A Message from Our Founder

In February 2007, The Robert M. Clinger III Invitational was played by a small group of individuals brought together by a shared love of the game and a deep respect for its traditions. From the outset, it was never intended to be easy. A demanding format and the often-unforgiving conditions—cold, wind, rain, and at times sleet—became defining features rather than obstacles to be avoided.

What began as a single gathering became something more enduring—shaped not by any one person, but by the collective spirit of those who accepted the challenge, year after year. In that way, The Invitational came to reflect a familiar American truth: that meaning is often found not in comfort, but in perseverance.

The passage of time has carried many of those early participants forward beyond the fairways we walk today. Their absence is deeply felt, but their influence remains. Today, I have the distinct honor—and responsibility—of being the only remaining living participant from that first year, a circumstance that invites humility, gratitude, and reflection.

The Invitational was never meant to endure because of one individual, but because it was entrusted to many.  What we enjoy today was shaped may many hands—those who played through difficult weather, those who worked quietly behind the scenes regardless of conditions, and those who believed the tradition was worth preserving year after year.

In a moment of national trial, Americans once observed that the harder the sacrifice, the more glorious the triumph—a sentiment voiced at the nation’s founding and echoed again and again throughout the generations. It is a belief that has endured precisely because it continues to ring true.

As our nation marks 250 years since its founding, we are reminded that the Founding Fathers did not build for themselves alone. They laid a foundation in the belief that future generations would strengthen it, improve upon it, and carry it forward.

So too does The Invitational stand today—not as a finished work, but as a living tradition. With deep appreciation for those who came before, and genuine optimism for those to come, we continue forward—confident that what was given will be honored, that challenges will be embraced, and that what endures will be made even stronger by those who follow.

— Robbie

February 16, 2026