Harrington Survives Shark-Infested Waters
Paddy does it again! I thought it was anyone's game as they made the turn on Sunday, but Harrington righted the ship and played crazy-good on those last few holes. I had a weird feeling that the Irishman might make it two in a row, bum wrist and all. If Greg Norman had won, it would've made one of the greatest golf movies of all time...a 53-year old legend comes out of retirement to redeem his past failures with one last major victory. Instead, the best "feel good" story of the year will remain Tiger gutting it out on one good leg to win the U.S. Open.
I haven't dealt with Greg Norman much on the PGA TOUR. He's only played in a handful of events in the last five years, but every time we have interacted, I've been very impressed. It's easy to see why he's been so successful in his multiple business ventures. Norman is very engaging, looks you right in the eye, and makes you feel important, even if just for a few minutes.
The Shark played in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am this year, where he teamed up with his amateur son Gregory Junior. As I've mentioned before, I was stationed at Spyglass Hill all week, and on Friday I got a call on the radio from one of our Rules Officials. "Casey, Greg Norman is out on the course and needs some soft-spike replacements. See if you can grab some in the pro shop and meet him on the ninth tee."
The next thing I knew, I was holding the Shark's left shoe in my hand, frantically cranking one of those crappy little spike-wrenches to replace two missing soft-spikes. Norman sat next to me on a bench as I tried to look proficient in spike-wrenching. "Aren't you the guy in the scoring area?" he asked me. I replied yes, and he said, "Ah, a man of many talents. Thanks for making the trip out here to help me." I told him no problem, and that the two soft-spikes would cost him $5,000 each...he could pay me after the round. He laughed and said sure, but I never saw the money. He must've forgotten.
Good luck this week at the Senior British, Greg, and thanks for a memorable four days at the Open! And of course, congrats to Padraig...AGAIN!
I haven't dealt with Greg Norman much on the PGA TOUR. He's only played in a handful of events in the last five years, but every time we have interacted, I've been very impressed. It's easy to see why he's been so successful in his multiple business ventures. Norman is very engaging, looks you right in the eye, and makes you feel important, even if just for a few minutes.
The Shark played in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am this year, where he teamed up with his amateur son Gregory Junior. As I've mentioned before, I was stationed at Spyglass Hill all week, and on Friday I got a call on the radio from one of our Rules Officials. "Casey, Greg Norman is out on the course and needs some soft-spike replacements. See if you can grab some in the pro shop and meet him on the ninth tee."
The next thing I knew, I was holding the Shark's left shoe in my hand, frantically cranking one of those crappy little spike-wrenches to replace two missing soft-spikes. Norman sat next to me on a bench as I tried to look proficient in spike-wrenching. "Aren't you the guy in the scoring area?" he asked me. I replied yes, and he said, "Ah, a man of many talents. Thanks for making the trip out here to help me." I told him no problem, and that the two soft-spikes would cost him $5,000 each...he could pay me after the round. He laughed and said sure, but I never saw the money. He must've forgotten.
Good luck this week at the Senior British, Greg, and thanks for a memorable four days at the Open! And of course, congrats to Padraig...AGAIN!
Labels: British Open, golf, Greg Norman, Padraig Harrington
posted by Casey at
8:39 AM
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