"The Legend."
By Russell G. Bell
Once upon a time there was a golfer who made
a commercial hitting three separate balls (with the same club)
at a three story factory building. The first ball broke the center
window on the first floor, the second ball broke the center window
on the second floor and the third ball broke the center window
on the third floor. The voice over announcer says “These
guys are good!”
There is no disputing the fact that Tiger is as good as the commercial
shows but let’s talk about GREAT for a moment. Try to imagine
yourself as a caddy and you have been assigned to shag balls for
a Pro who prefers to hit his practice shots out at an unused portion
of the course rather than the driving range. Now imagine the first
day you are shagging and he tells you to go out 150 fifty yards
as he wants to practice with his 8 iron. You go the distance and
he fires the first shot. As it is heading for your head you grab
the shag bag and run off to the side. After the ball lands you
retrieve it and find the next shot is also coming at that space
between your eyes! You repeat the shag dance you performed with
the first ball, and so it goes with the third and forth etc. The
pro finally tells you to leave the shag bag where it is and to
move off to the side. No matter which club the Pro was using he
would put over 90% of the balls into the shag bag.
Who was this pro who made life easy on the caddy
by hitting the balls into the shag bag? He was Ben Hogan. Mr.
Hogan (I don’t feel comfortable calling such a great man
by his first name without his permission) was truly a legend in
his own time. He was a four-time PGA Player of the Year and had
63 tournament wins. This was a man who almost lost his life in
a head-on collision with a bus. The accident did, however, impair
his eyesight and depth perception with regard to short putts.
This problem with his eyesight cost him many tournaments but he
never complained - in fact he never mentioned he had a problem,
he just kept trying to unsuccessfully overcome the problem.
Mr. Hogan ran a successful business making Professional
golf clubs for other players on the tour and even today many years
after his death you can still buy custom made clubs from the Hogan
Company or you can buy off the rack sets for the serious golfer.
There are several professionals on tour using Hogan brand clubs.
Look for the logo the next time you are watching a major. If someone
comes up with a Ryder Cup dream team it is certain Ben Hogan would
be on the team or its captain.
I have not done book reviews in the past but
I must put in a word for Afternoons
with Mr. Hogan: A Boy, A Golf Legend, and the Lessons of a Lifetime
by Jody Vasquez. Jody was the young caddie who had the honor of
working for Mr. Hogan back in his youth. Prior to reading this
book I was aware of the famous Ben Hogan but I did not have the
perspective on this man that I do now. This was a man young boys
should have as a role model. I urge you to read this book - it
is a quick read which is good, because it is so hard to put down.
Phil and Sergio have both had one-on-one made-for-television
competitions against Tiger Woods but I would travel to see the
game in person if it were possible to match up Ben Hogan at his
prime against Tiger, Phil and Sergio. Ben would make more in that
one game than he made during his entire career as a Professional.
Keep swinging.
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