Established around 1978 by Mike Soden, Flanahan's Pub is a classic Outer Sunset neighborhood pub. The space was previously an Ice cream shop, then a storage space for the neighboring liquor store . The history of Flanahan's is deeply tied to Mike, an avid golf fan, who passed away in 2011. He had a huge following of loyal patrons who visited the bar to spend a few hours with him to hear his many stories about golf and baseball. Mike was a golf historian - the foremost in the City. For many years, when a difficult golf trivia question was presented to the Examiner Sports Desk and could not be answered, the question was referred to Mike at Flanahan's Pub. He always had the answer. Mike's great passion was the U.S. Open golf tournament. He attended 31 Opens - the first one in 1963 . Mike caddied for Bob Crowley in the 1966 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club. Crowley was paired with Arnold Palmer in the second round. The bar is now run by Greg Medow who is simply trying not to mess it up.