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"...and he saw Me!" Featured Article by Garri Read |
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I know many of
you want to see Tiger play. I finally got my chance, and it was more terrific than I could have ever expected. Here's my story: -Garri 6/03/97 As soon as I found out that Tiger was coming to play in the Memorial Tournament near where I live, I was soooo excited. I'm probably more obsessed with Tiger Woods than anybody. Despite the fact that I was informed that tickets were completely sold out, I found tickets and eagerly awaited for the day of the tournament to arrive. When it finally did, I woke up at four o'clock in the morning to drive the two hours to the tournament. Much to my dismay, it was pouring down rain. When we arrived at the tournament, my dad and I hurried to the tenth hole, where Tiger was teeing off because of bad weather. I found that the tenth hole had a bridge which the players had to walk across after teeing off. I decided to position myself there and wait for The Man to arrive. After a short rain delay, Tiger was ready to tee off. His tee shot was spectacular, and Tiger began his walk down the hill. I was amazed. I couldn't believe that Tiger was actually walking towards me. I had never been able to imagine him as a real person; only as someone on television whom I admired more than anyone. As Tiger walked past me, his head was down, and he was wiping the rain off his face. I was thinking 'look up, look up'. I decided that I'd better say something, so I called out "Way to go, Tiger!!" Much to my surprise, Tiger turned around, looked me right in the eye, and gave me that huge smile of his. I went nuts. I gasped and all of the surrounding fans laughed at me. Things continued to go well. On the twelfth hole, Tiger had a delay before his tee shot. He went over to get a drink of water and was standing about two feet from me, facing me the entire time. I really wanted to say something, but again I just stared at him in awe. I made plans to talk to Tiger, but never got a chance, due to terrible weather. The tournament was rained out, but I'll never, ever forget May 31, 1997. That was the day I saw Tiger Woods and he saw me, and it was the best day of my life. My Tournament Tips: 1) Be creative--think of places to wait for Tiger where no one else will. It worked for me! 2) Don't get frustrated--if you don't see him on the first hole, try on the second, and the third, and the fourth....... 3) DON'T ask for autographs when Tiger is playing. That will make him really mad and he'll pay no attention to you. 4) DON'T try to touch Tiger by patting him on the back or anything like that. If he wants to give you a high five or something, he will, but don't force it. That's really rude. Garri Read Questions or Comments tigerfanz@juno.com |
