No Time to Lay Up

Standing on the 15th hole at the 2010 Masters, Brad Benjamin faced the most significant decision of his life. The 2009 Publinks Champion was directly on the cutline while playing with former champion, Bernhard Langer, and five-time PGA Tour winner, Scott Verplank.

The 15th at Augusta has propelled players to victory and drowned many hopes of slipping on the green jacket. If Benjamin made birdie or better, it would likely lock up a weekend tee time. After a lengthy discussion with his caddie, he reached for a club. 

Fast forward 14 years, and Brad Benjamin, now a father of two, sits in his office chair each morning with a large pack beside him. The constant slow drip of the portable dialysis equipment can barely be heard, but is vital to keeping Benjamin alive. Benjamin has Berger's disease and he is in desperate need of a kidney transplant.  

Benjamin grew up in Rockford, Illinois, and his father, a junior college golf coach, introduced him to the game. Soon after, they were playing at Sinnissippi Golf Club in Rockford. The 9-hole, 3300-yard layout was the perfect place for a kid to learn the game. In the summer, his parents would drop him off at the course in the morning, and pick him up in the afternoon. 

Golf became his obsession and the lefty became well-known, winning multiple junior tournaments and becoming the number one-ranked junior in Illinois. Soon, colleges came calling, and Benjamin eventually chose Memphis University. 

His college career was solid yet unspectacular. He was named Captain his senior year, had eight top-20 finishes in his career, and had a career average of 74.6 before graduating in 2009. That summer however, Benjamin had the biggest moment of his career at the Jimmy Austin OU Club in Norman, Texas –  the site of the 2009 Publinks Championship, a USGA amateur event played from 1922 to 2014 for golfers who were members of public courses. 

The 2009 Publinks included Rickie Fowler (who had Talor Gooch on the bag), Wesley Bryan, Tom Whitney, Julian Suri, and 2023 Canadian Open winner Nick Taylor. 

Taylor was the medalist that year in the 36-hole qualifying portion and would be the top seed in match play. On his way to the finals, Taylor dominated his five matches, needing just 72 holes to win those matches. It included 6&4, 7&5, and even an 8&6 victory. Benjamin grinded his way through a quarterfinal match that went 19 holes, and a semi-final match with future Korn Ferry Tour member, Brandon Crick, which Benjamin won 1-up. 

That set up a final match with the red-hot Taylor. The 36-hole final seemed like a formality on Taylor's way to the title and the Masters invite. But that, as the saying goes, is why they play the game. Benjamin dominated from the start, winning the first 18 4-up, taking the 19th hole to go 5-up, and never looked back. He closed the match 7&6. 

I asked Taylor what he remembered about the final and he said, "It's hard to forget. I got drummed." Taylor added he remembers Benjamin putting right-handed and "he had an answer all day." 

The Master's invite came in the mail later that year and the following April, Benjamin headed to Augusta. He stayed in the Crow's Nest, though they had to rotate beds because six amateurs were in the field that year. Among the group of amateurs were Ben An and Matteo Manassero. 

A solid opening round 73 left Benjamin in good shape. Standing on 15 in the second round, he was 3-over for the tourney and directly on the cut line. Then came the decision on 15. He decided to lay up, pulled it behind a tree, and made a bogey. He bogeyed two of the last three to miss the cut by three strokes. 

Soon after, Benjamin turned pro and found some success, qualifying for the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional, and earned his conditional Korn Ferry Tour card for 2012, but didn't get any starts based on his finish at the final stage of Q-school. 

Since then, he has played mini-tours and built a very impressive business. Benjamin buys and resells Scotty Cameron putters. A business that has helped him continue to chase his dream of the PGA Tour and help support his family. 

On Thanksgiving in 2022, Benjamin, his wife Rikki, a literacy specialist in the South Carolina school system, and their two children Palmer (yes, named after Arnie) and Lincoln, were headed to Rikki's parent's house in Wisconsin. On the trip, Brad had a headache, a metallic taste in his mouth, and a spot developed in his vision. The family stopped at a local optometrist in Madison to get checked out. 

It was that appointment that changed Brad's life. The doctor noted bruising in the back of his eyes. She then took his blood pressure, which read so high she assumed the cuff was not working correctly. The doctor took Benjamin’s blood pressure manually and confirmed the previous reading. The optometrist told him he needed to go to the ER immediately. 

"When I walked into the ER, I assumed I would be walking out in a few hours." 11 days later, including multiple days in the ICU, Brad Benjamin left St. Mary's Hospital knowing that he needed a kidney donation. 

Benjamin says he has kept an upbeat attitude for the most part, but three weekly trips to dialysis have taken a toll. "There were many older people, and most were wondering if the end was near. It was tough." Soon after, however, he got a device that allowed him to do the dialysis at home. 

Benjamin is still in need of a kidney. None of his family members are matches, and now he is looking for your help. The links for donating will be below. 

Benjamin would like to return to the Masters, even if it’s just to show Palmer and Lincoln where their Dad layed up on the 15th. He hopes to show his boys how to be bold in the face of uncertainty and not just on the golf course – but through his journey back to health. 

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Information for donating a Kidney

MUSC Living Donor Program Website: https://muschealth.org/medical.../transplant/living-donation

Contact MUSC Living Donor Program: 843-792-5097

Complete MUSC Living Kidney Donor Form: https://redcap.musc.edu/surveys/?s=DTER8M8JLM