Wendell Coffee brews up a gem

TYRONE, GEORGIA | That a place such as the Wendell Coffee Golf Center exists at all is worth appreciating. That it has survived three decades including recessions and retractions in the golf industry (not to mention divorce) is a testament to the man whose name and sweat equity are responsible for every inch of the 50-acre golf playground off of State Route 74 about a mile-and-a-half south of Interstate 85, southwest of Atlanta.

“It's been a labor of love and a labor of hate,” said Wendell Coffee, the 76-year-old PGA professional who keeps his nine-hole par-3 course and expansive driving range in prime condition despite the constant ups and downs that too often force many self-made golf businesses to shutter.

Calvin Johnson,  a star wide receiver at Sandy Creek High School, Georgia Tech and a Detroit Lions hall of famer, is honored with a placard at Tyrone, Georgia's city limits. Scott W. Grau, Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Coffee’s golf center is the ...