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Sad climb down as 'World's Highest Tee' experiment abandoned

May 26, 2003;  Source: AnyoneForTee.com
Man avoids frozen balls after golfing career fails to peak

I'll have it attended, please, TensingNEPAL. An American mountain-climbing, golf fanatic has had his hopes of hitting a drive off the top of the world’s highest mountain, Mt Everest, cruelly dashed. His feat would have marked the 50th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary's and Sherpa Tensing Norgay's conquest of the mountain on May 29th, 1953.

The TaylorMade R500Jay White, a 48-year old research and development engineer for golfing equipment manufacturer TaylorMade, had planned to reach the summit of both his passions by hitting a shot with a specially-designed TaylorMade R500 driver once he reached the peak.

But his dreams fell short by less than 1,000 ft – just a John Daly drive away – last week when treacherous wind conditions forced White to turn back from reaching the “Top of the World” at 29,035 feet.

"Jay returning with all of his fingers and toes was the number 1 priority," said John Steinbach, director of communications for TaylorMade in Carlsbad. "Everybody here has been quite proud of him." But it could have been even worse, according to AnyoneForTee’s local sources. Jay White - 'Golf Man'“Fingers and toes? The way the weather was going, he could have ended up with frozen balls,” said one well-placed Sherpa.

Jay had been practising for months at home wearing his high-altitude mountaineering gear (see picture at right), and was hoping to hit the ball at least 100 yards horizontally. This would have allowed his ball to fall vertically some 5,000 yards, thus becoming the longest drive in history.

Sir Edmund Hillary's favourite ironGolf, albeit at lower altitudes, has become increasingly popular in the Himalayas, the mountain range that houses Everest. Last year, a Jack Nicklaus-designed course opened during the warmer summer months, allowing the Sherpas to earn useful off-season money as course guides. Standard advice when players ask which club to use on the ice-ridden back nine is apparently “Take your pick, Sir.”


Mt ElbrusEditor’s note: White has already climbed five of the world's highest peaks. He once climbed Mt Aconcagua in Argentina and hit a golf ball from 22,834 feet. Two years ago on Mt Elbrus in Russia (18,481 feet), he used a TaylorMade Rescue club to hit another shot, at which point his awestruck Japanese climbing companions bowed and called him "Golf Man."

 
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