SOUTHAMPTON, NY — It’s easy to get caught up in the nitty-gritty of golf tournaments, especially the US Open, this week when there were political debates about distance, equipment, and club swing penalties. But on rare occasions, our USGA partner Sentry touches down on a young reporter to remind us that we’re all living a good life out here. Their open eyes and curious minds always provide much-needed relief.
Case in point: On Tuesday morning, 12-year-old Paighton was chatting with driver Kristoffer Reitan, asking him what superpowers he would like to have in order to better compete in this week’s competition.
What a simple, simple, creative question. In the dim and heavy Shinnecock, all these guys would like to have superpowers. Reitan played along with him and suggested that he would like to be the Flash, with the ability to teleport wherever his ball ends up, saving the energy he used to spend walking. Paighton raised a lot of power, hitting the ball as much as possible. Wouldn’t that be great?
Days at Shinnecock can be long, hard, and grueling for everyone — USGA staff, members of the media, and even players pulled from the program due to fog delays that affected the first two rounds. Big weeks are tough! But it was really nice to see Pep Paighton brought to the press this morning. He likes golf. He likes Rory McIlroy. He likes to beat the driver. We all loved to beat the driver. And he loved preparing questions for his interview day.
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It all started with Adam Scott’s press conference, where Paighton asked him for advice to give young golfers, which made the stoic Scott smile.
“Young golfers, I think they need it,” Scott began. “I watch my kids play a little bit, and I think if they can enjoy cutting and putting, then golf becomes a lot easier for young kids. Of course hitting the ball is hard, and everyone likes to hit it far, but I’ve seen my kids enjoy chipping and putting, and I think it’s easier for kids to play a short golf course or hit short shots and enjoy that.”
Paighton’s curiosity abounded in ways that yielded real journalistic material. You asked Xander Schauffele what he was most proud of in his career and the answer surprised me:
Schauffele won a lot, earned a ton of money, competed in the big leagues and gave a lot to the poor. But he is very proud to have done it with the same team over the years. His uncle is his boss. One of his best friends is his longtime caddy. His pitching coach is the same age. Success is better when you can bring it closer to those you care about.
It was the perfect answer to me, I had never heard Schauffele put that before. It was the perfect answer for Paighton, too, who was surrounded by his family all day. They had driven out to New Jersey and Staten Island before dawn, all for an amazing golf experience. It ended in a touching way, too.
As we were wrapping up the morning, a couple of his friends from the local First Tee came up to us and were so enthralled by the series of cameras they had on him that they thought their friend had lost the platinum. Each of them signed their US Open gear, sometimes multiple pieces, as if they were competing in the tournament. You couldn’t help but notice the smiles on their faces as Paighton signed their shirts alongside the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood, Sam Burns and more.
It was a reminder that there is a lot more going on in these golf tournaments than we really appreciate.
