The place has survived in the face of Jim Crow segregation – a black-owned, black-built course that has earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places. They’ve been playing Clearview ever since. P,” believed he believed not only that could he build the course, but that if he did, by God, golfers would surely come and play on it.Īnd Mr. But Bill Powell, whom friends called “Mr. “Crazy” is an apt word, because Clearview, a nonprofit foundation, was built 70 years ago with shovelfuls of crazy.įor nothing was crazier back then the notion a black man, her father Bill Powell, would take his hands and sculpt a golf course from farmland he bought in the heart of Ohio. “Maybe five,” she replies, holding up her right hand, her fingers spread. “Can we get 15 minutes?” someone asks her. On this saunalike Saturday afternoon in late August, Powell is seeking relief inside this dimly lit, air-conditioned building. Renee offers a variety of speaking options including keynotes, luncheons, college orientations, commencements, golf clinics & workshops, and more.Head pro Renee Powell hurries into the brownish-gray, wood-framed clubhouse at Clearview Golf Course. Renee's work extends throughout her community as a member of several boards including the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Mercy Medical Center, and Pathway Caring for Children, Convention and Visitors Bureau, as well as a member of Rotary International. Today, Renee is the LPGA/PGA Head Golf Professional at Clearview Golf Club in East Canton, Ohio where she's keeping her father’s legacy of “Golf for Everyone” alive. She has also commentated numerous golf tournaments on both CBS and ABC. While living in London, England, she was one of the first women golfers to design her own clothing line. Renee has also made strides in other areas of the golf industry including fashion and broadcasting. In 2010, The University of Maryland Eastern Shore awarded Renee with an Honorary Doctorate of Public Service. Other awards include The Donald Ross Award, Charles Bartlett Award and LPGA Ellen Griffin Rolex Award The University also bestowed the honor of naming a residence hall for her. Andrews, Scotland in its now 600 year history. In 2008, Renee became the third American, and the only women golfer, to ever receive an honorary doctorate from The University of St. Some of her other notable awards include being named PGA of America First Lady of Golf, the LPGA Rolex For the Love of the Game Award, the PGA Tour Card Walker Award, the USGA Ike Grainger Award, and the LPGA Pioneer Award. In 2015, she became one of two American women initially given honorary membership into the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Renee has earned countless awards during her more than five decades in the game of golf. As a sought-after public speaker, Renee has informed, inspired, and enlightened countless audiences locally, nationally, and internationally. In 2011, she launched Clearview H.O.P.E (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) a cost-free, year-round therapeutic and recreational golf programs specifically for women veterans. She has also committed her life to expanding golf to more youth, women, seniors, minorities, and military veterans. She became an International Goodwill Ambassador traveling to Africa on more than 25 trips to host golf clinics. As a tour player she competed in more than 250 professional tournaments and won the 1973 Kelly Springfield Open in Brisbane, Australia.įollowing her time on the LPGA tour, Powell dedicated her life to diversifying the game of golf. In 1967, she became the second African-American woman to compete on the LPGA Tour. By the age of three she was swinging a golf club for the first time, and early into her teenage years she had won more than 30 tournaments. Raised on the East Canton, Ohio golf course built by her father, William “Bill” Powell, during times of racial adversity and segregation, Renee learned early on what it meant to excel against the odds. Renee Powell is one of the most resilient and persevering athletes of our time.
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