Wealthy Beem: True Grit Story Of The 2002 PGA Championship

August 8, 2023

Standing on the fifteenth tee at Hazeltine Nationwide within the closing spherical of the 2002 PGA Championship, Tiger Woods was 5 photographs off Wealthy Beem’s lead. He turned to caddy Steve Williams and stated, “OK Stevie, if we birdie in from right here we win this event.” It was typical of Tiger’s confidence however his logic was cheap. He figured that if he may submit a quantity then Beem, two holes behind, would buckle. Who was this man anyway? He used to promote cellphones, he’d been working in a professional store simply 4 years earlier, he’d struggled on the mini-tours, this was solely his fourth Main. He’d certainly collapse if the World No 1 utilized adequate stress, wouldn’t he?

The factor was: Wealthy Beem wasn’t intimidated by the scenario, he wasn’t fazed by the specter of Tiger Woods; he’d confronted extra stress than that in his life.

Beem graduated from New Mexico State College and turned professional in 1994. He took a job as an assistant skilled at Sioux Falls Golf Membership in South Dakota. His father, a PGA skilled himself, had big hopes for his son as a golfer and Wealthy felt the stress of these expectations as he did not make an influence on the Dakota mini excursions. Beem fell out of affection with the sport and adopted a girlfriend (who would later ditch him) to Seattle the place he took a job as a cell phone salesman.

Wealthy lasted lower than a yr in that place earlier than golf drew him again in. He barely touched a membership for eight months, however watching previous rival Paul Stankowski win the 1996 BellSouth Basic on the PGA Tour impressed him to present the game one other strive.

He went again to the mini excursions and loved slightly success, so in late 1998 he determined to have a crack at PGA Tour Q-school. He made it by means of the primary stage in 14th place, scraped by means of the second stage by the pores and skin of his enamel after which gained his card within the third stage with a closing spherical of 66. He had performed 14 rounds of stress-filled golf merely to earn the possibility to play on the PGA Tour – had Tiger ever felt stress like that?

Beemer On Tour

Rich Beem

(Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)

In his first season on the circuit, Beem got here from nowhere to win the Kemper Open – it was a blessing and a curse. The victory secured his card for 2 seasons however it made him complacent. He was already recognized for taking a reasonably vibrant method to his off-course life-style, however the further fame (and money) offered by the win allowed him to hit it relatively exhausting for some time. A low level got here when he was caught driving over the restrict at 2.00AM whereas over within the UK for The Open Championship.

He missed eight cuts by means of the remainder of 1999 and 16 cuts in 29 occasions by means of 2000. By the top of 2001 he was in peril of dropping his card and he wanted a top-10 end on the Michelob Championship to maintain it. He fought his means right into a place the place he had an opportunity. Battling super nerves, he held on within the closing spherical to safe gainful employment for 2002. And what if he hadn’t? Who is aware of, again to promoting telephones or golf balls maybe? As Lee Trevino as soon as famously stated, “actual stress is enjoying a match for $5 once you solely have $2 in your pocket.”

Into 2002

Rich Beem

Beem on the Worldwide

(Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)

Buoyed by the resilience he displayed in late 2001, Beem knuckled down and loved some good leads to the primary a part of 2002 – a fourth and a second place being the perfect of them. In The Worldwide event, performed to a modified Stableford format, Beem seemed set to file his second PGA Tour victory – eight factors forward by means of 16 holes of the ultimate spherical.

However Steve Lowery holed his second to the fifteenth for an eagle to cut back Wealthy’s benefit to a few factors. Beem heard the roar and struck again by holing a protracted putt for an eagle of his personal on the seventeenth. That might certainly be that. Not fairly. Lowery then proceeded to gap his second for an albatross two on the seventeenth and minimize Beem’s result in only one. As Wealthy stood beside the 18th inexperienced he was visibly agitated as Lowery got here up the house gap. There was a definite risk a victory he had earned with a closing 63 is likely to be snatched from him by a freak end. A birdie would give Lowery the win; a par and Beem would take the title. When Lowery’s birdie effort narrowly missed, Beem broke down. He may hardly converse to the on-course interviewer afterwards, his face drenched with sweat and tears. He’d come out on high after one of many tensest finishes in PGA Tour historical past. If any additional proof was wanted, this was it: Beem may stand as much as stress.

On to Hazeltine

Tiger Woods

Tiger was favorite for Hazeltine

(Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)

Because of the outstanding win at The Worldwide, Wealthy Beem wasn’t a whole non-story coming into the USPGA Championship two weeks later. Nonetheless, he was simply 73rd on the World Rankings, having began the yr at 284th. The highest 5 at the moment have been Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen and Sergio Garcia. These males, with Tiger means out in entrance, have been the favourites at Hazeltine.

Tiger had received The Masters and the U.S. Open earlier within the yr, he additionally received the Buick Open the week earlier than the USPGA. He’d received the yr’s fourth Main twice earlier than and most felt he would win it once more.

After two rounds at Hazeltine Tiger was lurking in good place, simply two photographs off the tempo following rounds of 71 and 69. The lead was held by 5 gamers: Former Main champions Justin Leonard, Mark Calcavecchia and Retief Goosen, skilled campaigner Fred Funk and partially reformed get together animal Wealthy Beem. After opening with a gradual 72, Beem posted an excellent second spherical of 66 – a rating made potential by some merely unimaginable placing.

Beem had been one of many higher ball-strikers on the PGA Tour since he started enjoying on the circuit, however he struggled on the greens. In 2001 he was ranked 137th in placing. However for 2002 he had turned to a distinct putter – an STX Sync Tour. Utilized by plenty of gamers, together with Seve and Jesper Parnevik, it was centre shafted with a bulbous weight behind the blade. It wasn’t a very engaging weapon, however it labored for Beem and he discovered he may roll the ball fantastically with it.

Regardless of his notable show on Hazeltine’s tough greens, and his event victory simply two weeks earlier, many of the media considered Beem’s function within the event as a brief facet story. He was a personality actually, however a critical contender to win a Main? No, no, it might certainly be a kind of confirmed winners within the combine after two rounds who would go on to loft the Wanamaker Trophy on Sunday afternoon.

One thing for The Weekend

Rich Beem

Beemer stayed in rivalry

(Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)

However, after a really tough third spherical through which the winds gusted to 40mph, making most of the already tough pin positions look nigh on inconceivable, Beem was nonetheless there. His combating 72 represented one of many rounds of the day, with solely a handful of gamers managing higher. A kind of was Justin Leonard, who performed outstandingly to attain 69.

Beem went into the ultimate spherical of the yr’s closing Main in solo second place, three behind Leonard with Fred Funk in third and Woods in a tie for fourth: 5 photographs off Leonard and two behind Beem. These have been uncharted waters for Beem and lots of believed the nerves would get to him.

Early on Sunday Beem displayed that if he was feeling the nerves he was channelling them into his efficiency. He birdied the third and 4th holes then picked up one other on the par-5 seventh, the place he hit an excellent 3-wood to the entrance of the inexperienced.

With that birdie, Wealthy moved right into a tie for the lead and Leonard started to endure from the stress much more clearly than his enjoying accomplice. The Texan double bogeyed the eighth and dropped three additional photographs to shoot a closing spherical of 77, falling again right into a tie for fourth place with Fred Funk.

It was Tiger Woods who would emerge to push Beem by means of an exciting again 9.

Wealthy struck the primary blow with an eagle on the eleventh. It gave him a three-shot lead, and he prolonged it additional when Woods dropped strokes on the thirteenth and 14th holes.

Beem was in command, however Woods wasn’t completed. As he’d promised Stevie Williams, he birdied the ultimate 4 holes to ask the query of the inexperienced chief.

Beem’s reply was emphatic. As if to say “You received’t bully me out of this one Tiger,” Beem performed two effective photographs to the treacherous par-4 sixteenth then holed a hard-breaking 40-foot putt for a birdie three. It earned him a two-shot cushion with two to play. He parred the par-3 seventeenth and will afford the posh of creating a three-putt bogey on the house gap. He nonetheless took the title by a shot.

He tapped in, lofted his arms and danced a celebratory jig. He had withstood the stress once more, confronted as much as the perfect participant on the planet and crushed him down the stretch to safe his place in {golfing} historical past. It accomplished fairly a turnaround for a man who had given up on golf utterly simply seven years earlier. Right here was a person who had endured his struggles and bounced again from adversity to re-find his self-belief. Beem had been toughened by life; he had taken the knocks and rolled with the punches. He’d discovered there was no cause to be intimidated by repute; he had handled scarier issues than a rampant Tiger. On the 2002 PGA Wealthy Beem displayed true grit and deservedly got here out on high.