Funk living the high life in the Fountain of Youth  PGATOUR.com Contributor BETHESDA, Md. -- It must be cool to be Fred Funk. Aside from the fact that he has obviously found the Fountain of Youth, Freddy has become one of the most popular players on the PGA TOUR.  Fred Funk has won on both the Champions Tour and the PGA TOUR this season. (WireImage)
Fred had a tough decision to make before the AT&T National. The former University of Maryland student and later the Terrapin golf coach could have been in Kohler, Wisc., this week vying for the U.S. Senior Open championship. He admitted that if the PGA TOUR event were anywhere else this week, he probably would have gone to the play at Whistling Straits. However, after growing up in the D.C. area, Fred's ties to the area drew him here to famed Congressional and the inaugural AT&T National. Golf fans in D.C. have come out in huge numbers to root on Freddy and show their appreciation for the oldest regular competitor on the PGA TOUR. Golf's No. 1 fan, No. 43, President George W. Bush, extended an invitation to the Funks for a July 4th celebration. Fred laughs when he talks about getting the phone call from the White House secretary who extended the invitation. He thought it was a hoax. Assured that invitation was legitimate, Fred and his family went to the White House. There are certain times during interviews that you get the sense that Fred can't really wrap his mind around his celebrity. With all the attention that Fred has attracted, he remains the same affable goofball that he was before his first PGA TOUR victory at the Shell Houston Open back in 1992. It would have been impossible to imagine, or even dream, that 15 years later at the age of 50 Fred would still be winning golf tournaments on the PGA TOUR. Now 51, Fred has the opportunity to become the first player to win more than once in a season after the age of 50. His victory earlier this year at the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun was the eighth of Fred's career. To win in his backyard would be special, indeed. Fred won the 2005 PLAYERS Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., where he now resides. However, a victory at the old Kemper Open, then later the Booz Allen Classic, eluded Fred. With this week's AT&T National, Fred, like so many other times in his career, has been given another chance. Had Fred opted for the road more frequently traveled by the over-50 set this opportunity would not have been likely. Since Fred hasn't availed himself of the relative comforts on the Champions Tour where there are rare cuts and no Tigers, he remains the elder statesman on the PGA TOUR. He doesn't consider himself a trailblazer. Good play is good play. Good play translates into success. One of the factors that has contributed to Fred's longevity is his simple, yet effective, golf swing. Although he has been bothered with the occasional flare up in his back, his golf swing does not put undue stress on his body. Finally, he has found the balance between working out and playing the game. He is in wonderful shape for a man of any age. But at 51, most men take on the shape of a pear. Fred's belly is as flat as most of the boys that he is competing against. Some day Fred, who has a degree in law enforcement, may decide to concentrate all of his efforts on the Champions Tour. If so, there will undoubtedly be a new sheriff in town. But I wouldn't hold my breath. Fred has already played the minimum number of events on TOUR to maintain his playing privileges for 2008. It doesn't look like he is planning on slowing down any time soon. |
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