I have a great job. Today my duty was to head out onto the course and follow Wayne Gretzky as he finished his second round. #99 was teamed with Nationwide pro Chris Nallen. They have played together several times and actually won the tournament together back in 2008. Chris is a huge hockey fan, specifically a Rangers fan, and needless to say is delighted to play alongside The Great One.
Wayne is one of the nicest celebrities I've ever met. He is low key, friendly, conversational and interested in what's happening to those around him. He's not egocentric at all. He has that wonderful ability to make you feel important and comfortable. Wayne also has a very respectable golf game. He carries a 12 handicap and has a very nice touch around the greens. He told me that he plays golf 3-4 times a week and truly enjoys the sport. His putting tends to be his weakness.....at least when I've watched him play. I think that the rhythm of his stroke gets short and quick instead of remaining fluid. Sound familiar??
After I interviewed Mr. Gretzky on his final hole, I headed to the 2nd hole to pick up Josh Kelly's group. Josh is a highly talented musician who has a great stage presence. He hasn't quite hit the big time like his brother Charles who is enjoying a successful career with Lady Antebellum--he's the cute blond who sings duets and creates such beautiful harmony with Hillary Scott. Josh's wife happens to be Katherine Heigl, the beautiful, brainy actress of Grey's Anatomy, Knocked Up, & 27 Dresses fame. Josh has a lot of charisma--I hope his new album Georgia Clay catches on and brings him loads of accolades.
BTW, Josh is a fabulous single digit golfer who played college golf for Ole Miss. Not bad!!
Our show tends to focus on the Celebrities the first 3 days, with fewer shots of the pros being shown. Come Sunday, however, we focus on who is going to win the tournament. As of Friday afternoon, Greg Owen had shot a 63 to back up his first round 65 and had caught first round leader Travis Hampshire (who posted a personal best 60 in round 1). Travis cruised to a solid 68 in round two that probably felt like 78 after yesterday's round. There are 10 guys within 5 shots of the lead and considering the winning score the last 3 years here as been -20 or -22, the players know they have to keep the pedal down to have a chance come Sunday afternoon.
Let's see.....who will I follow tomorrow? How about Greg Kinnear?? I loved him in As Good as it Gets, Little Miss Sunshine and Baby Mama. Other Celebs that we'll be watching are-- singer and The Voice contestant Javier Colon, Michael Pena, Gary Valentine and Rob Morrow among others. It will be another day full of actors and singers antics and performances. Can't wait!!
