Every Friday at 4 p.m. after our last college class, my golfing buddy, George Miller, and I would hop in my trusty Volkswagen Beetle, along with our golf clubs, and drive five miles to Hallie Golf Club for a round of golf. The owner of the golf course was a PGA professional named Art Tangen.
Art had contracted polio at the age of one and wore leg braces for some years. That did not stop him from caddying during his high school years, which in turn motivated him to pursue his dream of becoming a PGA golf professional. After many years of leasing Hallie Golf Club, Art and his wife bought the club. They managed it until his passing at age 84.
Following one of my more dismal rounds of golf, Art asked me how my game was progressing. I said, “Mr. Tangen, I am having trouble with every part of my game, and I don’t know what I am doing wrong. I probably need a lesson or two, but that is something I cannot afford on my college student budget.”
He looked at me for a moment and then he said, “Get your clubs and meet me on the first tee.”
Art met me at the first tee in his Cushman gas golf cart. It was maybe one of the first models at that time. We played the first few holes. Art carefully observed my every shot and gave me tips on how to correct what I was doing wrong. By the sixth or seventh hole, I was playing much better and with some restored confidence.
Then we caught up to the foursome of college students on the ninth hole. Art told me to get in the cart as he drove up to the green and walked up to the four young men who had been playing in front of us.
He said, “Gentlemen, my name is Art Tangen, and I own this golf course. I have been playing behind you for nine holes and have noticed that you are not repairing any of your ball marks, you are not replacing your divots in the fairways, and you have been tossing candy wrappers and empty beer cans on the golf course.
“So I have a proposition for you. Beginning on this hole and going all the way back to the first, you can begin to repair all the ball marks you see, replace the divots you find and pick up all of the candy wrappers, beer cans and litter on the golf course.
“If you do that, you will always be welcome to play at Hallie. However, if you would rather not do what I have said, then you can leave this course, and you will never be allowed to play here again.”
One of the college students was perspicacious enough to step forward and say, “Mr. Tangen, we will repair all of the ball marks and divots and pick up all of the trash on the golf course. We really enjoy playing at Hallie Golf Club and want to be able to play here in the future.”
When we got back into the Cushman golf cart, Art turned to me and said, “Dick, always remember to leave the golf course better than you found it!”
That message resonated with me. Years later, when I started my club management career, Art’s words were imprinted in my mind. I broadened his statement to encompass all club operations, with the goal of always leaving the club better than I found it. I believe that every club I have had the privilege of managing was in much better condition—whether improved finances, better facilities, employee morale or member satisfaction—when I left than when I arrived.
The philosophy of “leaving things better than you found them” applies to many areas of our lives, and that mantra has been forever embedded in my personal and professional values. I will always be thankful for that playing lesson from Art Tangen because not only did he improve my golf game, but he also taught me a much larger life lesson.
To this day, Art, I always “leave the golf course better than I found it.” I will always appreciate the day you gave me a golf lesson and so much more.
This much I know for sure.
THE BOARDROOM MAGAZINE – November/December 2025
“This Much I Know for Sure” is a regular feature in BoardRoom magazine. Dick shares some of his reflections based on his 50-plus years of working in the private club business.