Book Reviews

Everett Kircher: Michigan's Resort Pioneer

While it may take a few phone calls to get a copy, Michigan golf history aficionados will want to get their hands on a copy of Everett Kircher's book. The book was written to honor the 50th anniversary of Boyne USA. Everett Kircher tells the history, with help by his son Stephen, the late William Winchester, Art Tebo and Nancy Magnus. Othmar Schneider, 1952 Olympian Gold Medallist and long time ski school director at Boyne, Stein Ericksen, also an Olympian GolfdMedallist and the person responsible for introducing the "reverse shoulder," provided additional history. Don Thomas, Bill Flemmming, John Clark, (Boyne Attorney) and Jim Flick the legendary golf instructor also contributed.

The book takes the reader through the building of the Boyne empire, which now includes Boyne Highlands, Boyne Mountain, Boyne South in Naples, Florida, Big Sky in Montana, the Gatlinburg chairlift in Tennessee, Crystal Mountain in Washington and finally, the Bay Harbor GC and Inn near Petoskey.

Everett Kircher was an extraordinary person of the first order. He was visionary on a grand scale, an inventor, an incredible businessperson, a sportsman, an entrepreneur, a civic leader and great family man. He has been inducted into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame and as Stein Erickson said in his remarks, "Everett Kircher should be in every ski hall of fame for what he did for the ski industry in its infancy."

The book does a nice job at capturing the life of one of Michigan's most successful sportsman.

'Thank you David Outeridge,' was the first thing I thought after I put down his book on Marion Hollins. This is an extraordinary book and what an extraordinary woman.

Outeridge's book chronicles the life of Marion Hollins, winner of the U.S.G.A. Women's Amateur, Captain of the U.S. first Curtis Cup team, designer of Cypress Point's infamous 16th hole, investor in the famous Kettledrums oilfield, owner of seven miles of the Pacific coast, owner and developer of the legendary Pasatiempo Golf Course, a golfer who played exhibition golf with Bobby Jones, traded golf course architect strategies with Seth Rahnor and Alister MacKenzie and was friends with Mary Pickford, Walt Disney, the Vanderbilts and Amelia Earhardt.. On top of that she was very much at home with four-in-one driving or tooling a coach as it was called in an era in which horse drawn vehicles and automobiles still shared the road. In addition, she was one of the best polo players around and introduced steeplechase to California.

Outeridge, a former book and newspaper publisher, is the author of six other books and currently lives in Maine. He was drawn to the subject by marrying into the family. Outeridge did extensive research for the book. He interviewed many of the people that remembered this remarkable woman. We should all be thankful that he was able to collect this history before the people who lived through that era were gone.

Sleeping Bear Press