Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 27, 1994 TAG: 9411120013
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E14 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Shipplett, a mainstay behind golf's growth in Roanoke since the late 1940s, has been rewarded for his stellar contribution to the game, being named to the Roanoke Valley Golf Hall of Fame.
Shipplett, 72, in a unanimous vote by the Hall of Fame's board of directors, becomes the 22nd inductee into the Hall of Fame. The formal ceremony will be held at the annual Hall of Fame banquet in November.
``I am humbled at being selected,'' Shipplett said. ``It's such a great honor. I don't know how much I deserve it, though. I'm sure there are some people in the past who probably deserve to be included in the Hall of Fame more than I do.
``I was never what you'd call a great player. I used to be a seven-handicap at one time. I have managed to make seven holes in one, all at my home course, Hidden Valley Country Club. I made the first one in 1952, and the last one in 1991.''
Shipplett says his wife, Gladys - ``one of the most understanding women in the world'' - now plays more golf than he does.
``I don't play golf but about once every two weeks or so,'' he said. ``I've gotten into racquetball pretty heavy, and that has sort of wreaked havoc with my golf swing.''
Nevertheless, Shipplett has kept his finger on the pulse of Roanoke golf.
``It's a great game,'' Shipplett said. ``I started playing in 1946. You can learn a whole lot about a person just playing a round of golf with them.''
Four years after taking up the game, Shipplett was one of a group of men who laid the groundwork for the formation of Hidden Valley, built on the old Musser Dairy Farm land.
``I think we paid $75,000 for some 286 acres of land,'' Shipplett said. ``We were just a cadre of businessmen who wanted to build a golf course. Dick Wilson came in and designed the place. He was one of the best architects around back in those days.''
In 1957, Shipplett helped organize the inaugural Roanoke Valley Open at Ole Monterey. The first tournament included a fellow named Arnold Palmer.
``I'll never forget Johnny Johnson, the pro at Monterey, calling Arnold in San Diego, where he was playing in the San Diego Open,'' Shipplett recalled. ``We couldn't believe that Johnny was talking to him. You see, Johnny never told us he had been on the golf team with Palmer at Wake Forest.
``Palmer flew in here and slept in the little house off the No.2 tee. I got to talk to him right much. He was a heck of a nice fellow. He had all that charisma about him. He shot 68-67 and won the thing. He never did do better than par on the front side, I believe.''
In 1958, Shipplett was one of the guiding forces behind the formation of the Roanoke Valley Golf Association. He was the fledgling organization's first tournament chairman and president in 1959. Shipplett served as RVGA official scorer and rules chairman through 1964.
In 1974, Shipplett, along with current Hall of Fame executive director Ned Baber, helped organize the American Cancer Society Walter Hagen tournament. Shipplett was chairman for the '75 tournament and has served as the event's official scorer and rules chairman for 20 years. The tournament has raised more than $200,000 to fight cancer during Shipplett's tenure.
Shipplett has been associated with the Roanoke Valley Golf Hall of Fame since its start in 1974. He served on the Hall of Fame committee in '75 and was executive director in '77 and '78. Since then, the tireless Shipplett has served on various Hall of Fame committees.
``As far as highlights go, I'd say the start of the RVGA was one, for sure, along with the Roanoke Valley Golf Hall of Fame,'' Shipplett said. ``The Hall of Fame has become the ultimate golf tournament in the area. It's first class all the way. It has been taken to a level that I never envisioned.''
by CNB