YOU MAY WANT TO REMEMBER THE NAME SEAN O’HAIR!
By Bob Acton
Probably like most of you occasional golf fans, I usually like to keep tabs on the production of one Tiger Woods. So needless to say, after he missed his first cut in seven yearsat the Byron Nelson last Friday, I turned my attention to the MLB and NBA.
One hundred forty two consecutive tournaments in the money is mind boggling and much has been made in the pastof the somewhat military lifestyle that existed between Earl Woods and his son Tiger.
Well on the weekend news centered on the playof Sean O’Hair who is a 22-year old rookie on the PGA tour and is the son of one Marc O’Hair who shall we say encouraged his son to turn pro.
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Actually encouraged is an understatement, how about trained his son, for the battlefield of golf with a strict regimen of 24/7 golf. In a segment first broadcast three years ago the elder O’Hair referred to his son as good labor.There is no confusing the fact that Mr. O’Hair looked atthe 19-year old as his business and sole interest in life.
It seems unlikely that O'Hair can escape questions about his path to the PGA Tour, a story that reeks of a father who treated his son like a commodity.
Up every day at 5 a.m. to run, on the course from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. The father made him run a mile for every bogey on his scorecard and derided him for missing shots. It was all in the kid's best interest, to make him the best.
``What am I supposed to do -- say, 'Oh, Seany boy, you don't have to get up early today?' The military, they know how to build a champion,'' Marc O'Hair told the Sentinelin December. ``Somebody who slacks off, that's a loser. The typical high school kid is hanging out at the mall. That's a loser.''
Far too often we hear about the burned out child phenom athlete who can only take so much and crumbles under the pressure of his obsessed parent and flees from the game. Sometimes they seek out the company of the first person they meet that allows them to forget the game they grew up playing. This for a young male may mean the companionship of a female that allows them to bury the nightmares of their childhood.
Yes, young O’Hair did flee into the arms of a beautiful woman, but instead of escaping golf, he flourished with the support of wife and former college golfer Jackie. She has brought self esteem and perspective to his life and his game is sizzling.
So as Sean O’Hair continues his fine play on the PGA tour, questions remain about his severed relationshipwith his father and how ironically enough his mentor now is father in law and caddie Steve Lucas. Sean will only suggest that he loves his father and one day hopes they can reconcile. As for the elder O’Hair he has suggested that he will bury his son financially and points to contracts that he had with his son that were signed when Sean was 17 and 20.
Marc O’Hair claims that he spent upwards of $2 million training his son to be a professional golfer and wants the contracts honored. Needless to say this is a story that I can guarantee we will revisit, in the not too distant future!
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