PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Sometimes, an unexpected case of kismet delivers a twist or turn in your life and changes everything.
In the case of Jim Herman, he has had a number of those moments occur in his life.
A quick glance at Herman — who happens to lead the Honda Classic at 5-under par after Thursday's wind-blown opening round at treacherous PGA National — might lead you to feel a bit sorry for him. He is, after all, a 37-year-old grinder who has bounced between the PGA Tour and Web.com as often as a baseball journeyman bounces from the major leagues to the minors.
But don't feel badly for Herman. He has been sprinkled with magic dust a time or two along the way during his long and winding journey.
The first life-changing moment for Herman came when his friend, Mickie Gallagher, the head pro at Trump Bedminster in New Jersey, recommended to Donald Trump he hire Herman as an assistant pro in 2006.
The second came while Herman was playing with Trump at Bedminster that year and Trump asked him a serious question.
"He said, 'What are you doing folding shirts and giving lessons here at my club? I've played with PGA Tour players and you're just as good as them,' '' Herman told The Post after he arrived at his nearby Palm City, Fla., home following his round. "That was a little shot in the arm for me.''
Herman got through the second stage of PGA Tour Qualifying School in 2007 in his second season at Trump Bedminster, and that catapulted him to where he is today.
"I play with a lot of people that think they're pros and they're not, and I played with [Herman] and I said, 'He's a phenomenal player,' '' Trump told The Post on Thursday. "This is not surprising to see.''
Herman said of those words from Trump during that fateful round at Bedminster: "That little confidence boost … sometimes that's what you need. I carry his name on my chest and his logo on my bag, and I'll always be thankful for the support he showed me at that time and still to this day.
"I've been playing the last eight years on the Web.com and PGA Tour — four years of each — and I know that I belong. Now I've just got to go out and prove it.''
Herman, with a one-shot lead entering Friday's second round, will have that chance thanks to another moment that occurred on Monday, when he was playing in the qualifying tournament to get into the Honda field.
Herman, who was second alternate to get into the field, was on the fourth hole of the qualifier when he got a call from a Honda Classic official telling him a player withdrawal had opened up a spot for him.
All he did Thursday was go out and shoot the best round of the day in windy conditions that abused the best players in the world — leaving No. 1 ranked Rory McIlroy eight shots behind him, Phil Mickelson six back and Dustin Johnson 12 back.
You turn your television onto the Golf Channel and you see McIlroy, Mickelson and the game's other established stars and you think that's the life on the PGA Tour. Herman resides on the fringes of that society, which is what makes his story so special.
"There are a lot of us, and we're all trying to get that tournament win or top finishes so that we can solidify our cards,'' Herman said. "It's truly a year-to-year thing until you get that W.''
Now it's about what Herman does with that 65 he shot Thursday, where he takes it from here, so he can possibly create another of those moments for himself.
"You want to put yourself in these positions as much as you can and see if you can keep yourself together for 72 holes,'' Herman said.
Eighteen down, hopefully 54 to go.
"He's done it the tough way,'' said Gallagher, who walked all 18 holes with Herman on Thursday. "It's just a matter of time for him and, God willing, it will be this week.''
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
How Donald Trump’s support jump-started PGAer on fringe
Dengan url
http://bahayaprostat.blogspot.com/2015/02/how-donald-trumpas-support-jump-started.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
How Donald Trump’s support jump-started PGAer on fringe
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
How Donald Trump’s support jump-started PGAer on fringe
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar