So I Bore the Standard For Phil Mickelson...
Saturday, March 10 and Sunday, March 11 were as always, wonderful days as I was at the Doral Golf Resort for the Golf Tournament (WGC-Cadillac Championship). The community hours I was able to do were a top notch experience.
On Saturday, I knew I would not make it in time for the Standard Bearer raffle drawing... Usually one has to be there one hour before the first pairing to do so and I had been up at 6AM the whole week, so I wanted a whole hour of sleep. I still found work being there at 8:00 AM (last year I made it 9 AM and did marshalling).
Ironically enough, the first hour through, being spent on food and coffee, I found myself on the same territory, except a little to the right. In 2011 I marshalled for Tee 11 all the way to the hole, so for about an hour I got a great glimpse of Hole 12. I saw all the big leagues both years too, Tiger, Phil, Rory, etc. 2012 had me at the gateway between 11 and 12. Hole 11 is a 402yd (1206') Par 4 with the Dick Wilson dogleg design to the right. I took the time this year between plays to record every scoring on the 11th as accurately as possible, and many players pared the hole or birdied it. A couple bogeys arose and two had double bogeyed it this year. Interestingly, it was at the same area I saw Tiger go from 11 to 12 in 2011. As always, marshalling is cow work, just letting the ropes go up or down or raising the "quiet" sign when the golfers are swinging. In 2011 I was solo in the 11th, after some random kid gave up, but in 2012 I stuck through with new aquaintances Tyler, Bo, and a friend of mine's brother and his friend. Tyler got lucky on Sunday to bear for Bubba Watson and Keegan Bradley.
After finishing the hours for Saturday and in the tent, I sternly committed to waking up early on Sunday. Being challenged with the forward time change, I was thinking that since I am losing one hour, might as well lose the second and be up around 6 ish. Originally a 7:00 AM drawing for Sunday, Jake, one of the people in charge of the duties for volunteering, emailed that the drawing would be done at the easy 7:30 AM. I made a point to wake up for the chance to bear Tiger, Rory, Rose, or Watson. Not having Phil Mickelson in mind, I made it 7:05 AM and at 7:30, got drawn "NA", not applicable, meaning a redraw would happen. I was upset but another volunteer told me a redraw would happen, that I did not know to begin with. So I got drawn #15, Phil's group, and I was very happy. Not a lousy group with 0 followers, and not a group with media pressure, and better yet not a group that would result in sheer media embarrassment (more on that later).
So I hung around until 10:30 AM, doing whatever is necessary to prepare, and got out on the field at 10:50 AM. Phil Mickelson would be playing against Alvaro Quiros, from Spain. Similar to last year in the form that a Spanish player would be met, I had Miguel Angel Jimenez to carry the standard. The standard is a 5lb. sign that contains the scores, yet when you know you will be associating with the players notches above the ranks of the riffraff you wouldn't mind the task. Mickelson, the 2009 champion and 2012 winner of the Honda Classic, was fighting for the T38 (finished T43), and still had excesses of 100 people following him. He and Quiros started -2 this round. 11 AM brought us nice skies that gradually transcended to showers that drenched us. My mom's best friend, being the "golf mom", got my text earlier and showed up at: Hole 7, a par 4, Hole 9, her favorite and a par 3, and hole 18, the infamous Blue Monster. She gave considerable support and even a nice chocolate bar that I couldn't thank her enough for. I also acquainted with the honorary observers, the electronic scorekeeper, and the two cops. Breezy Sunday made for some challenging conditions unlike the Bird fest of Saturday, and the showers began at the 12th hole. Funny enough my mom's friend told me I had been recorded on the Golf Channel at Hole 11, my iconic hole and new lucky number. There I felt something itching from the rough grass of 10 and chose to sit 30' behind Phil on the fairway so the grass wouldn't get caught during his gir shot. Hole 12 (Par 5, 603 yd) had the first showers. I made the Std. my umbrella and skidded off to the right where there were trees and stood by a couple golf fans. When Quiros made his birdie and Mickelson his par, I stood by a tent and collected myself, joking with Quiros how the standard was my umbrella. Hole 13-14 things cleared up and then 15 brought us heavier rains, which got to my shoes too. Yes, I was walking on soaked kicks through the rest of the day. By 16 things fixed up and the sun came out at hole 18. It was a nice finish even though Mickelson got a bogey. I got my hat autographed by both, golf balls from both, and with Mickelson's tradition of not signing golf balls, only got Quiros to sign it. Yet that's OK and the players gotta do what they gotta do.
Sometimes when bearing other things get in your way and mess up your job ;)... 14 and going for a tough gir, I was looking the other way (to the right) and making a comment saying, "if this one goes in the books as an eagle I'll dance around the fairway" when Mickelson was already ready to shoot, caddie and recorder signalling me to hush, yikes.... ;) Also, on 17, the Patriot's Outpost, I was looking for my mother's other friend who was sitting there and didn't notice Quiros putting, yet this one was more of me walking than speaking. Yet these are honest mistakes, and of course probably didn't damage the shots because I believe they did what they could in these holes.
People were cheering on us at 17th fairway and I was a little funny, going "Yeah, Random people!", this wasn't particularly hurtful to the play but yeah, it was a little unexpected and not the most professional. But then again, there's that it was a long run and we're a little tired off, me a bit shaken by the rain, wanting to be a little cheery. I guess my reasoning behind it was the whole Kony thing, people cheering "Kony! Kony!" and the idea of attention. Or maybe, it was that a unique character would be remembered better in the future...
Anyway, Quiros finished with a 76 at +2 while Mickelson contended with a 71 at -3. It was an excellent experience meeting them up close; they are very friendly players. Jimenez and Yang were modest exchanges. The rain was, I suppose, a cost to do this but it was a fun one. As always, I will be back next year to try for this duty four more times, then I believe I can only serve a normal volunteer from 19+.
On Saturday, I knew I would not make it in time for the Standard Bearer raffle drawing... Usually one has to be there one hour before the first pairing to do so and I had been up at 6AM the whole week, so I wanted a whole hour of sleep. I still found work being there at 8:00 AM (last year I made it 9 AM and did marshalling).
Ironically enough, the first hour through, being spent on food and coffee, I found myself on the same territory, except a little to the right. In 2011 I marshalled for Tee 11 all the way to the hole, so for about an hour I got a great glimpse of Hole 12. I saw all the big leagues both years too, Tiger, Phil, Rory, etc. 2012 had me at the gateway between 11 and 12. Hole 11 is a 402yd (1206') Par 4 with the Dick Wilson dogleg design to the right. I took the time this year between plays to record every scoring on the 11th as accurately as possible, and many players pared the hole or birdied it. A couple bogeys arose and two had double bogeyed it this year. Interestingly, it was at the same area I saw Tiger go from 11 to 12 in 2011. As always, marshalling is cow work, just letting the ropes go up or down or raising the "quiet" sign when the golfers are swinging. In 2011 I was solo in the 11th, after some random kid gave up, but in 2012 I stuck through with new aquaintances Tyler, Bo, and a friend of mine's brother and his friend. Tyler got lucky on Sunday to bear for Bubba Watson and Keegan Bradley.
After finishing the hours for Saturday and in the tent, I sternly committed to waking up early on Sunday. Being challenged with the forward time change, I was thinking that since I am losing one hour, might as well lose the second and be up around 6 ish. Originally a 7:00 AM drawing for Sunday, Jake, one of the people in charge of the duties for volunteering, emailed that the drawing would be done at the easy 7:30 AM. I made a point to wake up for the chance to bear Tiger, Rory, Rose, or Watson. Not having Phil Mickelson in mind, I made it 7:05 AM and at 7:30, got drawn "NA", not applicable, meaning a redraw would happen. I was upset but another volunteer told me a redraw would happen, that I did not know to begin with. So I got drawn #15, Phil's group, and I was very happy. Not a lousy group with 0 followers, and not a group with media pressure, and better yet not a group that would result in sheer media embarrassment (more on that later).
So I hung around until 10:30 AM, doing whatever is necessary to prepare, and got out on the field at 10:50 AM. Phil Mickelson would be playing against Alvaro Quiros, from Spain. Similar to last year in the form that a Spanish player would be met, I had Miguel Angel Jimenez to carry the standard. The standard is a 5lb. sign that contains the scores, yet when you know you will be associating with the players notches above the ranks of the riffraff you wouldn't mind the task. Mickelson, the 2009 champion and 2012 winner of the Honda Classic, was fighting for the T38 (finished T43), and still had excesses of 100 people following him. He and Quiros started -2 this round. 11 AM brought us nice skies that gradually transcended to showers that drenched us. My mom's best friend, being the "golf mom", got my text earlier and showed up at: Hole 7, a par 4, Hole 9, her favorite and a par 3, and hole 18, the infamous Blue Monster. She gave considerable support and even a nice chocolate bar that I couldn't thank her enough for. I also acquainted with the honorary observers, the electronic scorekeeper, and the two cops. Breezy Sunday made for some challenging conditions unlike the Bird fest of Saturday, and the showers began at the 12th hole. Funny enough my mom's friend told me I had been recorded on the Golf Channel at Hole 11, my iconic hole and new lucky number. There I felt something itching from the rough grass of 10 and chose to sit 30' behind Phil on the fairway so the grass wouldn't get caught during his gir shot. Hole 12 (Par 5, 603 yd) had the first showers. I made the Std. my umbrella and skidded off to the right where there were trees and stood by a couple golf fans. When Quiros made his birdie and Mickelson his par, I stood by a tent and collected myself, joking with Quiros how the standard was my umbrella. Hole 13-14 things cleared up and then 15 brought us heavier rains, which got to my shoes too. Yes, I was walking on soaked kicks through the rest of the day. By 16 things fixed up and the sun came out at hole 18. It was a nice finish even though Mickelson got a bogey. I got my hat autographed by both, golf balls from both, and with Mickelson's tradition of not signing golf balls, only got Quiros to sign it. Yet that's OK and the players gotta do what they gotta do.
Sometimes when bearing other things get in your way and mess up your job ;)... 14 and going for a tough gir, I was looking the other way (to the right) and making a comment saying, "if this one goes in the books as an eagle I'll dance around the fairway" when Mickelson was already ready to shoot, caddie and recorder signalling me to hush, yikes.... ;) Also, on 17, the Patriot's Outpost, I was looking for my mother's other friend who was sitting there and didn't notice Quiros putting, yet this one was more of me walking than speaking. Yet these are honest mistakes, and of course probably didn't damage the shots because I believe they did what they could in these holes.
People were cheering on us at 17th fairway and I was a little funny, going "Yeah, Random people!", this wasn't particularly hurtful to the play but yeah, it was a little unexpected and not the most professional. But then again, there's that it was a long run and we're a little tired off, me a bit shaken by the rain, wanting to be a little cheery. I guess my reasoning behind it was the whole Kony thing, people cheering "Kony! Kony!" and the idea of attention. Or maybe, it was that a unique character would be remembered better in the future...
Anyway, Quiros finished with a 76 at +2 while Mickelson contended with a 71 at -3. It was an excellent experience meeting them up close; they are very friendly players. Jimenez and Yang were modest exchanges. The rain was, I suppose, a cost to do this but it was a fun one. As always, I will be back next year to try for this duty four more times, then I believe I can only serve a normal volunteer from 19+.
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