RARE! "1st Televised Golf" George S May Hand Signed 3X5 Card Todd Mueller COA

Description

Up for auction a VERY
RARE! "1st Televised Golf" George S May Hand Signed 3X5 Card.
This item is certified authentic by
Todd Mueller Autographs
and comes with their Certificate of Authenticity.
ES-1675
George Storr May
(June 5, 1890 – March 12, 1962) was an American businessman and golf promoter. May was born in
Windsor, Illinois
. He graduated with a degree from the Illinois State Teacher College. First working as a
Bible
salesman, following
Billy Sunday
, he soon turned his natural talent for problem-solving to use by becoming a freelance consultant, and efficiency expert. In 1924 he started his first consulting assignment with Chicago Flexible Shaft Company, today's
Sunbeam Corporation
. This was the beginning of the
George S. May International Company
. May based his business operations in
Chicago
. George S. May is well known for popularizing the game of golf in the 1940s and 1950s by turning golf into a mass spectator sport. He staged a number of tournaments, including the
All American Open
and the
World Championship of Golf
, at the country club he owned,
Tam O'Shanter Golf Course
, located in
Niles, Illinois
.
May was the first to broadcast golf nationally on
television
, in 1953 from the Tom O'Shanter Golf Course.
Lew Worsham
provided exceptional drama by sinking his wedge approach for an eagle two from just over 100 yards on the par-4 final hole, to edge
Chandler Harper
by one stroke, claiming a ,000 first prize (then a world record), along with a further 25 ,000 exhibitions to promote May's company. The first prize of that event was larger than the total prize money offered at any other Tour event that season. May doubled his first prize the next year, 1954, to a then-record ,000, out of a total prize of 0,000 (another record), along with an additional 50 paid exhibitions at ,000 each.
Bob Toski
won that tournament.
May paid broadcasters to cover his events, but foresaw the future, where the broadcasters would pay the tournament organizers; this happened within a few years, notably with the
Masters Tournament
. May has been called the
Bill Veeck
of golf.
May was the first to offer big-money tournaments, first to allow club members to use golf carts, first to provide grandstands, and first to use radios to keep spectators up to date about what was happening elsewhere on the course. He kept his admission prices low, allowing families to attend, and allowed picnics in the rough bordering holes during his events.
He was inducted into the
Illinois Golf Hall of Fame in 1992,
as a golf innovator.
George S. May Company is featured in the
History of the PGA, for the years 1949 & 1950.
In 1949, the PGA ran a business survey, and in 1950 they implemented the recommendations of splitting the PGA from the tournament Bureau. May is listed as one of the 100 most influential persons to the game of golf, for being the first to broadcast, nationwide and live, a
PGA Tour
tournament. The
United States Golf Association
followed May's lead in 1954 with the first nationwide broadcast of the
U.S. Open
, and the
Augusta National Golf Club
first broadcast the
Masters Tournament
live in 1956. Live television coverage of golf's important events greatly spurred interest in the sport, leading to constant increases in prize money.