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Official: Marriage improves your golf! |
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August 25, 2003; Source: AnyoneForTee Exclusive What a week for Curtis! Best pro round Thursday, arrested Friday, married Saturday and just misses a 69 on Sunday |
 AKRON, OHIO. Ben Curtis notched up another first at the World Golf Championships NEC Invitational last week by being the first man to begin a PGA tour event as a batchelor and end it as a husband. In the process, he finally brought an answer to the question so many husbands and golf-widows have never dared to ask: does marriage improve your golf?The answer, very clearly, is YES! But the long-planned wedding of the 2003 Open Champion to Candace Beatty almost never happened, after a roller-coaster week that the 26 year old will never forget.  Wednesday: Curtis is mobbed by autograph hunters and fans, congratulating him on his Open win and wishing him well for his wedding. He is also the object of much "nudge nudge, wink wink" locker room talk from his fellow pros, who are speculating on his Sunday night-after-the-wedding score - if he makes the cut... Thursday: Ben opens with his career PGA best of 64, 6 under par, to tie for the lead at the end of the first day with Sergio Garcia. His performance in the circumstances surprises even the world no. 1, who cannot resist joining in the rib-digging talk at the press conference after his own 65, one off Curtis' pace.Journalist: "Tiger, are you impressed with Ben Curtis, who's about to get married in the same week as he plays in a championship?" Woods: "Let's just say if he's in contention, I want to see how tired he is on Sunday morning."  Friday: Ben is clearly out of sorts and he soars to a 76, giving back to par the six shots he had gained the day before. The body language is bad, and the "I-told-you-so" talk suggests the pressure of the wedding preparations is getting to him; some onlookers even speculate that he has dropped shots deliberately to avoid having a late tee time with the leaders on Saturday, which would compromise his 6 o'clock wedding ceremony.As Ben came off the course, he was escorted to a police car, which was believed to be taking him to a rehearsal of the wedding, but AnyoneForTee can now exclusively reveal the truth about that Friday evening.  Acting on an anonymous tip-off, police arrest Curtis on suspicion of wearing performance-enhancing underpants, which could give him an unfair advantage in the chase for the first prize of $1.05m. His 64 was "just too good", according to sources who talked to AFT. Suspicions were apparently aroused after comments made by USPGA winner Slim Michelob (Shaun Micheel - Ed), concerning several players involved in field trials of a revolutionary item of underwear developed by Gobra (you can read the full Michelob interview here). After two hours of questioning, during which Curtis did not deny that he was wearing the prototype underpants on Thursday, his lawyers were able to obtain his release, having successfully argued that the underpants were no different to new drivers, putters or golf balls which were regularly introduced to the tour, that they did not contravene any PGA rules, and also that Curtis had not worn the garment during his second round 76. "Seems his fiancee did not wash the underpants on Thursday evening after his 64", said a police insider present at Curtis' questioning. "The guy only has the one pair", he continued, "'cos it's a prototype and they're in short supply, and Ben didn't want to put on dirty underpants on Friday. They must be quite something to make a difference of 12 shots in two days, I gotta get me a pair when they're on the market! Of course, it makes you wonder, did she just forget to wash them, or did she know what she was doing? Broads can be funny when it comes to weddings..."Curtis finally makes it to his rehearsal, which goes off without a hitch, apparently also promising his future wife that he would not wear the underpants again during the tournament, to avoid possible further enquiries which might upset the weekend.  Saturday: Considering everything, Ben records a very creditable two over 72, to great support from the fans, who sing "He's going to the chapel and he's gon-na get ma-ha-har-ried" as he walks up the 18th. Louds cheers accompany his last shot as a bachelor, a fine 15-footer to save par. "I was relaxed and just out there having fun," he said afterwards, "but I'm excited for tonight and tomorrow." It is just 3.15 as Ben strides off the course, with plenty of time to get into his tuxedo. Asked if the events of the previous evening had upset his game, he made light of it: "Of course (it was on my mind), but not as much as I thought it would be," he said.  "This morning it was on my mind a lot more than it was when I was out there. Once you get in a groove you forget about everyday life when you're out there." Curtis also strenuously denies that he is wearing the underpants, although fellow Gobra staff member Fred Funk breaks into laughter and makes an incomprehensible gesture (right) when told that Ben has talked about being "in a groove". By 6.30, Ben is a married man.Sunday:By his own admission, Ben and Candace party until 2.15am, and don't get back to the hotel until 3.00. Describing his wedding as "awesome", he still manages to make the tee for his 11.25 Sunday start, and hits his first drive into the fairway. With a second onto the green and a 20-foot putt, Ben begins married life with a birdie, a fact which does not escape the notice of the watching CEO from the PGA's Office of Marital Influence on Golfing Dysfunction (OMIGOD), Victor E. Czech. "This is just the opposite of the behaviour we would expect," said Czech, "but the real test will be to see if he can keep on scoring like that."  To the amazement of everyone, Ben has it three under par through 13, when, not unsurprisingly, a whiff of hangover and tiredness begins to kick in. "I felt pretty good this morning, but as I started moving around, that's when it hit me," he said. "I had a little bit of a headache but it kind of went away," said Curtis. "It was pretty much fatigue more than anything." Even so, he still managed to find one more birdie as he came home in bogey, birdie, double bogey, par and bogey for a level par score of 70, two better than his previous round as a bachelor. "This is phenomenal," said Czech. "We've never had the chance to study a pro who goes from single to married status during a tournament, and the results are there. I think this proves pretty conclusively that marriage improves your game."Speaking after his round, Ben said he was "pretty happy" with his result. His playing partner Chris DiMarco was more forthright. "He did great," said DiMarco. "I would think it would be nice if everyone left him alone for a couple of weeks and he went out and had a good time. He played good out there. I can't believe how good he played."  Financially speaking, Candace should be well pleased with her new husband. "By my calculations, Ben is on track to improve his annual earnings by around $300.000," said Czech. "Just on today's performance, he has improved his position by two shots compared to his last bachelor round. That has earned him $43.000, as against $35.500 for finishing with the guys two shots back, that's an extra $7.500. Multiply that by about 40 tournaments a year, and he's gonna get another 300k." Czech's remarks caused a sensation in the locker room, with many of the younger pros feverishly working their cellphones to call their girlfriends. The air was filled with excitement, until suddenly a deathly hush descended on the room. In a corner, with his back to them, they could hear Tiger whispering into his phone, "Elin? I've booked us somewhere nice and quiet for dinner tonight."
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