Mackay, who started caddying for Phil Mickelson the previous year, paid his way to The Belfry in England because he wanted to get his first taste of the intensifying international competition. His role was to be a gopher – whatever U.S. captain Tom Watson needed.
Mackay was in the team room when Friday morning’s foursomes matches were delayed because of fog. Both teams had been told play would start as soon as the fog lifted because they already had an opportunity to warm up. The American players’ bags were lined up against a wall as they sat around, anxious.
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Fred Couples, who dubbed Mackay “Bones” because he couldn’t remember his name – the sobriquet forever stuck with the lanky 6-foot-4 Mackay – started fiddling with Davis Love III’s clubs. Love and Tom Kite were playing in the first match. Couples grabbed Love’s 8-iron, took a mild swing and watched in horror as the clubhead went bouncing down the floor.
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Within seconds, a Ryder Cup official opens the door and says, “Mr. Kite and Mr. Love, you’re on the tee in five minutes.”
Uh-oh.
“Davis hands me the club and the head,” Mackay said, “and he yells ‘Fix it!’”
There were no equipment trailers nearby at these Ryder Cups, mind you. Mackay went racing around the course, through the crowds, before he found an old man with a wagon on the outskirts of the course who was able to put the 8-iron back together. Mackay handed it to Love halfway through the front nine.
Welcome to the Ryder Cup, rookie.
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Two days later, Love is playing the 18th hole against Costantino Rocca, the Ryder Cup very much up in the air. Love hits his approach to 6 feet and two-putted to clinch the Americans’ 15-13 victory.
Amid the celebration, Love grabs Mackay and screams, “That was your 8-iron!”
“One of the greatest moments of my life,” Bones said.
Mackay’s first Ryder Cup also was the U.S.’s last win on foreign soil. Twenty-five years ago.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHO
