Arnold Palmer's legacy extends way beyond golf to gear and his signature drink

The King built an empire off his golf legacy, and the beverage that bears his name played a major role

Arnold Palmer's death at the age of 87 sent shockwaves through the golf world as one of the sport's greatest legends was suddenly gone.

Palmer was a golf icon, but his reach spread far beyond just the sports community. Palmer was one of the first true golf celebrities and was among the first golfers to take advantage of his popularity by launching businesses tied to his name.

Along with his incredible golf career, Palmer became one of the top golf course architects in the country with Palmer Course Designs launching in 1972. He was the owner of Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Florida as well as Latrobe Country Club, his home course in Pennsylvania.

Palmer-branded apparel, with his famous umbrella logo, was and is wildly popular.

In 2013, Palmer made $40 million off of his business interests, which placed him second on Forbes' list of retired athletes that year. In the golf world, he was only topped in the golf world by active players Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. Palmer's business acumen was as sharp as his golf game, and he was an icon of golf, sport and even beverages.

Palmer was the most well known golfer of his generation, but he became a household name to Americans, sports fans or not, thanks to the drink that shares his name.

The "Arnold Palmer," a mixture of iced tea and lemonade mixture, was named after Arnie due to him popularizing the concoction. According to Palmer, who participated in an ESPN '30 for 30 Short' about the drink in 2013, he came up with the idea after a day working on a golf course and suggested to his wife that they add some lemonade to her iced tea. (Be sure to find the short, it's a great 10-minute watch.)

He became so fond of the mixture that he would carry a thermos around with it on the course and order it at restaurants. It began to catch on and got tagged with the "Arnold Palmer" name after a customer -- who heard Arnie order himself an iced tea-lemonade, told a waitress, "I'll have an Arnold Palmer."

Americans now order it whether they know who Arnold Palmer is or not. And they can buy it in mass quantities as Palmer signed a deal with AriZona Beverages to use his name and likeness on cans and jugs of the drink.

Here's the trick, according to Palmer: The drink should not be a true 50-50 mixture but rather mostly iced tea with a third- or quarter-glass of lemonade.

As for how Palmer ordered his signature drink? He did it in a way that only Arnie could -- with a wink and a cool charm reserved only for The King. "I'll have a Mr. Palmer."