C4  Sunday, June 4, 2017  |  THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH •
memorial tournament
Jack Nicklaus said he was “blessed with an amazing wife,” Barbara, during his playing days. [Lisa Marie Miller/Dispatch]
Marriage can be good for game
By Rob Oller
The Columbus Dispatch
One PGA Tour player
after another spoke up
in support of matri-
monial linkage and its
powerful effect on the
links. It turns out that a
good marriage not only
makes the man, but
makes the man’s golf
game better.
“I got married my
rookie year on the PGA
Tour, a week before
the 2008 U.S. Open,”
Kevin Streelman said.
“I had been struggling
before that, only made
a few cuts. I get married
and make 16 cuts in a
row. The right partner
is the greatest advo-
cate, friend and support
structure there is.”
Jack Nicklaus has
been saying the same
thing since marrying
Barbara Bash nearly 57
years ago. The Golden
Bear, who is playing his
familiar host role at the
Memorial Tournament,
has served as super
spokesman for the ben-
efits of being married
on tour.
“I was blessed with
an amazing wife who
understood what I had
to do,” Nicklaus said
Tuesday, adding that
Barbara deftly took care
of the Nicklaus chil-
dren “so I never came
home on Monday and
had to be the bad guy.
She didn’t want me
to come home and be
the disciplinarian, and
have the kids mad at me
for three or four days
and leave for another
tournament.”
Streelman does it
differently, traveling to
most tournaments with
his wife, Courtney, and
their two young chil-
dren. But the bottom
line is the same: mar-
riage makes the solitary
tour life more bearable.
“We golfers just want
to complain,” James
Hahn said. “We can’t
complain to our agent
about our sponsors
and can’t complain to
our sponsors about our
agent. You can get all
that stuff mixed up to
where you’re trying to
hide so many secrets.
But you can tell your
wife and she won’t tell
anybody anything.”
Hahn said marrying
his wife, Stephanie,
was the best decision
he’s ever made. He
praised her for being
fully on board with
his career, which is
no small thing con-
sidering the hours of
practice and travel
involved.
But the flip side is a
bad marriage typically
leads to bad golf.
“I’ve always said
marriage can be the
best thing if you’re
married to right girl,
but the worst thing
if you’re married to
the wrong girl,” said
Aaron Baddeley, who
has been married 12
years to Richelle.
Hahn is close friends
with a tour player who
remarried last year after
a short first marriage
and won soon after.
“When it’s bad, it’s
horrible,” Pat Perez
said. “I can’t stress
enough how important
it is to have a signifi-
cant other who makes
it easy for you. Jack is
a perfect example. He
talked about Barbara his
entire life. Ben Hogan
talked about his wife.
He didn’t hang out with
anybody else but her.
Anybody I’ve known
who has been pretty
successful praises their
wife.”
Perez addressed the
positive attitude his
wife, Ashley, brings to
his marriage.
“There’s plenty of
negative in this game,
because you don’t win
every week and make
every cut,” he said. “So
you don’t want some-
one breathing down
your neck. You want
someone behind you.”
But Perez also wants
Ashley’s foot behind
him at times, too.
“You want someone
who is tough, someone
who says, ‘Get your
butt out there and go to
work,’ ” he said.
Perez predicted that
Rory McIlroy, who
Hahn’s run at record
round ends with 65
By Bill Rabinowitz started inauspiciously
The Columbus Dispatch with a par and bogey.
He birdied the next
James Hahn had just five holes, with only
birdied five straight a 23-footer on No. 4
holes for the second requiring more than a
time in his Saturday tap-in.
round at the Memorial “Anytime you make
Tournament when it bogey, you go out and
happened. say, ‘All right, I'm
“Walking from (No.) going to free it up,’ ”
15 to 16,” Hahn said, he said.” But once you
“a little kid just kind made two, you go for
of gave me a high-five the turkey. Four in a
and said, ‘You're going row is pretty cool. I
to break the course had a two-putt birdie
record today.’ ” on my fifth birdie in
Hahn had reached a row, so those are
9 under par for the always fun.”
day and was within Hahn barely missed
reach of John Hus- a putt that would have
ton’s 21-year-old been a sixth straight
Memorial record for birdie. He also
low round (61). But parred the next two
he knew the boy had holes before start-
unwittingly jinxed ing another five-hole
him. birdie streak.
“It’s almost like a Hahn said it wasn’t
baseball pitcher and the first time he’d
exchanged nuptials last
guys saying, ‘Hey, recorded 10 birdies in
month, will be even
you're pitching a a round.
better as a married
perfect game. Did you “But to do it on a
man. The same goes for
know that?’ ” Hahn course like this is a
Sergio Garcia, who is
said. little surreal,” he said.
scheduled to marry in
Sure enough, he Too bad he couldn’t
July.
bogeyed two of the add to the magic after
“I know Sergio is
final three holes and the comment from the
happier than ever,
settled for a 65. Hahn, boy.
because I’ve been
who was born in South “It just happened to
around him for 16 years
Korea and grew up be a coincidence,” he
now. Just the way he
in California, is tied said. “You never know
acts now is different,”
for 14th at 5 under what would happen
Perez said.
entering today’s final if the little kid didn't
Marriage also pro-
round. call me out. But it's
vides freedom to fail,
“I haven't been this all fun. We're here to
which actually has the
disappointed in a 7 entertain.”
opposite effect.
under in a long time,”
“It puts things in
he said. brabinowitz@dispatch.com
perspective,” Zach
Hahn’s round @brdispatch
Johnson said. “Golf
is our profession, not
our life … so marriage
affords you the free-
dom of knowing that
regardless of how you
play, the outcome is
irrelevant.”
More than anything,
marriage makes the
self-absorbed golfer
less selfish, Baddeley
said.
“It’s not just you James
worrying about your- Hahn had
self,” the Australian a shot at
said. “Now you have to the tour-
take care of someone nament
else and make sure you record
do everything for her. of 61
You’re not just self- before he
focused. You’re doing bogeyed
life together, and have the 16th
a partner in crime, so to and 17th
speak. holes.
[Kyle
roller@dispatch.com Robert-
@rollerCD son/
Dispatch]