The PGA Tour stops at THE PLAYERS Championship on March 12-15. Many call it golf’s fifth major. In addition to taking in the action on the scene, online or via television, THE PLAYERS Championship appears in DEEP ROUGH: A PASTOR STEPHEN GRANT NOVEL. Here’s an opportunity to read Chapter 7 featuring this tournament in DEEP ROUGH...
Chapter 7
After winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the eyes of the golf world were on Xin Chen during THE PLAYERS Championship. Chen didn’t disappoint.
During the final round on this mid-March Sunday afternoon, he stood on the tee of the iconic 17thhole with a one-shot lead. At roughly 140 yards, the 17thshould have been a relatively easy hole for the world’s best players. And it did, in fact, yield a good number of birdies. But what made this little hole difficult was the fact that it had an island green. The tee shot was either wet or on the island. That reality had a way of creeping inside even the psyche of leading professional golfers. Plus, on this day, a strong, but unpredictable, wind blew into the players’ faces.
Chen looked at his caddy, Les Donaldson, and asked, “Pops, what’s your call?”
Lester “Les” Donaldson had been a tour caddy for thirty-plus years. His baldness was offset by a walrus-like, gray mustache. And his big, strong body was sometimes lost on the casual observer who would take note of his protruding stomach. Donaldson also had an easy-going manner, and a dry sense of humor that, once gotten used to, people generally appreciated. For the past 12 years, Donaldson had caddied for a reliable earner on the tour, who won a tournament once every couple of years. But when that player injured himself over the Christmas vacation by falling out of a fishing boat, Donaldson was left looking for a new caddying gig. A fellow caddy suggested that Donaldson talk with a young phenom from China, who played well at Wake Forest, showed improvement in a few international tournaments late the previous year, and was going to debut on the Tour.
Xin and Les turned out to be an ideal pairing. The teacher and counselor that had been dormant in Les Donaldson for many years returned. Chen needed guidance in many areas, from acclimating to the Tour, the media and his fellow players; to improving his course management; to gaining wisdom from this veteran caddy as to how to manage the inevitable pressures of playing on the Tour. Meanwhile, Chen’s talent, optimism and courage re-energized Donaldson in various ways.
In the few weeks of preparation before Chen had debuted on the Tour, Donaldson became a steadying force and teacher to Chen, while Xin stoked Les’ competitive fires and enthusiasm for the game. The two men quickly formed not just a mentor-mentee relationship, but a friendship.
Given that Donaldson had immediately chosen the nickname “Kid” for the young golfer, Chen selected “Pops” for Donaldson’s nickname.
Answering Chen’s question on the 17thtee, Donaldson smiled and said, “How the hell do I know, Kid? I’m just the caddy.”
That brought out a smile on Chen’s face.
Moving past the joke, Donaldson said, “The wind seems pretty steady right now, but it can stop at any second. I think an easy nine iron gives you the best chance to keep it on the dance floor.”
Chen simply said, “Agree.” He grabbed the nine iron, took two practice swings, and lined up his shot. As the clubhead descended toward the ball, the wind suddenly stopped. At the same time, Chen’s swing was anything but easy.
As the ball flew without any of the restraint that the earlier wind would have provided, Chen lowered the club to the ground, and hung his head.
The ball caught the very back of the green, and then took a big hop into the water. A unified groan emanated from the thousands of fans surrounding the hole.
Chen’s eventual double bogey on the 17th, and subsequently a par on the 18thmeant that he would finish third at THE PLAYERS.
Facing reporters a bit later, Chen was asked, “Do you think this loss will affect your game and outlook moving ahead? Can you bounce back from this?”
A somewhat quizzical look passed on Chen’s face. “I am very disappointed that I messed up the 17thhole, and that it might have cost me winning this prestigious tournament. But I’m also not the kind of person who lets things like this have a lasting impact. I was taught to keep things in proper perspective.”
The follow-up came, “What does that mean? Don’t you see THE PLAYERS as an important event?”
Chen took a deep breath, and replied, “Of course, THE PLAYERS is important. Like many others, I consider this to be the fifth major. And again, I am privileged and blessed to be playing this greatest of sports, to be here and be part of this event. Still, there are more significant challenges in this life. Take my father, for example. He is a pastor. His life is dedicated to the Lord. At the same time, he faces many trials, often outright hostility, when it comes to his mission in China. He faces threats from the government and the Communist Party for what he is doing. He would never admit it, nor would he claim to be doing something special, but the reality is that he faces significant danger for what he does. So, while I love golf, I try to keep all things in perspective.”
As was the case the previous week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Feng Ma, from China’s General Administration of Sport, was dressed in a dark suit, and standing in the back of the press tent. However, this time, he didn’t wait for Xin Chen to finish speaking with the media. Instead, after Chen’s mentioning of his father, Ma turned, and quickly exited the tent. He didn’t look pleased, to say the least.
