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For friends, family and the random search engine visitor. This blog started as an experiment in mobile blogging from my Palm TREO 600, 700, Prē, HTC Evo, Samsung 5, Pixel 3, Pixel 6 Pro. Now it serves as a simple repository of favorite activities. Expect bad golf, good fishing, great sailing, eating, drinking, adventure travel, occasional politics and anything else I find interesting along the way including, but not limited to, any of the labels listed here...

Sunday, February 4, 2018

My Tom Brady Story

Tom Brady LII Superbowl Cover

It was the summer of 1999. Pat, a friend from my prior professional life at Oracle corporation, invited me to play a round with him at Green Hills Country Club.  I eagerly jumped at the chance as it's not often I get to play a private Alister Mackenzie golf course. It was the only time he invited me, which is the rule not the exception when I am invited by a member to play a round at their private course. It's always one and done. Probably has something to do with my bad golf game and, I assume, bitter complaints and threats by the other members after I depart.

The starter put us with a another pair to fill the foursome - Green Hills member Thomas Brady Sr, and his son Tom Brady - home from school break at the University of Michigan. It was the summer before his last season at Michigan as the starting quarterback for Wolverines.


Tom is, of course, a natural athlete and a great golfer. I am not. I didn't spend a lot of time in conversation with my playing partners because, as per usual, I spent much of the round consumed by the on-going horror of my game.  I don't think I was much worse of a golfer then than I am now, but I was certainly not better.  The golf itself was unremarkable and the scores are lost to the dustbins of history. I probably shot something in the 115 range, which would be typical for me on a course of that quality. But I digress. 

Tom took pity on my game. He was friendly, offering encouragement and sympathy as I hacked my way around the course. I was not a huge college football fan at the time, but had a general appreciation of who he was and Michigan's ranking as a good but probably not great team in the coming season. Late in the round I realized I was being unsociable and decided I needed to at least feign interest in this likable young man and his college football career. This is what I said, thinking I was offering an encouraging and optimistic assessment of his team's prospects for the coming year: "Michigan is pretty good. They could finish in the top ten in the rankings this year." 

Tom's demeanor instantly changed. His face went cold. He stared at me like I was a bug crawling on a hamburger. He was actually pissed. Finally, in an icy measured tone, he said:
If you're not playing for a championship, there's no point in playing."
Okay then. I remember thinking at the time - This is the most competitive SOB I will ever meet. 

And that's why I am taking the Patriots and laying the points. Pats 33 - Eagles 24 

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