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Written by Ian Thompson and taken from the July/ August issue of Golf South Magazine
 Mention the name Butch Byrd and the response is universal; he's a class act. It's said in many quarters that you are a product of your upbringing. Well, Arthur "Butch" Byrd Jr.'s father Curdy was equally well respected in his day. A longtime teaching professional, Curdy, who taught at Maxwell Air Force Base's golf facility in Montgomery for 44 years, would be proud of his son.
Curdy's brother was Sam Byrd, famed baseball player and PGA Tour golfer. Sam Byrd is enshrined in the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and was as a teammate of the legendary Babe Ruth with the New York Yankees, before going on to considerable success on the tour in the 1940's.
Let's start off this odyssey with Butch, working our way to Curdy and Sam. That's how I set out my interview with Butch which lasted most of a morning through smiles and tears, both of which appeared in equal measure. I told Butch I hadn't intended to make him cry, but it just showed how much certain people meant to him down through the years.
Curdy was 45 when Butch was born and well established in his teaching career. He taught most days from sun up to sundown, so Butch realized if he was to spend time with his Dad, he needed to be at the golf course. Initially, things didn't go to plan.
"Dad got me some clubs when I was eight or nine, but I didn't like the game. I preferred baseball. I told my father I was going to sell my clubs, as I couldn't see playing the game. He said that was fine, but if I wanted to play again I'd have to buy my own clubs.
"He was a man of his word as when I wanted to try again a few years later, I had to buy my own clubs."
Butch spent many enjoyable days at the East and West Courses a Maxwell (subsequently renamed Cypress Tree Golf Club). His father had helped design both courses and was part of the fabric of the place, as was longtime golf director Ralph Shepherd.
He attended Sidney Lanier High School, where Layne Wallock was their best golfer.
"I was an also ran," was how Butch described his place on the golf team. In what was a real surprise to me, he also said he was a "terrible student," who flunked out of Huntingdon College, subsequently landing at Alexander City Junior College (now known as Central Alabama Community College. He did well enough there to matriculate into Auburn where he made the golf team.
James Mason (now on the Champions tour) and Tom Cox were the two premier players on the team coached by "Sonny" Dragoin. Billy McDonald was also part of that team.
Dragoin was also the assistant wrestling coach and he loved to play golf, hence he coached the team at Saugahatchee Country Club, their home course.
While at Auburn Butch entered the ROTC program and was a commissioned officer in the army.
"My father's proudest day was when I was commissioned as an officer in the army in the morning and graduated from Auburn that afternoon. He wasn't an emotional man, but he cried that day."
Bob Keller, the head professional at Eglin Air force Base in Niceville, Fla., was one of the best players in the Dixie Section back then and it was Byrd's good fortune to go to work for him. "He's a tremendous mentor with a no nonsense manner. ‘My name is going to mean something on your resume,' he told me and he was right."
Byrd and David Trimm, the longtime head professional at Bluewater Bay Resort in Niceville, were assistant professionals under him.
"Bob taught us so much. He could really play the game too, finishing second in the 1967 Monsanto Open at Pensacola Country Club, which was a PGA Tour event. He shot 20-under-par. "He taught us not only how to play the game, but how to score. He emphasized the short game and was excellent from the sand. He showed us merchandizing, budgeting, how to deal with politics within the club.
"As we were a military club, he showed us how to deal with people of rank. He also instilled in me a passion to work with juniors, as he helped a whole cadre of kids."
When Keller left Eglin for The Country Club in Cleveland, it left a void. Dave Atnip took over the head job for a short time, with Butch remaining as his assistant.
"He was a merchandizing genius, but he left the club to work in full-time sales."
Arnold Palmer has the ride of a lifetime
Byrd told quite a story about his former boss Bob Keller and his friendship with Arnold Palmer. A senior officer who would visit the base was Bob Russ, who was a four star general. He was commander of the Tactical Air Command, based in Langley, Va. When Keller left for Cleveland his good friend Arnold Palmer had put in a good word for him, as had Joe Dey, head of the USGA. Two titans of the game for sure.
Russ wanted the first annual Commanders Cup golf tournament, which was under his watch, to be quite a hit. It would feature senior commanders from all over the world. He had contacted Keller and asked for Palmer's phone number. He reached the King and said while he couldn't pay him to be involved and to speak at the dinner, he could offer him a ride in an F15 Eagle with the Air Force's No. 1 pilot. Palmer, an avid aviator, couldn't say yes quick enough.
Byrd was asked by Russ to help run the event and he ended up spending a good part of the day with Palmer. "I was in the pro shop and he made a point to walk in, introduce himself and shake hands. I'll always remember those huge hands and he had a big grin on his face. We became firm friends that day."
In 1972 Butch began his career as an assistant golf professional at Eglin. Subsequently he was named club manager in 1976, a position would hold with pride for the next 13 years. He would also meet his wife Carole at Eglin. "I was behind the counter and someone walked in. This voice said ‘I'm here for a golf lesson' and I looked up. I knew there and then that we would get married. Bell went off.
Eventually I was able to convince her to marry me." And those lessons? "She could hit the ball a mile."
When their daughters, Kristi and Betsy, came along Carole's golf tailed off. She taught piano lessons at their home and Butch concentrated on his career and young family. (Butch and Carole now have three grandchildren, Joseph, Belle and Anna Clare, who they visit in Huntsville as often as possible.)
At that time Eglin had 27 holes, with nine more added in 1988, coincidentally the year that Butch would leave. Eglin kept Byrd hopping as in 1988 they played a whopping 91,000 rounds. A combination of active and retired military, plus civilians employed on the base kept the course full. A renowned test of golf, it was named the best Air Force golf course in the world in 1987, a signal honor indeed.
Fate would intervene in '88 as Byrd got a phone call from Jim Briggs, who would become his boss at NorthRiver Yacht Club in Tuscaloosa. "He wanted me to become the director of golf and recreation at NorthRiver. I was happy at Eglin and had no intention of leaving, plus we were settled as a family." However, Briggs persisted and Byrd traveled to Tuscaloosa to talk. "Six hours flew by and we really connected. It felt like we'd just talked for 20 minutes. He basically offered me the job there and then."
Sure enough an offer letter arrived within days and Byrd was faced with the most difficult decision of his life. He turned emotional as he recalled telling his boss at Eglin, the late Fred Kellogg of his decision to leave.
One of Byrd's final acts at Eglin was to attend a surprise dinner in his honor at the Officers Club. Four hundred people were seated in the main ballroom and they came from all over the base to be there. "One of the most emotional nights of my life."
So it was the Byrd family moved to NorthRiver. He took on the role as head of golf, fitness, the marina and aquatics. The club had a large membership of over 1100 members and was owned and run by the charismatic Jack Warner, head of Gulf States Paper back then.
"The development was Mr. Warner's hobby. His wife Elizabeth was the glue who kept it all together. Their insistence on excellence spilled over from the paper company. You might say that working for the Warners was like working for royalty. They were so good to me. "There was no doubt that they owned the pace and the members were paying a fee to enjoy it with them. "
 At NorthRiver Butch became friends with many coaches that would coach at the University of Alabama through the years while he was in Tuscaloosa. For example, he knew Wimp Sanderson, Steve Sloan, Bill Curry and Mike Shula well, but spoke the most fondly of his close bond with Gene Stallings.
"Gene Stallings is an incredible man who has such a gift for coaching young people. He was firm but fair. I taught his daughters golf when they visited; grew to love Johnny, his precious and wonderful child who had Down's Syndrome; and played many memorable and fun matches with Gene and his great friend and assistant head coach, Gerald Jack. "I see Gene every year at his tournament to raise money for the RISE Program and Center in Tuscaloosa that provides valuable training and education for mentally and physically challenged young people. "Gene is a dear, dear friend and a man I have the utmost respect for."
It was also at the NorthRiver that Byrd really started to place his imprint on the Dixie Section. Not only did he hold every office within the section, but he started molding future head professionals who would spread across the golfing landscape.
Through an association with Dr. Lowell LeClaire of the Ferris State University Professional Golf Management program he would employ a series of interns who would go on to great things. His first intern was Steve Wright, now the director of golf at Kelly Plantation in Destin, Fla. His head professional in Destin, Fla. His head professional was Mark Stillings, now the main man at Kiva Dunes in Gulf Shores. David Stinson and Joel Waters would follow, as would many assistants.
"I'd put Mark, Steve, David and Joel up against any four club professionals in the business anywhere. I told each of them "Work hard for me here and I'll work hard for you the rest of your life." Byrd served the section for eight years as secretary, vice president, president and past president, as well as a run at national office. He would not win that race, but was far from soured by the experience. He had served on the Board of Control (kind of like the Supreme Court for the PGA of America) from 1997-2000 and was encouraged to run for national secretary. He served as Chairman of the National Membership Committee from 2000-2004, took a few years off from this role, and recently rejoined this committee, but not as chairman.
Butch has received several awards from the PGA including Chapter Professional of the Year in 1994 and Section Professional of the Year in '95. He also spoke with great pride of his induction into the Dixie Section Hall of Fame in 2004. It would be safe to assume that Byrd expected to retire from golf while at NorthRiver, but fate intervened again.
He had become an acquaintance of Pelham mayor Bobby Hayes, whose vision had made Ballantrae Golf Course possible. The course had opened in 2004 and Hayes had contacted Byrd to see if he might get on board.
"The job at NorthRiver had taken on a new dimension when I had been made General Manager four years before and I was now very removed from the day to day contact with members. It was a big job and very different from when I'd started there. My office was offsite and my love and passion for the game was being diminished."
Hence, after early retirement from NorthRiver, a move to Ballantrae, to get back to his roots in the game, appealed and he became the head professional in late 2005; a job he continues to hold and enjoy. "This allowed me to get back to my love of teaching."
As he looked back on his career, Byrd spoke philosophically. "God has blessed me in a special way. As I reflect on things, I've been a lucky man. "My proudest moment in this great game have been mentoring so many young golf professionals... that has given me a lot of pleasure through the years."
And as for his nickname, Butch? He came by it honestly as he was a big, big bay and the name stuck. Funny to see him now as he is slender and lean and Butch doesn't seem to fit at all!
Curdy Byrd
 "Dad was a wonderful teacher and a quiet man. He worked hard every day to provide for his family." Butch remembered his father's huge forearms, his powerful swing and his sweet spirit. "He really was a gentle giant, who didn't have a mean bone in his body."
Curdy's wife Katherine was the matriarch of the family and provided the discipline. "You best not get her Indian blood stirred up."
Butch was the youngest of four children and the only boy, with his older sisters, Jean, Anne and Nonie. "Dad never made a lot of money, but we never wanted for anything. He worked hard too as he'd teach at Maxwell from 7-5 six days a week and then go to a local range at night to teach some more."
He spent his whole career at Maxwell, starting out as the head professional and superintendent in the 1930's. He oversaw the construction of the course too. For Butch to spend time with his Dad he realized he'd have to be at the course.
"He was so busy teaching I'd just listen to him as he taught and assimilate the information. He shaped me as a teacher. He was known for the fundamentals. He believed that if you put the hands on the club correctly with the correct set up that it made it very simple to swing the club. He also was the first person to teach the rotary swing...before it was all left side dominated."
He had also played baseball like his younger brother Sam would do so. He played Triple A for the St. Louis organization. "I always remember that Dr. Hamp Green was Dad's favorite student. He loved how hard he would work at it. Hamp became a fine player and has won the club tournament at Montgomery Country Club in five decades." Green told Butch of his Dad that "We were surrounded by a swing genius, but we didn't appreciate it at the time."
His teaching methods are widely taught and hailed in modern instruction. He could also play the game well, but didn't do so very often.
Remarkably he could play the game equally well right and left handed. One day, in an exhibition of sorts, he played against himself. He shot 71 as a righty and 69 as a lefty and played out of great big Spalding golf bag stuffed with two full sets. I wouldn't have wanted be his caddie that day! "He was more gifted as a lefty as that's where his power came from."
He would teach almost until the day he died, doing what he loved best. "Dad was a much loved man for the way he treated people. He had a huge following of both military and civilian golfers."
For his services to the game and the people of his home city Curdy was inducted into the Montgomery Golf Hall of Fame.
Sam Byrd
Curdy was the oldest child, followed by Eunice, Sam and Ruth. They grew up in Birmingham where their father Roan Byrd was a contractor. Same would take to baseball at a young age.
Not physically imposing as his older brother, Sam was a natural at baseball. He broke into the big leagues in 1929, playing for the Yankees and Cincinnati Reds until his career ended in '36. He had a lifetime batting average of .271, but it was his association with Ruth that was the stuff of legend.
He was known as ‘Babe Ruth's Legs" as he would often appear as a pinch runner at the end of game toward the latter part of Ruth's career. "His linkage with Babe Ruth was legendary," Butch said. "Ruth was quite the rounder and enjoyed the finer things in life."
In the off season Sam and Ruth would play gold every day in Palm Beach. Sam augmented his income in his daily matches with Ruth, as he was the far superior golfer.
In 1930 Ruth signed a contract paying him the astronomical sum of $50,000 a year. Byrd made $1500 annually. He claimed to have made four or five times more than his annual salary in bets off of Ruth. So much so that he said when he was traded to the Reds that although he was making a lot more money from his baseball contract, it was like taking a pay cut as he didn't have Ruth to beat every day on the golf course in the off season!
His finest baseball moment was an appearance in game four of the 1932 World Series.
In 1936 Sam left the baseball diamond for the golf course for good. He would card six PGA Tour wins in a career that spanned from 1936 to the early ‘50s. His finest years would be the war years of 1944 and '45 when he would win twice each year, as well as losing in the final (it was a match play back then) of the 1945 PGA Championship to Byron Nelson. This was in the midst of Lord Byron's legendary run of 11 successive wins and 18 total victories in 1945. Sam would finish runner-up to Nelson five times that magical year.
Of note is the fact that Byrd is the only person to have played in a World Series and played in The Masters, in which he had top finishes of third in 1941 and fourth the following year.
"Dad and Sam were not close," Butch remembered. "Like many great athletes, Sam was very much me oriented; Dad was much more you oriented. This basic difference in philosophy meant they drifted apart. I didn't know my uncle well. What I have learned about him has mostly been from others."
Upon leaving the tour he made his home in Birmingham and he ran a lighted driving range, par 3 course and miniature golf course, which was located approximately where Eastwood Mall stands today.
Later on he would be the first head professional at Valley Hill in Huntsville and would end his career at Anniston Country Club, which is where most of his artifacts have been kept intact.
To his family he was known as Dewey and he became well regarded as a teacher too, but, although he knew the golf swing very well, he was not a gifted orator. Thus many noted golfers would visit him for instruction, but it was his young and gregarious assistant, one Jimmy Ballard, who would often paraphrase to them what they needed to know. Ballard was his voice, so to speak, as Sam often assumed the golfers coming to their lesson knew more than they really did, leading to communication breakdown.
Bobby Jones, Sam Byrd and Ben Hogan
Two icons of the game and Sam. Legend has it that Jones called Byrd the best ball striker he ever saw... rare praise indeed from this revered golfer who had a great knowledge of the game too.
It was at the '45 PGA Championship that a shy Hogan initiated a conversation with Byrd about ball striking. He too, it seems, was taken by Byrd's superior ability to make pure contact on a regular basis.
The story goes that Hogan and Byrd remained in contact for at least the next 20 years, often discussing the golf swing in depth by phone.
Ballard and Byrd would work together for 21 years. Ballard, in his own right, became very well known as a teacher of the game and is still known as such teaching for many years now in South Florida. Luminaries such as Curtis Strange, DeWitt Weaver, J.C. Snead, Leonard Thompson and Mac McLendon all beat a path to his door.
Sam Dewey Byrd was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 1974 and died seven years later in Mesa, Ariz., where he had moved to retire.
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