My Round of Golf With Payne Stewart

I had the opportunity to play a round of golf with Payne during the third round of the 1984 Memphis Open. I was just a rookie and was more than happy to have made the cut after a pretty good round on Friday. I finished the 18th hole, knowing that would be around for the weekend, which was a big deal for me. I remember heading for the range with a smile on my face and talking to some of my buddies who had also made the cut. It was like a fraternity out there, you kinda rooted for the other young players to make the cut with you.

Anyway, after hitting a bucket of balls I proceeded to head for my hotel and enjoyed a celebratory dinner of Prime Rib, Shrimp and a dessert that Wolfgang Puck could not have re-created. An hour or so went by and I decided to call the Tournament office to see what time I was going to tee off. They told me 11:15. I said, "great"!

I arrived at the course earlier than normal, since I was excited about Saturday's round. When I looked at the pairings, I noticed that I was going to be teeing it up with Payne Stewart. "Wow", I thought, he is a great player, even though he hadn't won his US Opens yet. A very interesting fact that I'll bet none of you readers know is that Payne finished 11th on the PGA Tours money list in 1984 with only $288,795 dollars won. Guess who was the money leader in 1984? Ok, Give up? Well, it was Tom Watson with $476,000 plus a few dollars. Wow, the Tour has sure changed since then. I mean, look at $5 million dollars for Tiger. The game has changed.

Ok, Ok, I am rambling, let me get back to Payne. We meet on the first tee, he was very friendly and was dressed in his usual attire when he was licensed with the NFL, so he was wearing knickers and an NFL golf shirt. I will never forget the round. We started on a par five and I remember making birdie on one and for some unfortunate reason Payne made a bogie, so I was figuring, woah, I got Payne by two shots after the first hole.

Hold on a minute, by the time we were walking off the ninth hole, Payne was FIVE UNDER PAR. That's right, he made four birdies and an eagle on the remaining eight holes. I was impressed. I think I knew at that time that he was destined for greatness and he sure continued to improve each and every year. Payne treated me with respect and as if we had played together many times, even though that was my first encounter with him. I will never forget him as a great Player and as someone who made me feel comfortable even though I was a nervous rookie playing with a great player.

Payne, even though you are gone, I know that you are in Heaven playing every day in a big money game with Jones, Hagen, Hogan, and Old Tom Morris and his son, and everyone who has passed on to a greater life, and I know that if you ever start ever hitting it sideways, Harvey will be sitting on his cart smiling at you and explaining what to change in your backswing.

Oh yea, if you happen to run across Titanic Thompson, do yourself a favor Payne, and don't bet him. God Bless You.

My first encounter with the great Moe Norman

by John Hamarik

It all began during a 1980 collegiate golf tournament in Columbus, Georgia. I was paired with Paul Azinger, a good friend of mine from Florida State. During a twenty minute wait on an unfair 225 yard, into the wind, uphill par three, a shot that none of us was looking forward to playing, Paul started telling me some stories about a little Canadian guy who he claimed to have met in Florida the past Summer. Paul began describing this somebody as the best shotmaker he has ever seen. When I asked Azinger what this guy's name was? He replied, "Moe Norman". Hell, I had never heard of a Moe Norman before. Who was this mysterious golfer? Could he just be fictitious character, created by golfers and passed along the line 'til Paul Azinger advanced some of these most unrealistic stories my way? I knew about Hogan. I have seen him on video and read that he was the best in the business as far as hitting shots and hard work on his game, but to hear what Paul was saying about this short, stocky Norman character was beyond belief.

He revealed how Moe had played in tournaments and had hit every green. I told Paul, "I think you are a victim of an overzealous storyteller. No human can hit every green in a tournament, not even the great Hogan." Paul assured me that he had personally witnessed this man hit balls straighter than anyone he has ever seen and had actually played a couple rounds of golf with him. I just smiled and said, "Sure Paul, where did this guy come from, another planet?" Azinger just laughed and said, "Hammer, one of these days you're going to meet Moe."

Four years later while I was playing in the 1984 Canadian Open at Glen Abby near Toronto, it happened. I made the two-day cut and was especially excited about playing on the weekend in such a big tournament with so many great players. Saturday's round was even better. I shot a 70 under some pretty intense windy conditions and passed up a ton of players. After my round, I was totally unaware that I was about to experience something that I never imagined possible.

First though, I had a great lunch in the men's grill room and I do mean a GREAT lunch. The Canadian open is famous for providing the pros with excellent food. Carved prime rib and steamed vegetables was a normal lunch at Glen Abby. Yea, I know what you're thinking; "wow, those Tour Pros are spoiled!" And I have to tell you, yes we are and I enjoyed every minute of it. Ok, let me get back to the story.

My next stop after lunch was the putting green. I spent about thirty minutes working on five footers and after feeling comfortable with the short stroke, I yelled to my caddy Speedway, who was resting on my bag, "Hey, lets go to the range and work on the long iron and the driver!" A few minutes later, I was looking at a hundred brand new Titleist Tour 100 compression balls to hit on Glen Abby's range. Yea, I know what you're thinking, "I wouldn't hit a new Titleist on a par three over water and you Tour guys use them as range balls?????" I thought I told you that the Pros were spoiled! Anyway, I started hitting a few seven irons, just trying to get the "feel" after spending a couple hours having lunch, BS-ing with the players and putting. I felt pretty good about my swing and asked Speedway for the knife. (That's a one iron for Tour Pros). I was just getting ready to hit my first shot with the toughest iron to hit in any one's bag when I heard a voice say, "Hey, there's Moe Norman!" I turned around and began looking into the gallery just outside the ropes. Was I about to meet the most exceptional golfer in the world? My heart began to pump harder and my palms began to sweat. Where is this guy?

I walked away from the practice tee, leaving my caddy wondering what I was doing and began to approach the spectators standing behind the brightly colored gold ropes that allow the pros some sense of freedom from the sometimes rowdy and autograph seeking fans. After glancing past a couple hundred spectators, I spotted Moe standing twenty feet from me. Excitedly, I walked to the rope, stuck out my hand and said, "Excuse me, but you're Moe Norman, aren't you?" Then in a split second, a very fast voice answered, "Yes I am, Yes I am." I then asked Moe if he would hit a few golf balls so I could witness his incredible ball striking ability. His answer was a very disappointing "No, No, No, I can't. Canadian PGA Officials won't like me hitting balls on the range!" I was discouraged but did not give up as I proceeded to reach into my pocket and pulled out a fifty-dollar bill and asked again. The answer was the same, No! Finally, I begged Moe to please hit some shots for me. I said, "Moe, I heard that you are the best ever!" He cracked a smile and said, "Yes I am, me, Hogan and George Knudson!" (George Knudson was a very successful Canadian pro who had some wonderful tournaments in the United States).

Finally, Moe agreed to climb under the ropes and headed toward my golf bag. I immediately grabbed my camera and told Moe to loosen up with a mid iron. I remember him grabbing my Titleist Tour Blade five iron and what I saw next was the most amazing display of shots I had ever seen. He hit fifteen shots and not one of them was off line. Same trajectory and dead straight. Every single shot. Moe did not even have golf shoes on, he was wearing street shoes. His balance and position at impact were beyond words. His wide stance and unorthodox set-up was a bit unusual, but the ball came off the clubface exactly the same way every time. After the iron shots, Moe grabbed my driver, felt it and put it back into my bag. He obviously did not like the feel of my metal wood. So I told him to try my good friend Jim Kane's persimmon driver. He looked at it, took a few waggles and proceeded to point to a sand trap about 235 yards in the middle of the range. Moe hit eighteen out of twenty into the bunker. Not even a machine could do that. I knew that I was witnessing the absolute best shotmaker that I have ever seen. Moe was so impressive that the entire range stopped practicing, O'Meara, Fuzzy, Greg Norman, and every one else who was working on his game stood in amazement shaking their heads watching Moe hit every drive into the bunker on a fly. It was so magical watching him swing that I was waiting for Rod Serling to approach me and say, "John you have just entered the Twilight Zone." Our meeting ended when Moe handed me the driver, let out a smile as I shook his hand and thanked him for allowing us to watch him practice. I now knew that the stories Paul Azinger told me in college were for real. Moe Norman exceeded every expectation that I had. I will never forget that Saturday afternoon at Glen Abby.