For 79 years, Clearview Golf Club in East Canton, Ohio, endured what few courses ever could — nourished, in Larry Powell’s words, by “God’s water.”
The 78-acre former dairy farm bordered to the north by the Lincoln Highway, was the creation of PGA of America Hall of Famer William “Bill” Powell, and it earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. It remains the only golf course in the U.S. designed, built, owned and operated by an African American. What never made headlines, however, was what the Powell family did to keep Clearview green.
Powell’s son Larry is a 51-year member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America. His daughter Renee is a PGA Hall of Fame member, Clearview’s head golf professional and the second Black woman to compete on the LPGA Tour.
Without automatic irrigation, Larry Powell did as his father had — adapt and overcome. His makeshift irrigation system involved attaching a pump to the power take-off shaft of an old Ford tractor, and using it to transfer water from an on-course pond through above-ground hoses to sprinklers on the greens.
The tees and fairways awaited “God’s water.”
Meanwhile, brother and sister hauled hoses at all hours of the day and night. Renee recalled that Larry sometimes went 48 hours without sleep to save the course.
"A lot of sweat equity went into it, and a lot of pride," Renee says. "When my dad built the golf course, he always taught us the value of hard work. He never asked for anything, because he was a proud person and he taught the whole family to be the same."
This year, Clearview and its supporters are in drive mode to raise funds to transform "America’s Course" with a modern irrigation system. The next major effort is the Clearview Legacy Foundation Dinner and LPGA Pro-Am in honor of the late Franco Harris, the former Pittsburgh Steeler running back and a longtime supporter of the Powell family. The dinner will be at the Pro Football Hall of Fame on June 8, and the LPGA Pro-Am will be taking place at Clearview Golf Club on June 9.
The Clearview Legacy Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable foundation established in 2001 to enhance educational programming and preservation, is nearly halfway to its goal of raising $1.5 million to help with the irrigation system installation.
"As a nonprofit public charity, we try to maximize what we can do in service of our mission statement," Larry Powell says. "Part of that mission is education, teaching different types of golfers — veterans, children developing their game, elderly people, lessons for amputees. We have a broad spectrum of what we’re trying to do for our educational programs.”
The installation of a new irrigation system has been underway for the past three months, with Mike Kuhn, president of Michael Kuhn & Associates Inc., of Birmingham, Michigan, involved in every aspect of the project, working pro bono.
"Over the last 25-plus years in my consulting role," Kuhn says, "I have yet to see a golf course survive for this long without any piping infrastructure or at least piping around the greens. Clearview had none of that. They have just been incredibly creative stringing piping above ground around the golf course to move water from point A to point B."
Kuhn brought on LaBar Golf, of Bernardsville, New Jersey, to handle the installation.
"I’m still amazed how Mr. Powell not only chose an outstanding piece of property to route a golf course on, but had the knowledge or foresight to do it in a way that actually is functional," Kuhn says. "Just because you play golf doesn’t mean you know how to design golf courses. I’ve had the opportunity to walk this golf course many times and I appreciate the thought that went into every golf hole out there. I’ve had the opportunity to do a couple of greens as an assistant superintendent, and I could never imagine doing an 18-hole facility all by myself."
As for accepting the Clearview job pro bono, Kuhn had no hesitation.
"I don’t think we are more special than anyone else," he says. "I think deep down people want to give back and help other people. In this country, we get so tied up in the goal or dream to be successful, at least for most. The Powell family made this decision very easy."
Renee Powell says Clearview is testament to her father’s campaign for righteousness in golf.
"My dad’s dream wasn’t to have a legacy," she says. "My dad’s thing was to have an opportunity to play the game and make sure that others had the opportunity to play. I never heard the word ‘legacy’ come out of his mouth."
Bill Powell achieved the improbable after returning home from World War II to find the game of golf — which he practiced during his service overseas — largely closed to him because he was Black.
Denied a GI Bill loan, he received financial help from his brother, Berry, who took out a second mortgage on his home, along with support from two Black doctors. In 1946, Powell purchased a run-down dairy farm. Before working second shift at the Timken Co. bearings plant, he would transform the property by hand into a nine-hole golf course, which opened in 1948.
In 1978, Powell and his son Larry carved out the second nine holes.
Bill Powell, who died in 2009 at age 93, reflected upon his creation in his 2000 autobiography, "Clearview: America’s Course."
"I didn't build this course for any of the recognition. It was a labor of love,” he wrote. “Golf is a part of society and I wanted to be included. I want you to be included, too. I've always felt that each individual should leave something behind of meaning. It feels good to know that I have done that with Clearview, at long last."
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