The People’s Last Monday

At the Waste Management Open Monday qualifier, Jeff Overton, Charlie Beljan, and Bo Van Pelt, made the turn at Pinnacle Peak Country Club in Scottsdale. 15 years ago, this would be a notable grouping in a PGA Tour event, but on this pristine day in the desert, the three veterans were hoping to recapture the magic of years past. Overton was listed at three-under on the leaderboard – a scoring mistake that sent me out to find their group. Beljan’s wife, Marlis, said hello and told me she came out to watch the final WMO Monday qualifer, a wistful sentiment echoed by many across the course throughout the day – the qualifier’s celebration of life: a funeral. 

Last year, as I watched Jim “Hard K” Knous survive a Monday Q playoff in the dark, his LinkedIn bio read, “currently seeking a job in the golf industry.” Hard K had already accepted a job at PING, but his preparation for that job had to wait – he had to add a heroic conclusion to his playing career. Knous made the WMO cut and birdied the final two holes of the tournament with “Hard K” chants coming from the crowds. At “The People’s Open,” Knous became a people’s champion. This was the kind of storyline only a Monday Q could deliver. Most careers end with a whimper. Knous ended with a bang. 

My participation in Monday qualifiers usually comes from inside the field. One year, I played with Aaron Wise as he made a late run, eventually falling one shot short. Wise’s towering long-irons never left the flags, and left a lasting impression in my memory. Another year, I caught a late flight after a disappointing Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. I shot one-over on the front nine the next morning, and my playing partners, Robert Garrigus and David Lipsky, both withdrew on the back nine, leaving me to finish the round with a rules official. Once you are mathematically out of contention, the remaining holes can be a slog, and players choosing to withdraw is common.

On Monday at Pinnacle Peak C.C., there were only three starting players who withdrew. Perhaps it was out of respect; a final show of appreciation for the opportunity the WMO Monday Q represents. Garrigus even stuck it out, posting 75. Many were feeling the Joni Mitchell sentiment that “you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone.” 

Overton was playing a low draw to perfection off the tee and adding some Palmer showmanship to the finish positions, but it didn’t help his score. Behind Overton’s group of journeymen, Harry Higgs was trying to maintain his focus. Higgs was a handful under par in the middle of his back nine – an enviable position. One player in his group had made more bogeys than birdies and couldn’t play fast enough; the other was leading, and in no rush to get to the clubhouse. While waiting to hit, Higgs often looked to the sky or the trees. Anything to keep himself patient and calm. 

When you’re watching professional golfers in a 72-hole event, it can be difficult to discern if they're playing well from body language alone. The body language of an 18-hole qualifier magnifies internal feelings, betraying the quiet surroundings. By the back nine in a Monday Q, a spectator can make a fairly accurate assessment of a player’s score by watching how they move.

Higgs birdied 14, 15 and 16 before three-putting from short range on 17 for double bogey, falling back to six-under. A birdie at 18 was his only chance, but his tee shot kicked into the rough and a lone tree blocked his angle to the green. To have a look for eagle on the par-5, he’d either have to aim at the driving range and hit a slinging hook, or play over the maintenance building with a samurai slice. 

15 yards ahead, Steven Fisk stood at eight-under with a clear shot to the green and a likely hold on a spot in the WMO field. He stared ahead as Higgs – perhaps the face of the Waste Management Open (and body?) – tried to find a way back into the field. Fisk made birdie and posted nine-under, earning a spot. Higgs settled for par, six-under and a frustrating afternoon.

After teeing off on his back nine in the final group of the day, Ryan Hall picked up his giant Callaway staff bag and carried it down the 10th fairway. Monday Q Info’s Ryan French and I looked around, expecting a caddie to emerge from behind a tree, or from a restroom. By the time Hall reached the green, it was clear no one was coming. Hall was even par and was going to grind through the back nine with an extra forty pounds on his back. 

Hall told us he had a push cart for the front but it broke. I suggested that French, the Maestro of Mondays, should carry Hall’s bag. French brushed it off, but I knew he couldn’t resist. On the next tee, there was French waiting for Hall. Hall was happy to offload the extra weight.

If this were a movie, a writer might pen a heroic finale for Hall – an unconscious birdie barrage inspired by French; a closing eagle in the dark; a joyful celebration with at least one character jumping in greenside pond. While Monday Qs produce amazing storylines, this one was too far-fetched. Hall missed his early birdie attempts and then hit two provisional balls off the 16th tee. He did, however, manage to carve a driver-off-the-deck under and around a group of old trees from the rough, making a thrilling birdie. He then hit a towering, tumbling wedge over another set of trees on 16, for a tap-in birdie: a shot that Seve and Phil would have approved of. 

French watched the final group on the final hole of the final WMO Monday qualifier from just off the green. It was a perfect desert evening as French watched his adopted group finish. 

There isn’t always justice in this game. You hope, over the long haul, the golf gods provide some fairness and balance. French has turned Monday qualifiers into compelling events unto themselves, and there are none more important than this, The People’s Open.

The sun was setting on his beloved Monday Q, but somehow, a player in the final group needed help and French was in the right place. French quietly watched his group finish as a man on the inside. French was the first golf reporter to make casual fans care about Monday qualifiers. On this day, he would be the last man to leave the 18th green.  It was a poignant moment for French, and somehow, it was uniquely his.

‍