SAN DIEGO — The path to gender-busting history for the Century Club, the San Diego group behind the Farmers Insurance Open, began … well … at a portable toilet.
That's where local attorney Barbara Savaglio, standing in line during the 1986 tournament, noticed a man draped in the organization's distinct green jacket. She inquired about the meaning of the fairway-strolling fashion statement at the hand-washing station.
"Then I asked, 'How many female members do you have?' " Savaglio said of the organization formed in 1961. "When he said none, I told him, 'Mark my words. One day, I'm going to be a member.' "
Savaglio kicked open that door along with other women and, now, has walked through a significantly larger one.
The Wisconsin native, a smiling, hug-first, ask-questions-later Italian, is chairperson for 2020 — the first time a woman has held the title. The chair, in addition to handing over the signature surfboard to the winner on CBS, becomes the hand-shaking heart of the event.
History, flashing rich timing, arrived during a course-clearing pandemic.
"It would've been nice if there were fans," said Savaglio, 57. "This makes it unique, though. No one is going to forget this tournament."
Not only is Savaglio helping the Century Club expand horizons — and long overdue ones, at that — but walks the walk in ways perhaps no one has before. She pays to play in both the Monday and Wednesday Pro-Am events, buys skybox tickets at the South Course's No. 18 green and forks out annual dues.
The whole of it, an annual commitment of roughly $29,000.
That's not all. In fact, it's not even close.
Savaglio walks the course as a volunteer for at least two days during the tournament, something she'll continue this week in spite of her avalanche of responsibilities. Instead of shoveling mouthfuls of bay shrimp, washing it down with craft beer and rubbing elbows with the well-connected, she circles the course to thank other volunteers.
"Normally, we don't care about folks behind the scenes who make the pitch-and-putt sausage," said Marty Gorsich, tournament director of the Farmers. "She's unique, though."
It's not an act, 2020 chair Tim Young said.
"Volunteers are near and dear to her heart, because she was one," Young said. "Trust me, it's a disappointment she can't shake those 10,000 hands the week of the tournament."
Commitment, with a capital C, led to an easy decision.
"It was her experience and how much she gives to the organization, not her sex or skin color or anything else," Young said. "That she's a woman is fantastic, but that's not how she landed in that role. She earned it."
The roots of that toilet-side conversation all those years ago led to Savaglio joining the Century Club in 2005. History still presented a lengthy organization-leading wait.
The love of golf, though, is what brought Savaglio to San Diego in the first place. She met her husband, Joe, in a league at the country club she worked at in Kenosha, Wis. They moved to Southern California, so they could play 12 months a year.
"We flew the coop," she said, "and never looked back."
In her early days as a volunteer, she walked with Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and scores of others. The vantage point seeped into her blood in a sport she already adored. She simply wanted to be involved. No one could have guessed how much she would be.
Now, she's a trailblazer for a $7.5 million golf tournament that's a lifeline for area charities ranging from at-risk and underserved youth to first responders and the military.
At a time when the United States claims its first female vice president, each step forward by women in roles large and small feels important … and sadly tardy. Yet here we are, still ticking off milestones by the day.
"It's very, very meaningful," Savaglio said.
If Savaglio finds herself nursing any regrets about the muted tournament, it's missing out on the annual Thursday night event that tugs at heartstrings. Farmers hosts a night where checks are shared with charities as children and families explain how they've been impacted.
The chair speaks that night to frame it all, until now.
"It's very emotional," she said. "Kids get up and say thank you. I was able to do this. I was able to get off the street. My family was able to get an apartment. It brings tears to your eyes. That's gone.
"That's the thing that makes me sad the most."
Savaglio and the tournament will soldier on, nonetheless. What's the option, really? They'll pulp pandemic lemons into as much lemonade as possible.
A trip to the Torrey Pines pro shop underscored the oddness of it. Savaglio saw gear for the U.S. Open in June, but nothing for the Farmers. When she asked, an employee told her they didn't order any since no fans would be there to scoop it up.
"We're just going with the flow," Savaglio said.
Just like that day in 1986.
"I don't know if I want to mention my affiliation began at a toilet, but it is funny," she said.
Plenty of people want to flush some things these days.
