Max, the legendary golf course
dog, passed away at his home Tuesday, July 28th, 2015, in Powder
Springs, GA. He is survived by his
father, Mark, mother, Lea, and all the members and staff for whom he currently
serves at Marietta Country Club. Born on
April 5th, 2007, Max was an Easter puppy. He was birthed into very famous TV
bloodlines, as his grandfather was the star of the movie “Air Bud”, which
portrayed a golden retriever who was a basketball superstar. He was also rumored to be related to the
Bushes Baked Beans Dog who gives away the family secret by talking in
commercials, however that was never confirmed.
The first 5 years of his life was
spent growing up and working as the golf course dog for Peachtree Golf
Club. While at Peachtree, he was raised
alongside a 115 pound black lab named Hogan, who showed him how to be
relentless at chasing geese. After Hogan
moved on for an opportunity at a different golf course in the mountains of
Carolina, Max had the privilege of passing on his skills of goose chasing to
another black lab named Red. Red and Max
formed a bond between each other than was unbreakable, and were quite the goose
chasing team. During his time at
Peachtree, Max was fortunate to get the opportunity to meet and get petted by
some influential people such as Clint Eastwood, Justin Timberlake, Peyton
Manning, Matt Ryan, Kordell Stewart, and Comedian Ron White, just to name a
few.
In March of 2013, Max and his master
were given the opportunity of a lifetime to move to Marietta Country Club. His new position was in need of serious help
scaring the goose population, as well as improving the overall appearance of
the property. Right away Max got to
work, and even when the pond was slightly frozen in early March, he was actively
chasing geese in the frigid waters.
While the large lake on Overlook was a never
ending task to rid the geese, Max was able to keep the original 18 holes at
Marietta Country Club goose free. He
warmed up to the new membership quickly, and was always very appreciative of
the love and affection they showed him on a daily basis.
On October 30, 2014, Max was
diagnosed with Lymphoma. Being that he
was only 8 years old, a decision was made to try Chemotherapy and see if he
could win the fight against cancer.
After 6 long months of 16 Chemo treatments, Max’s cancer was in
remission. However, 5 weeks after Chemo
ended, the cancer had returned to his Lymph nodes. The remedy from there on out was to keep Max
comfortable and let him enjoy life as much as possible. After 8 more weeks Max lost his fight with
Cancer, his body could no longer fight any more.
Max was very fortunate to spend
every day possible at work with his master, on the golf course, rarely on a
leash and always soaking wet. He had a very
mellow demeanor and never met anyone he did not like. Always wanting to go everywhere possible with
Mark, he was able to do and see some very cool things. He would get excited at the mention of the
words “goose” or “squirrel”, but when he heard the word “Go” he would take
off! Max for the most part did exactly
what he was told, and definitely lived life in the moment. Because of some very wonderful and caring
people, Max never spent a single night in a kennel while his master was out of
town, for which he was most grateful.
His beauty was most notable when the morning sun would shine down on his
golden hair as he surveyed the golf course landscape. Max will be missed by many, but none as much
as his master.