Hollis Stacy - Part 1 (The Early Years)

Mike Gonzalez 0:15

Welcome to another edition of FORE the Good of the Game and Bruce Devlin. We've got a lady this morning that's done something that no one has done either before or since, and I don't think it'll ever happen. Probably not.

Bruce Devlin 0:27

She won three in a row, U.S. Girls Junior Championships. And uh this is a great Southern lady born in Savannah, Georgia. 21 victories total, 18 on the LPGA tour, four major championships, and it is indeed a great pleasure for Mike and I to have Hollis Stacy with us this morning. Welcome, Hollis.

Hollis Stacy 0:51

Oh, it's so nice to be here. Thank you so much for having me.

Bruce Devlin 0:55

Well, we're we're pleased to have you with us, and uh uh it brings back my memories of uh watching you win in uh Moss Creek years and years and years ago.

Hollis Stacy 1:05

Oh, I know the Frasier family, and yeah, I got to meet um uh the Fazzios and uh Tom when he was little and he was working with his dad, and uh those were the days. It was we had such a fun, fun event, and uh I had my family there, and my grandmother watched me, so it was quite quite quite the family thing. So it was nerve-wracking. Oh my god. I I think I was more nervous, nervous at Moss Creek than I was my U.S. opens, because you know, you really wanted to win with your family there. Oh yeah, it's really, really tough.

Mike Gonzalez 1:47

Well, Alice, we are so looking forward to this. And uh uh as Bruce mentioned, the local lady born in Savannah, and so uh uh we're gonna talk about that uh Moss Creek experience and others like experiences you had in Augusta growing up as a young lady. Um I'm sitting here in Buford, South Carolina, which you know quite well because that's in the low country, uh beautiful low country that Bruce knows quite well.

Hollis Stacy 2:14

Right, right.

Bruce Devlin 2:15

Yeah, you gotta come up and uh play our golf course there in Buford. Secession, yeah.

Mike Gonzalez 2:22

Bruce did that course, uh finished it at probably open in about 1992. And if you've not been here, we got to get you here sometime.

Hollis Stacy 2:31

Oh, it's I it's great. It's great, I know.

Mike Gonzalez 2:34

Yeah. Well, let's talk about growing up uh because we always start at the beginning, and there's a lot to talk about because you had an interesting childhood with uh golfing families, siblings, uh galore, and and I'm sure they were quite involved in your development. But uh, let's just uh go back to Savannah, Georgia. Uh you're about my vintage, by the way, so we probably have experienced a lot of the same life experiences through history. Uh tell us about life growing up in uh in Savannah, Georgia.

Hollis Stacy 3:06

Well, back in the 50s, um, you know, oh I came from a large family, so it was it was uh quite animated.

Mike Gonzalez 3:18

And uh there were ten of competitive, competitive too, I bet.

Hollis Stacy 3:22

My three brothers and my six sisters. So um when I was ten years old, um I was introduced to the game, and uh uh it was I kind of fell in love with it right in the beginning because I I didn't realize that I I would go to the golf course to seek solitude. So and that's what I did, and I I would play golf in the rain and and um you know, not enlightening, but but uh I realized that, you know, I really loved playing golf. I loved the one-on-one competition and improving and and little did I know that the small push-up greens that I um was playing golf on would be would add to my precision as a professional golfer because they were so small that you know it was very easy to miss a green. So I learned several techniques to get the ball up and down, which helped me a lot, you know, and and uh it in my professional career and my amateur career. So so um, you know, I I was telling a friend of mine the other day, he hit a lot of greens, and so he was convinced his whole life that he was a bad putter. And I said, oh no, no, no, no. I would tell Sherry Steinhauer that. She hit greens 99% of the greens, you know, you're convinced you're a bad putter. Now, for me, I'll hit 11 greens around and I'll shoot under par, and you, you'll hit, you know, 17 greens and shoot one over. So, you know, I you know, it was kind of uh my forte and and I owe a lot to the push-up greens at the Savannah Golf Club.

Mike Gonzalez 5:20

So, Hollis, tell us a little bit about your family. Uh, you know, we've heard about your your father, your mother, a little bit about their backgrounds, uh, uh both in terms of what they did in life and also in terms of um their sporting life as well.

Hollis Stacy 5:34

Well, my dad was um uh he came, he was born and raised in Savannah, and he was large for his age. So he was given a scholarship to uh uh a Jesuit high school in Savannah because of his basketball skills. And um his father worked, he was an engineer on the Seaboard Railroad, and so his father wanted him to um work on the railroad because he was big for his age. And so his mom, my grandmother, forced him to study, and he did. He ended up getting straight A's and everything, and and uh and then he um um he he lettered in football, basketball, track, and uh he was a great athlete. And he ended because my grandmother, um, you know, my grandmother ruled with a an iron ruler fist or whatever, and he got a scholarship to Clemson University. So there, and that was a military school at the time. So he ended up um uh being a tight end and uh uh played one season, then the second season, uh World War II happened, and um the whole team disbanded and they joined, everybody joined the military because it was a military school, so yeah. So and my mom, um my mom just uh great, she was she was a great jitterbugger, and uh she played in basketball and she did a lot of sports, and I guess she didn't have too much time after she married my dad because she was pregnant for 16 years. But she she she uh she uh um gave us you know the ability to play golf or do whatever we wanted to do, you know. And I, you know, my two brothers and I played golf together, and and uh and then uh there was an age difference between my sisters and I. I was 10 when I started, and then my little sisters uh were like, you know, one, two, four, five, and seven. So, you know, there was, you know, there was not much time for me to play golf with them. But uh anyway. But it was quite, quite um, my mom would drop us off at the Savannah Golf Club at like eight in the morning, and then the lights would be shining on the greens at nine o'clock. So we played, you know, in the height of the summer, we probably played at least 45 holes. So, so um there was, you know, we played a lot of golf with my brother, so it was great.

Mike Gonzalez 8:34

Sounds very familiar. Uh and uh, you know, you mentioned this this uh desire to go find solitude on the golf course. Oh, yeah. Bruce, we've heard that from a number of our guests, but in Hollis's case, with nine siblings, I can understand it.

Bruce Devlin 8:51

Very, very appropriate, I would say.

Hollis Stacy 8:54

I know. It was funny. I had uh my neighbors had um their grandchildren in, and they were just screaming by the pool, and they just, you know, they came over and they said, Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. And I said, Are you kidding? I love it. Because, you know, my little sisters, they would just like they they wouldn't just, they would just scream all the time, you know, and it just reminded me of home. And so, so it was a lot of fun and uh chaos, and and I attribute my success to being able to have, you know, handle chaos, you know, having that double bogey, and okay, what do you do on the next hole? You know, well, it's like you know, it's like not having hot water. So so you know, you live with you live with what what is presented to you, you know, you just kind of go to the next shot and do your best. That's all you can do, right, Bruce?

Bruce Devlin 9:56

So yeah, it's and you know, Hollis, uh everybody uh, particularly in this game, they they need people to to sort of help them. I know your mother taught you very early, but uh were there any other influences in your golf game as a young lady?

Hollis Stacy 10:12

Oh, you know what's funny is that my mom, you know, she was she was probably about uh 15 handicapped. So, but she you know, she helped me with my rhythm and she gave me that little da da da da. She gave me that song to sing all the time. And honest to goodness, I have I have sung that song for my entire career. You know, when you're coming down the last 70-second hole and you're, you know, you can't breathe and you need water, and you know, it's those little thoughts from your childhood days that you go, okay, let's just really be simple and think about little things. So I, you know, I attribute that to my mom for helping me with that. She was um, you know, she was quite the competitor.

Bruce Devlin 11:04

And that song was the blue Danube.

Hollis Stacy 11:08

That was it. That was it.

Bruce Devlin 11:10

The blue Danube. I know. I love what she said to you after you won, you had your first junior win. You remember what she said to you?

Hollis Stacy 11:19

Oh, she said something. She said something.

Bruce Devlin 11:21

Yeah, like, like, very nice, Shirley Temple. Now go clean up your room.

Hollis Stacy 11:30

I know. You know, you know, a lot of people go, oh God, you're, you know, you really don't promote yourself, Hollis. And I said, you know, I have to be honest with you. I really don't care. And, you know, I like being known for the person who I am, and not, you know, and unfortunately for my mom and dad, they gave me that sense of, you know, humility and and uh which is, you know, it's like I think it's far better than you know, tooting your home your horn, you know. So I thank my mom for that. Don't you think?

Bruce Devlin 12:09

I think you're absolutely right. No doubt about it.

Mike Gonzalez 12:12

I think if we need to, we'll toot her horn a little bit for her today because she's done some great things in the yeah, we got it, we got some horns to toot, don't we?

Hollis Stacy 12:20

Toot away. My mother will like that. Well, she I have to get her on the computer, so yeah, I know how that goes.

Mike Gonzalez 12:28

Uh well, I've I've heard about uh you talking about your father and and and what he did in the military. I know he fought under patent in World War II, so anybody that's versed in World War history certainly knows that path through northern France and on into Belgium and so forth. And I'm sure uh as time went on, he probably shared some of those stories. I also know that your mother was involved uh on USGA committees for a long time, so she was quite involved with the game, wasn't she?

Hollis Stacy 12:55

My mom is uh she was on the U.S. Junior Girls Committee, and she's the one that got everybody wearing their uniforms, which was great. And so uh she's uh um she loves her USGA uh background and and she still stays in touch with with um my friends and uh they always ask about her because they've you know I think most of my friends got good rulings. So that I would like to think that, but she was uh she was always fair with them. So but um she loved it. She loved the USGA. Oh, she loved it.

Mike Gonzalez 13:42

I think you have you share a distinction uh with your sister an accomplishment that maybe's only happened uh one other time. You want to share what that was?

Hollis Stacy 13:50

Your your system on the Well, my sister Martha and I are USGA champions. So my sister won the Midam in 2006, I think, at gr at Grand Ocala up in Florida. And so I wasn't live I was in Colorado at the time, and and um everybody says, Well, you are gonna go out and watch her. And I said, No, I am not gonna go watch her because I am not gonna be the reason why she loses. So she can play just as good by herself and uh and win. And she did win. She beat a good friend of ours, Laura Cobble. So um, but uh she and I are USGA winners and we share that, and we're um my sister has played in I think six decades of USJ Championships. So, or five decades. She can't be that old. She just turned 61, so she is um she's one she's on her way to being the grand dame of USJ Championships. So good for her. Very proud of her.

Mike Gonzalez 15:04

Wasn't she low am at a couple of these uh U.S. senior women's opens as well?

Hollis Stacy 15:09

Oh, you know, she was she was uh Martha was the low am at the first U.S. senior open. At Chicago, golf. At Chicago. Yeah. And I all my friends on the tour came up to me and they said, Oh my god, I can't, I didn't know your sister was that good. And so um it was funny because you know, she was up there with uh Laura Davies getting her medal. And then uh at Brooklawn Country Club, she was Lo Ann. She tied with Ellen Port, and uh and uh she was up there with Annika getting her medal, so so I'm very proud of her. So Yeah, that's pretty cool. Uh I know. But this year I said I did say I was going to beat her, and I might have to use psychological warfare, you know, to beat her. So anyway.

Mike Gonzalez 16:01

You'd mentioned Savannah Golf Club earlier. I know they advertised themselves as being the oldest club, golf club in America dating back to 1794. Tell us a little bit about how uh, oh, I don't know, how inclusive they were in terms of allowing juniors, for example, to play back when you were growing up.

Hollis Stacy 16:19

Oh, yes. That was uh actually I used it as uh um uh it was very difficult for juniors to get you know on the golf course because you know we're like little rug rats. But um with little girls especially, you know, it was hard for me. But I used that time to chip and putt. So I managed to win a lot of coke and crackers, and um I developed a unique putting style, and which was a good putting style, and uh and a good short game as a result of me not being able to be on the golf course. And you know, frankly, I didn't mind. I was like, you know, they were playing, and I just it was my duty to work on my short game, and I did. So um uh, but things have changed, and now there's more uh the world has opened up to junior golf. Now they have the AJGA and they have tournaments all over the world, and and they have uh daily fee courses where a lot of people can go. You don't have to be a member of a private club, so so uh those clubs have opened up, you know, all over the place, which is great, which is great for junior golf. So sure is.

Mike Gonzalez 17:32

Tell us a little bit about how you learned. Uh I know when I was learning back when when you know about the time you were learning, um, I was looking at the golf magazines with these little one-page lessons and cutting them all out and creating a scrapbook of you know, driving and putting and chipping. There weren't a lot of videos for us to watch back then, were there? So how did you how did you learn? Observation?

Hollis Stacy 17:53

You know, uh I think uh Bruce can attest to this, but I was fortunate to have grown up playing Bermuda Rough. And if you know a lot of the great players have come from the southeast or wherever where the the grass is not great. And so with Bermuda, you really have to stay down and hit, and you have to use the bounce. And so um with bent grass is completely different, you know, it's a little fluffy, uh fluffier, and uh it's a different tech it, uh it's a different technique. But with bent grass, I found that I mean with Bermuda grass, um, you know, I developed this style of you know putting it more back in my stance and hitting down and staying with it a little longer. So and that helped me in my career.

Mike Gonzalez 18:53

And was that move, do you cut across the ball at all when you're chipping out of Bermuda, playing that ball back in your stance, or not necessarily?

Hollis Stacy 19:00

You have to hit it square. You know, I don't like to hit a lot of spin, you know, and uh I try to hit it flat and let the ball roll. The you know, the finest short game ever was Sevy. And I remember watching a video with him on the short game, and he said, Oh, you must get the ball onto the green and have it act like a putt.

Bruce Devlin 19:22

And so quick as you can, yeah.

Hollis Stacy 19:24

Right? Get the ball on as fast as possible. And oh, I'll try that. And so, um, and you have to use that, you know, hitting it from a square position. You can't really, you know, cut it. You have to hit it, you know, square. So I tried.

Bruce Devlin 19:44

I tried to be like Sevy, so pretty good, pretty good way to be. Now you also you also love the rhythm of a US Open champion. You remember who that was?

Hollis Stacy 19:58

Oh, yes. Well, I was um I was fortunate enough, you know, we were a two-hour car ride from Augusta, and um my golf pro was a fellow by the name of Matt Warren, and he was Wilson Sporting Goods. And so for my whole career, uh the only person I could watch was Julius Boris. And so um, you know, I said, well, he would say, This is the one.

Bruce Devlin 20:26

This is the one.

Hollis Stacy 20:27

And so I would watch him, I'd go to the masters, and I would watch him from number one to number 18. And and his tempo was Fabulous. Fabulous. And I tried to be like him, and in his tempo, which was, you know, God, his tempo was, you know, so flowing, and it looked like he was just not even trying to hit the ball, but he hit the ball hard, he did with his tempo. And you know, everybody looks at my tempo and they say, God, you you hit it so easy. And um, but I try to hit it hard.

Mike Gonzalez 21:08

Moros had beautiful tempo, uh including his bunker play. Yes, he didn't.

Hollis Stacy 21:14

Yes, and my bunker play. I, you know, I love being in the bunkers, and my pro would always say he would throw the ball into the bunker, and he goes, Never be afraid, never be afraid. And we worked on that, and the tempo helps so much. And fortunately for me, fortunately, I had a fabulous bunker game, and um and I would laugh with Nancy, you know. Nancy, I would, you know, we were playing head to head and she'd be in the bunker, and I go, Oh good. But because I would, you know, and now we laugh because I said, Yes, I had a great bunker game because I hit so many bunkers, and you hit so many greens. So, you know, so um, so you don't get a good short game. Or a good bunker game from hitting a lot of greens. So I was fortunate.

Mike Gonzalez 22:05

Yeah. So in addition to your experience going to Augusta to see the Masters, I guess you probably also had a chance maybe to see one or two title holders at Augusta Country Club.

Hollis Stacy 22:14

Yes. I I went to my mom took me to the title holders when I was twelve years old. 11 or 12, I can't remember. But um I remember watching um, well, I became friends with Eileen Stulpe, and she was kind of like the she was the founder of of uh the title holders. And um uh I remember watching Donna Capone play, and they used to call her the Watusi Kid. And and I saw Sandra Post, and I remember Barbara Romack came over, she walked over to me and she asked me, she asked me how my game was, and I just thought that was the coolest thing that could ever happen to me. And I, you know, and I know she's past, but you know, we remained great friends, and I always reminded her of that story, and she remembered it. And and you know, it it means so much to go up to a little person and just say little things. And I could now I go out of my way and I I always ask. How's your game? How's your game? Yeah, yeah. Well, yeah.

Mike Gonzalez 23:26

For our listeners who who maybe don't know, the title holders was a major championship. I mean, a lot of our younger listeners may not be familiar with that event, but uh it was it was a major until 1966. I think they brought it back for one year in 1972, but uh uh that's been a while ago.

Hollis Stacy 23:43

That was at the Bell's place. That was at at um Pine Needles, yeah.

Bruce Devlin 23:50

Right, yeah.

Hollis Stacy 23:50

And uh Warren was there, and um Bonnie, Peggy, and uh, you know, Peggy Kirk Bell, who, you know, I just love the family, and they just you know, they were big supporters of of the game of golf. And and I went to Peggy's um 90th birthday, and we were in the pro shop, and um something came up, and we were talking about, you know, I asked about her Ford or something like that. And she came up with this story, and her daughter Bonnie was in the pro shop there, and she goes, Hollis, do you remember? You know, when my dad had the car dealership in Ohio, he was friends with Henry Ford, you know. And you know, she Bonnie had never heard this story. And she goes, you know, if you bought a car, you had to have driving lessons because, you know, there were no cars. And Bonnie looked at me like I've never heard that story before. But you know, Mrs. Bell was so interesting, she just she just was the coolest lady, she loved women's golf, she loved her family, she missed her family so much. She was in California that she decided to buy an airplane. And so she was um and she went for her first flying lessons, you know, and um because she was the first golfer to fly from tournament to tournament. You know, everybody said it was Arnie, but it was Peggy Kirk Bell. And so when she had her lessons, um, the pilot said, now when you go over the Rockies, you gotta go a little higher because you know those drafts are gonna push you down. So she went higher and she was close to hitting the trees, but she made it over, she bought the plane, she flew back, and she got to see her family quicker than driver driving back.

Mike Gonzalez 25:54

So yeah, anyway. Interesting.

Hollis Stacy 25:56

Two is a kick.

Mike Gonzalez 25:58

As your game developed, then as a youngster, at some point you're starting to enter competitions, I'm sure local and regional, and uh and uh and then at some point uh you play in your first U.S. girls junior, which we had mentioned earlier. Um and that was I think in where 19 was it 1968? Was that the first time you that was 1967?

Hollis Stacy 26:20

Uh we went to uh La Harbor, California, and we were like the clampets, my mom and I, because we played La Harbor Country Club and there were oil wells on the golf course. Oh my god me coming from Savannah, I couldn't believe it. I was like, oh, this is unreal. Anyway, so it was cut to 32, and I made the cut, and um I lost my first round to Nancy Hager out of Dallas, and I was so disappointed because I let my family down. And um, so I went back and I practiced hard for my next one because back then we didn't have um a lot of tournaments. We had the Western, we had the U.S. Junior Girls, and maybe a couple others. Uh they let us play in some state events, but then they moved that age up. So the next year was at Flint, Michigan, and I ended up being in the playoff, and I was with uh all 17-year-olds, one 16-year-old. I was 14 at the time, and I had a half glove, and I remember um I went to the playoff, and there was Pat Bradley, and she had this big tour bag. And and she had it was on a pull cart, mind you. And then I had Bonnie Lauer, and then there was Martha Jett, and I'm not sure. There were two others, and I was the I was the youngest and the last one. So I dribbled it down the first hole, and I it was it was ugly, and I made a double, and I was the first one out, and I was pretty humiliated, and I did not want to go see my mom. So the next year um I worked really, really, really hard because I never wanted to be humiliated like that again. And so I it was uh 1969, Brookhaven Country Club, Joe Black was the pro, uh which was the first Robert Dedham golf course, CCA, Brookhaven Country Club. And so uh I ended up winning and I beat Mary Jane Fastinger uh two and one or something like that. But but um, you know, I ended up after that, that was my big push into golf was not the three victories of the U.S. juniors, but having lost and been humiliated in 1968. I worked really hard never to be humiliated like that again. So uh I ended up winning three, and um very proud of that. And uh uh, you know, I hope it gets beat. Unlikely.

Mike Gonzalez 29:34

The the first one, the first one uh you became and and by the way, I mean, for our listeners to remind you, Hollis had already played in two of these, but in 69 when she won, she was still the youngest player ever at the time to win. I don't know if anybody's beat that, have they?

Hollis Stacy 29:48

Oh, I'm sure they have. I'm sure they have. I'm sure they have.

Mike Gonzalez 29:51

Uh the second one 1970 at uh the Apawamas Club in New York by one over uh Jane, and you can see. Jane Elisey. Jane Elisey, yeah. Um and then finally uh the one in 1971. Um uh I've got somebody else that can tell us about that.

Amy Alcott 30:08

So I went back there and I had Hollis three down after nine holes. And she was telling the story of where the hell was this did this junior come from? You know, with the ponytail or whatever. We still talk about it. And so she ended up beating me on the 17th hole. I I took the gag a little bit, I'm sure, but that was the beginning of a long friendship and then years of playing U.S. junior championships. And um I met her again uh in one of the best at Augusta Country Club in 19 That was 71. Yeah, 71.

Mike Gonzalez 30:50

That was 71.

Amy Alcott 30:51

We both in in match in and stroke play had shot three under par at Augusta Country Club right across from Augusta, um uh three under par 70s and tied and went to the 19th hole. And our uh Marshall was a great guy who was kind of a great writer of the time, and uh Frank Hannigan with the USGA. He marshalled our match, and he says, Well, we got done that is uh he's marshalled some pretty amazing matches in his time, and that was man or woman, pro or junior. That was like one of the more to have the kids shoot three under par and go to the 19th hole, and then she again she made a long putt on me.

Hollis Stacy 31:38

I know you remember that, huh? Oh gosh, we have great memories. Tell our listeners who that was. Well, Amy Alcott, and that was in uh the first year when we played against each other. I was 15, she was 13, and she was strutting. And I said, I don't like that strut after after like the fifth hole, and I said, and so then I had to, you know, I had to really work it. I had to really work it. So um I started making putts, you know, missing the greens, and I think I drove her crazy. So so it started a long career and a great friendship. You know, we've been friends for many, many years, and you know, it's you know, it's like you know, it's like the friendships that the guys have, you know, on the tour and they start playing junior golf together, and you know, it's it's it's you know, you have friendships like that your whole life, you know, Pat Bradley, myself, and uh, you know, I'm sure, you know, Nellie is gonna have you know her friendship with Lexi and and uh you know it's it's great. It's great to see. Yeah, Amy is a good friend.

Mike Gonzalez 32:56

Yeah, well, 1971 wasn't gonna be the last time you guys were gonna run into each other, that's for sure. Uh just some other uh uh notes about about Hollis's amateur career. She was the winner at Pinehurst of the North South Women's Amateur in 1970. You went to Rollins College for a while, didn't you?

Hollis Stacy 33:14

I went there. Um, I had a great experience. I went there a year and a half, and I decided to turn professional. So um I still have a relationship with with uh Rollins. Uh I helped host uh Rollins Invitational this past year uh at Bradenton Country Club. And um, you know, it you know, I have some great friends from from Rollins, you know. Uh it's got Peggy Kirkbell went there, Jane Blaylock went there, Muffin Spencer Devlin. Um just it's a great school. Anthony Perkins from Psycho went there. Oh my. And uh um uh my sorority sister, Karen Alphon, is uh um Karen Benson Alphonse is is uh you know a great Rollins person. So um great memories.

Mike Gonzalez 34:09

And this was probably uh at or just before Title IX, right?

Hollis Stacy 34:15

Oh, you know what? It was um Title IX was done in 71 or 72. Okay, close to two points. Um but you know they really didn't enforce it, so uh it wasn't until later on that they started enforcing it. So I went to uh Rollins on a scholarship. A friend of mine, um a friend of mine's daughter had died, and he had established a uh a scholarship, so I was able to to get that scholarship, so so it was nice, you know. It was great.

Mike Gonzalez 34:51

Did they have a golf team, a women's golf team at Rollins?

Hollis Stacy 34:53

They had a women's golf team.

Mike Gonzalez 34:55

Okay.

Hollis Stacy 34:56

And they we they won the year after I left, but they were N-A-I-A. It wasn't N CAA, so it was you know, after Title IX, then you know, it took a while for everything to to kick in. So the year I played the NIA, I finished second to my friend Bonnie Lauer. So she won, uh she played some great golf.

Mike Gonzalez 35:20

And tell us a little bit about your Curtis Cup experience in 1972.

Hollis Stacy 35:24

Uh Curtis Cup, I was teammates with Laura Baugh. And we were roommates, and we stayed at the Marine Hotel at Trune. We didn't play Trun, we played Western Gales, and we were um uh we were victorious, but the road there was very interesting because Laura and I were, she was age, I think, I was 17, she was 16. We were rooming together, and they had that trolley cart that had the little scones and biscuits, and it never passed our table with our without Hollis and Laura invading it. So one time Laura and I decided, oh, we've been really eating way too much. We've been eating, so we decided to go for a jog. So we went jogging across the true golf course, yeah, and so you know, we stopped dead on the 16th green. Laura had never seen the postage stamp green, and so she said, Is this a green or a tea? I said, I said, Laura, this is a green. I've read about it.

Bruce Devlin 36:46

I read about it.

Hollis Stacy 36:47

I read about it, so I think this is a so we laughed. She goes, Are you sure? I said, No, I think it's a green. It's I'm sure it's a green. So is it the 16th, Ruth?

Bruce Devlin 36:59

No, it's a seventh.

Hollis Stacy 37:00

Seventh. I thought it was the eighth. It was one of those, it was one of those, but it was a postage stamp green. Yep.

Bruce Devlin 37:08

It may be the eighth. I don't know.

Hollis Stacy 37:09

I don't know. One of those toward the end of In and Out. I don't know.

Bruce Devlin 37:14

So um uh I got a story about that green.

Hollis Stacy 37:17

Oh, what is it?

Bruce Devlin 37:19

I stood on the T when Gene Sarazen made a one there.

Hollis Stacy 37:25

No.

Bruce Devlin 37:27

Yes. You were there. I was standing there when he made that one. I was in the group behind him. I don't know if that's ever come up uh in all these interviews, Bruce. Uh maybe it hasn't. Sometimes you don't remember everything. Oh, that's cool. Oh, that's cool. I stood there and watched Sarazen make a one at the postage stamp.

Hollis Stacy 37:46

Oh my goodness. Did he win?

Bruce Devlin 37:48

Uh no. No, he didn't. No, but uh but uh that was, you know, that was sort of towards I'd say towards the end of his career, but I mean, uh that that was quite something.

Mike Gonzalez 38:01

That's crazy. I'll tell you my my very quick story, postage stamp green. Uh friend and Bruce, you'd know him, caddy from secession, Billy Saplinski standing on the eighth green, caddying for Marco Dawson in the in the uh the senior British. Uh so they're on eight green. Uh Vijay Singh is on seven T, so imagine that, right? Seven's little dog leg left. It kind of goes toward eight a little bit. Yeah. And uh all of a sudden, Billy goes down. Ball had hit him in the head, and it was Vijay's drive off the seventh T, right? So, make a long story short, next day Billy's in the hospital and VJ calls and says, Billy, uh, I'm so sorry that happened again. Is there anything I can do? And Billy says, Yeah, you can work on your driver. So, was this your first exposure to Lynx golf at Western Gales?

Hollis Stacy 38:52

Uh I yes it was. Yes, it was. I was um I remember practicing in Savannah and um, you know, I was working with uh another person and and they said hit down, hit it low, hit down, hit it low. And so I remember um I kind of lost my golf swing. And I I um I remember I didn't play so well, and I uh but I played well enough to have a match, which was very important, that made us win the Curtis Cup. So my half helped a lot, so so I um good. I loved it. I played Western Gales was a very prim and proper golf course. I remember I was 17 and I was nervous, and they were walking out in their kilts and their Scotties. And so I remember I hit a ball in a divot and I moved it out of the divot. Oh, and I heard someone in his kilt with his scotty say, This is not golf. So I put the ball back in the divot. I'm like oh boy. Oh god, that's funny. Have you been back there since? Oh, many times, many times. Yeah.

Mike Gonzalez 40:21

They've just redone the golf course uh recently and it's fabulous.

Hollis Stacy 40:25

Western Gales?

Mike Gonzalez 40:26

Yes.

Hollis Stacy 40:27

Oh, really? Yeah, oh good. Oh, good.

Mike Gonzalez 40:30

First time I played it was in a 60 the I I know it sounds like I'm exaggerating, but it was a 60 mile an hour wind. Oh gosh.

Hollis Stacy 40:41

Oh, that's crazy. I remember I was on the last hole, that important match where I halved, and my caddy was right behind me reading the putt. And he put the he put the bag on the green. And I was like, I don't think you can do that. But in Scotland, they did everything. You need right, they just put the bag on the green, you know. So anyway, it kind of helped me a little bit because I lost my nervousness, you know, a little bit. So he was smart to do that.

Mike Gonzalez 41:17

Thank you for listening to another episode of For the Good of the Game. And please, wherever you listen to your podcast on Apple and Spotify, if you like what you hear, please subscribe, spread the word, and tell your friends until we tee it up again for the good of the game. So long, everybody.

Outro Music 41:41

It went smack and fairway.