Well, I can finally say it, “I am getting old.” I never thought it would happen. I am so young at heart; except for the grey hair, everyone says I look great for my age; I still walk the golf course 85% of the time; I get along great with the younger players on the tour, so why do I, unfortunately, come to this sad conclusion? The past few days, I drove the 1104 miles from Dallas to Bluffton, South Carolina, to enroll my son, Doug, into the University of South Carolina at Bluffton. My son in college… that must make me ancient.
It seemed liked just yesterday that I was pushing a stroller with my kid inside. From his first tee-ball game to lacing up his first pair of skates to learn to play hockey; from buying his first small golf club to watching him break his collar bone in PeeWee football; from all the soccer games to his making the winning basket to beat the undefeated team in the champion game of the Highland Park Youth Basketball League… I have had incredible joy watching Douglas grow from a little boy to a young adult.
Somewhere along the way, a very interesting thing happened - as the boy became a man, he chose some very important values, values that many are unable to choose. During the summer vacation of his 16th year, Doug, along with a half a dozen of his high school friends, spent 4 weeks studying French at the University of Biarritz. It was during that trip that my son made the decision to not smoke or drink. Because of that choice, he took much grief from his friends. You remember those days, right? “Let’s go do this… or let’s go try that. What are you afraid of?” Well, Doug made his choice and stood behind that decision, taking plenty of crap from his friends. It made me realize that Sandie and I, no matter how hard it was along the way, had raised an amazing son.
Like many men, it is hard for me to sometimes show my true emotions to my oldest son. The pride I have felt as he decided to take on the game of golf at the very old age of 17. The pride I have felt over the last year watching Doug go through what most boys that take up the game go through at 12 and 13. The pride I have felt watching him go through the 94’s and 95’s to get to the 84’s and the 85’s, to winning his first tournament. There are not many 18 year olds that could have dealt with the levels of beginner golf at such an old age but Douglas Newton Gribin is not your normal kid. Through all the difficult times, the normal crap we all go through as parents, the constants with Doug of telling the truth and taking responsibility for his mess-ups are always there. Doug Gribin is an amazing young man, and while other boys his age are off to the first year in college, Doug has chosen to continue his path towards playing college golf by enrolling in the Post Graduate Program at the Hank Haney International Junior Golf Academy and taking just a couple of classes at USCB, putting off his real freshman year for another 6 to 9 months.
So you go, Doug… keep doing your 10 hour practice sessions; keep handling the good times and the difficult times with the class of a 30 year old; keep chasing your goal; keep listening to Hank and never quit trying to capture your dream. I know I don’t say it enough, but I am really proud of you and love you very much. And I’ll keep getting older… of course your mom never ages.
One closing note as we head into the Fed Ex Cup. Last year at this time I was writing what a mistake the “Race for Cup” seemed to be. I apologized the week after Tiger won the Tour Championship, the first Cup and ten million dollars. As we enter the 2008 Fed Ex Cup without Tiger Woods, I am, once again, wondering where and from whom we will find our excitement. Will it finally appear from Sergio? Could Padrig Harrington take another step towards solidifying his place as “the” Tiger chaser? Can Phil find some inner strength and turn a miserable year into a $10 million payday? Or will some unsuspecting Tour Player create some much needed magic as we turtle our way to the Tour Championship and the Fed Ex winner.
In the middle of all this, we will get one of sport’s greatest events, the Ryder Cup. Even without Tiger, I am really looking forward to this year’s Cup. I truly believe our US team enters as a big underdog. Over the next few weeks, USA Captain, Paul Azinger, will choose the four additional members of the team. That alone will add some excitement to the first two tournaments of the Cup. One thing is certain, Azinger needs to find a couple of very hot players to add to his team. Who will answer the call? We’ll have to wait and see.
