Golf In A Parallel Universe (39 page)

As I practiced the next few days that voice in my head is strong. It is getting close to distracting me. It was excited as ever that I was playing golf again. But also kept saying “Come Home, Come Home," just like the dreams I have every night when my family is telling me to Come Home. "God!, this voice bothers me I tell myself." I just do not understand of all of this. I think about what Jerry Churchill said, but that all sounds so crazy to me. But then I wonder sometimes if what he says is true. Eventually, I am able to block that out somewhat, and I continue to prepare for the tournament.

By Wednesday afternoon I feel that my golf game is in top shape again. I really worked on my mental preparation like Gus had taught me. I worked on blocking out everything for a few seconds when I am addressing and hitting the ball. And when I do that, I just concentrate on that Pendulum swing and smooth tempo.

Wednesday afternoon Zack and I discuss our strategy for this course here at the Valhalla Golf Club. This is a classic PGA course. They have renovated it the last couple of years and it is in great shape. There is no single strategy on this course. This is a very difficult course. The one thing we agreed on is this is a shot makers course. It is not the type of course where you cannot just let it rip. You really have to strategize your shots. If you do this you will have an opportunity for some good approach shots to the pin. So that's our main strategy and I will take it one shot at a time. My focus will be to concentrate on my shots and not let outside things bother me, such as the problems that I have been going through recently, or that voice in my head which seems to be getting stronger every day. I really need to focus on being mentally strong.

Zack and I finish up Wednesday afternoon and we call it a day. My tee time is 10:00am tomorrow. We agree to meet here at 7:30am in the morning.

I go to my hotel and start to get ready mentally for this tournament. I grab a beer and sit down by the window and I have a nice view of the countryside. “Sure beats the view of Chicago” I tell myself. I think about what I have been through the last few weeks. I also grab the Pendulum toy that Gus gave me. I rock it back and forth. This thing does not seem so silly to me anymore. It really relaxes me and makes me think of a nice pendulum golf swing. It sounds crazy, but it seems to work for me. I think about happy I was to win the British Open. Then I get stuck with the terrible drama of Dafford Hilton. I have such painful feelings about all that went down with that situation. Not just because of me where I was injured by him. And not just because we knew that he was tracking me down and the FBI had to put in in protective custody. Sure that was difficult for me, but that is nothing compared to pain of the families of the two people that he killed after he escaped and he was looking for me. I am just glad that this mess is all over. Then I start thinking of what Jerry Churchill told me about a Parallel Universe. “My God, where did he come up with that?," I said chuckling to myself. It just blows my mind that he told all of that. He must be crazy. But then at the same time, a big part of me believes his story and I do not know why. I guess it is because everything he told me when he described my feeling that I have been going through the last few months was dead on. “How would he know all of that?” I asked myself.

And then as I do not have enough things going on in my life. I get news from Emily that I am going to be a dad! I know that can be a big emotional challenge but I do not feel bad about that at all. Actually I am quite happy about that. I stand up and look out the window thinking about all that I have been through. “Jim," I tell myself. “You are just lucky that you can even function emotionally after all of this," I said to myself as I drank the last swallow of my beer. At that point I had decided to put all of this behind me. I got four days to make history. For now it is only Golf on my mind. And hopefully no outside distractions, or drama, just golf.

I cannot wait until tomorrow. I get a bite to eat and go to bed. As usual the same dreams come again. I was back home in a small town with my family. But the dreams were peaceful this time. Not like the last few weeks where everyone was crying and telling me to come home. It was peaceful, and I was home enjoying my family. It was a good night sleep.

Thursday First Round of the PGA Championship

I woke up in the morning and I felt good. I felt peaceful waking up for the first time in a long time. Not like the feeling I have been having the last few days where I woke up every morning drenched in sweat from the bad dreams.

I am ready to play golf today. I ate breakfast, and I was out at the course at 7:30am to get ready for my had 10:00am tee time. I hit balls at the range and I worked on my chipping and putting with Zack. There was really a buzz going on today. The place just seemed to have a lot of energy. Usually Thursdays are a little more mellow than the rest of the week, but you could feel the excitement in the air. That is because this is another Major Tournament and that is a big deal. And everyone is amped up for the last Major of the year.

I was really nervous. I had the jitters and Zack could tell. “Just relax. This is just another day at the office” he told me. I told him that I am fine, and we just prepared for our tee time. At 10:00am we were on the first tee. I was playing with Justin Phillips which is a young player, not very well know and not highly ranked on the tour. The other player was Larry Phelps. He is a veteran of the tour but not a particularly a well known player on the tour. We had a huge gallery. At first I thought it was just people camped out on hole one to get a good view of the players. But then when I was introduced by the Starter as a three time Major Winner this year, I got huge applause. Then I realized they were here to follow me. I was really nervous when I was on the tee. I have not played since the British Open and not sure how I am going to handle all of this. Hole number one is a slight dogleg left. My only goal is to hit a good drive and have an approach shot to the green. I address the ball and really concentrate on blocking everything out. I hit my drive down the right side with a little hook. Not the best shot in the world, but it is safe. I am just glad to get that first shot out of my system. My second shot, I hit a mid-iron in the middle of the green and safely two putted for a par. I parred the second hole and birdied the third hole. After that, the jitters were gone, and I was back in competition mode. I really felt focused. I hit the ball well. It was one of those days where nothing dramatic happened. However, I had a good solid round of two under par with a 70. The low round was three under 67 and quite a few 68's and 69's.

After the round I ran into Jerry Churchill at the club house. He is covering the TV cast on this tournament. I had made up my mind, that if I do see him, I will just be polite and gracious. I know he has done a lot to help me recently, even though his story about the Parallel Universe really creeps me out. We talked a few minutes, and we never mentioned the things we talked about in Chicago. He just hung out with Zack and I and some other players. Everyone really enjoys being around him because he is a Golf Legend. And he has a lot of good golf stories to share. So he is really a lot of fun. When he leaves, he shakes my hand, and tells me good luck. I do see in his eyes that he is concerned about me.

After he leaves, Zack asked me. “Hey what was all of that about when you called me the other day asking if I told anyone about the things that you told me about the strange feeling you have been having. You said that Jerry Churchill described those to you, what's up with all of that?, he asked. "Zack” I said smiling and shaking my head. “You would not believe me if I told you. Maybe I will tell you about that someday. But right now we have the PGA Championship in front of us.” He just laughed and blew it off. My tee time tomorrow is 11:15am tomorrow, we made plans to meet at 9:00am. I go back to the hotel and relax. I call Emily like I do every day this week and we talk awhile. Then I get a bite to eat and go to bed.

Day two of the PGA, I meet Zack at 9:00am. He has scouted the course. We went over pin placements and the conditions. Nothing special today. We make it up to the first tee just before 9:00am. Today, I was playing with Alex Spears, the second ranked player in the world. I have played with him a couple of times this year. The other player is Donald Casey. He is a good friend of mine that has been on the tour about the same amount of time that I have been. We have spent a lot of time together over the years. And we both have seen some good times and some bad times. He has been in the same boat that I have been in the last few years, struggling to make the cuts and barely making a living. He did not play very well yesterday. He shot a 74 and will need to have a good round today to make the cut. I am pulling for him and I know what he is going through. As he is introduced and gets ready to hit his shot on the first tee. I think about how I have been in the same situation the last two years. I think about how things have changed for me so drastically since I won the Masters. How I transformed my game and now I am sitting here with three Major Tournaments under my belt. And I now have plenty of money. But I notice how much fun he is having. Even though he is struggling to make the cut he seems to be happy. I think about the “Missed Cut” parties that we have had together with the other players. Yeah, we were always disappointed we did not make the cut. And sometimes the financial pressure was intense. But we always had fun. We all had the attitude that we are living a dream as a professional golfer and we will enjoy it as much as we can. I start thinking that I really miss those times now. At least back then, I did not have this nagging voice in my head, people attacking me and people telling me that I am coming from a Parallel Universe.

Then I feel a tap on my shoulder. "Jim, Hey Jim, you are up" said Zack as he was looking at me confused. I was so deep in thought that I did not even hear the starter call my name. I just of shook my head like I was coming out of a sleep. I smiled and said "sorry." Donald smiled and said out loud so most of the people in the Gallery who were close by could here. “Geez Jim, not get enough sleep last night?. Everyone just laughed. I just gave a big smile and took a couple of practice swings. I made a good swing and hit it perfect. I cut the dogleg and was right in the middle of the fairway. This is a short hole. My approach shot was just over 100 yards. A nice smooth Gap Wedge will be perfect. When we got to my ball Zack handed me the Gap Wedge. I lined up and hit it just like I wanted, six inches from the pin. So an easy birdie to start the day. I pared the next two holes. But I could tell that this course was going to get attacked today by the players. The greens were soft and holding.The weather was perfect, hardly any wind at all. Alex was really attacking the course and getting birdies. And Donald was doing well also. I told Zack, that I think I need to get in attack mode if I am going to make a run. He agreed. At that point, I just started letting it rip. Then I got on a birdie streak. My drives were dead on. It seemed like I could not miss. I had five birdies in a row, holes 3 through 7. I pared hole number 8, but should have had a birdie. I had a 10 foot putt and hit it too hard and it lipped out. I get on the 9th Tee Box and I am six under for the day. Not bad. I am pumped up and I crush my drive on the left side of the fairway which was the place to be. The right side of the fairway has a big tree that will block your approach shot. I hit a wedge to the back of the green. I have a twenty foot putt. If I make that I will be seven under after 9 holes! I feel like I am destined to make this putt. I line it up and make a good stroke. But I must have had too much adrenaline going on. I knocked it 12 feet past the hole. I missed the putt coming back, so had to settle for a boogie.

As we walked off the green, Zack looked at me. “Easy there big fellow," he said laughing. As we were walking to the 10th hole, he told me that I need to settle down. I am 5 under for the round. The next 9 holes he recommends to settle down a little. If I stay in attack mode, I may get myself in some trouble. I agreed. I was getting a little careless. Birder streaks are great, but over aggressive play can turn into boogie streaks. “Look, don't be conservative, but don’t go all out either. You are 5 under now. If you can shoot two or three under on the back nine, you will be golden," he said to me in a positive tone.

And that's what I did. I think I really played the best nine of my life that second nine as far as laying out a plan and sticking to it. I hit every green in regulation. I had three birdies and no bogeys for three under on the back nine. That put me in the clubhouse at 8 under for the day with a 64 which was the best score of the day. There were a lot of low rounds today, so it was good that I had a good round. I was in third place on the leaderboard, just two strokes off the lead. And the good news, my buddy Donald Phillips shot a 69 today and made the cut by one stroke. I was almost more happy for him than I was myself. “No missed cut party for you tonight dude," I told him as I slapped him on the back. This was a biggie for him. Making the cut at a major is a big deal. And he is in the twilight of his career and I know he feels good about that and I am happy for him.

Day Three of the PGA Championship. I have a 12:10 tee time. I get to the course at 9:30. I got a good night's rest last night. I am two shots off the lead and I am in full game mode now. I hit some balls at the range. That little voice is cheering me on as usual. That gives me more motivation as usual. Every shot I hit on the range feels good because that voice is so ecstatic. So it makes golf fun for me. “So maybe that little voice is not such a bad thing after all," I tell myself. Zack and I start to discuss our strategy. He scouted out the course this morning. “It is very windy today and suppose to get stronger as the day goes on. The greens are drying out like crazy. And the Pin placements are ridiculous. This is a whole new course today” he said. We both agreed that there is not going to be anyone shooting lights out today. And with this wind, there will be some high scores that will knock players out of competition. This is a perfect setup for me because I love playing in the wind. Some guys get psyched out with windy conditions, but I have always been the opposite. I have played some of my best rounds in the wind this year. I discuss with Zack that I should not be too aggressive today. Just play a normal game. Not too conservative and not too aggressive. There will probably be some bogeys for me today, but there should be some good birdie opportunities. I think the Drives will be the most important. Keep it in play and have a chance for good approach shots.