‘There’s just two things you need to know. I don’t give swing tips, and I don’t look for balls’. With that Nick Faldo strode down the first fairway, leaving his Pro-Am partner behind him even more nervous
Pro-Ams are a pretty important part of a tour week. Maybe not for the players or the general public, but for event organisers they are a valuable source of income; for sponsors they are a great way to entertain clients; and for participants they can provide lifelong memories. A picture of my Dad alongside Sam Torrance, Eamon Darcy and Russ Abbot (Google him kids) at the Wang Four Stars (Google it kids) had pride of place in our front room for years!
Stories like the Faldo one can fill a Pro-Am participant with trepidation, as if we aren’t worried enough about the horror that could unfold very publicly. But in my experience the reality is different.
I played in the Legends Tour event in Mauritius today. My pro partner was the Kiwi, Michael Long, who was charm personified and very keen to put us all at ease.
Celebrating another missed putt at the Legends Pro-Am
The format was a fourball ‘shamble’. On every hole you pick the best drive from your team of four and you all play your own ball in from there. The best two Stableford scores then count on each hole.
The good thing about this format is that it doesn’t really matter if you are having a nightmare. You’re pretty much always going to be playing from a great spot into the green. And on the par 3s it should be birdie putts all round. It also means that not everyone needs to finish every hole or hole every putt. And thank the Lord for that.
I’ve played in Pro-Ams before where the format has been less forgiving and yet some players have been determined to finish everything (‘but there’s the individual prize to win’!!). If you’re lucky enough to be teeing it up with one of the world’s best players, please don’t.
Michael was great this morning. He even said, ‘Today is all about you’. He sounded like he meant it, but luckily none of us took him too literally. Staying out of your pro’s way is important. Sometimes literally as well as metaphorically.
Charl Schwartzel was playing in the Valspar tournament on the PGA Tour a few years ago when his Pro-Am partner took a swipe at the ball. It ricocheted off a tree hitting Schwartzel hard in the hand causing him to retire with immediate effect. There is no record of how the team scored without him. But you really, really don’t want to be that guy.
Of course, human nature kicks in and you do put extra pressure on yourself. But don’t forget, no-one really cares. Actually that’s not true. The pros don’t really care how you play. They just want you to have a good time. Sometimes your other amateur partners are more concerned. I have had some look at me with undisguised derision as I’ve failed to make a short putt, as if I had really ruined their day. Again, don’t be that guy.
And don’t be the amateur I once played with, a high single digit player, who tried to give a swing tip to a major winner. I mean, what on earth was he thinking?!
Of course, there is a certain obligation on the pro to jolly things along, and most play their part. If a player doesn’t do their bit then the news does feed back. There are tales of the DP Tour pulling their members up after complaints from Pro-Am participants about their monosyllabic star pro.
Sometimes, however, this will be the only time a pro will see the venue before a tournament, so you can understand why they might be a little bit more interested in the course than in you. But still, at most tournaments, the Pro-Am event pays for more than a few courtesy cars, so they should do their bit.
Pros will often give swing tips. Michael gave my playing companion a chipping lesson when the 5-handicapper said he had the short game of a 20-handicapper. It was appropriate and well received.
A friend of mine somehow played in four Pro-Ams in one season and said that every pro he played with felt obliged to give him a tip so by the end of the year he was totally lost and had no idea what to do. The road to hell is paved with good intentions…
The pros who go into it with open minds are probably the ones who give most joy. A friend of mine once got paired with Phil Mickelson in a Scottish Open. He absolutely loved it. He said Phil was completely invested in him. What did he do? How did he and his wife meet? What places in Scotland should Phil visit? They had an actual conversation and my friend said he felt like Phil was genuinely interested (he actually took notes on restaurants!). He is now fully in the pro-Phil camp.
Our team did just fine today. The course was a challenge, but not unplayable by any means, and was in great condition. We had it going hot on the front nine, tailed off in the back nine and the less said about the end, the better. But we had great fun. And a lot of that was down to Michael.
If truth be told, I didn’t know a lot about Michael Long before the round. But after spending a few hours in his company today I’ll be rooting for him this week.
