I’ve often had a quiet fascination with professional golf, which might be somewhat surprising since I don’t even play the game, I don't know a bogey from a birdie, and I seldom, if ever, watch golf on television. Yet, I find myself drawn to the personal, inspirational, and heartwarming stories of some professional golfers; partly because I’m curious about other people’s lives—or ‘nosy,’ as my daughter Heather would say. Some pro golfers’ personal stories perk you up and help you feel optimistic, and happy for the golfer—even if you wish it was you, not them, winning the money. Sometimes these stories are poignant, heartbreaking, or uplifting. Sometimes the golfer’s positive attitude, even in defeat, is just inspiring.
The latest pro golfer to get my attention is the U. K.’s Darren Clarke from Northern Ireland, who on Sunday, July 17, 2011, at the age of 42, won what is reportedly his first major—and it just happened to be the British Open on his home turf. He's the latest in a seemingly magical trio of recent pro golf victors, in fairly quick succession, from Northern Ireland. In June 2011, less than a month before Clarke took the British Open yesterday, his fellow Northern Irishman, 22-year-old Rory McIlroy, won the 2011 U. S. Open. Now Clarke and McIlroy, 20 years apart in age, both have one major win under their belts. And in 2010 another of their countrymen, Graeme McDowell, also won the U. S. Open. Clarke, McIlroy, and McDowell have shown there might some truth to the old adage that good things come in threes.
I didn’t watch the British Open on television, and I've since learned Clarke's personal and professional narratives are the stuff of inspiration. For instance, it’s been widely reported that his wife Heather died of breast cancer in 2006, the day before his 38th birthday. We can assume, then, the intervening years have not all been happy ones for this ruddy-faced and seemingly good-natured Northern Irishman. Yet, Clarke persevered, through whatever obstacles he had to endure--if he wanted to still have a life after his wife, sadly, lost hers; and he came out on top, personally and professionally, with the 2011 British Open victory and the winner’s purse of roughly U.S. $1.4 million.
Various news reports claim some sports writers and even some other pro golfers had Clarke down for the count in the past; with at least one even predicting his career was all but over. In this context, Clarke’s 2011 British Open win might seem like sweet vindication for him, if he thinks in those terms. Writing in the Los Angeles Times, Bill Dwyre nicely suggested the winning moment for Clarke at Sunday’s British Open was extraordinary when this “42-year-old man with thinning gray hair, a beer belly and a wonderfully aged golf swing tapped in a three-inch putt for the happiest bogey of his life.”
Clarke’s presence and play at the British Open seem inevitably linked--personally and professionally--to his friend and golf pal, Phil Mickelson, who tied for second place. Some published reports indicate Mickelson and his wife Amy were two of Clarke’s staunchest friends and supporters after his wife died in 2006. One of the most poignant, published stories from that time portrays Clarke preparing to walk alone, along with the Mickelsons, into the opening ceremonies at the 2006 Ryder Cup tournament in Dublin—just two months after the death of Clarke’s wife. Ken Fidlin of QMI Agency reports Clarke fought back tears as he recalled the Mickelsons' act of friendship at that moment: “Amy stood in the middle and held both our hands and we walked in together…I can’t say anything more than that.”
Just two years later Amy Mickelson was also stricken with breast cancer, as was Darren Clarke’s wife Heather before she died. Amy Mickelson reportedly has recovered, and Phil Mickelson has been widely quoted as praising Clarke for his help and support after Amy became ill; referring to Clarke as tremendous, and a good friend. It seems fitting, then, that these two friends would end the British Open so close together in the final standings: first and second.
In this regard, I’m reminded of my English professor's advice about the importance of context, when I was in university some years ago. If we're reading and considering a poem, she said, having some background information about the poet can provide context, or a framework, to the poem itself; helping us appreciate the poem more than otherwise, because we might understand the circumstances in which it was written. So it also is with pro golf. Knowing something about Clarke’s and Mickelson’s history with each other can help us appreciate the 'bigger picture,' and why a certain situation or victory might be especially meaningful to either of them.
McIlroy’s tale is as inspiring as Clarke’s, if only because of his age. “…McIlroy is still only 22. He is fit, he is ambitious and, most importantly of all, he now knows he can win on the game's biggest stage. The sky truly is the limit,” said Lawrence Donegan in The Guardian. In collecting U.S. $1.44 million with his U.S. Open win, upping his pro dollar tally thus far to U.S. $11.1, McIlroy isn’t doing too badly financially, either.
Even those who don’t win, like Phil Mickelson at this year’s British Open, can also be inspirational because of their attitude alone. Mickelson has never won a British Open and in tying for second place this year, he was just a little behind his friend, the new champ, Darren Clarke. Mickelson is no stranger to winning, however—he’s won four major championships and has other previous victories too—but he reportedly really wanted 2011’s British Open.
Yet, even in defeat, yet again at the British Open, Mickelson apparently was humorous and inspirational, with his professionalism and good sportsmanship coming through loud and clear. With his final score close but not quite in top spot, he reportedly quipped good-naturedly: “That was some of the most fun that I've had competitively," according to Jeff Shain in the L. A. Times. That classy attitude can be a good lesson for fellow golfers and athletes in other sports—rookies or experienced. Mickelson implicitly made a case for trying to just enjoy playing golf, or any sport; win or lose.
Then there’s Tiger Woods who, as the PGA's perceived key asset, damaged his own reputation and the image of golf itself in the past couple of years; and who could stand to learn a bit about humility and grace in public. We’ve seen him on television throwing temper tantrums and golf clubs on a golf course, and even spitting on one course—for which he later apologized for behaving disrespectfully on a course; or maybe because he got caught on camera. His tawdry personal indiscretions outside his marriage, culminating in his divorce shortly after they became public knowledge, were wrongly allowed to overshadow the game and other players’ achievements.
Amazingly, many people even wondered if pro golf would survive without Tiger Woods, when he started taking time off for personal reasons and physical failings, such as injuries. Is pro golf out of the Woods yet after the ongoing, discouraging Tiger tales? I think the PGA seems healthier with him out of the limelight. By contrast, recent uplifting stories about other players are a refreshing antidote to the negativity inflicted on the game by Woods. Now we can rightly savor the positive stories and efforts of Darren Clarke, Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson, and Graeme McDowell, to name just a few of the many out there who merit attention for all the right reasons.
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