Welcome back to Linked by Golf, the podcast exploring the joints
of people linked by the game. I'm your host, Josh McGuire and
the NIST Masters Week episode. I'm thrilled to bring you one of
England's greatest ever amateur golfers, Gary Wilson, home.
Gary takes us through his incredible experience of leading
the Masters, playing alongside Mr. Arnold Palmer.
Let's go over to Gary. Gary Wilson home, Welcome back.
Third time we've caught up and last time we're going to focus
on the Masters. And your Masters appearances
came from one in the the Amateur Championship, which we've talked
about already in a little bit of detail, but obvious talk through
those Masters experiences in 92 and 2004.
Gary, I'm sure the last news would love to hear.
Well, you're now touching on probably my favorite subject.
It's the the best experience that I've ever had, particularly
the first time for lots of different reasons.
But obviously I played for England for the first time in 88
and you know, it was quite a big jump for me to go from somebody
that was just playing for England to now all of a sudden
going into much more loftier circles, particularly, you know,
the Masters Open, things like that, which by winning the
amateur at Ganton allowed me to explore, you know, how good I
could become I suppose, and certainly give me notoriety
etcetera. So it's funny because I just
moved down to Bristol, I was working for a solicitors
practice called Ulsters, which David Powell, who was the head
of the practice, he was a very keen golfer, very keen golfer,
played for Gloucestershire and they've had a Welsh
international, Keith Jones as their number one.
And he decided he was going to turn professional.
And I played David in the Midlands Southwest game and we
chatted, got on very well and he then approached me to say I'd
like to offer you a job at the practice.
You know, it was debt recovery which was amused me because I
really got a great deal of experience on any of those sorts
of aspects. But anyway, down I went to
Bristol and I joined Bristol and Clifton Golf Club.
I was, it was a proper job but I was in England International and
they gave me time off to represent England and obviously
I'd gone up to to Ganton playing quite well.
Great summer course was burnt dry.
So it's helping me because I wasn't the longest but my short
game was was great and the golf course suited me absolutely down
to the ground and things just worked in a way that I've missed
out on. The the Walker Cup selection
that year, which was at Portmanic and Great Britain
Islands, have been beaten fairly soundly with a very strong team
from the US, including Phil Mickelson.
And it was in an era where every sort of other year the the
Amateur Championship was played after the Walker Cup.
So we had actually, for the last time, as it turned out, the
whole of the US Walker Cup team except Phil Mickelson, who'd
gone home to play in some tournaments and there was some
big benefits and there was a little bit of a Hoo ha, because
he, he, I can earn more money at home and he didn't realise that
you're not really allowed to. It was quite funny.
But anyway, well, sort of. But Phil was the only one that
hadn't come across to Ganton from Ireland.
And the way the draw had worked after the stroke play, it meant
that, funnily enough, virtually, virtually all the Americans win
1/2. It's just the way it works
sometimes. So I didn't actually have to
play an American up until the final.
And anyway, to cut a Long story short, I played some sublime
stuff, particularly in the final against Bob May, who was
probably the best American of that that week from the point of
view of the Walker Cup. So it was quite a feather in my
cap, but obviously quite tough for him to keep going for two
whole weeks. And although I went down early,
it I I sort of called my way back and then actually played
probably some of the best golf. I think that the middle eighteen
holes from the 9th in the morning till the 9th in the
afternoon, I, I shot 6 under with a double bogey, which is
quite hard to beat, obviously in match play.
So I then get taken back to the clubhouse.
You know, it starts to dawn on me that I'm getting into the
Masters and I get a bit giddy about it because to be honest,
it's, it's, it's always been the one tournament that to me
romanticized golf at that level. So to get the opportunity and
you've heard the stories of obviously other amateurs that
have been able to, to play the Masters.
And you know, it's that one tournament you see the same
course every year. It's a bit like the players now,
but the Masters always was that that course.
You actually only used to get to see the back nine in those days.
But I just obviously couldn't wait now.
I was then in Bristol. There were various people that I
was associating with. Like there was a guy who was a
travel agent. He got me a business class
flight out to Atlanta. And then because he was
travelling in between Britain and the States quite a lot, he
sort of showed me round. So I I got to see a lot of the
sights and sounds and opportunities to play golf
through him organizing it. So I was very lucky.
You know, we played the Atlanta Athletic Club and we played the
Golf Club at Georgia, which was an amazing 2 course design.
And you know, it was still a new club in those days.
They were building the clubhouse.
But the golf courses were phenomenal.
So I was getting some great golf and then I went to Birmingham,
AL and played Shoal Creek, and I stayed with a fantastic guy, a
real entertainer. So I was hosted by him.
And I can remember the weather hadn't been terribly good that
previous week. And you know, I was sort of
thinking, Oh my God, you know, if it's going to be as hard as
this, I'm going to, you know, basically blow my brains in if
I'm not careful. But loved, loved the whole
experience of the week before getting to Atlanta, seeing bits
of Atlanta doing things that I've never done before because
I've never been to the stage prior to that.
So to get that opportunity, play some of these amazing golf
courses, which obviously you're under a little bit of pressure
to perform as amateur champion, people are expecting it to sort
of RIP it miles and all that sort of thing.
And so I, I loved meeting the, the well to do that were out
there, the people that were obviously, you know, involved
with these clubs and, you know, obviously golf in the states is
hugely expensive. So that that they're always
inviting you to do some amazing things and you know, you, you go
to the best restaurants and everything else.
So it's but it was fantastic. Anyway, I hired a car and drove
down from Birmingham, AL down to Augusta in Georgia.
And of course you you arrive on Washington Rd. and drive up to
the the gate and they've got the guards there, etcetera.
And you know, Atlanta, sorry, Augusta is not the most lubrious
of, of towns, or it wasn't in those days.
And so you go from sort of you're sort of looking around
thinking really Guster's here, really.
And then you go into the driveway and there's this
wonderful, you know, sort of hedge.
And then you've got the gates and you drive up to the gates
and yes, kind of help me. And he says I'm playing in the
Masters and they check you off. And I always said to myself that
I would drive very slowly down Magnolia Lane.
And that's exactly what I did. You know, I, I, I drove very
slowly. If anyone had been following me,
they'd been wanting to overtake. But, umm, it, it had this sort
of, umm, arboreal sort of tunnel of trees, Uh, and then you could
see that sort of light at the end of the tunnel, which I'm
sure is something that they try to do.
And there is a roundabout which is very unusual in America,
certainly in those days. And it has this fantastic
planting of the Augusta logo on this roundabout with a flag.
And then you see the the white sort of colonial clubhouse,
which is absolutely pristine. There is the one thing I will
always remember about Augusta is that there's never anything out
of place. There's hardly a leaf out of
place. In fact, you know when my boss
David, he invited me down to come to Bristol etcetera, he
said when I won the Amateur, he said yes, I'll let you go to
play in the Masters so long as I can carry for you.
Good deal. Well, he's a good player so I
mean, it wasn't going to be an issue.
So he was going to turn up on the Sun Sunday.
I think he turned up. And so I'd arrived Friday and I
was staying with a family down in Martinez, which is not very
far away. So it didn't cost me anything.
So I was very lucky. And again, that was through
somebody I've met and his wife, his, his, her family lived in
Martinez. So it was a very convenient
again. And so anyway, I've driven down
to the clubhouse and I've signed in and I'm signed in #2 so I was
the first person because number one goes to the previous winner,
right? Your badge number that is.
So I've got my badge number #2 I've signed in and I'm obviously
the first person there. And so you, you get your keys to
your car. I had a car which was a Cadillac
Eldorado, red leather everything.
And it must have been, I can't imagine how powerful the engine
was, but when you consider that I had a light blue Astra, voxel
Astra, this car was absolutely extraordinary.
Now, apparently they auctioned these cars at the end of the
week, and you could probably pick up one of these Cadillac
Eldorado for about $18,000. And I was thinking, Oh my God,
just imagine I could get this. It would cost me some money to
get it shipped home, but I reckon I could.
I could probably sell it for about $40,000 because at least
because of the fact that it's what it was, it was a car for
the masters. Yeah, absolutely.
Anyway, so I said, look, is it possible to get a caddy please?
And I get to allotted one of the the black caddies that Augustus
famed for and he was absolutely brilliant.
His name was Washington or never forget.
He was absolutely a mind of information.
He was brilliant. And had had I been given the
opportunity, I would have liked to have had him in the
tournament because he knew lines, He knew, he knew
basically within sort of four or five holes, he knew what, how to
club me, everything. And we had such a laugh through
the day. We then went and did the path
recourse, which was even more pristine than the golf course
itself, which this is very rarely played.
And he taught me little tricks like because in those days you
didn't have digital photography, so you didn't have your phone,
you had to use a proper camera. And so he showed me how you
could get a picture of the ball looking as though you've just
hold a putt and you can sort of go like that with the fist.
And basically what you do is you stick 2TS underneath the lip of
the hole, you rest the ball on the two TS.
And then you you set the picture up and it's, it was just silly
things like that that we had, we had such a good time.
And as I say, it's a shame in some respects that hadn't had
him for the tournament. Not that I don't think it would
have made a huge amount of difference with regards my, my
performance, but he was, he was just brilliant, great fun to be
with and I really enjoyed his company.
And then of course, David turns up.
So after that beautiful day on the Friday and Saturday, on the
Friday when I picked up the car, I'm driving back to Martinez in
this absolutely brand new leather, red leather white car.
And it must, it was at least three litres.
It had to be. So I turned off Washington Rd.
to go down towards Mark Martinez.
And I just thought, wow, we'll give, give it a little extra
within literally 5 minutes of me turning down this road and
putting my foot down a little Bee Bar.
Bee Bar lights blue. Oh God.
So I pull over and this cop gets out of his car.
I'm not kidding you. It was the mustache, the black
glasses. He looked like he'd come out of
chips. I mean, it was, it was, it was
actually quite. So I've got out of the car now
apparently you just don't get out of the car in America when
you're pulled over. You just don't.
But I got out of the car. So he's, he's already on the on
the defensive. So anyway, he's, he's telling me
that I was speeding and you know, all that sort of stuff.
Now, he must have either wondered whether I'd stolen the
car or if I was, he must have known that I was in the Masters
because it's got Masters written on the side, you know, Augusta
Masters and all that sort of thing.
And but I was about obviously very nervous, and I kept putting
my hands in my pockets. And he said, don't put your
hands in pockets. So anyway, eventually after like
20 minutes of ticking me off and telling me, you know, he'll be
watching out for me and all this sort of stuff, he lets me go.
Wow, there you. Go.
I then drove 30 miles an hour all the way back to the the
place where I was staying. And so I've gone in.
How was your day? I said all right, it was great.
I got stopped speaking literally as I got off Washington Rd. and
they said he let you off as though I should have been in
jail. Yeah, that's right.
That's what they. Did that they I've gone.
That would have been an interesting story for the media.
Scottish chef before the before the hunt.
Well, yeah, that was, yeah, that was another thing entirely.
But you know, anyway, so that was an interesting story for the
week. So then obviously my practice
Friday, Saturday, which is fantastic.
David turns up Sunday and so he's got dressed up in the
overalls, which I always thought was quite funny that my boss was
now wearing the white overalls and I was the boss.
And so we had a great few days. Debbie was telling me about
because in those days it wasn't quite so salubrious for the
caddies and Fanny Sunderson was obviously cutting for Faldo
etcetera, etcetera. So you know, it was she had to
get changed in a different play. It was, it was all quite funny,
but had to wear the overall and the green hat and all that sort
of stuff. So it was all very interesting
and and I then had the obviously the international players
dinner, which was a fantastic experience because Gary players
hosting it, you've got all the I've got this picture of all the
international players. It's not it's not done anymore,
sadly, because I think that well, two players didn't turn up
to the international players dinner.
And I'm not going to name names, but player absolutely called
them out. He said that's just not done.
You know, you, you, you we're here at the invitation of
Augusta National and you were, you know, you basically adhere
to their rules and and one of the things is that you turn up
for your dinner. But it was fantastic.
Great picture. Obviously people like Woosnam,
Lange, Sebi were all there. Some Delisle.
It's it's a wow. It really is.
It's a who's who of golf, really.
And it's enough. I was going to say it's enough,
Gary, just being a masters, but then you've got these European
and play straights that are, I'm sure, honest to you at the time.
Were the greats because they were winners?
Yeah, like green jackets. So then I had the amateur player
dinner, Mitch Voges was the US Amateur champion and myself were
hosted by Augusta National and we literally of, of of the
amateur game, the USGA, the RNA past champions that were members
of Augusta, all there with a fantastic experience.
You know, speeches were made etcetera, etcetera, which was
again an entertainment in itself.
The food to the Guster is just brilliant.
Absolutely brilliant. If you've been enjoying the
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Now let's get back to the pod. People often ask me why I didn't
stay at the Crow's Nest or in the Crow's Nest back in 92.
I went up to have a look. Very steep staircase to get up
into the basically the roof of the of the building of the
clubhouse. Basically it was a 8 bedroom
dormitory with six foot high partitions between the beds.
Single beds, no air conditioning, glass around the
sort of the the sort of the pimple of the roof.
I'm thinking there's no way I'd be able to sleep in here.
Not a chance. I'm a poor sleeper anyway.
But noise, light and it you know it, it's changed dramatically.
I will just qualify this. But at that time, that's what it
was. Now, yes, OK, you'd mix with the
other amateurs and this would be fine.
And. But it just wasn't for me, apart
from anything else, getting all my stuff up that steep
staircase. But I think there are times when
because of the excitement and the adrenaline and the essence
of what the gust is all about, it's quite good to divest
yourself from it at some stage. So you get away and you're back
into peace and quiet and normality almost because it's
it's almost like fairy land. I mean, yeah, you're looking in
different. There's all the rich and famous
and the greatest players in the world.
I mean, to me it's the greatest championship.
And you could argue all you like about U.S.
Open, the the Open Championship, etcetera.
So to me it's the greatest championship of the lot.
You've got the 90 best players easily in the world and some
people go wow, there's only 90 players, there's 130 or
whatever. At the US Mass, U.S.
Open and the Open. You still got the greatest
players on the planet competing and the fact that there's only
90 guys is immaterial, that they're still the greatest
player and it is still the one. To me, it's the one tournament I
would want to win because you're then a member of the most
prestigious club in the world. I mean, they could say yes, they
they are being a member of the RNA.
Well, yes, OK. But it's not like being the
member of, of Augusta National. I'm sorry.
To me, that is I, I, I, I'll be down there everyday.
I've moved to America just to be be able to live there to to be
able to use that that facility because it is just the most
amazing place. Anyway, that's all said.
So we've done the do dinners and practice day Wednesday.
Mister Jack Nicholas wrote to me after I got my invite to say
would I be interested in having a practice round with him?
Yeah, I think I probably would. Greatest player who's ever
lived. Yeah, I think I'd quite enjoy
that. And so we go out and we we play
a fantastic game. But I'm playing with David began
here, who was the US mid amateur champion, an Italian that sort
of sort of had a bit of a mixture of whether it was
American or Italian or whatever. But anyway, and basically
Nicholas and I took on him. I can never remember the name of
the pro that I was also playing with.
But anyway, so Nicholas very kindly loses, I think
deliberately so that he could give his $100 cheque to David
Beganio, which apparently no one has ever cashed.
Yeah, I bet they haven't. He plays, he plays and will lose
every time. I'm pretty certain he does it
deliberately so that there is this wonderful thing that you
can frame for the wall of $100 cheque that you're never going
to cash. So he never actually loses the
money, which unfortunately the other pro decided to take off me
$100. But anyway, I thought, Oh, well,
here we go. Umm, but uh, so fantastic
experience. And normally you then go on to,
uh, play, uh, the, the par three, uh, competition, which I,
I finished and then when, and Nicholas was umm, I think he was
slightly injured. Umm, so he said he wasn't going
to play the par three that particular year.
I don't think he plays in it very often, but anyway, so he
didn't play and I can't remember exactly who I played with that
day, but I played decently well. I guess you have a couple under
on the nowhere near winning obviously, but again, an amazing
experience because you I think the first tee tee off time was
about 1-30, something like that and it goes on all afternoon and
they literally squeeze 30,000 people around this par 3 course
so I didn't. Realize there was as many as
that 30,000 to the par 3. Yeah, they they literally
because they've all gone to watch the practice rounds and
then they all cram back to to see the par 3, which is one of
the the sort of the the big things of the week.
And if you ever watch it on TV, it's always 8D10D every hole.
And you know, you get to see holes in one and amazing stuff.
Particularly now because they're encouraging the players to bring
their children and they played the last hole and their children
will hit a shot or whatever. So again, a hell of an
experience. You know, it's funny, I look
back and apparently US Amateur champions are allowed to go back
to, to compete in the par 3 or they were, you know, every year
if they wanted to. If I was US Amateur champion,
I'd be definitely going back to compete every year.
But I did ask if it was possible for me to be able to go back the
following year and they said no. Got a nice polite leftover, said
not. That's time.
No, sorry. It's only the US Amateur
champions that get the opportunity.
So anyway, I've had this amazing experience of playing with
Nicholas. I've actually been fortunate
enough to play with him a few times.
But that was that was quite special because obviously the
galleries were increased in size to be able to follow Nicholas as
as still one of the great players.
I mean, he'd obviously won the US Masters in 86 and he was
still one of the names it like Tiger is now.
You know, Tiger will always swell every gallery that if he
goes out to compete. So I've I've prepared the best I
possibly can and the the I've been drawn.
They did the draw on the on the Wednesday and I'm drawn with
Arnold Palmer. OK, wow.
I was a bit disappointed, I wanted to play with one of the
current grades and but then all my friends were saying don't be
stupid, he is, he is the king. Yeah.
Absolutely. More I thought about it, I
thought, well yeah, actually I'm, I am really looking forward
to playing with it because obviously I watched Palmer in
his heyday on the telly and stuff like this, and yes, he was
slightly outside of my era as such, but he was certainly my
father's era. So anyway, I was really looking
forward to it. And so come the day of the
tournament, I'm drawn at 10:30 with Mr. Palmer 2 balls in those
days with a redraw after the first round.
So you're done in in score order after the first round, which I
think actually is a brilliant idea, except it could favour
people with regards to weather. Possible share?
Yes you could. Have that, yeah.
To me, I think personally, I think it's, it's the way to go.
But that's just me. And of course it's 3 balls now,
but in those days it was 2 ball. So I've got this intimate game
with one of the greatest players who's ever lived in the game.
So right, get there in nice and early, do a bit of putting, then
I go on the range. Oh, Mr. Wolfstenham, you've got
a parcel arrived. Oh right, that's good.
So this company that makes metal woods has sent me 3 woods
driver, three and five wood. So I said to David, right, just
just just bring, you know, the, the box down and, and so I said
started hitting balls and all of a sudden I feel this presence
behind me and I look round and it's Sebby.
He stood there like this and I've been hitting sort of seven
eyes and stuff, said Gary, You're going to have a great day
and walks off. Well, I'm I'm feeling 10 foot
tall. Come on, savvy, savvy.
My hero has just said he's going to I'm going to have a good day.
You know, he's anyway, so I was hitting it actually pretty good.
So I was I was pretty pleased with myself.
I managed to get from Ping this extraordinary set of irons,
which were brilliant copper Ping eye twos with Apollo gold
graphite shafts. Very eclectic because usually
you know, it was just the steel. I twos with ZZ like shafts which
were one-size-fits-all in those days and so they were beautiful.
Oh my God, they were beautiful, those clubs.
I hope you can. No, you see, the sad part is
when you upgrade your clubs to the, they always want the old
set back, right. And I, I've still got I think
somewhere a brilliant copper pitching wedge from that set.
But it's got, it's got a steel shaft in there because obviously
I went away because the graphite in those days was just nowhere
near what the steel was equivalent wise with regards
consistency. But I think I've still got that
pitching. Well, I might still have got
that pitching wedge still, but there was a very different feel
of those. They were wonderful, wonderful
clubs. Anyway, so I'm hitting these
shots and it's all going nicely and gone through the bag and hit
a few woods. And so I said to David, just get
get those woods out-of-the-box. So he's he's looking at me as
though we can't be the time. So I started hitting these shot.
I get this little baby draw with these shots and they were called
gear for golf, tiny little metal heads.
So anyway, I've, I've hit a few and I've got the driver out and
I've hit in this sort of baby drawer again.
Now you know, you, you, you're going to say this is utter
madness. But I said to him, right, we're
putting those in the bag. I've only hit 4, four or five
shots with each one putting these in the bag.
Is that happening? Is that I'm completely off my
trolley so, but anyway I've said no, we're going to put them in
the bag. So put the others in the box and
we'll take those. You can take those back to the
clubhouse and I'll go and do some more.
And you were you were using Persimmon or was it?
Was using Ping woods. Yeah, it was woods in those
days. It was laminate in those days.
I don't think I'd progressed to metal woods at that stage and I
tinkered with them, but anyway. And how in terms of you card, I
mean, you're very, very processed rather than you're on
top of stuff. Yeah, how unusual As for you to
just say General Wallace, just take his word.
So that's got to be pretty real. It would be for a driver I I'd
normally need to use it a few times to, to feel comfortable in
being able to take these out to, to play in terms same with
putters. I have to feel as though I'm
making putts before I start on the putting green, before I
start, you know, even contemplating taking it out for
competitive golf. But anyway, so that was it.
And I go on the put in green. Davies put the new clubs.
He's still shaking his head as he's come back.
Anyway, I've said right, Peter Alice was my godfather.
So I was very lucky to be able to get some good advice for him
from him, who I've met up with earlier in the week.
And he said, basically, Gary, when you stand on that first
tee, you're going to be nervous. And what you've got to try and
do is slow everything down almost to feeling as though it's
ridiculously slow, slows practice swings, taking your
time, putting the ball on the tee, which was probably good
advice because you know, he's so nervous that he actually just
putting the ball on the Tees, quite a feat.
But he said, just feel as though you're slowing everything down.
And it was the one thing that was in the back of my mind.
So I said to David Wright, I'm going to go down and stand on
the back of the first tee and watch the group in front tee
off, get feel for it. And, you know, so that I'm not
getting too hyped up, just me getting onto the tee.
So I go down to the tee and I'm trying to sort of get onto it
and people are going, yeah, this is my spot, you know, and I've
gone, no, no, I'm, I'm playing in.
So eventually they let me through, go on to the tee and
they go up to the starter, who must have been 80 if a day.
And I go, my name is Gary Wolfsonhammer.
And is it possible because I'm in the next group, is it
possible just to stand on the back of the tee and watch the
current group tee off just to relax me and get me sort of into
the feel of what it's all about? Mr. Wolster, not a problem.
You come and stand with me at the back of the tee.
So I'm looking around and this is fantastic.
Now if somebody said to me, name the two players that teed off in
front of you and I'll give you £1,000,000 per person if you can
name them both, not a chance. I can't remember almost anything
about that because I was more interested in looking around
everything. The extraordinary thing about
Augusta is that on the left hand side of the first tee is a huge
expanse of open grass which is a warm up area for the members or
was for the members coming on. They're just whack a couple of
shots down there and then they tee off and then you've got it's
a huge open area of grass. It's it's sort of belies a lot
of the pictures that you see of the course, which are obviously
tree lined. Yeah, I was going to say it's
the sort of thing that you're doing.
I mean, TV coverage is notorious for not packing up and things,
but that's something that you would have no idea until you
stand in that T that there's absolutely open space.
Yeah, you've got obviously the pristine white buildings and
everything else behind to the right of you, and obviously the
pattern green was behind. And then you've got the Butler
cabin and all the other cabins behind that.
So, but to the left you look down and you can see obviously
the ninth green, and then you can see all the way down to the
12th green and you can actually see the 12th green and the 13th
tee from off the first tee. Wow, didn't realize that.
Now don't forget that the course has sort of changed slightly
since then, but it's, it's the most, you know, you're awed by
the whole view and everything else that's going on because
obviously there's spectators everywhere.
There's about 40,000 people in, in the just for spectators.
And so anyway, I'm stood there and you can obviously then look
back. You see the big scoreboard by
the 9th, which gives you, you know, sort by the 10th fairway
and then you can see the 18th T back and behind you.
That's sorry 18th green back and behind you so again a wonderful
Vista. You know, I wish that you know
you could have got a video camera and just panned across
which of course now you've got phones that can do that.
So anyway, we so they whoever it was no idea, teed off.
And so anyway, the great thing about Augusta National is that
whenever anyone of any note is starting to come towards where
you are, you hear a hubbub and it builds up, builds up because
it's people nudging each other and go oh, sounds, sounds
turning out and it builds up builds because everyone starts
to go and then all of a sudden there's applause and stuff like
this. Now I hadn't noticed that the
gallery round the 18th green that sorry, the first tee and
round that area started to build up all of a sudden, huge cheers.
Arnold Palmer bursts through the crowd, arm aloft, waving, you
know, soaking up the applause and the woohoo and all that sort
of stuff. So anyway, he he comes up the T
age 63 and he is a gargantuan, he's a athlete, big strong guy,
huge hands, etcetera, etcetera. And he's not you're not hugely
tall. I was actually taller than he
was, but you know, he almost looks like a giant just by the
way he's walked up. So of course goes up to the
start of shakes his hand. The has starter said Mr. Palmer.
I have waited my entire life to do this and Palmer turns to me.
He goes, well, I'm glad we both made it then because obviously
you can see he was 80 or whatever.
So they start with have a bit of a laugh and then the starter
turns to me and he said, Mr. Palmer, this is your playing
partner for the day, Mr. Woolstonham.
Palmer immediately puts out this bare paw and shakes my hand And
he he said, I knew your father very well.
He's a great guy. I'm really looking forward to
playing with you today. Nice.
Couldn't wipe the smile off my face like, you know.
So anyway, he's then chatting with his caddy etcetera.
Right? Four please on the tee.
Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmer aged 63 with a
steel shafted Persimmon headed driver rips it 290 plus yards
straight down the middle. Crowd go absolutely bonkers.
Bonkers and he's waving and then walks back to his caddy and it
starts to subside and I'm looking around and thinking oh
crap, it's my turn. So I go across the David who
stood with my bag and my brand new driver hands it to me.
And he said, for God's sake, don't miss it.
Up until that very second, it had never occurred to me that I
might miss the ball. It was ha ha, ha, ha ha like
this. But all of a sudden it's put in
the back of my mind actually. I'm not sure Washington would
have that idea. Certain man Washington.
But I said just go and smash it. So it's quite an intimidating
T-shirt anyway, because it sort of goes down and then back up.
Got bunker on the right hand side, trees on the left and I've
got a lot of adrenaline running and it Peter's Peter Alice's
sort of advice is ringing through my ears.
Slow it down, slow it down. Anyway, I'm somehow managed to
get the ball on the tee and so I go through my process, but I'm
swear to you it's gone like that.
It's a blur. As I look up, I see the ball
sailing straight down the middle 260 odd yards, which is way
longer than I could have possibly expected.
And I I have got so much adrenaline that I literally
start to run off the tee because the crowd are all going like
this. It's almost as if someone had
just, you know, put one of those adrenaline shots in your heart.
And I was laughing. Yeah.
All of a sudden, I've got to the end of the tea and realized that
everyone else is looking at me as though, what is he doing?
You know, I had to stop myself and wait for everybody to sort
of, you know, catch me up if you like.
But I must have run 20 yards. I was so excited that I hit this
a fantastic T-shirt. Best one probably of the whole
day. The adrenaline obviously had a
lot to do with it, but so we get down onto the fairway and I'm a
good 30 yards behind Palmer and I've hit probably the best tee
shot all year and I've got a 5 iron in set this 5 iron and no,
it's actually less than that. I got 7 and I was thinking well
I've got adrenaline going so I think it was 7.
And of course in those days it was nowhere near as long as it
is now. The golf course from when I
first played in 92 to to playing in 2004 had increased in
distance from about 7000 yards in 92 to 7, four and plus.
So it was it was very nearly 75 when I played it the second
time. So pretty much it's lengthened
again since. And obviously now they groom the
fairways from green to tea. So it's not as pretty.
I'm not kidding. It is.
It was the most pristine, beautiful looking because they
have mowers that do red like Red Arrows bits and it's it was
Immaculate. I mean David and I in one of the
practice round tried to find first person to find a weed or a
piece of grass that was out of out of place.
We literally we had to go slightly off piece to find a
great piece of grass that was not uniform length.
It was even the pine needles under the trees are raked
perfectly that it is the most Immaculate golf course.
It is pristine and the greens were running at 13 plus in the
practice round and they got them down to about 12 1/2 for the
tournament. So anyway, seven I've come up
short because obviously it was probably a little bit too little
club and I'm about 20 feet short.
Putting uphill not a problem. Pins back left Mr. Palmer's it
is 9/9 which has gone past the flag, but he's he's long and
left so of the flag. So he's putting back down from
probably about I was 20 feet, he was probably about 1212 1/2.
So anyway, I have I'm not kidding.
I was putting phenomenally. I knew those greens inside out.
I had practiced for an hour prior to teeing off.
I mean, I've got those greens. So I hit the putt and it's
uphill left to right and like, oh, it's just going to miss
left. And I'm watching it and I'm
thinking, hold on a minute. It's it's keeping going.
It goes 6 1/2 foot past. So I've now got a downhill left
to right. Wow, really?
So Palmer puts his four foot past, I miss, he misses.
So we've both paid birdie having had hit our best tee shots and
good shots into the greens. It's that tableau of stalking up
to the second tee and the second fortune is par 5.
So we had to wait because the group in front had just teed off
and obviously it was a reachable par 5 for some guys.
So I'm stood at the back of the tee.
Mr. Palmer stood at the front. David and the other caddies sort
of stood off to the side and you could have created a tableau
with bubble going out of each person's head.
Mr. Palmer, his bubble would have had.
They always put me with an amateur.
Why do they put me with an amateur?
I'm stood at the back of the team.
My bubble would read, Oh my God, I'm going to shoot 100.
Yeah, I'm thinking, yeah, I've had a tough time at Shoal Creek
because it's been wet. The goal, the course is playing
quite long and I'm thinking I'm just, I'm just, you know, I'm
going to shoot 100. David my caddy bubble, I could
have stayed I could have stayed back in the office and you know
this is going to be embarrassing.
He's going to shoot 100. I could be making money back in
the office. So we're all stood there for
about 10 minutes. And so anyway, Parma whacks one
down, I whack one down short of the bunker on the right hand
side. So good position 5 would down to
leave myself a nice wedge shot. And I'll never forget there was
a guy sort of squatting on these sort of little seat behind the
flag. So it was right in line with the
flag. And I've hit this shot and it's
absolutely perfect. Strike, little pitch shot
probably about 110 yards, something like that.
And he's gone like this. I'm not kidding you.
Apparently it went right up to the edge of the hole and then
screwed back to six feet. So crowd got, yeah, bonkers a
hole it. So I'm back to level par.
So much more chirpy now. On the second tee.
I had a decent tee shot down just left of sorry, just right
of the bunkers on the left hand side of the fairway and I'm
thinking right. I don't want to start spinning
the ball too much. I'll hit 99 and just hit a three
quarter 99, knock it up to about 14 feet hole it.
Oh, and the car next hole, par 5, par three, rather hit a
decent shot onto the green and two-part 4th hole, hard par 4
for me, very hard hole. So anyway, yeah, the 5th hole
rather, yeah. So I've got down to par 5 and
I've, I've hit two good shots, but on the green and I hit two
of the best putts. So anyway, it's funny because we
were chatting away and so we're getting down there and Dave is
getting sort of, you know, getting into the, the rhythm of
giving yardages and all that sort of thing.
So there's no lasers or anything like that.
So I'm now I'm still under par for the round.
And so the next hole, good par 36 hole pins on the left hand
side play a nice shot down, just lip out was close.
So we get to 7 and I play good T shot, but it's only a short par
4 now. It's a brutal hole.
It's really long with an elevated green.
Anyway, play a great pitch shot with about 879 something like
that onto the green. Goes up to about 8 feet.
Hole it now 2 under. And that's a tough clean as
well. It's it's a hard, edible slap
player. I played a great approach on to
the right. A lot of the time there's an
element of luck, you know, a controlling the spin, B getting
it into the right area to give yourself 1/2 decent chance.
But I mean, as I was, I keep harboring you.
I was a very good putter. So the greens didn't intimidate
me and Julie, apart from obviously that the first.
Interestingly, we then found out that what they do is they triple
freaky the first green, hence why I finished sixth half feet
past because they make it faster than the rest of the greens and
basically it's to disrupt you scoring.
And you see that every year, especially on the Sunday
actually, that there's so many people but this.
One of the reasons, you know, this experience is the the
people that have won there before or played a lot and done
well invariably continue to do well.
I mean, Lang has, yeah, he belied his age.
You know, a lot of the guys that, you know, Freddy couples
belies his age when he was going back there in his 50s and he's
still making the cut and doing well with some good scores.
Same with Langa. So anyway, so I, I then get this
scenario of all right, so that's why it, the ball's gone that
far. But anyway, I I'd soon gone back
into it. And so I'm now 2 under and I get
to 8, which is a brutal hole. It, it's the steepest fairway
that you can imagine. I mean literally it it's caddies
almost need a defibrillator at the top.
So I've hit my tee shot down, I'm sure to the bunker.
I can't reach the bunker on the right hand side, so that's fine.
Playing next shot up and I hit a time in and I play it a perfect
shot with a little bit of draw so it skips forward down to the
flag. So all of a sudden I've got
about another 6-7 footer hole it I'm now three under having three
putted the first. So anyway, we get to 9 and I've
pulled my tee shot just a fraction to trying to get it to
go down the hill. No chance I've got 4 iron in
now. You know when you see people
playing that hole, it's all like wedges, 9 irons, 8 iron,
something like that at most. I.
Think Rory smashed the name The Trees last year?
Right, well there you go. So I'm making 4 iron in there
and I've got to come in over the bunker because the pins are sort
of mid, yeah, middle of the green, pretty much in the middle
tier. And I've got it drawing round
the trees beautifully. Lands on the green, but of
course there's no chance of getting it to stop, so it's now
finished just off the back of the green.
Palmer's played two great shots onto the green.
That's fine. And I'm looking at this and you
know, the analogy of marble staircase and trying to stop it
halfway down. That's exactly what it was like.
Again, I'm a good chipper. So anyway, fortunately I play
the most sublime chip probably I've ever hit in my life.
And I've chipped it just onto the green.
It's just checked up and it's dribbled down to about 2 1/2,
three feet, 3 feet. I am anyway, So I'm pretty
pleased, as you can imagine. And Palmer comes up and he and
as we're passing, he goes, he says, Gee, that, that that was a
great shot because he knew how hard it was as well.
Anyway, so I'm still there every I'm thinking, please don't miss
it. Please don't miss it.
Anyway, fortunately I hold it. So I'm pretty perky as I've come
off the green and some wag in the crowd shouts Don't look at
the leaderboard. Was a huge leaderboard.
Just so your card in the first tier.
Sort of stuff. Course, what do you do?
You straight up like this. I'm leading the tournament.
Wow. And I've got this picture of one
of the people who met sort of looks after the the leaderboard
on that particular hole leaning out like this.
And again, you could have the bubble coming out of the top of
his head. Who the hell is this guy?
And why is his name so long? Well, yeah, it, I think they go
in in the whole thing. They don't.
They have to put each letter out.
But anyway, though, I'm leading the tournament and I'm feeling
good. I have to be honest.
I mean, I know that sounds pretty obvious, but you know, I
wasn't nervous anymore. I was, I was playing proper,
proper golf and you know, I was doing it all as I should be.
So I get on to the next tee, don't quite draw the tee shot
enough and I'm, I'm stuck on the slope and I'm having to to 3
iron in and unfortunately I'm on a down slope.
But normally what tends to happen is you if you're hitting
a long iron in because it's a long hole, it's as long.
Well, it's as long as some of the par fives the 10th.
But obviously with it being downhill, it doesn't play it.
But anyway, so I'm hitting three and I've just gutted out into
the right hand bunker gutted play a great bunker shot out
which stops. Don't ask me what how it stopped
because as I say, the greens are running pretty darn quick and
it's not an easy bunker shot and it's crushed marble the the
sand. So it's very hard to get a lot
of spin. You know, technically it has to
be Immaculate to get spin, but you know, it's it's it's almost
blinding. Actually, if if the sun's out,
it's almost blinding. You almost need to put your dark
glasses on to play bunker shots. But anyway, I played a good
bunker shot out and I lit out and I actually thought I'd hold
it and it just, it took the whole did a almost a not quite a
360. But anyway, to cut a Long story
short, I mean, it's a brutal hard course, but I've, I'm
coming up 17 level path. So I've made a couple of bogeys,
which obviously 10 was a tough one to make. 11's a hard hole
for me. 14's quite a hard hole for me because I've obviously
got a play quite a long iron into a green which really only
need you. You need to be hitting a
relatively short iron to be able to control the spin and get
yourself into a position on the right tier because again, you
don't realize how slopey these greens are.
They are incredibly slopey greens and obviously very quick.
So anyway, I've, I've, I've come down must tell you about 16 par
3. So anyway, I played the five
iron pins back right and I played it on to the right team.
Mr. Palmer's slightly long left hard cut.
And we've it's a massive gallery.
As I said, we must have had probably 1200 people just
following our particular game. So whenever the gallery was for
that particular hole, it's swelled by 12 by 1200, following
Palmer. I'd like to think it was
following me, but it obviously wasn't.
So anyway, Mr. Palmer's whacked this shot onto the backup and
he's got a putt first. So he's got about a 2528 footer
and I'm stood there. And again, what happens is the
patrons recognize a good shot or a good putt in particular,
because they've seen over and over again people putting all
around the hole. So they know whether a putt's a
good putt or a bad putt. Anyway, Palmer's hit this putt
and it's it's climbed the hill and it started to turn.
I'm looking at it and I'm thinking, do you know what
that's going to be close? And as the ball comes towards
the hole, the hubbub starts to build, build and build.
In it goes makes 2 Palmer holding his putter aloft.
Like this crowd are going absolutely bonkers.
I thought it was bad enough on the first tee, but literally
even now it gives me goosebumps relating this story because I
couldn't hear anything other than a uniform deafening sound.
Even when I've been to football matches I have never experienced
anything quite like that. In that I could feel the sound
through the soles of my shoes. It was absolutely unbelievable
and lasted for 2-3 minutes. It was deafening.
Anyway, it's my turn and I lip out for A2 as well.
God if that had gone in. I've had them on Monday.
What everyone was saying. Anyway, we're walking to the
17th T, which I'm going to relate to, and there's a guy in
in left hand side as Palmer's passing him.
Honey, honey, you're the man like this.
Which amused me because I've never actually heard anyone say
that in real life. And as I walk past, he goes and
you're the man too. What's we're cracking up as
we're getting on to 17th tea, David McCarthy said to Palmer.
Palmer's very deaf. He's got hearing aids in both
ears, he said. Arnie, it's no wonder you need
hearing aids if you're going to have that sort of reaction every
time you play a world class shot.
So we all laugh about that as well.
Anyway, Palmer blitzes one down. I hit decent one down, very
hard, tee shot 17, got trees left and right and it's uphill
so you've got a lot of pressure and again I'm hitting quite a
long club in. I'm in three iron again and it
just squeaks through the back edge.
Pins sort of back left and I chip in, chip in for a three.
So I'm back to under par and Palmer again comes.
And the great thing about Palmer was he was enjoying my game as
much as he was enjoying his own. And yeah, we were complementing
each other on shots. And you know, it was just, it
was just a great day. It was 2 mates going out to play
golf on a custom National, which is, you know, a bit surreal.
But anyway, so me to tee off, hit one down there and middle of
the fairway again, great, really good tee shot.
Palmer's hit one down there and I'm not quite sure what to play.
I've either got to hit 5 iron hard or A4 iron easy.
Now. Again, the holes completely
transform now because even in 2004 I was hitting a full on
five wood, so it was obviously playing significantly longer.
But actually what it did do is it brought the bunkers into play
for the longer hitters. You know, obviously we'll never
forget somebody Lao playing his bunker shot out of on 18 to win
the tournament. But it brought the bunkers into
play. Whereas now, I suppose it does
now because the guy's hitting it insane distances.
But I couldn't get it across the walkway in 2004, I was just
literally on the walkway going across the fairway.
So I'm hitting five wood full out to try and get it on the
green, try and pitch it on the front and get it to scoot up.
But anyway, so I've got to make a decision and I choose 5I
sorry, choose 4 iron, hit it easy.
Of course I don't bring the club face in to square it up quite
enough. Finishes in the right hand
bunker splash out to about 5 feet.
Good bunker shot and lip out. So that finishes level par.
So obviously we shake hands. I've shot level par.
Mr. Palmer shot 75. So anyway, I asked when I go
into the recorder's office if it's possible to have that card.
Him signed it. They gave me a photocopy, which
is quite the same. They keep all the cards
apparently. Really.
I would love to have that card that's.
Been a classic one, yeah, because.
Again, it relates the story as I tell it.
So anyway, then I come out and I've got, they didn't really
have a press center in those days.
And literally, I gave my, you know, sort of press interview
outside, sat on the chair underneath the beautiful tree
outside the clubhouse. And I must have had, I don't
know, 30 people, you know, taking notes and, you know,
taking recordings and stuff like that, asking me.
And I must have been there for 40 minutes.
Loved every minute of it. Obviously, it was a great day
anyway. But still to this day that is I
can remember every shot, every moment.
The story, obviously the number of stories that, you know, sort
of revolve around what went on. It's yeah, I've done other great
things, you know, obviously winning the amateur and the
Eisenhower and stuff like that. But to me, that was the greatest
days golf I've ever had in my life because for for all the
reasons of, you know, where it was, what it means to me, the
situation in my career at that stage, you know, obviously an
incredible, incredible experience.
So I always look at it and they go, well, that that to me is is
what it was all about. That's why I play golf.
So obviously we then move on to 2004 and we've got one the
amateur really well, a 12 year split never been done before
between, you know, winning the amateur.
That was a royal true fantastic experience.
Played some of the best golf probably through a whole week
that I've I've ever done again, a fantastic golf course,
fantastic golf course. And it, it meant more to me then
from the point of view that I knew what it, it, the rewards
were. Couldn't wait to go back to
Augusta again. And I did it slightly
differently. Obviously I was in a different
situation. I was the manager of a Golf
Club, Killer Springs, in the Midlands.
And, you know, I had more time to be able to devote.
I was playing a lot of golf in those days.
So I was better prepared in in some ways and stayed in a house
actually in Augusta itself. And I had, I don't know, eight
friends, one of which Colin Edwards, who was an
international colleague of mine to caddy for me.
And could, would, could I have all, on reflection, would I have
done things differently? Yes, I probably would.
But it was still a fantastic experience.
I played with Briny Baird and Tom Watson.
I was lucky enough to play with Tom Watson a few times in my
career, an amazing man. He lost his caddy literally the
day before his old caddy and he didn't turn up on the tea on
time and he was then escorted onto the tee and we thought we
were going to play A2 ball. But anyway he did turn up.
It was we teed off 10 minutes late but and no one really told
me at the time. I thought it was a bit strange
but no one actually told me at the time what had happened.
It's only afterwards that I found out that he'd lost his
cavity, which was obviously he was an absolute gentleman,
fantastic to play with under the circumstances of what had
happened. And I shot 757676.
I had a treble and a double, no birdies.
And in the 75, you know, obviously I sort of had a bit of
a an up and down day, but 76 with without any birdies was
with a traveler and a double and I traveled the first.
So it just shows you that first hole always was going to be
difficult for me. But a much longer, I mean, I was
hitting five wood into the green.
You know, it's a sorry, sorry, I hit 5 iron into the green,
missed it right and didn't get up and down and obviously
started to make all sorts of hash UPS and and Watson came
across. He said look, don't worry about
it, you'll be fine. I said, look, don't worry about
me. I've been around the block a few
times. Don't you don't need to worry
about me. Now whether that's came across
wrong or not, but it didn't affect the way that I was going
to play. Obviously I was disappointed to
start so badly, but that's just the way it goes.
But because I think he didn't want me to shoot 90 to put him
off basically, but that that wasn't really going to happen.
But you know, Augusta is. So the good thing is to to go
back to 92. I shot obviously 72 first round.
I was 30th or something round about 30th after the first
round. So I had quite a late draw and
you know, it's it's funny how players completely different.
But the second day unfortunately birded the last to shoot 79.
So I actually haven't shot worse than 79 in any of the four
rounds that I played. But I haven't made the cut.
So does that matter? Not really, I suppose.
But you know, when you see some guys who have quite catastrophic
rounds, you know, it's just a shame sometimes that you you can
appreciate what they're going through.
It's a completely new experience.
It's it's nerve wracking, etcetera, etcetera.
As I say, a lot of the time, some people's first round can be
pretty bad. Less so now because I think
players are much more capable of playing that golf course because
they hit the ball so far. Yeah.
That anyway, so it's, it's the ultimate experience.
I've always said to people, whatever happens, if you are a
lover of golf, you must go to Augusta National and play some
golf beforehand and then go and watch the Masters, make a trip
of it. Yeah, go into Atlanta, play some
courses around Atlanta or yeah, in that region, and then drive
down to Augusta and go and watch one of the practice rounds.
It is an experience you will never regret.
You'll be able to get your souvenirs.
You've watched some of the the shots, played intercourse in on
the course that you've known all your life.
So it's it's just the most extraordinary.
It's not unreasonable getting your tickets hard, but that it
is possible. Companies can get you tickets.
But yes, it's an amazing, amazing experience and it's
something that, you know, I'd love to do it again.
Even just to go back and walk those fairways again.
I would love to do that and follow.
I don't know what's Justin Rose win the tournament would be one
of my great emotional moments because I think he's been so
unlucky and obviously known Justin since he was 15.
I would love to see him when the Masters, but you know, just to
be able to go back there and and see the clubhouse and how the
course has changed. I'd love to do that.
I absolutely would. But you know, obviously I've
been lucky to go twice and I've got some souvenirs which are
amazing. And yeah, I've, I've been very,
very fortunate, very fortunate indeed.
And that is my my favorite. I haven't been able to extol it
as much as I would do because, you know, so much went on that
week. I wasn't really able to sort of
tell everything in the time that we've had.
But it was just, and it goes by so quick.
One thing I'll say to any amateur who qualifies, try and
live for every second of that week because you might never get
another opportunity to go. But some of the great pros have
never been to Augusta. I know and I think that the
advice that Pierre Alice gave you, daddy, whether you felt
that you adhere to or no, I'm sure that we still felt like A
blog, but you've clearly you have taken the time to look
around and take things and remember it and and savor and
your treasure it the rest of your life.
That's so. Nice.
It's digitally, completely and utterly etched in my brain
because it's. I can literally still visualize
everything. Yeah, I can visualize it from
pictures that I've seen that were taken by David Cannon.
It was a good friend of mine from Getty Images.
And I can also see it from the personal experience of, you
know, actually being there. I can still vividly remember,
you know, all the various bits. And you know, the great thing
about Augusta is, you know, I've got a picture with Jackson
Stevens, who was the chairman of Augusta National in 92 and
Arnold Palmer on the first tee. It is.
It's just not, it's never been done that the chairman of
Augusta National would come down and have a picture take.
But I happen to give Jackson Stevens a gift to say thank you
for inviting me to the masters. And I think he was genuinely
touched. Genuinely touched.
So he came down and had a picture taken with us, which
was, again, another slightly surreal moment of that thirsty
experience. But yeah, it's just one.
It just so many things, you know, as I say, I could have
been arrested on the first day I arrived and being in jail for
the night, you know what a story that would have been.
But anyway, so it's it's one of those things where you you just
go forwards and go, well, if nothing else happened in my
life, at least I've had that and I've had some amazing things
happen. You know, obviously winning the
Eisenhower and winning the amateur twice.
And you know, lots of other stuff, you know, like the number
of caps and, you know, interviews that I've had and
people I play golf with and places I've been to.
You know, I was lucky enough, you know, to meet AUS president
in, you know, George Bush, the, the senior when he came down to
Sea Ireland for the Walker Cup, just prior to the Walker Cup,
you know, met the Queen, had an MBE.
You know, these things are just stuff that I treasure massively.
I, I, I've, I've got rid of a lot of my memorabilia now, which
is sad in some respects, but I haven't got space for it all.
I was always a collector of stuff.
And, you know, I look at it and I go, well, at least I've got
those memories and I hope I'm able to retain them.
And, you know, if I have Alzheimer's, one of the things
that people will at least be able to ask me is what was the
gust tonight? Because I swear to you, I'd be,
I'd be decimated if I ever forgot that, that, you know,
those two trips. But the first one in particular
is just every shot, every shot I can remember every shot, umm,
and uh, you know, just the experience, you know, of, of,
umm, it's a shame in some respects.
I wasn't doing it in an era where they did interviews or
showed my round on TV because they didn't, uh, I don't think I
saw a single shot of mine, uh, on TV and they didn't do
recordings and you know, you only saw the back nine.
Well, of course they weren't going to show my back nine
particularly, but having said that, if an amateur did what I'd
done, they'd have been showing quite a lot of it.
Yeah. On Sky.
So that's, it's slightly different era.
Golf course is obviously completely different.
It's it was way more beautiful in those days because that that
pristine cutting of the fairways just looks and looked amazing.
Now it, it doesn't look quite as pretty.
I always wondered whether they go back to the crisscross
cutting for the members. I suppose they would do, but for
the tournament proper, obviously they groom it from green to tea.
But you know, just to have been part of of that tournament is
just amazing. And you know, I still, I still
love telling the story. I love telling the story.
Absolutely. And thanks so much for sharing
it with me. And it's been a real privilege
to hear the first time. Thank you.
Well. I've enjoyed it and you know,
obviously it's just as I say, we scratched the surface invariably
of, of things that I've I've been able to do within the game.
But you know, those those particular trips were very, very
special. You know, as amateur champion
you get lots of benefits. But prior to the second one, we
had the match, they got the Georgia Cup, which is the US
Amateur champion, played the amateur champion on the Lakes
course at the Golf Club of Jordan.
You made an unremember. So I had to play Nick Flanagan
in, in this televised event head on match play.
And I happened to play particularly well because Nick
had, he's an Australian who won the US Amateur.
So it was a bit surreal not playing an American.
But you know, again, I played particularly well that
particular tournament more that that match.
I managed to win three and two. So my name's on the the the
board in the got a Golf Club of Georgia, which and I can always
go back there, which is rather nice.
But yeah, so fantastic things that happen, you know, when you
win an amateur championship, it's just about being able to
have the presence of mind to fully enjoy it.
Absolutely. Big, big piece of advice for
anyone who wins the amateur in the future.
Well, thanks so much for sharing that story, Gary.
It's been brilliant to listen to it first hand.
Thank you. My pleasure.
Not at all. I'd like to thank Gary
Wolstenholme for the support of the pod and for sharing his
incredible master stories with us.
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