Mr. Marshal, The Finale

Mr. Fairway is now fully recovered from his stint as a marshal at the AT&T National, although it was touch and go for a while. He worked five days of the tournament, including a 1 hour and 45-minute rain delay on Friday afternoon when there were only two groups left to play.

Overall, it was a good experience. Golf fans in Washington are knowledgeable and except for a few of Steve Marino’s old high school buddies, very well behaved. As for marshalling, the best places are at the green and on the tee, especially if you get to use the blaze orange paddle to indicate the direction of the drive. The worst place to be stationed is at the crosswalk where fans can cross the fairway from the tournament entrance. People at the crosswalk are often in a hurry to get somewhere else and hate being kept behind a rope until the players, caddies and officials pass them by. (Mr. Fairway sympathizes with them.)

Being stationed at the landing areas presents special challenges. If a player drives into the rough, you have to find the ball and stand near it so the PGA Tour’s shotlink device can measure the distance. With a high sky, it can be challenging to see the ball from the tee 300 yards away, hence the orange paddle. If a player misses the fairway and lands on the cart path or other area outside the gallery ropes, the marshal must “protect” the ball, clear fans away, take down ropes, etc. Mr. Fairway was a ball magnet at the landing area on Saturday with no fewer than five stray tee shots raining down on the gallery. No injuries reported.

The number of spectators at the tournament was down, due to the absence of Tiger Woods and a weak field (only five of the top 20 players in the world rankings). Anthony Kim won the event – his second of the year. Mr. Fairway may report for duty next year, but that decision won’t be made until he takes some time off.

Hitting range balls while wondering whatever happened to Sam Randolph.