PHOTO: The late Payne Stewart is embraced by his caddie Mike Hicks after winning the 1999 US Open at Pinehurst No.2.
IF a young bloke by the name of Aaron Stewart ever makes it to the top in golf, a couple of Australians will have had a plenty to do with it.
News from the USA last month was that the late and great Payne Stewart’s son Aaron was teeing it up in a major amateur championship at Pinehurst No.2 course. This was the venue where dad Payne won his third major, the 1999 US Open, only three months before his tragic death, at the age of 42, in a freak aeroplane accident.
In an emotional reunion, Payne Stewart’s 1999 Open caddie Mike Hicks carried Aaron’s bags at Pinehurst. Stewart was married to Tracey Ferguson, sister of popular Australian professional Mike Ferguson a close mate of the American who became famous for his snappy collection of plus-fours golfwear, based on the colours of NFL teams.
Ferguson told Golfer Pacific recently that Tracey lived next door to Australian star Stuart Appleby in Florida. Appleby’s coach is Steve Bann, who was a frequent visitor to the area and it was not long before Bann and Appleby took an interest in the golfing development of Aaron Stewart.
“They basically became unofficial coaches to him,’’ said Ferguson of 20-year-old Aaron, who harbours hopes of playing as a professional.
Whether or not Aaron can be as good as Payne remains to be seen, but perhaps one day he’ll venture to Australia to launch his career. After all, Payne did it.
Not many know that Payne won his first professional tournament Down Under. It was in 1982 and the event was the Gold Coast Classic when his future father-in-law Norm Ferguson was caddie. It was also an event future brother-in-law Mike Ferguson had won two years previously and won by South African legend Gary Player in 1981. Stewart was to go on to finish in a tie for second, alongside legendary Jack Nicklaus behind winner Bob Shearer, in the 1982 Australian Open played at The Australian in Sydney.
Nicklaus had previously completed a major renovation of the course for media magnate Kerry Packer and Mike Ferguson remembers a funny incident during the lead-up to the event.
“I got a phone call from Payne telling me he had organised a practice round for me and Bryan Smith with ‘Jack’,’’ said Ferguson.
“Smithy and I both thought he was talking about Jack Newton, so we almost fell over when we went to the tee and there was Jack Nicklaus waiting for us.’’
So Payne Stewart won his first professional event in Australia. As did a couple of other players who were to go on to big things.
Great South African Gary Player came to Australia as a rookie and promptly won the 1956 Ampol championship at Yarra Yarra in Melbourne. His winning cheque was for 500 pounds and Player immediately hopped on the phone and proposed to fiancée Vivienne.
The other notable, who went on to become a world No.1 and winner of 10 major championship, also landed a debut professional win in Australia. It was none other than super Swede Annika Sorenstam, who scored in the 1994 Australian Women’s Open played at Royal Adelaide.
That tournament also featured the launch of another stellar career, that of Queenslander Karrie Webb, who made her professional debut and finished top 20. Sorenstam and Webb were to forge one of golf’s great rivalry over the next dozen or so years.
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