A dream come true

Standing on the 10th tee of the Toshiba Classic in 2006, all I knew was that if I could make a couple of birdies, I had a good shot at finishing in the top 10.

I had great hopes but based on the last 45 holes, my prospects of making putts looked dim. My caddie Tony and I knew that I was playing well because just a few weeks before, I had finished second at the Ace Group Classic in Naples, Fla.

The 10th hole was a fairly good par and then we walked to the 11th tee. I had no idea what was about to happen.

I hit my approach very loose to the hole and made a short putt. OK, we had one birdie and some relief that the top 10 was a real possibility.

At the 12th, I nearly holed my second for another birdie. The 13th is a difficult par three, but a really good seven-iron left me with about a 10-foot birdie putt.

When that putt went in, I looked at Tony and realized we had a shot at the leaders.

Another birdie at 15 and two very good two putts at 16 and 17 left us standing on the last tee needing a birdie to get in a playoff.

Fifty-three holes were gone and we were faced with a par five that’s reachable in two shots.

This is what we dream of as kids. How many times had I hit that shot playing games with the guys in New Mexico?

One hole left and I needed a birdie. As a teen, I must have pretended this moment a thousand times. I would like to say that at that moment all those thoughts of youth came back, but they did not.

Now as a 51-year-old man, I was focused and trying to breathe and get my swing slow enough to hit one last straight and solid drive.

Not having won in so long — let’s face it, I had only won once in 20 years on the PGA Tour — I was feeling uncomfortable. Tony was rock solid and got me focused on the drive. That was the best drive I hit that week. Our mindset was that we were playing for a tie, so we could be aggressive.

Things went by fast on that last hole. A good one-iron and a good sand shot left me with a birdie putt of maybe eight feet or less. When that putt went in, it was as much relief as jubilation.

I had done my job that week very well. I had been patient, which is required at the Newport Beach Country Club.

Now I had to wait for all the other guys to finish. That day, things turned out well for me. Little did I know that it would be the catalyst for the rest of the year.

It turned out to be the best golfing year of my life.

Another win at the Regions Bank Tournament in Birmingham, third on the money list and fourth on the Schwab Cup (curse you, Tom Kite!).

I was third on the Schwab list but Tom played great at Sonoma to pass me.

To be on the money list next to guys like Tom, Jay Hass, Loren Roberts, as well as many others, had always been a dream. For at least one year, I got to live that dream. I hope some kid is standing on a practice range somewhere with the same dream.

It is worth all the heartache and hard work.

I would like to say thank you to the Toshiba company, as well as the rest of the sponsors who make the tournament possible. Thank you to the hundreds of volunteers who help us and support their community with their service. Thank you to the members at the NBCC for allowing us to use their wonderful course for the week.

And, thanks to Jeff Purser and his great staff for putting on a truly world -class event that Newport Beach can be proud of.

You all have had a hand in seeing a dream come true.