Beem set on making most of life

CAMOGIE has a brand new fan in the US PGA champion Rich Beem.

The extrovert American watched the telecast of the All-Ireland final between Cork and Tipperary on Sunday and couldn’t believe the courage and dexterity of the combatants.

“Those women yesterday were unbelievable. Holy cow! After watching this, I’m thinking now our American footballers are just a bunch of pansies. These women just pick it up and whack the hell out of it. These girls with these sticks ... they say they break their knuckles all the time.

"If you break your knuckles in America, you’re out for six weeks to two months. Over here, they just say give me a pint and they go out do it again. I never saw hurling before and I hear the men are even tougher.”

The 32-year-old Beem insists he hasn’t changed since his remarkable victory at Hazeltine. He is accompanied by his wife Sara and arrived in Dublin on Saturday night from Cologne where he had missed the cut in the Linde German Masters.

Undaunted, the pair went out for dinner and had a few drinks before finishing the evening off with a couple of pints at a pub near his hotel.

“At times it’s been pretty hectic with people expecting more from my golf game than I do,” he commented. “But my personal life is the same. Golfwise, I feel I can be competitive. I don’t go into every tournament expecting to win but I know I can take the opportunity if it arises. It’s nice to know I’ve beaten the world’s best coming down the stretch in a major and I can build on that if it ever comes down to the wire again.

“The seven wood at the 11th for eagle on the last day gave me the cushion but the birdie putts on 13 and especially at 16 won it for me. They let me know it was my tournament to win or lose. Just because you win a major doesn’t mean you have to change your attitude to life. If I did, I’d suffer greatly. I don’t like to hit golf balls after my round, I’d much prefer to pack up my bags, grab a beer and go home and relax. I am what I am.

“I did the same thing after every round of the PGA. I didn’t hit a single golf ball after I got done playing, just did a few interviews and after that I went back to the hotel, had some dinner and hung out. Golf is what I do for a living, it’s not my entire life. I think people sometimes forget that, they think to be a major winner you have to eat, sleep and drink the game.”

I suspect I was just one of many who was surprised a seven wood should have been such a vital part of Beem’s armoury at Hazeltine. The most lofted wooden or metal club any professional carries is almost certainly going to be a five but Beem readily acknowledges he employs the seven so often simply because he isn’t exactly the best long iron player in the world.

“I bring two with me and they have a 19 and 20 inch degree of loft,” he said. “I haven’t carried a two iron in eight or nine years, it’s not a club that suits my game. I can hit the seven wood high and the higher I hit it, the further it carries.

“I moved to Taylor Made this year and it took me two or three months to find one that suited me but now I have done so it stays in my bag forever. When I was with Callaway I had the same club for three years, same shaft, same everything.

“I can control the trajectory, the height I hit it. Whatever I feel I’m comfortable with, that’s what I play. The seven wood is great because if I need to, I can hit it 250, maybe 260 just hit a hard, high hook, like I did at the 11th in the PGA.

It was the perfect club, a nice uphill lie, wind helping, so a nice, hard hook and it was perfect. People can’t believe I can hit it that far.”

Beem’s reputation as a bit of a hell raiser has preceded him but speaking to this genial character in the delightful ambience of Mount Juliet yesterday, the bright lights of Seattle where he once worked as a cell phone sales or El Paso, where he was an assistant professional, seemed light years away.

Nevertheless, the man spoke with candour, mentioning his liking for Jack Daniels and his intention to try Irish whiskey before the week is out.

“I just couldn’t live in Ireland, I’d be out every night in the pubs,” he laughed. “The pub near our hotel on Saturday night was packed and the atmosphere was great. We started off with a few pints of Guinness and finished off with Jack Daniels.”

It will hardly surprise those who know of Darren Clarke’s liking for a pint or a glass of wine that he and Rich Beem are what might well be described as kindred spirits.

Clarke arrives in Mount Juliet today and should be aware that the US PGA champion is lying in wait, not just for their planned practice round together, but also for a few drinks come evening time.

“That guy scares me,” says Beem with a chuckle. “He wants me to go out and have a few pints with him, but I just say wait a minute Darren, you’ve got to drink about six to my one.

“The first time we played together was 2000 at Bay Hill and I saw him at a few tournaments here and there before we played the final round

together at Sahalee in the NEC and just kind of struck up a friendship. “He’s a good guy. He doesn’t let anything faze him. If his golf’s going bad, ah well, no big deal there’s always tomorrow, there’s always a pint at the end of the round, so let’s go.”