Twin Cities golf legend ‘Fast Eddie’ Manderville honored with clubhouse renaming
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A beloved golfer who helped expand the game to more Black players will have his legacy enshrined at the course he played for the majority of his life.
The clubhouse at the Theodore Wirth Golf course, which doubles as a warming house in the winter, was christened the Eddie Manderville Chalet. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation board marked the occasion with friends and family of Manderville.
“It’s so wonderful to be able to have this time with you today to honor my dad in this dedication,” said daughter Shauntel Manderville.
Born in 1932, Edward “Fast Eddie” Manderville was connected to the Theodore Wirth Golf Course for more than 60 years. He died in 2020.
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He is credited with desegregating the men’s association at the club, during a time when membership was denied to Black golfers at Twin Cities courses.
“He proved things were possible, and he opened the doors for Black and brown golfers throughout our state and throughout the country,” said Al Bangoura, superintendent of the Minneapolis parks system.
Along with new exterior signage, the club house now has displays inside, outlining the history of African Americans in the sport. It also has markers of Manderville’s own contributions and career highlights.
Aside from his work to include Black people in Twin Cities golf, Manderville was an accomplished golfer. He was a Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame 2024 inductee.
As a coach and mentor, Manderville helped establish Black Women on Course, a group dedicated to getting Black women into golf. A co-founder of the group, Martha Arradondo, remembers him fondly.
“Words can't explain how proud I am to have known Eddie,” Arradondo said. “He called me sister. I called him brother.”
It was Arradondo who led the charge to get the chalet renamed to honor Manderville, beginning in 2021. In December of last year, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board approved the name change.
“This was a three-year journey of love, labor of love,” Arradondo said. “I know his spirit is here now.”
She added, “He’s smiling down on us.”
