Fuzzy Zoeller at Kentucky Derby

Metz radio commentary 3/12/97 So, I'm talkin' on the phone to Kentuckiana's happy warrior of the golf links: the great Fuzzy Zoeller, who's tooling down a Florida highway and causally taking my call from his car. "I'm on my way to tape a fishing show for ESPN," he informs me, " and then I'm gonna play a couple of tournaments." Fuzzy has to be one of the most popular players on the tour. If he's ever had a bad moment, no one's witnessed it as he's carved a place in the record books with his wins in the '79 Masters and the '84 Open. Do you wonder what makes him tick? When, for instance, did he know that he wanted to be a professional golfer? Without hesitating, he said, "It's been my lifelong dream; when I was 8, I used to watch Arnold Palmer on the tube and knew that's what I wanted to do...to make a living from golf." As we talked, I reminded him of something I've often heard him say--"never let 'em see you sweat, even if you are." "Right," he came back with, "that's the difference between a professional and an amateur. But we still have to remember, the bottom line: golf is still a game. Frustrating and challenging but still only a game." I wanted to know whether Fuzzy was cutting down on the number of tournaments he'll be playing, especially now that he's created that terrific Covered Bridge Golf Club in southern Indiana. "I'll play 17 tournaments this year; I used to play 20 or 25 and when I'm down at the Club, talking with people and playing a few rounds. I'm not gone as much as I used to." Fuzzy and his wife Diane have 4 children, ages 7 to 17, a close family group. He's gearing up now for his own brand new tournament at Covered Bridge in July to benefit the Crusade for Children, for which he told me he's already signed up such big names as Arnold Palmer, Chi Chi Rodriguez, dave Stockton and Bob Murphy. Just before we signed off, I asked on a more serious note for his philosophy of life. The irrepressible Zoeller answered, "So far, so good. Everything will happen for the best." And so it has, for him.