A Worthy Hero

Published 11:45 pm Monday, August 5, 2024

Watching Tony Romo play his last six holes Tuesday afternoon at The Cascades Golf & Country Club reminded me of what a difficult game golf can be even though the low scores this week at the 54th M&P Texas State Open might say otherwise.

Congratulations to young and strong 2024 winner Tanner Napier of Paris, Texas not France, who dazzled with superb golf and a winning total of 21-under-par for 72 holes, winning in a playoff with 2019 champion Kyle Pritchard of Castroville.

I was also reminded that the game Scottish shepherds invented centuries ago may not build character but it will certainly reveal it. So, while Romo’s golf game was sketchy at best, I left the course impressed with his demeanor and personality.

Romo was conveniently about to hit his long iron shot on the 13th hole Tuesday, a 200-yard par 3 near the clubhouse, when I arrived. It was a hot and sultry day and his threesome had started in the afternoon, thus braving the harshest heat of the day though a mild breeze made it barely tolerable.

Playing with two young golfers of internet fame (Mason Greene and Sean Walsh), Romo struck a nice shot on the 13th that landed safely on the putting surface. As he got into his golf cart, I encouraged him by saying, “let’s see some birdies.” Instead of ignoring me or just nodding, he drove by and extended his arm to give me a fist bump. What a nice guy, I thought to myself.

His little gesture made a huge impression because of its humility and charm. It belies his glamorous life of the rich and famous.

For a lot of us, especially sports junkies, Romo has been living the dream for the last two decades, residing at the pinnacle of sports as the hotshot quarterback for “America’s Team” and since his retirement as a celebrated television personality. Pretty heady stuff for a Wisconsin kid who arrived at the Cowboys’ training camp as an undrafted free agent from Eastern Illinois in 2003. But the 6-foot-2, 230-pound slinger played 13 years and amassed gaudy statistics while flustered with a team that never achieved playoff success. Then, in 2016, he was unceremoniously unseated by a rookie after suffering a serious back injury.

All of this came back to me as I walked down the 14th fairway after Romo smashed a drive into good position on the reachable-in-two par 5. Before he could hit his second shot, my memory was in full gear.

I vividly recalled how Romo finally got into a game again after his injury, the regular season finale at Philadelphia. In my mind’s eye I could see the joy on his face when he trotted to the sidelines after completing his 248th and final career touchdown pass to Terrence Williams. (The most for any Dallas QB with Dak Prescott now second with 202)

What a great way to hang it up and from that came his meteoric rise to the very top of television broadcasting, making more money per game as a color analyst than he made playing a most dangerous game. His TV announcing persona was enhanced by his partner in the booth, Jim Nantz, who once was part of the history at The Cascades when he attended the 1979 Southwest Conference Championship played at what was then called Briarwood Country Club. That event was won by the University of Houston Cougars and Nantz was the team manager and close friends with Fred Couples, who lost a sudden death playoff for the individual title to the late Payne Stewart.

As I approached the 14th green, I became aware of Romo’s devoted gallery, especially a woman who walked briskly with a stool similar to one my dad once used some 60 years ago when I was first introduced to competitive golf at the old Briarwood Invitational. Thomasine Newby has the deep bronze tan of a devoted golfer and has watched just about every shot hit by Romo during the past four or five years that he has played in the state open at The Cascades.

“He is just a wonderfully nice man who always has time to visit with me and the other fans who come out to watch him play,” Newby said. “I met him several years ago at the dinner before the tournament and had my picture taken with him and have been a fan ever since.”

Newby, like many Cowboys fans, is a native Texan from San Angelo and has called Tyler and The Cascades home for some time now. Her devotion to watching Romo is typical of the support the tournament receives from the members of the golf club and its new owner Chris Choi of Dallas.

Romo’s second shot on the 14th found the greenside bunker where he failed to get up and down for a birdie and then he missed makeable birdie putts on the next two holes. Those disappointments paled in comparison to a botched 17th hole that resulted in a double bogey. But still the smile, and finally a missed birdie putt from only five feet on the final hole for a 74 that again left him in dire straits for making the 36-hole cut, a cut he sorely wants to make one year.

Before leaving the course, Romo continued his pleasant banter and looked to do better in the second round. The following morning he was back with Greene and Walsh and the small and devoted gallery of Newby and colorful Cascades member Rodney Beaty. Going off the 10th tee, Romo again blistered a drive and as is always the case in golf, hope for a good round was at full force

But while he looks good on the links at age 44, Romo is no doubt dealing with physical ailments derived from his 13 years of pro football. Those ailments, specifically a chronically bad back, kept him from finishing 36 holes as he graciously bowed out after 33 holes.

The early exit might seem like an extreme disappointment for a talented athlete like Romo who works to stay fit and possesses a bonafide good amateur golf game, but that would be missing the point. What did Romo do when he had to call it quits? Instead of complaining about his bad back, he apologized to his playing companions and then politely offered Newby a ride to the clubhouse.

“At first I wanted to decline but then I thought no, that is so nice of him to offer me a ride and maybe I can encourage him because I know he was so disappointed,” Newby said.

Speaking over the phone, I mentioned to Newby that Romo’s comportment and his countenance gave me the impression of a Christian man at peace with himself and his surroundings.

There was a pause and Newby expressed her agreement.

“I just wish I had told him that I would pray for his back to get better.”

Well said Thomasine because that’s what Christians do. And hopefully Romo will be back next year to try again and make the cut at M&P Texas State Open. That’s what golfers do.