LYNN — Two days later, Lynn Classical Golf Coach Jack Morrison was still walking on air.
Thanks to the workings of an old friend from his childhood days of caddying, Morrison was able to bring his team to The Country Club in Brookline Monday to watch the pros practice for the upcoming U.S. Open this weekend.
“I got a text the other day saying that a guy named Billy Locke was willing to donate some tickets to some high school golf teams,” said Morrison. “Well, Billy and I caddied for our dads at the Thomson Club (in North Reading) and we became buddies.”
However, it had been 30 years since Morrison had seen Locke.
“I cannot tell how hard he worked to get tickets out to those high schools.”
Everything was tightly scheduled and organized.
“We drove to Needham and took a bus to Brookline,” he said. “Once we were in there, we pretty much had the run of the place.”
Morrison wanted to make sure his golfers had fun and did their share of star-gazing as they sought out and watched their favorite pros. But he also wanted them to see how hard these pros work to maintain their edge.
“I took them over to the practice tees, because I wanted them to see what these guys do — the time and commitment that goes into it. Then, we went to the putting greens. Same thing there.
“These guys are all business,” Morrison said. “There’s no messing around. They’re at work. I tell my guys to go to Gannon at 7 at night and just chip golf balls onto the green, the way these guys do when they practice.”
Morrison, 67, has been a golfer all his life, and certainly had his own reasons for being thrilled,
“But honestly, I was just wrapped up at how they were digging the fact they were at this event. I wanted them to be that sponge and absorb everything they could absorb.”
From perspective, “I am always impressed with the condition of the course,” he said. “It’s quite a sight. This may not be the Masters, but having the US Open in what’s pretty much your home town is pretty impressive.”
Of course, he said, there’s no comparison either in resources or the ability to maintain the course with the average municipal links such as Gannon.
“Gannon is an amazing place,” he said. “The shape it’s in is phenomenal, considering there’s so much play. They shut The Country Club down for about a month to start maintaining that place for an event like this. There are no weeds. No divot holes. Nothing.”
Morrison also loved the reactions from his players.
“There’s something about being 10 feet from Rory McIlroy,” he said, “and one of our guys elbow fist pumped DJ.”
As the day wound down, Morrison was left with two thoughts not even remotely connected.
“We did a lot of walking,” he said. “At one point, I found a nice shady tree, sat down, and took a break.
The other?
“It was just a great day all-around,” he said.
