I open my eyes. The light is so incredibly bright as I stand back up with the putter in the still in sky. I am looking directly at the Sunlight. The gallery cheers and I look around. I am stunned. My Caddie Zack runs over and gives me a big hug. Then I shake hand with the other player and walk off the green, smiling and dazed and confused. All this is new to me. But at the same time it feels familiar and normal. Sort of like a dream. When you have a dream sometimes, no matter how strange, it all seems normal. Dave Johnson, the Masters Chairmen walks up to me with a big smile shakes my hand, “Congratulations Jim!
I know exactly where I am, and what I just did. I only have a faint memory of playing by myself and trying to break 80. But I am still confused. I feel like there are two of me in one body. We proceed to the tent to validate our score cards. I have done this a thousand times, but it seems new to me for some reason. My caddie Zack and I go over each hole and we validate the score and I sign the card. Finally it is official I am the 2014 Masters Champion.
In the world of Golf, the Masters is one of four major tournaments. Major tournaments are different than normal tournaments that you have every week. They are basically like the Super Bowl or the World Series of golf. You have four major tournaments in a year. The Masters, The U.S. Open, the British Open, and the PGA Championship. Most players dream about just winning one of those in a lifetime. The top tier golfers try to get multiple in a year. They are going for the “Grand Slam” which is to win all four Majors in one year. That has never been done in modern golf history.
After the score cards are validated we go through the ceremonies. It feels surreal and my memories of my other life are fading away quickly. They introduce me to the crowd. And there are lots of hands shaking and interviews. And then the Big Sit down on TV and the Green Jacket. I can hardly talk. I am so stunned and nervous. In the interview we went over the last few days. I had played out of my head this week. First, I made the cut which I was very happy about. And going into today, I was 5 shots off the lead. But I made a run for it with a little luck. I holed out for an eagle from 170 yards out on one hole. Then I got on a hot streak with a string of birdies on the back nine. The leaders going in the day both stumbled going down the stretch. I sank my birdie putt on the 18th green and shot a 64 to captured the prize. I am shocked and happy. After the ceremony, a lot of my fellow players congratulated me and gave me a hard time. One of the Legends of Golf, Jerry Churchill came and congratulated me. He talked and rambled on as usual. But I appreciated that he came up and talked to me. He surprised me when he told me that he had been following me for a long time. That was a great honor. It was a great feeling winning the Masters. It has been a dream of a lifetime for me as a professional golfer and I relished the victory.
Chapter 2: A New Life
After all the interviews and the congratulations, I went back to my hotel. A lot of times the players will get together and have a big party after a Win and that’s what happened this time. Someone organized and got a banquet room. A group of us was down in the lobby and we were all talking. They let me know there will be a party tonight. I told them that I will catch a quick shower. Some people laughed and said, “Man! You are sunburned dude! I guess things just got a little too hot for you today” they said laughing. They told me to be back in about an hour and we will have a little party. When I got to my room, I see myself in the mirror and think “Man! I do really really sunburned.” I said to myself. I took off my shirt to take a shower and saw myself in the mirror again. For a few seconds I was strangely caught off guard. I seemed surprised to see that I had slim toned body. As if I was expecting myself to be fat and overweight. But then I would think, what's going on? I look the same as I have for years, I take pretty good care of myself. So very strange for me to think that way.
I take a shower and put on some short pants and t-shirt. My phone is exploding with text and calls. Everyone is calling to congratulate me. My Agent Bobby Williams, who I rarely hear from lately calls and tells me that “The Today's Show” on NBC wants me on at 6:00am Tuesday morning. And the “Tonight's Show” also on NBC with wants me for the Tuesday night show. The taping for the Tonight Show is actually in the afternoon. He asked me if I can make both of these. I am stunned, but tell him I can make it. He says he will make the flight arrangements to New York and will send me the info. “Jim” he says, “Be prepared, opportunities are about to start rolling in with endorsements which may be big bucks, so just be prepared and hang in there. he tells me." I tell him thanks and he has to go, he has another call. The phone keeps ringing with people calling to congratulate me. Finally I turn the phone off. I need to relax and cool off for a few minutes. I turn the Air Conditioner down to cool off. I grab a beer from the hotel fridge and sit down by the window. I have a little bit of a nice view on the 6th floor. I take a drink and look out the window and think about what I just did. I look over at the Green Jacket which I have hanging up on a hanger on the back of a chair. It starts to sink in, that I am the 2014 Masters Champion. I still cannot believe it. This means everything as a professional golfer. I am so happy right now that I cannot stand it. I take another sip of my cold beer and it taste so good. I think about how it was a miracle that I even qualified to play in the Masters. And then to make the cut! And now this! Wow, this is so surreal.
Then I start getting in a reflective mood, take another sip of my beer. I have been a Professional Golfer for 10 years now. I played on the high school golf team when I was a kid. Then I went to college and worked hard on my game and had a very successful college career with my golf game. I eventually turned Pro at 22 and been playing ever since. I have had marginal success. I have won 3 tournaments in my career and have some decent money in the past. But mostly it has been very difficult, especially the last few years. Professional Golf is not the Glamorous sport that people think. At least for most players. Sure the top tier money players have a great life with lots of money. But for a lot of the Pros it is a struggle. Especially for the lower tier golfers like me, being a professional golfer is a grind. It is more of a business than a sport. It cost a lot of money to cover expenses of travel, caddies etc. And each week you pay the expenses to play in a tournament. And only half the field make the cut. And then if you do not make the cut. No pay, no money, zilch. Try making a few missed cuts in a row and see how you feel.
But this was my day. I beat the Big Boys. In Professional golf, on any given day, or Tournament the difference between the number one player in the world and the 150th player in the world is razor thin. Over the long run is where you see the difference. That's why see No Named players make a big splash with a big win, and then never hear from them again. But the top tier golfers continue to win and make a name for themselves and make a lot of money.
I take another sip of my beer and then I start I think about my family. I have none. No one to share this with. I never married, no kids. I start to think about my parents. They died in a car accident my first year as a pro. They were driving to watch me in a golf tournament and had a terrible car accident and died on the scene. As I think about that, tears run down my face as I take on more sip of my beer. I miss them so much and wish they were here. At least they got to see me turn pro, it was my Dad’s dream, he was an avid golfer.
At 32 years old, time's not on my side. With all PGA golfers, no matter if you are a top tier money winner or at the bottom. or somewhere in between there are three stages of your career.The first stage is the beginning part of your career. You are young and dumb and enthusiastic. You work hard play hard, have fun and look forward to a great career and maybe have some success.
The second stage is the middle part of you career. At this point, you know the business and the tour. You have some success, and may make some good money and believe you got it made. The you get a little lazy, stop working on your game like you should, and the next few years your game starts to deteriorate. Then you got the third stage which is towards the end of your career. You are burned out, your game is not where it sho
uld be and your body and mind is breaking down. That's where I am now.
But here today, I am the Masters Champion. Miracles do happen. I am wondering if I should retire at this point and go out on top. I have a bad right shoulder that I hurt playing baseball when I was in highschool. I was sliding into home plate and my shoulder smashed into the catches knee pads. I broke my collarbone, clavicle and torn my rotator cuff. I recovered pretty well with a couple of surgeries but that was the end of my baseball career. But I took up golf, and the shoulder did not really bother me until recently. Now my shoulder bothers me quite often. The doctor said that tendinitis and calcium deposits have set in and it will degenerate over the years. So maybe retire now? Or play things out? I think about that the next few days.
I start to feel better, and now it is Party Time. They told me to be at the banquet room in a few minutes for the party. This should be fun. This is uncharted water for me as far as golf parties are concerned. All after tournament golf parties are really just impromptu get togethers at the hotel, because you cannot plan for this, You never know who is going to win or be around. Some players stick around for another day, others take off.
And there are three types of parties. One is a party after normal tournament win. The wives of the players usually get a group of players, caddies, and friends together to celebrate.
The second type of party is the type of party in which unfortunately that I have participated in mostly, at least the last few years. And those are called “Missed Cut Parties." So the guys who don't make the cut after the second day, get together and get plastered. Laugh and cry together. The old saying “Misery Loves Company." And that is certainly true at Missed Cut Parties.
And the third type is the Victory Party after a Major. Those are fun and usually have a lot of people show up and congratulate the player. You can have big named players show up, agents, television executives and even movie stars. So tonight this is for me! I am not sure what to expect but it time to go.
I take one last sip of my beer and start to stand up. “You did good Jim, you broke 80 today," I tell myself out loud as I am standing up from the chair. I pause. "Where did that come from?” I ask myself laughing. "Oh well time to party," I say out loud.
I head down to the Party not knowing what to expect. Will it be Fun? Formal? Boring? I don't have a clue. I make a decision to be careful with the drinking tonight. This is not a crazy Missed the cut party. So here we go. I walk in the room and immediately a couple of my buddies spray me with Champagne and everyone is laughing and hugging me. This is going to be fun. After that fun introduction, I look around. I amazed at all the food and drinks. We got a big batch of boiled and peeled, shrimp, Oysters on the half shell, every appetisers that you can image and incredible buffet. With lots of Beer Iced down and a host bar. “Wow what a Spread” I say. One of my buddies slaps me on the back and says “yea, you are paying for it money bags!” And everyone laughs. I am so used to being broke, I start to wonder how I can afford this. But then I remember that I just won the Masters, and I got a big paycheck. “So what the hell let's party” I tell myself. Actually I did not pay a dime. On parties like this, the guys pitch in. Hell, the top tier golfers have so much money, one may have just payed it out with the change in his pocket. I can tell this is going to be fun. I make a decision not to drink hardly at all. I want to have clear mind and enjoy this and not make a fool of myself. So at first I am a little nervous and then I settle down. Everyone coming up to shake my hand and congratulate me. Women who I do not know giving me a hugs, and it is great. Initially most of the people are people I mostly know. Some of my Golf Comrades that I have known for years. Some of my crazy buddies that will never pass up a good party are here, and they are getting a little rowdy.
But as time passes things seem to be getting settled in and a lot more people are coming in. A lot of the golfers that are still in town come in. Some of them top money winners and even big name top tier players that have won majors congratulate me. They all tell me that my life will change after you first major. They are all so genuinely nice and happy for me.
One thing about PGA golfers. We are a close nit group and everyone is always willing to help another player. They will give advice or golf tips or whatever they can do to help out. Even the number one tour money winner is just one of the guys in the Clubhouse or on the course away from the crowds. Sure you have the superstar rich famous golfers. But they are just one of the guys when they are together with the other golfers. They know how hard it is to succeed in this business and they just want to be one of the guys and have fun.
The party is cooking along, and then one of the legends of the game, Jacob Regan drops in and comes up and congratulates me. I am so honored and very nervous. He is the all time leading winner of Major Golf tournaments in the world, and considered to be the greatest golfer of all time. “My gosh, he was such a nice guy," I tell myself. He did not just make a 30 second appearance and congratulated me. He told me how it was nice to see me get this win. He was very sincere and happy for me. He knew how I have struggled over the years and told me that this victory will be something very special for me the rest of my life. He also told me that Bernie Sellers, which is probably the all time legend of the game, and a friend of Mr. Regan, asked him to congratulate me. He was not able to make it. I told him to please tell Mr. Sellers that I am grateful to hear from me. We talked for about 10 minutes. And after the first couple of minutes I was very relaxed. He has a way of putting people to ease. We just talked about golf, and life. It seemed he is just one of the guys. So it was a real pleasure.
There were few other big names come in to congratulate me and they were all so nice. I really felt honored. But eventually they mingled in the crowd. There were a few TV stars and some Movie stars here as well. A couple of them congratulated me. But most of them were just here to be seen. As the night went on, things got a little more lively. Some groupies had made their way in somehow. On the tour you have a few women who follow the circuit and work their way to some of the players or whom ever they can get their hands on. Some just are partiers, and some are gold diggers. There have been many of young PGA golfers that have their careers ruined by these girls. I have seen some of my buddies in my young career lose everything, so I made up my mind not to get caught up in that. One of them talked me for a few minutes. She was attractive and I know she would be a good time. But I know these groupies, no way I am getting involved. I politely tell her I have to go. So it's getting late and things are starting rock and it is all a blast. I did not hardly but drink, but I loosen up and I am enjoying the party. This is my night, the party if for me. I feel like this is my special day even though I have never had one like this. I think it feels like the day that I got Married. But why? I have never been married. When you are married you have a big wedding everyone comes to see you and your Bride so they are all here for you. I think that's what it must feel like when you on your wedding day. Strange that I have a déjà vu about a wedding.
About 11:30pm, most of the important or big people are gone. One of my pro golfers buddies wife has been trying to introduce me to one of her single friends for months. She is not a groupie. Just a very nice and attractive girl. She was at the party and we were introduced for the first time. She was very nice and the type of girl that I could see myself getting involved in. Nice, sweet and pretty. We were introduced and talked for a while. She was great and I could tell she is not the type of person who gets caught up in all of the hoopla of the pro tour and money and all that goes with that. She is the perfect girl that I would like to be involved with. As we talked I could tell that she liked me and there may be a possibility that we could see each other in the future and maybe develop a relationship. She was a friend of one of my friends. She had good stable career and I felt she is the same boat that I am in, just looking for a good person for a relationship. But the strangest thing happened. I talked to her for a about 30 minutes and we were starting to get to know each other. I sensed she likes m
e and I sure liked her. But as things progressed, I had this odd feeling that I was cheating on someone. “What’s going on?” I ask myself. I meet the first person in years where I feel like there may have the possibility of a nice relationship, and now I have this crazy emotion that I am cheating on someone? I am confused. But that feeling is very strong. I eventually bow out of our conversation and mingle with other people in the party. Mostly a lot of my friends and a few other people. Some people are pretty plowed and the night is winding down. They are taking advantage of the free drinks. Then to my Surprise, late in the evening Jerry Churchill walks in. “This guy is old. Is it past his bedtime?," I said to myself. He congratulates me for a couple of minutes, he is very nice and very sincere. Then he mingles with the crowd.
After about 12:30 I am tired and ready to call it a night. People are starting to leave. I sit down at one of the tables which is of the long row tables with white table cloths which are now is stained with food and drinks. I take a breath wondering when do I leave this place. I am not sure the protocol for this. Do I stay to the last person his here? Or can I leave and let the hard core partiers party on? Then to my surprise Jerry Churchill sits down across the table from me and ask how I am doing. I am surprised to see him again. He is so amazing! He is 78 but looks 58. Here is is 12:30am, and he is wide awake and enjoying everything. He does not drink at all. He is a health nut. Gosh, I hope I am in the shape that he is in when I am his age. Heck, I wish I was as good a shape now as he is. I could not believe I was here talking to him. He is a golf legend. He has won nine major tournaments in his career.
So we start chatting. He is a great conversationalist but almost too much of a talker. He is one of those guys that can ramble on for ever and you never know where he going. He tells me how proud he is of me and that he has been watching me for years. I remembered he said that to the 18th green today. I asked him how he even knew me and why had he watched me over the years. He said that when I first came in on the tour that I reminded me of him. I had about the same type of golf game as him and we both started playing golf relative late in our careers both in High School. He said when I first started a lot of people thought that I would never last as a pro over 2 years and he was glad to see that I proved them wrong. Then he mentioned how sorry he was to hear about my parents being killed in the car accident my first year on the tour, and he knew that they were real proud of me. He said after that he started following me to see how I would do. When he told me that, I almost felt like crying, I was really touched. “Thank you very much." I told him. He went on to talk about how he knows the last few years have been difficult for me. He told me that happens to everyone. Then he pulled up his glass of Orange Juice and Said “Cheers! You deserve this day buddy”! I toasted him with my glass of water and we just laughed.
Golf In A Parallel Universe Page 2