Rolf
Kleven
Rolf
Kleven was born on Feb. 13, 1945 in Black River
Falls, WI. He and his family moved to Eau Claire
in 1949. With advise
and tips given to him by Art Tangen, Bob Yule,
Don Johnson, and Diz Kronenberg, Rolf developed
as a golfer at a young age after switching from
baseball. He
caddied for
Bob Yule, his idol, until Bob’s boys
became old enough to take Rolf’s place. Rolf
played all 3 years on the high school golf team,
and went to the State Tournament two years while
at Memorial. He also played basketball for
Memorial and North High School, being the first
graduating class at North in 1962. Rolf
played 4
years of golf at the University of WI.- Eau
Claire and was named All Conference as a senior.
The Blugolds
had a very good team consisting of Reed
Mackenzie, Paul Loth, Tom Kopplin, Tom Conrad,
George Diller, Jim Lieberman and Rolf. One
of his proudest moments was when he defeated Don
Iverson in a college match at the LaCrosse
Country Club, whom after college became a
successful PGA tour player.
Rolf grew up at
Hallie Golf
Course;
his father would drop he and his
brother off for the day, bringing a
lunch, playing golf, and swimming for golf balls
in the Lake Hallie. Little did he know that he
would experience great success at his home
course. The
Hallie Open, was like the “Masters” back then,
with huge galleries, and players from around the
Midwest competing. Winning the Hallie Open two
years in a row against such keen competition,
was a dream come true for Rolf. Rolf
also won the CVGA “Player
of the Year” in 1967. While in college, Rolf
worked for Art Tangen, his mentor, working with
junior golfers, and teaching them the
fundamentals of golf.
After college, Rolf’s golf career in the CVGA
was interrupted by the Vietnam war, where he
spent a year at Na Bah on the Mekong Delta, just
17 miles South of Saigon. After his tour of
duty, Rolf had a successful career in real
estate in Eau Claire. After
his military service, Rolf once
again competed in
the CVGA, and won more tournaments.
Retiring at his lake home in Birchwood, WI.
in 2009, Rolf has been the Birchwood H.S. golf
team coach for the last 8 seasons, winning
several conference tournaments against much
bigger schools. As
his players would attest, he not only teaches
the game of golf, he also teaches about life and
obeying the rules, playing fair, and being the
best you can be on and off the golf course.
In all of his golf experiences, the one thing
that Rolf cherishes the most
about the CVGA, are the many wonderful
friendships that he has experienced throughout
the years. . Rolf
married Barbara Nelson March 29,
1969; they have 3 children, Wendy, John,
and Joel, and 6 grandchildren, Josh, Chris,
Lauren, John, Loreyna, and Anneliese.