Reflections of the BMW Championship: Friday, September 11, 2009 - Round 2
Whether you are a casual golf fan or a die-hard fanatic, chances are good that you have seen a tournament on T.V. If you have, chances are better that you have heard someone off camera yell, “get in the hole!”
Although these painfully annoying screams can be heard by the audience watching from the comforts of their living rooms, the networks never give these rubes the satisfaction of putting their faces on T.V. Therefore, the identity of this particular demographic of golf fan has always been a mystery to me. By some stroke of luck, Frank Jemsek, owner of Cog Hill, was about to inadvertently point me in their direction.
I ran into Jemsek as I entered the grounds on the morning of the second round, but I didn’t know who he was at first. Jemsek is a tall man and he was thanking his patrons for coming to Cog Hill on the morning of the second round. As I made my way through the gates, I could hear Jemsek off in the distance. As I approached, I could see that the black band wrapped around his straw sun hat read Cog Hill and his name tag said Frank. I put the two together and walked over to him for a quick, impromptu interview.
“Hey Mr. Jemsek,” I said. “Joe Moylan with The Bugle. Do you have a second?”
“Sure,” he replied.
“Good, this won’t take long because I’m really only interested in one thing,” I continued. “I know that bringing a U.S. Open to Cog Hill was the primary motivation behind the Rees Jones renovation and we know from what some of the players have said this week that they think it is possible. However, there is a lot of buzz about Cog Hill hosting an event for the 2016 games if golf is accepted as an Olympic sport and Chicago wins its bid. Hypothetically speaking, if an Open does not come to Cog, would hosting an Olympic event be any consolation?”
“We’d be happy and honored to host both events,” Jemsek replied and turned away to greet more fans walking in.
“I can understand that,” I replied, regaining Mr. Jemsek’s attention. “But, I’m asking, in the event that
an Open doesn’t come to Cog, would hosting the Olympics be good enough to fulfill your father’s legacy?”
“Luring a U.S. Open was the primary reason why we brought Rees in last year,” Jemsek replied. “And it continues to be our main goal. If Chicago wins its bid for the 2016 games, we would be honored to host a golf event. But, I would rather have one in the hand than two in the bush, if you know what I mean?”
“I certainly do,” I replied. “And it looks like you have done an amazing job. Where would you recommend I go to catch the best action?”
“Number 12 tee,” he replied. “There’s a hill right there that should give you a great view of the green.”
The first groups were just teeing off. Robert Allenby, Brandt Snedeker and local favorite Mark Wilson were leading the pack off of number 10. I decided to walk with them until we reached the 12th hole and then parked myself on the hill Jemsek had told me about next to the tee box. Without paying close attention to my surroundings, I took a seat on the grass in front of a small group of guys that were more appropriately dressed for a construction site than a golf course. Wilson was up first and as soon as he completed his follow-through I heard it…GET IN THE HOLE!!!
The sound was deafening due to my close proximity and the shear volume of the man’s voice pierced my eardrums. I turned and scowled at the group, but they paid no attention. They were already deep in the bag and money was changing hands.
The 12th hole is a degenerate gamblers dream; long, difficult and a challenge to get the ball close to the pin. This 221 yard, downhill par 3 had historically been the most difficult “short hole” on the course and was even more so now that Rees Jones had deepened the bunkers flanking each side of the green and had recontoured the putting service. The slopes in the new green were so severe that they were visible to us fans more than 663 feet away.
My new “friends” were gambling heavily, each one taking a golfer in the approaching group and betting on which one would hit his shot the closest to the pin. What embarked after each swing was a series of screams for the ball to “GET IN THE HOLE!!!” One of the gentlemen behind me lost a good string of bets in a row and eased his pain by becoming more inebriated. As the afternoon progressed, the loser added a scream of “GET IN THE BUNKER” every time one of the opposing players hit his tee shot. It was classy in every sense of the word and the rest of the fans seated in the vicinity began to grumble.
Finally, one man had had enough and approached the group. He was a big guy, much larger than any one of the gamblers, but collectively they could have beaten him to a pulp. He approached anyway and very casually informed the gentlemen behind me that he was there with his elderly mother and two children and if they could tone it down, he would appreciate it.
“If not,” the man continued. “I’d be happy to shut all of your mouths for you.”
With that, he walked away and peace and quiet had been restored.
Let that be a lesson to everyone out there. Yelling “GET IN THE HOLE” is wholly unoriginal, painfully annoying and terribly unnecessary. Save it for the privacy of your home; Chicago golf fans have had enough.
Mark Wilson left me behind at the 12th to go on and shoot an impressive -5 (66). That coupled with his first round score of -2 (69) put him in the clubhouse with a share of the lead and earned him a spot in the final pairing for Saturday’s third round. His playing partner? Tiger Woods who shot first and second round scores of -3 (68) and -4 (67) respectively.
To be continued...