Simons. Tournament proceeds benefited <strong>the</strong> Special Olympicsand <strong>the</strong> Boys and Girls Club <strong>of</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>ast <strong>Georgia</strong>. The mid-October spectacle is destined to continue to lure spectators asone <strong>of</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong>’s premier attractions. The 2011 event is set forOctober 10-16.Zach Johnson skyrocketed to fame when he became <strong>the</strong> 2007Masters Champion at Augusta. A native <strong>of</strong> Iowa,<strong>the</strong> Sea Island PGA pro resides on St. SimonsIsland, and is a graduate <strong>of</strong> Drake University.He turned pro in 1998 and is an active teamplayerwith <strong>the</strong> Davis Love Foundation and <strong>the</strong>McGladrey Classic.Photo bySam Greenwoodp An original oil painting by Brunswick nativeand 1950 <strong>Glynn</strong> Academy graduate Mal Flandersdepicts <strong>the</strong> 1949 State Champion <strong>Glynn</strong> Academyfootball team, <strong>of</strong> which Flanders was a member.The team featured many notable local sportslegends, including First Team All-State playersEddie Dykes, Sonny George, Bob Sherman andDan Spell.t Davis Love III presents <strong>the</strong> McGladrey Classicinaugural championship trophy to Heath Slocum.The second annual tournament at <strong>the</strong> Seasidecourse on Sea Island Golf and Country Club willtake place on October 10-16, 2011.p Several <strong>Glynn</strong> Countians are represented at<strong>the</strong> highly recommended <strong>Georgia</strong> Hall <strong>of</strong> Fame inMacon, pictured above.69
Coming on strongis ano<strong>the</strong>r localPGA resident, MattKuchar who toppedPhoto by Mike Ehrmann<strong>the</strong> PGA tour moneylist in 2010 and finished second in <strong>the</strong>FedEx cup standings. The <strong>Georgia</strong> Techgraduate posted 11 top 10 finishes andhad a 69.61 scoring average, <strong>the</strong> best <strong>of</strong>all PGA golfers last year. He turned proin 2000 and is married to <strong>the</strong> former SybiParker, who was a star tennis player atFrederica Academy on St. Simons Islandin 1995. She met Kuchar at <strong>Georgia</strong> Techwhere she played on <strong>the</strong> women’s tennisteam.As a unprecedentedfour-time, first-teamAll-American golfer atClemson University,Jonathan Byrd was<strong>the</strong> 2002 Rookie<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Year and has won five times on<strong>the</strong> PGA tour. In October <strong>of</strong> 2010, at asudden-death play<strong>of</strong>f on <strong>the</strong> fourth extrahole, Byrd recorded a 204-yard holein-oneto clinch <strong>the</strong> Justin TimberlakeShriners Hospital for Children Open.Byrd also won ano<strong>the</strong>r dramatic play<strong>of</strong>fevent at <strong>the</strong> Hyundai Tournament <strong>of</strong>Champions in January <strong>of</strong> 2011. He resideson Sea Island.Chris Kirk also calls<strong>the</strong> Golden Isles home.A native <strong>of</strong> Knoxville,Tennessee, and laterWoodstock, <strong>Georgia</strong>,he played golf at <strong>the</strong>Photo byMichael CohenPhoto byStuart FranklinUniversity <strong>of</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> on <strong>the</strong> NCAADivision 1 golf championship team, andturned pr<strong>of</strong>essional in 2007. From 2008to 2010 he competed on <strong>the</strong> NationwideTour as <strong>the</strong> second top producer to earnhis PGA tour card. His best finish ata PGA event was an impressive tie forsecond place at <strong>the</strong> 2011 Shell HoustonOpen behind Phil Mickelson.All <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se current golfing residentsreinforce <strong>the</strong> strong local golfing talenttradition. Back in 1969, Steve Melynk,<strong>Glynn</strong> Academy alumnus, won both <strong>the</strong>U.S. Amateur Championship and <strong>the</strong>British Amateur Championship. An All-American at <strong>the</strong> University <strong>of</strong> Florida,Melynk later played 10 years on <strong>the</strong> PGAcircuit before becoming aleading golfanalyst for ABC television.Johnny Paulk is a beloved new member<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> Golf Hall <strong>of</strong> Fame forhis contributions as a mentor to manyoutstanding golfers. The <strong>Georgia</strong>-Floridagolf tournament held annually on Jekyllhas been a rousing success for many years,thanks to his devotion.Adam Wainwright:A True Hometown HeroOne <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> finest all-around athletes toever come out <strong>of</strong> <strong>Glynn</strong> County wouldhave to be Adam Wainwright. A stellarhigh school athlete at <strong>Glynn</strong> County,he opted to turn down a scholarship to<strong>Georgia</strong> Tech upon being drafted by <strong>the</strong>Atlanta Braves and to receive a $1.25million signing bonus. After being tradedto <strong>the</strong> St. Louis Cardinals following ashort stint with <strong>the</strong> Braves organization, inhis first appearance asa relief pitcher at <strong>the</strong>pro level, he knocked<strong>the</strong> ball out <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>park. Wainwright isone <strong>of</strong> only 22 majorleaguers to accomplishthis task in baseballhistory.Perhaps that was an omen as to what wasto come. The 6 foot, 7 inch Wainwrighthas a remarkable 66-35 pitching recordwith an earned-run average <strong>of</strong> 2.97 with724 strikeouts. In 2006 he became <strong>the</strong>main closer for <strong>the</strong> Cardinals in <strong>the</strong>irsuccessful pennant and World Seriesdrive. He has been a runner-up contenderfor <strong>the</strong> Cy Young award <strong>the</strong> past twoyears, and in 2009 was named “MostOutstanding National League Pitcher”(Players Choice Award). After his first20 game season in 2010, and making hisfirst All-Star team, he was primed andready for 2011. Unfortunately, his 2011season ended at spring training when Iwas determined that he needed TommyJohn surgery to repair damage to his rightelbow. The normal healing time is 10 to12 months, but a positive recovery inexpected.Dr. Bob Natzke, a local “speed training”and martial arts expert, works withWainwright and o<strong>the</strong>r athletes on strengthand conditioning for <strong>the</strong>ir specific sports.Natzke’s o<strong>the</strong>r famous local clients includeKarl Self, <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>ast heavyweightchampion in full-contact martial arts,and Julie Northrup, a former CanadianOlympian who lives here now. Northrupis a world champion power lifter whohas recently taken up martial arts underNatzke’s tutorage.Kwame Brown MadeBasketball HistoryKwame Brown holds<strong>the</strong> distinction as <strong>the</strong>first basketball playerin <strong>the</strong> country to bedrafted right out <strong>of</strong>high school by <strong>the</strong>Washington Wizardsas a number onepick in <strong>the</strong> country.Currently playing for<strong>the</strong> Charlotte Bobcats, Brown is <strong>Glynn</strong>Academy’s all time leading rebounder(1,235), shot-blocker (605), and rankssecond in scoring. He was perhaps bestknown for his patented slam-dunks for<strong>the</strong> Red Terrors (as pictured in his RedTerror uniform). The 6 feet, ll inch Brownis a truly a giant <strong>of</strong> a man, weighing 270pounds. In <strong>the</strong> 2010-’11 season he hasaveraged 7.9 points per game and 6.9rebounds per game, slightly higher thanhis average with three o<strong>the</strong>r teams over hisnine-year career.Having Brown and Wainwright as “backto-back”selections as first-round draftchoices right out <strong>of</strong> high school (in twodifferent sports within <strong>the</strong> same year),garnered regional and national coverage.Idea <strong>of</strong> <strong>Glynn</strong> County Hall<strong>of</strong> Fame Introduced By Local<strong>Sports</strong> WritersKevin Price, a local native, 1995 UGAgraduate, and free-lance sports writerbelieves that a <strong>Glynn</strong> County <strong>Sports</strong> Hall<strong>of</strong> Fame is something way overdue in <strong>the</strong>county. According to Price, “Our sportshistory is impressive at all levels, and iscertainly worthy <strong>of</strong> being preserved.”Price added, “This sports hall <strong>of</strong> fameidea is something I was approached aboutseveral years ago by former <strong>Glynn</strong> CountySchools athletic director Charlie Jordan. Ithought it was a great idea, but never took<strong>the</strong> time to act on it. Finally, late last year,I was approached about this subject again,
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