Calkins: It’s the end of an era for the Memphis golf tournament.
Justin Rose watches his fairway shot during the sudden death playoff of the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind Aug. 10, 2025. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian file)
Geoff Calkins
Geoff Calkins has been chronicling Memphis and Memphis sports for more than two decades. Calkins has been named the best sports columnist in the country five times by the Associated Press sports editors, but still figures his best columns are about the people who make Memphis what it is.
Arnold Palmer arrived the first year. That was the start of it all. Palmer was fresh off winning his first Masters. And he came to play a new tournament called the Memphis Open.
That was 1958 — nearly seven decades ago. And every year since, the best players in the world have played in the Memphis golf tournament.
No, Tiger Woods never came. But Jack Nicklaus did. So did Lee Trevino and Greg Norman and Dustin Johnson and Nick Price. So did Rory McElroy and Scottie Scheffler and Freddie Couples and Bryson DeChambeau.
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