Known as “Iron Mike” for his diligence on the course and the practice range, Mike Pidlaski was a fixture on Manitoba Willingdon Cup teams and in men’s tournament play through the 1940s and 1950s.
Born April 18, 1917, he and his brothers (Bill was inducted into the Manitoba Golf Hall of Fame in 2004) were first involved with golf as caddies at Elmhurst Golf and Country Club, starting in 1928. He became one of the top municipal players before joining the RCAF at age 24 and serving for four years. He was nearing 30 when he reached his golfing prime.
Pidlaski played on the provincial Willingdon Cup teams eight times from 1947 through 1955 – six in a row from 1947-52, then again in 1954 and 1955 after missing in 1953. He won the Manitoba amateur championship twice in 1949 and 1950 and was runner-up in that competition to Allan Boes in 1948.
After making his mark on the municipal golf scene before his stint in the air force, the Pidlaski brothers played for several years at St. Boniface before winding up their careers at Elmhurst.
His earlier golf triumphs included the Windsor club championship and city municipal championship in 1938 and the Airflite championship (220 players from all municipal courses) in 1941. That same year he again won, the Windsor title and was runner-up in the municipal championship.
In the matches of the 1947 Canadian Amateur, he defeated Skee Riegel, who was then the top ranked amateur in the U.S. In the 1954 matches he defeated the U.S. Amateur Champion from 1949, Charlie Coe (who would also win the U.S. Amateur in 1958). In the 1957 Canadian Amateur at St. Charles Country Club, he defeated Gary Cowan in his match before finally losing to the eventual champion, Nick Weslock.
He also had a string of club championships at St. Boniface and was a regular competitor and frequent winner in many other tournaments around the province.
Mike Pidlaski died April 30, 1986, at the age of 69.