ETSU Athletics sits down with alumnus and three-time PGA TOUR winner Mike Hulbert, a multi-time U.S. Ryder Cup vice captain, for an inside look at the passion, pressure, and decision-making that define golf’s most extraordinary team event. Hosted by Athletic Director Dr. Richard Sander, this conversation covers the 9/11-delayed 2002 Belfry matches, building pairings and chemistry, how the team room really works, and what to expect when the Ryder Cup comes to Bethpage Black.
Well, you know, with the Ryder Cup coming up, uh, I guess Friday, um, I thought it would be, you know, a great opportunity for, you know, our, our ETSU family to have a chance to really hear about kind of the inner workings of the Ryder Cup. There’s not many universities that have an alum that has been a 3-time. You know, Ryder Cup vice captain. I mean, that, that’s pretty cool. So I just thought it’d be great to have Mike Holbert who is really starting to work with us in our alumni engagement, uh, initiatives to talk to, you know, our fan base and, you know, ETSU folks did a real feel for that. So, Mike, I’m, I’m glad. You’re, you, you know, you’re here and willing to do this, but I guess, you know, I got a few questions for you that I think, you know, our people would like to hear. So you were selected the first time to be a vice, vice captain with Curtis Strange in the 2002 Ryder Cup. So, I mean, when you got selected, what was your initial thought? Well, I, um. Uh, I, I couldn’t say, I didn’t talk for about 10 seconds. Um, he called me on the phone, Curtis Strange did. I happened to be, first thing he asked me was, are you, where are you at? And I said, I’m in the parking lot at Publix, and he says, good. And then he, so he asked me, he didn’t, he got right to the point. He said, you know, everybody likes you, I like you, um, you know, I want you to be my assistant captain. And then I locked up for about I don’t know, it wasn’t quite 10 seconds and then he asked me, he goes, well, and I go, well, for sure. And I, I was, I was through the moon actually. Um, and so that was, to this day, that was my best honor, even, even winning golf tournaments, uh, prior to that, and, um, Yeah, and I didn’t win any after, but it, it’s just the best honor you could imagine. So I know 2002 was a little strange from the standpoint that I guess, um, 9/11 happened, what, maybe 1012 days before the Ryder Cup was supposed to actually happen. So it got delayed for a year. And then, of course, you know, this was the, uh, this was the Ryder Cup that was held in At the Belfry in 2002. So it kind of got, went from, you know, 2001 to 2002. So how far ahead of actual, you know, the time you all were supposed to play, did, did, did that conversation with, with Curtis happen? Um, it was, it was the, uh, previous year, it was November, the, from the previous year, so it was, it was actually just a little under a year’s time when he told me. Um, so, uh, you know, and then, and then you extend another year, obviously for 9/11, so, I, I’m, I’m trying to think, um, the, the team. The team was very strong. I, I do know that, but the, the cool part about this was, is we had another, another year to kind of think it over and uh not think it over, but, you know, there was gonna be some change in the guard actually of, of the team. And um so, anyways, uh, you know, it was, uh, it was, it was quite cool, but uh it was just, it was just myself. I was the only vice captain chosen. Um, so basically what, what did Curtis want you to do? What was your role as the vice captain? Well, he, he really threw everything at me. He bounced everything off of me, um, from pairings to, um, you know, we, uh, what we’re gonna have to eat, uh, you know, uh. How we’re gonna get over there, how early we’re gonna get over there, uh, but mainly it was pairings and getting to know our people, you know, we had another year to get to know him and, you know, uh, um, I was still playing a little bit, and he was too, so, um, we were actually would go out and play with these guys a little bit, you know, during tournaments, and, um, So, um, I knew most of them, um, you know, Tiger was on the team, team Phil, David Toms, um, Calavecia, Verplank. Um, I, I think beforehand, the, uh, we had, we only had 2 picks. We only had 2 picks. We had 10 people that qualified, we had to take the PGA champion of that year. He was, he had a spot on the team, and that happened, happened to be David Toms. Um, and then we chose the next two, and I remember that was a very tough. Tough day cause we had to make the announcement about a week after the PGA and we decided on Paul Hazinger and Scott Verplank, and maybe some other guys were deserving of it. I remember Chris DeMarco kinda Uh, cornered me right after, and he said, what the heck’s going on, you know, blah blah blah. He might have been down the list below these guys, but we just felt like Curtis and I just felt like, you know, Paul’s Paul and, and, and Scott Verplank is a heck of a player, so, um, there’s, there’s not really a wrong decision in this, but, um, that’s just the way it was. So there was some Tougher moments, but we had a year to, to decide who we’re gonna put together, but for the most part, we didn’t put up, you know, we didn’t look at analytics, we didn’t look at. Uh, you know, if they’re best friends, we just, we just knew we had to go out and play some good golf. So then, you then, you got the team, you got the 12 guys, and then I guess when you actually come down to the competition, y’all have to figure, did you, I mean, going into it, did you know who was gonna pair with who or did you just kind of get there, get a feel for it, see how they were, you know, connecting with one another, make that decision, or did you pretty much have an idea that Tiger was gonna play with whomever or Phil was gonna play with whomever. Did you know that or was it kind of, After you had a chance to be with them for 2 or 3 days and see them practice together. Um, we didn’t really have a set. We, we, we had a good idea. We had a good idea. We put Paul Eisinger with Tiger in the first match, right out of, and we did not let him know until right before the opening ceremonies. Uh, so we did, we, we had a good idea on the flight over. We actually I flew over there with Curtis. Uh, there was a tournament played in Ireland somewhere, um, like a world event, and most everybody was playing it on both sides. So we actually, believe it or not, Curtis went over there because he was still working for ABC and so he was doing the tournament. So we went over there, but we, we had a good idea who You know, there was uh who Tiger was gonna play with, we weren’t gonna keep, you know, he, he switched off and played with a couple other guys, and, you know, there was uh Uh, you know, the singles matches, you know, and the singles, we’re tied going into sing, uh, singles, and, you know, USA usually is very strong in singles. So being over there at the Belfry, we felt really good about ourselves going into singles, and we just laid an egg on Sunday. Um, there’s only two guys that played any good, I think Mark Calavecchia and David Toms, and everybody else did not play, even though we lost on the very last hole by, uh, who was it, Paul McGinley. Um, that he, but basically they had it, we were just hanging on by a thread, but anyways, it was, it was unbelievable, unbelievable that, uh. Just the camaraderie we had, and you know, all the, all the wives and all the players and. You know, eating together and and playing table tennis till all hours, which we did, um. Uh, it was just so much fun. So the, I mean, I guess there’s that special bond that’s created when they put that, those guys together on a team and they’re representing, I think probably 2002 was important because it was kind of a, you know, pretty close to, you know, 9/11, and there was a lot of, you know, I guess, pride in this country in the United States. So I’m sure those guys were really, um, brought together by that. Yeah, they were, and, and we had, we had a great group of guys, great group of guys and. I didn’t know Tiger, but coming out of that, even, you know, the very next week and weeks after, it was like, I mean, I had 11 new friends. I mean, best friends, and, you know, even have some of them stand up during the meeting before the, I mean, before the last round and stand up and thank, which made me feel really good. Thank Curtis and thank myself, you know. We got the best number one player in the world standing up and, and, and can’t thank us enough for going around and what you do and You know, and, and they’re, they’re wanting us so bad to, to, uh, you know, be able to, uh, take the trophy the next day, and it didn’t happen, but that you don’t forget about those things and um. We’ve been, we’ve been, everybody with those guys. We’ve been close friends forever going forward. So then when the, when the competition is actually going on, so you’re out on the course, I’m sure, and Curtis is out on the course. So are you wandering around? Are you with one particular guy? Do you go from here to there, you stay on a hole? What, what do you do? Well, we, because there was just two of us, you know, we had a fancy golf cart. Um, but, uh, he would like I would. Maybe go with the 1st 3 or 1st 2 matches, or at least get guys, those guys going or watching through the 1st 345 holes, and then I dropped back, uh, but we’re constantly on the radio headset. And, you know, if, if I needed to go back up and boost somebody or give somebody a kick in the butt, you know, he, he trusted me in that. So, it was very, you know, we’re just kind of cheerleading, you know, those guys know what they’re doing, but in the same token, then there’s boards all around, so we knew just with the, with the crowd noise too, we knew who won a hole and if we lost a hole. Um, but, um, You know, we just keep guys informed, and even, I, I think the hardest part is when you, when you have a player or a match that’s down, um, and they’re out early, and, you know, they got the majority of blue up on the board, and not much red. And, um, so, all of a sudden, you know, it’s up to us as captains and assistants to go up and say, listen, try to drag this match out as long as you can, you know, go as deep as you can. It might seem like You’re running out of holes, but he said, just try to keep it as deep as you can, and, and go as far as you can. Um, just knowing behind you, even those matches are closer, um, you know, maybe they could flip a match or whatever. So you, you just had a, you know, I’m a very positive guy like just about everybody is out there on tour, but that’s all you’re trying to do. So now you, you’ve played in a lot of tournaments, a lot of different venues, a lot of different crowds, you know, the Masters, the Open, you know, all those, all the, you know, the majors and all that sort of thing. Playing in this, did you feel and seeing this that there’s actually a kind of a different At here than just one of the majors in this one, they’re purely cheering for, you know, their, their country. Um, do you get a different feel, um, in this event? No doubt about it. Um, this was the loudest first tee I’ve ever heard. Um, and I was there for everybody teeing off. I’ve watched every match, um, go off that first day. Um, I, and both sides, I mean, it is so loud. I mean, they’re courteous. It was a dead straightaway par 4. Uh, not, not necessarily driver, and I mean, of all the players on both sides, so how many matches did we have going on? We had, uh, 4 matches, right? So 4 matches going out, 1 person. Hit the fairway. One, I mean, there was balls flying everywhere and it, it, and all you can say was adrenaline, yes, nerves, yes. I mean, it’s, it’s the most nervous. They’d be lying if they didn’t tell you, but it’s the most nervous, especially when you’re playing for your country and for your other teammates. We don’t get to do that very often, uh, as you know, on tour, so, but that was by far totally different from any major. Um, and those guys, I mean, I played in a bunch of majors, but. That was something. I mean, I think the ground was shaking, to tell you the truth. I mean, and I was just sitting there watching, uh, but it was one person hit the fairway, and I remember it was David Toms. Nobody on their side hit it, and the rest of our seven guys, they missed it. And I mean, the balls were coming out like right and left, and they couldn’t wait to run off that tee, but that was something. That was a great question, doc. So now, so, um. So that year gets over and you know they’re at the belfry they win it’s great, but you know they win then I guess in 2012, is that right? That’s when Davis asked you to help him. Davis, uh, Davis definitely asked me and I’m gonna say when Davis came on tour, uh, 2 years after. I got my card and uh we became best friends, um. We were under the same uh umbrella is um. Um, our manager was, uh, we had the same manager, and you know him quite well, Vinnie Giles, so, up there in Richmond, Virginia. But, um, we, you know, we had a good stable of guys. Obviously, Davis was an unbelievable talent coming out, but yeah, he asked me, and I wasn’t in a public parking lot when he asked me. Um, I was actually on a golf course fishing like I normally do. But um across the street from my house, but uh he did same time, same thing, kinda of November, maybe a little bit before, once he got named, and, you know, but this time. Um, or both of them told me, just, you can tell your wife, but don’t tell anybody else, you know, so that was, that was, that was fine, but he was, that was another great honor, but we also, we also had a few other, uh, assistants to help us out, and Freddie Couples was there with us, uh. Jeff Sluman and I think Scott Verplank actually. So now we’re in, you know, we’re in the United States, so playing at home, you know, so that had to be exciting, the crowd being there and it was phenomenal and To this day, and whoever’s gonna be listening or chiming in here after a while, I still don’t know how we lost. I still don’t know how we lost. Um. Well, I do, but, um, we absolutely were steamrolling them the first two days. Whatever we did, we did right. We were playing at an elite level. I was assigned Phil and Keegan. Uh, the whole week, and those two were on, on Keegan was playing out of his mind. Uh, and Phil was actually telling us stuff. And it all came true. But, you know, Phil, he had all his theories, but, so, I don’t know what happened other than Ian Poulter kind of ruined the party. Uh, I remember, uh, that Friday afternoon. Poulter was playing with, I don’t know who his partner was, but they were playing Tiger and Steve Stricker, and we had a, what, a 5-point lead with that last match to go, and then Poulter decided to birdie the last 5 holes on his own, and they beat him 1 up on 18. OK, we still got a 4-shot lead. Um, we’re still feeling great, and all of a sudden, Again, I don’t know, deer in headlights, uh, we sent, I think I, we sent Bubba Watson out first. He was getting his, you know what, handed to him after about 12 holes, so I had to go running up there, Webb Simpson. I don’t know if it’s, we kept everybody together those 1st 2 days, and then all of a sudden when they separated, they were, I don’t know, but and, and we ended up losing there in the last hole. And uh it’s some bad luck. I mean, I was following Phil coming in, he had his match pretty much won. And then who was it? Justin Rose made a bomb on 17. And that’s after making a 10 footer on 16 to tie when Phil was 1 up. It would have been dormy, but you know, things happen, so. That was a tough, uh, that was a tough team room, um, after, after we lost, after, you know, the closing ceremonies at our home course or home. Country, um, I remember about one o’clock in the morning. Davis, or I went downstairs to the team room and there was Davis and Tiger and, and. And myself and we’re just sitting there and we’re just talking. And you know, I think everybody was still in shock. We just couldn’t believe we lost, so. Yeah, I mean, when you look at the. You know, it’s kind of interesting, I guess. You know, some of the discussions was, or was at that time that, you know, they kind of sent their, you know, their power out early, and we kind of waited and sent our guys out, you know, later, you know, sent, I guess Tiger was last out and, um, you know, stricter, but I, where did Phil, I don’t know where Phil went out. I’m looking at it right now. Well, Phil went out early and, um, I guess he lost to Justin Rose and Keegan lost to McIlroy and uh Webb Simpson lost to Polder. Bubba lost to Luke Donald, so they, they won the first, the 1st 5 matches it looks like, yeah, yeah. I won. Holker won. McIlroy won. Rose won. Paul Lowry won. So, um, then we had a little comeback. Dustin Johnson won and Zach Johnson won. Then Sergio beat Furick one up, um. Yeah, so it, it, yeah, that’s amazing, you know, amazing, and, and we were ahead in a lot of those matches too. I remember dropping back and watching. Furer plays Sergio. 1011, they’re around that uh uh Fury was like. He was 1 up, and he had full control of the 11th hole. Sergio had hit it. Um, like, in the fairway bunker, Jim was on the middle of the green, you know, putting for birdie, Sergio hit it out of the bunker over the green. Um, and I, I mean to go, this is to go 2 up after 12 holes. I remember I just, I was there and Sergio skins this wedge shot from over the green, slams into the flag, and goes in the hole for par. Yeah, I mean, and, and Jim 2 putts, and then Jim loses the next 2 holes and all of a sudden he’s 1 down and he’s scrambling, um, so. You know, this is a, as you know, this is a weird game, especially match play, um. We, uh, you know, we don’t, those are some, those are some tough pills to swallow, and, and I was just a vice captain. But you know, luckily, Davis came back a few years later and got the job again and then they won. So he’s got, he, he had that under his belt, and then, um, but those are still great memories for me. And then, and then there was a different group when I was over there in Paris and when was that, 2018 maybe, um, with Fury. Um, uh, that was, we just got steamrolled there. But if you think about the, the wave of guys that I’ve been through, so there was 12, probably, I don’t know, I’ve probably, probably ended up being what, 24 of my best friends after those weeks or during that time period, you know, from 02 all the way to 18, so 16 years’ worth. I, I mean, they were friends of mine, but I really got to know them, really got to know them, and you’ll never forget those days. So, let me ask you, so I mean, I think, you know, this year, yeah, I know you’ve, we talked a little bit yesterday, you know, Beth Page Black playing that course, which I think really one of the most difficult courses, I guess you can play. But when you’re the home team, you kind of get to set up the course and I know you talked to the guy who sets it up yesterday. Yeah, um, just via text, uh, his name’s Kerry Haig, um, and I’ve known Kerry, he, he’s, he’s the main setup guy for the PGA of America for, gosh, darn it, I’m, I don’t wanna undercut Kerry, but he was up for a number of years, and he’s the best in the business. Uh, I’ve met him a long time ago. He sets up all their major championships, um, from the seniors to the juniors to the women’s, to the Ryder Cups. He’s been doing it. And, you know, and he goes over there, um, on their turf, I mean, he listens to them, and then he comes over here and he listens to us, but he is uh He, he does it right. He doesn’t trick up any pins at all. Um, but, you know, he always asked me, he asked me, this is back at Medina. He, he asked me over the radio or called me up, uh, do you want this tee moved up or tee moved back on a par 3? And I’d look at how we played that cert that hole through the week, for, through the day, the day before. And you know, I, you know, heck, I said, no, we won that whole over 60% of the time. I said, well, keep him back or move him up or whatever, so, uh, he’s just a great guy, and um but. He’s, uh, he, he doesn’t put any, pulls any tricks, but I know this, this past year, he widened the fairways. Uh, got the fairways much wider. I think he built a new tee, or, they built a new tee on number one, and, and everything else is pretty much just stayed the same, you know, the rough’s good around the greens, but the biggest thing was he widened the fairways, and it’s a big old golf course. They, the rough isn’t killer in, in this deal right now, you know, that Isaac and. You know, like Thambeau, you know, who will just try to hit it as far as he can, that the course is kind of set up that he should be. He’s an important guy for the USA. I, I think he’s very important. I mean, when you’ve got a, you’ve got a, a stud or a star like Scotty Scheffler, um, who can play with anybody, and he’s playing at that level for the last 2.5 years, and everybody on the European side knows that what kind of player he is. And he’s almost gives you that sense when, you know, he gets a lead just like Tiger used to get it, get a lead, it almost takes away. I think you can see that, they’ll see a little bit of that from the European side, um, but anyways, I think personally, and I have no idea if he’s gonna, but I, I would play Bryson as much as I could. Uh, I really would. I think he’s a heck of a player, and I, I think there’s a lot of people that deserve to play with Bryson. There’s a lot of players on that team that deserve to play with Scotty Scheffler, and he’s gonna, you know, with open arms. I mean, it’s, it’s gonna be fun to watch. We don’t know, I know they delayed the pairings, but, you know, he’s gonna shuffle the deck a little bit, you know, who knows? Um. I know there’s always that pairing of Scotty Scheffler and Sam Burns, and, and who is it, Xander and Cantley, but don’t be surprised if they get shuffled around a little bit. Um, I don’t know that, but that’s just my thinking and, and the way Keegan’s thinking, and gosh darn it, this, this is a fun group. This is gonna be a fun group to watch. So I know, you know, when you were doing it, you know, it was always kind of uh people always wondered about the Uh, rationale behind who you’d put with Tiger, you know, and what did you guys think? I know you had to be aware of that. Would you talk to Tiger and say, who do you want to play with or talk to, you know, I know he, he played, you know, he had different guys. He, he probably felt comfortable with or whatever, but I mean, how did you, you know, decide probably at that time, Tiger and Phil were the two, you know, basically superstars that You know, uh, folks kind of who, who, who would they play with? Well, Tiger was a different guy, and he’s a very, very good friend, um, but he was. Of course, we, we asked them, we sent out emails or texts or whatever, say, who would you wanna play with? Um, and, you know, if there’s anybody on the team that you don’t wanna play with, you know, please let us know. Um, you know, we, we always, we got great responses. Tiger was always hard to, to put with, um. Um, I, I remember when we put, when Curtis put Paul Eisinger with him, Paul Eisinger came up to me and said, He said, oh, quick, he said, this is like a half-hour before opening ceremonies. He says, can you watch me hit a few wedges? You know, it’s, it’s something’s off, and I go, just slow down. I said, yeah, yeah, I did. So then all of a sudden, he finds out that he’s playing with Tiger, and he goes, what am I gonna do? He said, um, you know, I, I don’t know if I can hit his golf ball, you know, you go out in the morning, you play foursomes. So, you know, there’s, there’s the golf ball issue. So that’s your question. And yeah, it is a little bit of a concern if somebody’s playing a You know, a titleist versus a strixson or, or a different brand of a titleist, you know, Tiger always played a very uh spinny golf ball through his whole career. People don’t under, well, they will now, but Tiger Woods, during his career, he played a golf ball that had the most spin of any golf ball on the market. You wouldn’t think that, but he used that spin. That’s how he controls his irons and his obviously his driver wasn’t as controlled as he wanted it, but his iron game, which was superb, he wanted that spin to control it, and uh, but anyways, so I finally went up to Paul, I said, listen, Paul, I said, if he wants you to play his golf ball, play his golf ball. I said, it’s a golf ball. I said, if he wants you to, what they do is, You hit his golf ball off the tee, and then so he has his ball into the green. Yeah, does that make sense? You know, so even on par 5s, um, going into the green, um, so it’s, uh, it gets a little tricky that way. I think we’ve blown that out of proportion here a little bit going forward after 02, um, because these golf balls and man you They’re, they’re so close together. I mean, is there a big difference between a titles ball and Calloway’s ball and Taylor-made and tricksson? No, there’s not much at all. So I don’t see that big of an issue this year, um, with this going forward, but, um, it does get a little tricky in that department, but I don’t think it’ll be as tricky because you go up to uh Scotty Scheffler or you go up to Bryson and you say I’ll play whatever ball you want me to play, you know, or I’ll hit your ball off the tee, simple solution, yeah. Now do you think that, you know, playing with Tiger clearly arguably, you know, the greatest player to ever play the game, you know, and with his, his big, um, persona. Some guy, I mean, I would think some guys might have trouble with that, you know, that they, you know. Yeah, I, I, uh, I know what you’re saying. It was like, I hate to say it, even, even to the point where I know Davis Love was paired with him quite a bit, but, you know, as good of a great of a player as Davis was, and then playing with Tiger, I still felt like, or even Stricker playing with Tiger at at Madina all the time, I still felt like there was, they were clashing a little bit, you know, instead of like, They were like respecting their, their, their games too much while they were out there playing. I mean, if I was playing with Tiger Woods, I mean, he’s by far the best putter we had during that time span, man, I’d did, come on over and could you help me read a putt. Question, something like that. I just felt like they didn’t tap into each other enough. Um, times have changed after that, but, um, and maybe that’s what gave the idea of the Europeans thinking that we’re not really close together. Maybe we weren’t as close together. We were back in the room, but maybe we weren’t on the, we weren’t complimenting each other’s games, you know, a little bit. So, let’s face it, I mean, and we went into every stinking Ryder Cup. With the world rankings and we’re so far ahead of these guys and then we end up coming out losers so I think we’re starting to turn the corner, but I think we’re gonna see a different. vibe out there on the golf course between whoever’s paired together, you’re gonna see a little, you’re gonna see a big difference this year, big difference this year. Yeah, and I, and, of course, you know, I don’t know these guys, just, you know, from, from what you would think, you, you, it seems like, you know, Scheffler is a very low-key guy. It seems like Schofly is a low-key guy, Morai was a low-key guy, you know, the, um. You know, they’re not, they don’t come across as big personalities, they just play golf, where, you know, I guess you got a couple of guys, of course, you know, Bryson’s a big personality and, um, but he’s, he’s probably about the only, I’m trying to think who’s all on the team, but it would seem like he’s probably the one that has the biggest personality. The rest of the guys kind of, you just think they’re kind of like workmanlike guys, they’re just going out and playing golf, you know. Yeah, I, I agree, and, and, um, you know, even, even one of the rookies. You know, uh, JJ Spawn, who’s on the team this year, he, he’s a very quiet guy, right, and he goes about his business like that. Can’tley’s like that. I mean, thank goodness we got a hat that fits him this year. Uh, he’s gonna wear one, so, uh, you know, Xander, Xander’s kind of a quiet guy, you know, they don’t get to show too much emotion. Now then you get to your Justin Thomases and Um, and even I, I like that Ben Griffin guy. I, I, I, I like that Ben Griffin guy, he’s a rookie, but everybody knows in, in the The most important person knows Scotty Scheffler, that Ben Griffin is a heck of a player, and he would love to be paired with him, and he’s gonna, who knows, he’s gonna be great, but you’re right, everybody’s got a little more of a quieter workmanlike. Um, personality, but I think Keegan, because he is so intense and so competitive, he’s gonna bring out the competitiveness and the, um, a little different side from these guys, I think, you know, go ahead and cut loose. It’s OK to You know, Um, Fist pump and run across the green and I-5, you know, it’s OK, it’s OK, and I think that’s what’s gonna happen this year. So, one final question, I know we, we don’t want to overdo it, but one final question, with Keegan being the captain of the team, did you think it would be his good decision not to put himself, because he clearly played very well this year, not to put himself on the team. Yeah, that was a question asked all the way through the year, um, you know. The, the crazy part was when he got named to be the captain, it was kind of out of left field. And I said, whoa, and I said, holy cow. Not that anybody else deserved it, but they kind of went off the grid a little bit on this decision. But then I’m thinking, man, they named a captain that was in the top. 30 in the FedEx Cup, and he was in the top 15 in the world rankings, and I’m thinking, wow, I said this guy is still playing, he’s playing at the best level, he’s at the highest level he ever has, so, Um, I was glad he did it, and he had a great answer. He said, listen, this is the best honor of my career to be named the captain, and I think That I want to be the best captain and the only way I can be the best captain. Is for me not to play. And I think if there was any question marks on his pick, let’s say he had an extra pick in his head pocket now that he was gonna just be a captain, and so there’s not gonna be any question marks about, and we haven’t heard a word ever since the guys he picked, not a word. And, and so, uh, I think that was one of the gutsiest calls I’ve seen before a Ryder Cup for him. Not to play and um he gave you, he gave a great answer, and there is a lot to go into that stuff. I mean, win, lose or draw, I mean, he is. Uh, he, he is, uh, he’s gonna get the, he’s gonna squeeze out. Stuff from his 12 players that they are gonna. I really feel like they’re, they’re gonna do some, some. Significant things this weekend in, uh, in earning points, and the matches always come down to Sunday. They’re always closed. But um. I think people are gonna be uh smiling after this weekend. Well, uh, uh, Mike, I really appreciate you taking time out and, you know, we’re clearly proud of what you’ve done, what you’ve done for ETSU over the years. You know, the way that you’ve represented yourself, but also that’s a representation of ETSU. So we’re really glad that, you know, just kind of being around a little bit, knowing the respect that all the guys on the PGA Tour have for you. I, I mean, you know, I, I think you have to feel good about that. You’ve had a great career and of course, you know, being, you know, involved in the Ryder Cup 3 different times by 3 different captains just speaks volumes, but I just thought it’d be good for, you know, our folks to have a chance. to hear kind of some of your experiences and kind of what it’s really like to be in that team room and, you know, being part of the leadership. So, uh, I appreciate it and, you know, I’m excited about some of the things you’re gonna do in the future for ETSU. I think there’s an opportunity, you know, for us to really unite all the ETSU former student-athletes and, you know, just do some great things. So I appreciate you, appreciate what you’re doing and excited about it. Thanks a lot, doc. Thanks for having me. Uh, this, this was great. This was great and um. You know, uh, go Bucks, you know, every, every level, um, um, and go Ryder Cup, so it’s, it’s, it’s gonna be great, great.
