The usual routine on arrival at the TPC Boston for our 6:30am mobile marshal's assignment meeting, renewing old friendships, people I only see once a year at the DBC. I was assigned to Rory McIlroy, the first tee time of the day at 6:50. In years past, this coveted tee time had been the exclusive property of Tiger Woods, but the torch had been passed to Rory as the new #1 player in the world golf rankings. Joining me were Tony and Christine, two veteran mobile marshals who knew their stuff. As I hustled over to the 10th tee, I was glad I'd grabbed breakfast earlier on the way in at the volunteer pavilion. Very light gallery of only 30 people at that hour, perfect weather in mid-70's, slightly humid, eventually becoming sunny in the low 80's. Rory was terrific during his round, lots of interaction between him and his amateur playing partners. I was able to catch lots of his comments in the give and take going on throughout the round as I was stationed closest to him while Tony and Christine took more forward positions. I was a bit surprised as Rory deferred all autographs from the gallery until the end of the round. It turned out to be a very relaxed atmosphere, in contrast to some of the higher intensity rounds I'd marshaled previously, but after all, it was the pro-am. It got a lot more hectic as we finished at the 9th hole, Rory being true to his word, stopping to sign autographs and take pictures all along the ropes exiting the green. People were standing 5-6 deep, he must have signed over 100 items, and could have done three times as many. Tony and I bracketed him as he moved along the ropes, finally getting him to a cart where he then made his exit. We were done and it was only noon, seemed a lot later. I grabbed lunch at the concession stand and brought it into the volunteer pavilion. Soon afterwards, a PGA TOUR official arrived, escorting Ryo Ishikawa of Japan, one of the new rookies to the Tour. Its a nice perk we get as volunteers to have a chance to meet a pro and chat a bit as they hang out in the tent for a half hour or so. After meeting him, I noticed we were the same height and weight, and I asked him how far his drives generally go, to which he replied "300 yards". I asked how might I be able to accomplish the same thing. He said, "my parents took me to my first golf lesson when I was 4 years old." We both laughed as it was obviously too late for me to emulate his level of skill. Nice kid, I complimented him on his proficiency in English. The PGA TOUR official took our picture, which I texted to my friends and family.
Ryo Ishikawa
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