Golf In A Parallel Universe (26 page)

Here we go. Hole 18 and I am one up on the greatest golfer in the world. If I win this hole then I am the US Open Champion. But I do not let myself think about that. Zack looks at me but he does not say anything. I am a little nervous but I feel under control. I am more worried about this hole. The wind has picked up. There is a stiff cool breeze right in our face. The fairway is wet, and the air is damp. And this is the surprise we all got this morning. They have moved to a new tee box 50 yards back. So this is a par 4, 502 yards long. As I am looking this over and Zack looks at me. “Hey, it does not matter if it is a par 4, par 5 or whatever. You just need to tie him and you win," he said with a confident tone. I shook my head in agreement. I am up first and I tee it up. My main goal is keep in it in the fairway because the rough is a disaster. I do feel the tension when I tee it up. I have never been in this situation before. One stroke lead at the US Open going into the last hole. The wind is picking up. I am a little tense. I take a step back and take a deep breath. “Tempo, Tempo, Tempo," I tell myself. I make a good swing and I hit it down the left center 280 yards. I hit that ball really good. On a normal day that would have been 325 yards. I was happy. Cory setup and he did not take much time, he is going for it. He hit it right down the middle, but he did not really hit it all that well and he was upset. However it was still a good shot. He hit it just short of my ball, dead center. “It must be nice to miss a ball and hit it that far," I tell Zack as we are walking. “He’s tough” Zack replies.

We get to our second shot. He is just barely out. I wait for him to decide what to do. I take a look towards the green and and the gallery is huge. I have never seen so many people at a golf course. The fairway is lined up with the Gallery and all around the green. Everyone is wondering what drama will unfold here. Cory pulls out an iron. He is right at 230 yards out. He lines up and addresses the ball with authority. He smashes the ball dead straight but not too high. It was a perfect shot and landed about 20 feet from the pin. That had to be the best long iron shot I have ever seen, considering he was hitting into a stiff wind on a damp day. I know he would prefer to be closer. But 20 feet away is a good shot from this distance and these conditions. He has a very makeable putt.

That really put the pressure on me. I am 236 yards out dead into a stiff cool damp wind. I am one stroke up and he is in birdie position. If I mess up it can be a two stroke swing or worse. I consult with Zack. On a normal day this would be a four iron, or a three iron. But not today. I do not even have a two iron in my bag. I have never liked it. I use a five wood for my two iron shots. I don’t think I can reach the green in this wind with a 3 iron. Zack tells me that a five wood is no good with this wind. It will go to high and no telling what will happen. He gives me a four wood. “A four wood is the club. With this wind it should be perfect. I do not think it is too much club if just don’t crush it. A smooth four wood should be perfect. It will get just high enough so it will not be too much club and will bite when it hits the green. “Sounds good to me” I said as I took the club and gave him the head cover.

I stood behind the ball and looked at the situation. The pin was on the front part of the green on the left side. There is a big Sand trap in the front of the green on the left side. Also the green slopes to the left. So going right could be disaster if it comes in hot. My goal is to hit it right at the pin with a high shot and let float gently on the green. As I look at the shot I feel the pressure getting to me. Doubt starts to come into my mind. If I screw up, then we can have a one or two stroke change in a heartbeat. I line up over the ball. I cannot get set. I feel myself get tight and I cannot relax. I step back and take a deep breath. I feel like everyone in the world is watching me. I really starting to worry. And then, I hear that voice or two voices in my head like I have heard before. It seems to be Jerry Churchill 's voice and someone else. They are speaking in tandem. “Keep it Parallel Jim. Keep it Parallel." I take a deep breath. I do not understand why I hear this voice or voices sometimes. “So damn weird” I tell myself. But all of a sudden I am relaxed as can be. I look at Zack and he looks worried and I smile and wink at him. I address the ball. I think about tempo. And I make a good swing.

As a Golfer. Every once in awhile we will hit that perfect shot. And you will remember that shot for ever. And this was that perfect shot. It was so solid and so smooth. It as high, but not too high. It was going right at the pin just like I wanted. Just like I pictured in my mind before I hit it. And I knew that it was the correct club. I could taste victory as the ball was floating down to the green. And it was absolutely the Perfect shot! But too perfect. The ball floated down and hit the pin about two feet above the hole. And the ball bounced straight back. And it slowly rolled back down to the front of the green. It continued to roll slowly down the green. The TV Cameras was following the slow wind aided roll of the ball. It rolled off the green and down the steep slope on the left side of the green. It hugged the corner of the big Sand Trap and rolled and rolled. Finally it came to rest about 40 feet off the green behind the big Sand Trap. My heart sank. I could not believe I got punished for hitting such a good shot.

As we walked to the green the crowd gave both of us a nice ovation. However you could tell there was tension in the air and the gallery felt it. They were in the midst of seeing a dramatic finish. We get to my ball. I have a wet fluffy lie. I have this huge Sand bunker between me and the hole. And I do not have much green to work with. I do not see how I can stop it close to the hole. And if I am not able to stop it I am in danger of going over the green into the sand trap on the other side. And if of course if I hit it short I am dead. If I lose one stroke to him on this hole then we tie and it is an 18-hole playoff tomorrow. I do not want to even think about. If it is a two stroke turn around. If I bogey and he birdies then he is the winner. So any combination of loosing one or two strokes is not good for me.

As I look over the shot. The only option is a Lob Shot. Lob shots are great when they work. But they have to be hit perfect or they can turn into disaster. You have to take good swing at it. If you hit it thin then you can say bye bye. If you hit it fat, it goes nowhere. And with this wet grass, I have no idea how the ball will react. I take my Lob wedge out of the bag. “We will see if all this chipping practice that you recommend pays off," I told Zack. He just smiled. I felt relaxed. I have hit a ton of these shots the last few days on the practice green. I set up over the ball and I just went into Autopilot and made my swing. It was high, and it came down soft. I had pictured a spot on the green where I wanted to hit and that's where it landed. I had played it on the high side of the hole and it was perfect. It rolled past the hole and ended up about 11 feet past the pin. It was the perfect. There is no way I could have got closer from this position.

So now I have a chance. If Cory makes his birdie. My only hope is to sink my par for a tie. If he misses his birdie. I can sink my par for the win or two putt for a tie. As I mark the ball the gallery was getting anxious. The tension was so thick in the air you could cut it with a knife. Half the gallery was pulling for Cory and the other half for me. Cory looked over the putt thoroughly with his caddie from every angle. He stood over the putt and did not waste any time, he knew how he wanted to hit the putt. And he hit the perfect putt. It was one of those perfect putts that you have no doubt will go in. But somehow, the ball just hugged the lip of the cup and gently slid past the hole about a quarter of an inch past the hole. It was heart breaker type of putt. Seemed to be in all the way but just did not fall. You could hear the pain of the gallery as they let out a huge sigh. And Cory had Agony on his face. He could not believe that it did not drop.

Now all the attention is on me. I looked over my putt with Zack. It is a right-to-left break. I knew what it all meant. If I make this I win. If I miss we tie, and 18-hole playoff tomorrow. I line up the putt. This is a speed put. I just need to hit it just to the right of the hole and let it break and drop in. My legs feel weak. I make a smooth stroke and the ball rolls towards the hole. Slow breaking to the left. And to my great thrill it drops! I am ecstatic! I do a big fist pump and the gallery yells. Zack gives me a big hug. I grabbed him by the head by both ears and I yelled at him smiling, “you did it again!” and we laugh. He knows what I am talking about. It was his idea for me to put in all that extra work on chipping and putting. And it paid off big time. I am amazed on how Zack always gets it right.

I shake Cory’s hand, and he gives me big hug. He told me that I earned this. and to be proud of it. I was touched by what he said. As we were walking off the green the gallery cheered and I acknowledged them. I was very happy. This was a lot different feeling than when I won the Masters a few weeks ago. I was stunned at the Masters. I could hardly comprehend what was going on. I remembered I had a lot of strange things going on in my head at that time. I was really confused. But now with this Victory here at the US Open my head was clear. I knew everything that was happening and I was savoring every moment. It was just so much fun.

We went into validate my scorecard in the trailer they have behind the 18th green by the clubhouse. After it is all said and done. I am the 2014 US Open championship. It felt good. Really good. Now, I have become recognized and a real contender on the tour now. Two majors in a row is remarkable.

After the scorecard validation they had me wait around for a few minutes. They were setting up the ceremony where I would be announced as the 2014 US Open Champion.They will award me with the US Open Trophy Silver Cup. A lot players and other people were coming up and congratulating me and shaking my hand. It was crazy for a few minutes. At times 4 or 5 people at a time were coming up to me congratulate to me. I hardly had time to thank them until someone else would come up. Some of my pro buddies congratulated me and joked with me giving me a hard time saying I look like I am a celebrity now.

At one point Dafford Hilton who I played the practice round with came up and smiled and shook my hand and congratulated me. I thanked him with a smile. As as he let go of my hand, he really gave me a strange angry look as he walked away. I was confused and thought that was strange. But then the next second, someone else came up and congratulate me so I never had time to think about it.

As things settle down before the ceremony Jerry Churchill came down. I gave him a big hug. “You are responsible for this” I told him. "If it was not for you making me realize that my game was not up to par and you setting me up with Gus, I would not be here," I said tearfully. “Ah shut up” he said laughing. “You did the hard work. You deserve this. We just laughed and chatted for a few minutes with the other players.

Finally they called me up to the 18th green where they had everything set up. There were so many people here in the gallery. And the officials were lined up around me. I know we had this at the Masters but I do not really remember much about that day. But today, I am taking it all in. I am enjoying the recognition of what I have done. As a professional golfer this is what you always dream will happen some day.

As the ceremony started they had a couple of officials come up and make their speech about the tournament. They would thank the sponsors of the tournament and go through their little routine speeches you always hear at these ceremonies. Finally it was time to present the Trophy and interview me. The PGA President had me stand beside him and went through his speech. And finally it came to the part. “Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to present to you the 2014 US Open Champion Jim Galloway” and he handed me the Trophy which is a big silver cup with two big handles. The crowd cheered.

I just could not believe it. I was so happy. At first I was not sure what to do when everyone was looking at me and cheering and clapping. But then I realized what the player usually does at this point. With big smile I kissed the trophy and held it by the handles high above my head and faced the crowd and smiled. The crowed cheered, and it was a great feeling.

But suddenly. I felt this pain on my back. I felt my breath exploded out of my body. I see the green grass in front of me getting closer. My brain is not comprehending what is happening. I feel myself falling. Then, my body violently crashes to the ground. And to the horror of the crowd and the Live TV Audience. There is this man that has tackled me from behind. And he is just pounding me with his fist. I somehow managed to turnover on my back and he is sitting on me just swinging away hitting me in the face. It seemed like it was going on for ever. But within seconds several men pulled him off of me. I was in shock.

I stood up and looked at this guy and they were struggling to hold him back he was still trying to come after me. And to my surprise, it was Dafford Hilton. The professional golfer I had the practice round with Tuesday. I just stood there bent over confused. I was looking at him as he was yelling at me. “You're dead! You're dead!," he yelled out. “I will Kill you! You cannot do this! I will Kill You! You cannot do this!," he screamed out and struggling to come at me. I just could not understand. The guys were struggling to hold him back. He is a big man well over 6 feet tall and about 230 pounds. He had a bowl cut haircut and his long brown hair was messed up and in his eyes. His chubby face was beat red as he was screaming at me. I was so confused.

Within a couple of minutes three policemen that were working at the tournament came down and got him under control and handcuffed him. As they were dragging him off he was still trying to get to me and continued to yell “You can't’ do this!” “You can’t do this, I want let you do this, I will Kill you!” They were finally able to take him away. I was stunned. The crowd was stunned. Everyone was in shock. Someone picked up the Trophy that flew out of my hands. It was dented and had a broken handle. “Don’t worry we will fix this," one of the PGA officials told me.