A tall tale

By BRADY BINGHAM
Standard-Examiner staff

On Monday, I had the distinct pleasure of playing golf with former BYU and NBA basketball star Shawn Bradley.

If you have met me, you know that I am just a little guy … 5-foot-6, a buck-30 (in wet clothes).

More of you are likely to know Bradley, the 7-foot-6 monster who played for the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets and Dallas Mavericks after playing his freshman season at BYU.

I will give you a moment to visualize what the two of us looked like standing on the tee box, or sitting next to each other in the golf cart. ….

If I was ever in need of a photographer, that was the moment.

For the record, Bradley plays golf much like the rest of us amateurs. On this day at Willow Creek Country Club — we were both there as part of media day for the Nationwide Tour’s Utah Championship and their announcement that West Point native Clay Ogden had accepted an exemption into the event — Bradley hit a few great shots and a few we both will quickly forget.

But for one hole in particular, I will remember my opportunity to play with Bradley forever.

On the (member’s) 18th hole at Wiillow Creek, there are trees down both sides of the fairway and a giant lake guarding the front and left side of the green.

I hit my drive underneath a trees and had to chip out left-handed (I am a right-handed player). Then I hit my approach to the left and the ball nestled on a blade of grass on the water’s edge, forcing me to again hit a back-handed chip shot (a right-handed stance put my feet in the water).

During that adventure, Bradley left our foursome in stitches when he quipped, “You may be the only right-hander I’ve played with that hit two left-handed shots in one hole.”

Plenty of jabs and jokes were shared that day. For instance, as a BYU graduate I proudly disply my Cougars head covers on my clubs. I wasn’t sure how Bradley was going to accept that, but he graciously broke the ice before I did.

Bradley was a fantastic person to play golf with. What a joy!