bottle of Pepto-Bismol from his golf bag and took a big swig.
But intimidated or overwhelmed? Not at all. Beem maintained his aggressive,
attacking modus operandi from the first
three rounds, fashioned a highly competent
68, and outlasted Woods for a one-shot
victory at 10-under-par 278.
“This really is a fairytale; I had no
expectations of winning,” admitted
Beem, just moments after posing with
the Wanamaker Trophy in 2002.
“Like everyone else, I’ve thought
about what it would mean to win the
PGA Championship, but I never
really expected it to happen.”
Prior to the 2002 season,
Beem was perhaps best known
as the subject of the book “Bud,
Sweat and Tees,” a tell-all guide
to golf detailing how a once-
promising professional was
squandering his potential one
beer at a time. But in ’02,
Beem began exhibiting the
power, poise and aplomb
on the golf course
Above: 1932 PGA Champion Olin Dutra played 196 holes over six days at 19-under-par. Inset: Bob Rosburg came from behind in the final round to claim the 1959 PGA Championship.
you bet on?
Third, despite winning The International in Colorado on the PGA Tour two weeks earlier to qualify for the 84th PGA Championship, the good-natured Beem was so nervous on the first tee on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2002, that he plucked a
characteristic of
John Daly in his heyday.
Despite his previous travails, Beem entered 2002 confident. When he finished fourth at Doral, he told his wife, Sara, to quit her job and travel the Tour with him