A Golfer's Dream - Book Three The Real Education Begins Written by TheCaddy Disclaimer: This story is entirely fiction. It does not relate to any real person, living or dead. Any similarity to a real person, whether living or dead, is purely coincidental and completely unintended. While actual places are occasionally mentioned in this story, such mention is not to be a basis for conclusion that any part of this story is real, or ever happened. The following story is a work of fiction containing graphic descriptions of sexual acts between adults and minors. All of the sex depicted is consensual; the author does not intend to promote incest or sexual relations with underage children. The age of consent in Canada is currently fourteen. The story is written purely for entertainment purposes only. Those who are offended by such material are strongly encouraged not to read this. Those who are searching for material which they would proscribe for others should search elsewhere. If you are constrained by law or local authority from reading graphic descriptions of fictional sexual acts between adults and minors, you are required to not proceed further. Pursuant to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, this work is copyright with all rights reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated otherwise. This story is protected under U.S. and international copyright law and may not be reprinted, reposted, or otherwise reproduced without express written permission. This story may be posted to appropriate USENET newsgroups for non- commercial use only, as long as it remains entirely intact and unmodified, including all copyright messages and this disclaimer. Chapter Eighteen – Sarah Works Her Magic The week after the ACC Championship was filled with celebrations but Dave quickly settled back into his studies. He had fallen slightly behind in his coursework with all the golf and trying to deal with Alec’s problems of the previous month; but he knew one good week would get him caught up again. He was studying in his room after lunch on Tuesday when his cell phone rang; caller ID indicated it was an international call but no name appeared. He answered simply, “Hello?” An authoritative British voice asked, “Is this Dave MacDonald?” “Yes, it is.” replied Dave with a slight hesitation. “My name is Harry Cole and I am the chairman of the 2005 British Open. I have been reviewing the list of applications of players with full exemptions and I noticed that you have not yet submitted an application. Did you realize that you automatically qualified for our Open Championship when you won the Canadian Open?” This was news and Dave was very surprised, “No, I didn’t know I had qualified.” Harry explained, “There is still plenty of time to apply and I very much wanted to make sure you were aware that you had the full exemption. We would love to have you play in our tourney. I will give you my telephone number should you want to ring me for information.” Dave thanked him and marked down the number. He immediately went on the internet and checked the dates. The Open Championship was being hosted by the Royal and Ancient St Andrews Golf Club from July 10th to 17th. Dave got very excited and called his father at work. “Dad, you’ll never guess who just called me?” Roger laughed, “Harry Cole from the British Open.” Dave was stunned, “How did you know?” Roger was still chuckling, “He called the house yesterday trying to find you. I gave him your cell number.” Dave snickered, “I never thought of that. What do you think? Should I go?” Roger replied, “That is totally up to you. You will have to pay for the trip yourself this time – but I am sure we can work that out. It will be a great opportunity and I wish I could go with you but your mother and I already have unchangeable plans for that week so we won’t be able to go.” Dave was very disappointed, “I was hoping you would caddie for me again.” Roger answered, “Sorry, Dave, I can’t make it but I have a suggestion. Why don’t you ask Alec to caddie for you?” Dave agreed, “That’s a great idea. I’ll ask him if he wants to help me prepare for the tournament and see if he is interested in caddying. That’s a fantastic idea, Dad. Thanks.” Dave said goodbye to his father and was filling out the online application when his cell phone rang again. He answered the phone and was surprised to hear another British voice, one which he recognized immediately. “Hello, Dave, how are you?” “I’m great, Lord Thurlow, how are you?” Lord Thurlow replied, “I am very well, thank you. It’s good to hear your voice again. I understand that you have qualified for the Open Championship; our family would like to invite you to stay with us during the week before the tournament. Are you interested in visiting with us?” Dave was surprised and happy as he realized this was what Sarah had meant when she said she would have to find a way to get him to England. He replied, “Yes, sir, I would love to visit.” Lord Thurlow answered, “Splendid, I will book your flight and accommodations at St Andrews. Will you be traveling alone?” Dave replied, “You don’t have to book my flight, sir; I will look after it.” “Don’t be silly, my boy. I would feel privileged if you allow me to look after this for you. After all, you are very much the son I never had. Please allow me to do this for you. How many will be in your party?” Dave thought about Alec and was about to say two when he also thought of Shauna and how great it would be for her to be along with Alec. He asked, “Would three be too many?” Lord Thurlow chuckled, “Definitely not. Where do you plan to fly from – Greensboro or Edwardton?” Dave thought for a moment and explained, “I’m not sure yet. If my friend Alec comes with me as my caddie, I may just fly from here – but if not I may fly from home. Can I call you back?” Lord Thurlow replied, “Certainly, I’ll wait for you to ring back. Take care of yourself, Dave.” Dave said goodbye and hung up. He looked at his exam schedule and realized he would be finishing exams the Thursday before going to London and would be ready to fly out on the weekend. There didn’t seem like much point in driving to QAI just to fly to London but he would need his car on QAI when he returned. He thought about it for a while and decided the best plan would be a compromise: drive to Boston and then fly from there. When he returned to Boston he would only have a twelve hour drive home. As he thought more about the trip, he got very excited at the prospect of playing against the best golfers in the world including Tiger Woods. The British Open was one of the four tournaments often referred to as the Majors. The Masters, the first of the four majors, was starting in just two days. Tiger had been playing well again so there was a lot of hype on the tournament. It was time for practice so Dave logged off WIN and went to the golf center. The whole team was there except Alec who was taking a couple weeks off for therapy – both physical and emotional. Dave didn’t tell anyone about the invitation yet – he wanted Alec to be the first to know. When he returned to his room there was a long e-mail from Sarah thanking him for coming to London and teasingly suggesting she could always find ways to get her Knight to come to England. Dave had suspected she was behind the phone calls and now she confirmed it. He replied with an equally long e-mail. The week passed quickly and practice went well. Dave got caught up on most of his courses; on Sunday he and Alec arranged to watch the final round of the Masters together. Dave still hadn’t mentioned anything about the British Open. They were drinking beer and enjoying the golf in Alec’s room while Chris DiMarco and Tiger were battling head-to-head for the Green Jacket awarded to the winner. As they watched, Dave asked, “How are you and Shauna getting along.” Alec looked at him very seriously, “I can’t believe I almost chased her away. She is the most wonderful woman in the world and I nearly fucked it up. We are getting along great now, thanks to you. I really don’t know how I would have handled losing her.” Dave agreed, “She is a fantastic woman and she truly loves you. You are meant for each other and I am pleased it is working out.” Alec nodded as he resumed watching the tournament. Tiger looked as if he were in trouble on the sixteenth hole. He missed the green left on the par three and had a difficult chip. Chris was fifteen feet from the hole and putting for birdie. Dave said, “DiMarco has him now.” Alec laughed, “Not yet!” Tiger chipped his ball well left of the hole then watched as the ball rolled off the hill on the back of the green slowly towards the hole. The camera work was incredible. Everyone could see the ball slowly rolling down the hill directly at the hole. The ball slowed to a trickle just before reaching the hole then stopped on the edge. The ball seemed to waver briefly then dropped to the bottom of the cup. Both Dave and Alec were on their feet screaming. Alec liked Tiger so he was yelling “Drop!” While Dave, who was less of a Tiger fan, was yelling, “Stop!” When the ball dropped in Alec said, “I told you he wasn’t out of it yet.” Dave simply shook his head as he knew that that birdie by Tiger would probably swing the round. DiMarco now had to make his birdie putt just to remain one stroke behind Tiger. DiMarco missed and fell two strokes behind the leader with only two holes to play. But DiMarco battled back and made par on seventeen and eighteen while Tiger made bogey on both leaving them tied. Extra holes would have to decide the winner. Dave was cheering for DiMarco and Alec was cheering for Tiger. Tiger hit great golf shots and won the first extra hole to win his fourth Masters. The chip on sixteen was the highlight of the tournament and Dave and Alec watched replay after replay of the spectacular shot. Alec finally said, “God, it would be incredible to be there for things like that.” Dave saw his opening and asked, “How would you like to go to the British Open?” Alec laughed, “Yeah, right, in my dreams.” Dave chuckled, “No, actually it’s my dream, I got a call on Tuesday inviting me to play in the British Open at St Andrews, and I need a caddie. Will you caddie for me?” Alec’s face turned pale, “Really? Are you serious?” As Dave nodded, a huge smile covered Alec’s face, “That would be unbelievable. Do you really want me to caddie for you?” Dave smiled as he said, “I definitely want you to caddie for me. And if you want, I’d like Shauna to come with us, too. Do you two have plans for this summer?” Alec was bouncing with excitement as he replied, “Nothing that can’t be changed. I’m sure she’d love to go, but I will have to ask. How did this all happen?” Dave shook his head. “I told you that Sarah called me from England when I was in Las Vegas. Well, she cooked this up; she said she wanted me to visit her this summer but I told her I would probably be too busy. She apparently went onto the British Open website and determined that I had qualified by winning the Canadian Open – then told her father about it. Her father called a friend with the Royal and Ancient and shortly afterward I got a call from the chairman of the tournament. When Lord Thurlow called shortly after the chairman, I suspected they had talked to each other because it was too much of a coincidence. Sarah confirmed my suspicions in an e-mail on Tuesday night. Lord Thurlow is paying for our flights and also our accommodations in St. Andrews. I tried to convince him I would pay for it but he refused. I told him there might be three of us.” Alec shook his head in wonder, “This will be an incredible trip. I can’t wait to tell Shauna. Passports, we have to get passports; and clothes and luggage and …” He stopped and looked squarely at Dave, “You really mean this? I have to pinch myself.” Despite Alec’s string of questions, Dave just reassured him that the three friends could indeed travel to the tournament. Dave then mentioned that he needed to get back to his room and study. He told Alec to let him know as soon as possible so they could finalize the travel plans. Alec shook his hand and thanked him again before he left. The balance of April passed quickly. Shauna, when asked about a trip to the British Open, had immediately confirmed that she wanted to go and privately thanked Dave for giving Alec something to look forward. Alec returned to practice and was now more intent on studying Dave’s swing as they worked together to get ready for the British Open. Dave told Darcy and the three women about the British Open trip and they all congratulated him. Alec’s change of focus seemed to help with his own practicing as well and he slowly began getting more consistent with his own swing. By the end of April, Alec’s golf scores had dropped into the mid-eighties and he was suddenly feeling more optimistic for his own recovery. When Dave called Lord Thurlow back he asked, “Can you arrange a round of golf for me and Alec on the Old Course at St Andrews before the week of the tournament? I know Alec would love to play the most historic golf course in the world; and I think it will help both of us when the tournament starts.” Lord Thurlow said he would try to arrange a round for the Sunday before the tournament started and he would book the accommodations starting Saturday night. Dave thanked him for everything and asked again if he could pay for it himself – Lord Thurlow simply laughed at him, and then firmly refused. Lord Thurlow said he had already booked the flights out of Boston on July 2nd and the return flights as well. Dave thanked him and said he would see him soon. The last week of the winter session arrived full with the final exams. Dave was prepared and confident; he thought he did well in all six exams he wrote. Colby left for home on Friday afternoon and he and Dave wished each other well before he left. Dave spent a quiet loving evening and night with the twins on Friday. Just before they left on Saturday Kyra had a suggestion for Dave, “Danielle is taking some spring courses, right?” After Dave nodded she continued, “I think you should consider sleeping with Danielle – one special time – before you go home for the summer. She is still extremely in love with you and I think if you tell her that you will make love to her once – and only once, then she may be able to get over you during the summer.” Dave shook his head as he was still amazed that she was not jealous and asked, “Why aren’t you jealous?” Kyra kissed him, “I have made love to you all winter. I hope to make love to you all next winter – I have no reason to be jealous.” Dave still couldn’t believe her attitude but he said he would think about her suggestion. He helped both twins load their belongings into their parents’ van. He met their father, Victor, who thanked Dave for looking out for his girls during their first year of college. Dave, without smirking or leering, replied that it was easy to look out for such wonderful girls and that it had been his treat to get to know them. He watched the van drive down the road and he wondered if the following fall would be the same as the past winter. He hoped it would. Dave moved his belongings to his new room. He initially questioned Alec’s suggestion to share a Student Apartment; maybe it was not such a good idea because the Student Apartments were the farthest buildings from the golf center. After reflection, Dave decided that an early morning walk would do them both good and improve their overall fitness. The apartment gave Dave and Alec private rooms of their own with a living room-dining room-kitchen combination. Dave liked the large fridge and went shopping for food to fill it after he had moved all his belongings to their new digs. Darcy and Carl were sharing the apartment next to Dave and Alec; the rest of the men’s and women’s golf team were also staying in the apartments. The women’s NCAA Regional tournament was in Lubbock, Texas the same weekend that Dave finished exams. The team started slowly and were in eighth place after the first round but Leanne and Rachael then played really good rounds the second day and moved the team into third place. Danielle played two solid rounds and was sitting in twenty-fifth place. Leanne, with her strong second round, was in eighth place while Rachael was in twelfth. The other two team members were in fortieth and sixty-seventh. While Dave had been moving his belongings into his new apartment, the women’s team played their final round. Leanne played well again and moved to fourth place in the individual standings. Danielle also played well in the final round and moved up to sixteenth place while Rachael held on to her twelfth place standing. The other players finished thirty-sixth and seventy-second. The team was very pleased with their third place finish which also qualified them for the NCAA Championships in Sunriver, Oregon the same weekend as the men’s team played their Regional in Nashville, Tennessee. With the twins gone, Danielle became even friendlier with Dave and she eventually spent more time in his and Alec’s apartment than in her own. Although she did not make any overt moves toward intimacy, Dave knew he eventually had to have a very serious sit down discussion with her – but he didn’t want to do that until after the NCAA tournaments. The practice group worked hard and Alec’s game continued to improve, albeit slowly. Dave found the four academic courses a very heavy load and he spent all his free time studying. His marks from the winter session came out the second week of May and he was very pleased that he had maintained his 4.0 GPA. He had two A+s and four As. His parents were very proud of him when he called with his marks. Jana and Kyra had both received all As and A+s as well and maintained their 4.0 GPA’s as well. Dave talked to them on the phone regularly and Jana surprised Dave by telling him that she and Kyra were going to QAI in August to visit Jennifer. She teased Dave by saying she might even have a little time for him. Dave was happy they were going to visit QAI. After two weeks of living in the apartment, Dave loved the privacy of his own room and he began working on Coach Dawes to make sure he and Alec had an apartment in the fall. Coach Dawes teased Dave that if he helped WF win the NCAA title, he would get him the apartment. Dave simply smiled and replied, “I’ll hold you to that.” The regional tournament went well. Dave was really pumped up and he shot the low round of the tournament the first day, a sixty-three. Darcy had a solid first round of sixty-eight. Keith was second lowest overall with sixty-five and Carl had a really strong round of sixty-seven. Will was the highest with seventy-one. Dave went for a swim then relaxed in his room. Darcy was very nervous about the regional tournament but Dave settled his nerves by reminding him to remain focused and simply play the best he could. Dave was two strokes ahead of Keith who was tied with two other players for the individual title. WFU had opened a twelve stroke lead after just one day of the team event. Dave convinced Darcy to call Leanne to see how she was doing. The women’s team had a good first day and finished in seventh place. Leanne said she played fairly well and was in twenty-first place. Danielle had the best round and was in twelfth place. Rachael was in fifty-first place. Leanne told Darcy that Sheri was tied for first place and that her Georgia team was in second. Darcy wished her and the remaining women luck from both him and Dave before he said goodbye. Dave and Darcy went to sleep shortly after the call to Leanne. Dave woke early and showered before going to the restaurant for an early breakfast. He sat and focused on his upcoming round. Eventually the remainder of the team arrived and after everyone ate, they went to the course to warm up. Dave had another solid round the second day and shot sixty-five. He was really putting well and his two stroke lead doubled to four strokes. Carl and Keith both had good second rounds shooting sixty-eight and sixty-nine respectively. Keith slipped to a tie for third place while Carl moved up to fifth place. Darcy’s nerves carried over from the previous night and he shot seventy-three, the same as Will. Dave went for a long swim and he mapped out his summer schedule in his head. The first three weeks of July would be needed to finish school, travel to England, and then travel home. He would miss the provincial trials for the Canadian Amateur but he had already qualified by being the defending champion. The Canadian Amateur started August 14th in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia; Dave already had reservations at the Telegraph House where he had stayed previously with his father and uncle. He had his practice round booked in the afternoon so he was going to drive over that morning. He remembered Bell Bay Golf Course well from the Atlantic junior tournament held there two years earlier. He would have to leave for North Carolina immediately after the Amateur to get back in time for the beginning of classes on August 24th. That meant he only had a little more than three weeks on QAI. He remembered his earlier plan to take two courses in the second summer session and immediately decided he wouldn’t actually have the time to do that now. He would have to revise his overall plan. When he returned to the room, Darcy told him he had already called Leanne who reported that the team had moved up to fourth place. She played well and had moved up to twelfth place while Danielle had moved up to sixth place with another very strong round. Rachael improved to twenty-fifth place and the other two women also moved up several positions. He mentioned that Danielle was totally excited and was going to call Dave later. Darcy also said that Sheri was all alone in first place and her Georgia team had moved into first place after two rounds. Danielle indeed called a half hour later and Dave congratulated her on another superb round. She thanked him and promised to remain focused on her third round. She congratulated Dave on leading the Regional tournament and he thanked her before they said goodbye. The final round for the men’s team went well and they won by twenty-six strokes. Dave finished first overall after shooting another strong sixty-six to win by four strokes. Carl was the biggest surprise of the tournament as he finished with another sixty-eight, fourth overall. Will shot sixty-eight and finished twenty-sixth. Keith shot seventy-three to finish eleventh. Darcy’s final round seventy-three gave him a thirty-fourth place. Coach Dawes was openly ecstatic with the victory but he remained focused on winning the NCAA Championship. The team celebrated in the hotel that evening. Dave was really pleased that they were all getting along well and he was confident they would have a strong Championship Tournament in Baltimore, Maryland. Danielle called to congratulate the men on their victory. She told Dave that she had another good round and had moved up to fifth place while the team improved to third place. Leanne played well and maintained her twelfth place position and Rachael improved to eighteenth while both the other women moved up several more positions. Dave congratulated her and wished her luck in the final round the next day. She thanked him and said she would see him Saturday when they arrived back at campus. Darcy received a call shortly after from Leanne and they talked for almost a half hour. Drinking to their success, Dave and Darcy were both quite drunk when they finally fell asleep. The trip home the next day passed quickly as most of the players slept off their hangovers. Alec congratulated Dave on the victory as soon as he walked into the apartment. Dave thanked him then went straight to his studies. He had missed an entire week of classes and needed to catch up. Alec told him he was studying too hard but Dave insisted he wanted to maintain his 4.0 GPA. A very excited Danielle called later that evening and informed Dave that she had finished fifth overall and the team had held on for third place. Coach Lloyd was very proud of them all and they were going to have a big party the next night when they arrive home. They were flying out very early in the morning which would get them to WFU early in the evening. Dave said he was looking forward to the party. The men’s team practiced the next day and Dave was really pleased to see Alec continue to improve. He wasn’t hitting his drives as long as he had before the accident but his consistency was getting steadily better. Dave studied all afternoon until he was completely caught up on his courses. He, Alec, and Shauna ate dinner in the apartment while they talked about the trip to England. Dave announced that he had asked Lord Thurlow about a practice round at St. Andrews so he and Alec could both play the Old Course; Lord Thurlow had called back and confirmed they had a tee time booked on Sunday. Alec was again surprised and excited. Shauna casually asked if the Thurlows had enough room for her and Alec; Dave choked but could not contain a loud laugh – then he had to apologize for laughing at her. He described the Thurlow mansion and how he really could have used a map to find his way around on the first visit; he then added details about how many servants they had. Shauna was very surprised at Dave’s description of the household but said she looked forward to seeing it. She then directly asked Dave how serious he was with Sarah; he calmly explained that they both realized they were from different worlds and probably would never become husband and wife – but the incidents in Vancouver and France had bonded them for life and they would always be very, very close. Shauna asked exactly what had happened in Vancouver and Dave realized he had never told her about it. He explained the whole trip to BC; then he told her and Alec about his previous trip to England. They were both shocked to hear about what had happened in France. Shauna asked what Roxanne was doing now that Sarah was at Oxford and Dave told her that she had gone back to work for Scotland Yard but he did not know her exact title. They were all excited about going to England and the more Dave talked about it the more excited they got. Dave also told Alec that Lord Thurlow already arranged for both of them to practice at the Royal Blackheath Golf Course where Dave had played two summers earlier; Dave spoke at length about the bump-and- run. After cleaning the dishes, they were watching television and sipping beers in the living room when there was a knock on the door. As Alec opened the door an excited Danielle pushed past him and dove into Dave’s lap. She hugged and kissed him before she thanked him for helping her live her dream of being a competitive golfer. There were tears running down her face as she squeezed Dave tightly. His mouth was almost touching her ear as he whispered softly that he was just happy he could help. Danielle then announced that the party was on in her room and that she and one of the seniors on the team had bought lots of beer and other refreshments. The party was a huge celebration and Danielle got really drunk. She hugged and cuddled Dave all night. While Danielle was in the washroom, Leanne explained that Sheri won the national individual title and led Georgia to a national team title as well. Dave thanked her for telling him when Danielle was not around. Near the end of the night Danielle asked him to take her to bed and he told her that he wouldn’t. He explained that if, and that was a big if, they made love, he wanted their time together to be special and not when either one of them was buzzing from alcohol. She was so excited about the possibility that he might finally sleep with her that she didn’t mind him saying no. She kissed him passionately when he left and he didn’t resist when her tongue slipped into his mouth to duel with his tongue. Dave went back to his room and went right to sleep. He spent most of Sunday studying and got ahead on all four of his classes. He hit balls in the evening and, after picking up the balls and storing his clubs, he sat down in a chair outside the golf center and stared out over the practice range. It had been a great first year of college and he had learned a lot. The early season difficulties seemed years away and he looked forward to the NCAA Championships. He was also looking forward to the British Open and he wondered if he would have a chance to go head-to-head with Tiger. Deep in his heart he just wanted to enjoy the experience of a major but he knew his game had reached a point where he could compete. He sat in the chair and watched the shadows of the golf center get longer and longer as the sun set behind him and the center. Dave had grown to love Wake Forest and began to wonder if rushing through his education was the best decision, but as much as he looked forward to the NCAA Championship he realized that the other tournaments were becoming less challenging and less interesting with each event. He wanted to compete on the world stage and he thought his game was almost ready for that. He thought about the short summer he would have and then how, if he turned pro after the NCAA Championship the following year, he would not likely have any relaxed summers for a long time to come. He realized that his days of living at home with his parents were getting very numbered and he again asked himself if he was growing up too quickly. He loved his parents and didn’t want to leave home. Then he thought how he had moved away from home ten months ago and, except for the one bad episode in October, hadn’t really missed home as much as he had thought he would. He had made new friends and that allowed him to settle into college life. He wondered what would happen to his friends when he went to the next stage of his life. He hoped Alec and Shauna would always remain close to him. He thought about Jana and Kyra and he suspected their path would go in a different direction from his. He thought about Danielle, Leanne, and Rachael and he knew they were living a dream not much different than his. They were becoming very good golfers and their futures were filled with hope of professional careers. The last friend he thought of was Darcy. He had matured so much over the past ten months and that bouncing excited kid had grown into a confident mature young man with a very good golf game. Dave suspected that he and Darcy would eventually be competing against each other on the PGA Tour. It was almost completely dark as Dave thought about his friends on QAI. He and John would always be close but their lives were now on two totally different paths. Katherine had already seemed to be slipping further away from him – her e-mails, which had originally arrived every two days, were now almost non- existent. She hadn’t sent him a message since the first of April. Rebecca was still e-mailing regularly and he looked forward to seeing her again. Jennifer sent a note every two weeks and they remained close but he just didn’t know where she was in his future. The more he thought about her, the angrier he got at himself for letting her slip out of his life. His thoughts always drifted to that last night they spent together in his dorm room and he wished he could somehow get her back. The sky was now dark and the distant light of street lamps cast a foggy glow over the tree line at the end of the driving range. Dave looked at the woods to left of the range and visualized Palmer Residence through the thick trees. His first year at WFU and been a true adventure. He still had over a month left but he already knew he would never forget his experiences. He finally stood up and walked back to his apartment. He climbed into bed. Of all the friends he had been thinking about, he dreamed of Jennifer’s warm smooth body beside him as he dozed off to sleep. The next two weeks were filled with practice and study. The three women golfers continued to practice in the morning group sessions with Dave, Alec, and Darcy. Dave was getting more focused on the NCAA Championship every day. The week before they left for Baltimore, Dave wrote four mid-term examinations. He felt confident as he had studied very hard for them and when he left each exam, he thought he had done well. The team left for Baltimore on Monday May 30th. They arrived in the evening and checked into the Embassy Suites in Hunt Valley, Maryland. Dave went for a swim before dinner. After dinner the team had a meeting and talked about staying focused and working hard as a team. Dave and Darcy both turned in early. In the morning, Dave woke early and showered. Darcy got in the shower when Dave got out then they went to breakfast together. The whole team showed up shortly after and they ate a hearty meal. They went to the course and practiced for several hours before their practice round. The Caves Valley Golf Club was a very challenging layout, which required precision shot making. Dave loved the course immediately. The heavily wooded par seventy-one course was a true test of golf and Dave was pleased with his round of two under par sixty-nine. Darcy was feeling nervous about the national championship and his lack of concentration showed in his round of seventy-eight. The team returned to the hotel and Dave again went for a relaxing swim. He had noticed a Starbucks coffee shop down the street from the hotel and decided that was where he would start each day. When he returned to the room he had a long talk with Darcy. He could see the nervousness on Darcy’s face and he explained, “Darcy, this is what competitive golf is all about. Feeling like your stomach is going to explode and that you’re going to choke on that huge lump in your throat. You have developed into a great golfer. You have great mechanics, you hit the ball long, you have a great short game, and you putt as well as anyone on this team. You know in your heart that you can play at this level – you proved that in Las Vegas when you dominated the final day of the tournament. You can do this. Just focus on your game – think about your long fluid swing hitting big drives down the fairway, think about hitting those short irons just inches from the hole, and think about knocking those putts dead center. You can do it; I know you can. Don’t think about the score on any holes you already played, don’t think about what score you need to make on the hole you are playing. Just think about your great golf swing and visualize your shots one- by-one – let the score take care of itself. Hit fairways and greens and let the birdies come as the may.” Darcy looked at Dave intently and listened to every word. When Dave finished Darcy thanked him and promised to try and focus on his swing. Dave then explained that he had a morning routine for big tournaments and would be leaving the room early the next day but would return for breakfast. Darcy nodded understandingly before Dave called his coach to advise him about his morning routine as well. Dave then turned out the light and they both went to sleep. Well, at least Dave went to sleep – Darcy tossed and turned for over an hour until he realized he needed to concentrate on what Dave had said about trusting his swing. He fell asleep shortly after that. Dave woke early the next day; after showering, he pulled on his Wake Forest golf shirt and walked to the Starbucks. He sipped hot chocolate as he got focused on his round. This was it, the US NCAA Championships, which he had been dreaming of for years. He thought about his swing and he visualized the golf course. After a half hour he was ready and he walked back to the hotel. He met the team in the dining room and after a quick meal he followed the team to the van. They loaded up and drove to the course. There were more media crews than Dave had seen at any college event and he noticed that all of them were taping both him and Ricky Morrison. The media had been predicting a tight race between Dave and Ricky. Ricky had won low amateur at the Masters with a one under score for the tournament and most sports casters were predicting he would use that confidence to win the NCAA Individual title but Dave had a different plan. Dave putted for an hour and by then felt comfortable on the very fast greens. When he was finally called to the first tee, he wished Darcy luck and reminded him to play one shot at a time. The WFU team was playing with Texas and UCLA in the first round. Dave hit third on the first hole and, after watching both opposing players hit good drives into the fairway, Dave stood up and hammered a huge drive down the first fairway with a perfect draw. The ball stopped just fifty yards short of the four hundred and ten yard par four and both of Dave’s playing partners looked at him in shock – not only was the drive unbelievably long but it was dead middle of the fairway in perfect position. After the other two players hit their second shots, Dave stood over his ball and focused on his long pitch shot. He again hit the ball perfectly and it rolled to within two feet of the hole. Dave pushed his wedge back in his bag confidently and strode to the green – the Canadian flag still stood out proudly on his golf bag. The Texas player rolled a twelve foot putt in for birdie after the UCLA player missed his long birdie try then tapped in for par. Dave rolled his short birdie putt dead middle then walked to the second tee full of confidence. The second hole was a short par four so Dave hit his three-iron off the tee. The ball rolled just short of the one hundred yard marker leaving Dave a full sixty-degree wedge to the green. Dave was actually the farthest from the green after his tee shot so he hit first. He hit the wedge smoothly and it landed fifteen feet past the cup and sucked back to four feet from the hole. The Texas player missed the green left while the UCLA player hit his shot ten feet from the hole. The Texas player made a nice up and down to save par before the UCLA player missed his birdie putt. Dave took his time reading his short putt then knocked it confidently to the bottom of the cup. He was two under after two holes and he was in a real groove. The rest of the round went extremely well for Dave and he finished with a course record ten under par sixty-one. He hit every fairway and seventeen greens in regulation. The crowd that followed him grew steadily larger as the day went on. The large crowd cheered appreciably when he rolled the twelve foot birdie putt in on the last hole to break the course record. Dave casually waved to the applause before he pulled his ball from the hole and shook hands with his playing partners. They congratulated him and he returned the positive sentiments. The Texas player had shot a very good round of four under par and the UCLA player had shot two under par. Coach Dawes’ face lit up when Dave told him he had shot sixty-one. Carl was the only other team member to finish and he had shot seventy-two. Dave left with his playing partners to sign their cards. Dave took his time reviewing the scores carefully – the last thing he wanted to do was be disqualified for marking down a score lower than what he had actually made. He signed the card and returned to the eighteenth green. As Dave stood by the green he recognized a familiar face and walked to the man who had followed him in Texas, Bob Duff. He put out his hand and shook Bob’s hand. Bob immediately said, “That was the best golf round I ever witnessed. You were unbelievable out there today.” Dave thanked him, “My swing really feels good and I was really focused; thank you for that compliment.” Dave was getting used to having such conversations with fans. Dave and Bob talked briefly before Dave walked back to stand with Carl and his coach. Will was just finishing on the final green and, after shaking hands with his playing partners, he told the coach he shot seventy-three. Dave could tell Will wasn’t happy with the score but Dave knew that it was still a good score. Keith finished next and he shot seventy. Will had just returned and they all congratulated Keith before he left to sign his card. Darcy hit a good approach shot on the tough final hole but missed his ten foot birdie putt. After shaking hands with his playing partners he strolled over to Dave and Coach Dawes and simply said, “Sixty-nine!” Dave shook his hand and the whole team congratulated him on a good round. The team went to the scoreboard and reviewed the results. There were only fifteen of the thirty teams finished but Wake Forest was leading by three strokes over Texas. Dave was four strokes ahead of the closest individual player. As the team was leaving the scoreboard area, Dave was approached by several media crews so Coach Dawes agreed to wait for him to do the interviews. He was familiar with most of the questions, which were by now expected. How does it feel to be a rookie and shoot a course record? Will you turn professional after the NCAA Championships? How has an eighteen year old from Canada become the top prospect in college golf? Do you think you can beat Tiger Woods? After thirty minutes of interviews with five different media crews, Dave left with the team for the hotel. Dave went to eat dinner with the team before he and Darcy relaxed in their room for a while. Dave called his father to give his usual after round update. After letting his meal settle Dave went to the pool for a swim. He swam hard for forty minutes and was very tired when he climbed out of the pool. He went back to his room and watched television with Darcy before going to sleep. The next day Dave woke early again and went to the Starbucks. He didn’t like the hot chocolate as much as Tim Horton’s but the time was more about getting focused than the taste of the drink. After the team ate breakfast they went to the golf course. They reviewed the leader board and Dave was leading the tournament by three strokes. Ricky Morrison was in second. The team was in second place three strokes behind Ricky’s UNLV team. The WFU team went to the practice range and warmed up until it was time to play. Dave was the last one to tee off today so he urged his teammates to take their time and stay focused. When it was his turn to tee off he hit a solid drive down the first hole, not quite as long as the previous day but still in the middle of the fairway. He made a great wedge shot and sank a putt for his birdie to start his second round. He played a little more conservative during his second round but his ball striking was still fantastic and when he made par on the final hole, he had shot sixty-four. He congratulated his playing partners before he walked to his teammates. They congratulated him before they informed him that Keith and Carl each shot seventy-four, Will shot seventy-one, and Darcy had another solid round of seventy. The highlight of the day had been when he saw Jana and Kyra join the crowd following him after the ninth hole. He took time between holes to walk to them for a hello kiss. He noticed the still-present Bob Duff smiled at him when he kissed both girls passionately. After talking to his teammates, Dave went and signed his card then headed to the scoreboard with his team. The scoreboard showed UNLV still leading the team event by seven strokes while Ricky Morrison had dropped another stroke behind Dave and was in second place at thirteen under par. Dave was again surrounded by media crews and he basically told them that while he was happy to be leading the individual tournament he was more concerned about winning the team title and that he would have to dig deeper to help his team win. Dave promised to visit the twins who were staying at a different hotel – the Embassy Suites were full with all the NCAA teams. As Dave sat eating his dinner with the team he thought about the night he had worn himself out with the twins and he told himself that couldn’t happen again. A night of release and relaxation couldn’t lead to exhaustion this time. He had to make sure his little head didn’t entirely run the show that evening.