News
Friday, June 13, 2008
Brothers In Arms
Brad Bryant, the elder of the two, said he wasn't sure how many more Opens he has in him. (USGA Photo Archives)
By Phillip Howley
San Diego – Some people are calling it the U.S. Open. You could also call it the Bryant Brothers Open.
The USGA’s Tussle at Torrey Pines officially became a brother act when Bart Bryant, the younger of the Bryant boys, made it through 36-hole sectional qualifying at Columbus, Ohio last week. For his part, Brad Bryant, 53, already was exempt into the Open field of 156 as the winner of the 2007 U.S. Senior Open championship at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis.
Thus, they are the first Band of Brothers to play in the U.S. Open since Jay and Jerry Haas were in the field at Bethpage in 2002. “It means a lot to me, especially at my age,” said Brad, who shot 6-over 77 in the first round of the U.S. Open. “I didn’t think I would ever play in another U.S. Open. This is quite a gift.
“We sort of have majors on the Champions Tour, but they’re just kind of big tournaments for old people. To be here, and then for Bart and I to be able to play… It probably, may very well be the last time we get to do something this special as far as golf goes.”
Bart quickly added: “I hope not, but there’s always that possibility it could be.”
The brothers, eight years apart, grew up in a close-knit family in Amarillo, Texas, where their father was a preacher. They had unlimited access to a nine-hole golf course, Alamogordo Country Club, near their home, and have always had their parents, their sister, and each other to lean on.
“There’s always been a bond in my family that is very close,” Brad said. “It’s pretty nice knowing that you have people that really love you.”
For Bart, Brad always has been a role model, a standard, a protector.
“By the time I was in 7th or 8th grade, [Brad] was playing his first year on the PGA Tour,” said Bart before shooting 4-over 75 Thursday. “So it’s good to have a guy to pave the way and he’s always been my biggest supporter.
“When I’ve been down and out, he’s always been there lifting me up and kicking me in the bottom and telling me I have the talent to do it. So it’s pretty special to have that. But, gosh, I don’t know when was the first time I beat him.”
Brad knew: “Probably when you were 12,” he said, with a chuckle.
Brad Bryant is popularly known in the golf community as “Dr. Dirt,” a nickname bestowed some years ago by CBS golf analyst Gary McCord, who was referring to Brad’s 5 o'clock shadow and fashion-challenged attire.
He also has been “Dr. Paydirt” several times in his career, winning five tournaments on the PGA Tour and four more over the past three seasons on the Champions Tour. As for Bart, he is still looking for a moniker.
“I don’t know, I guess I haven’t arrived yet,” he said, with a laugh. “So I got to do something crazy or stupid. Or look like a guy in a grease commercial.”
While Brad is the elder statesman, he assigns a lot of the success he has enjoyed late in his career to his younger brother. Specifically, he credits Bart for teaching him “the claw” technique of putting.
“I can tell you right now that if it hadn’t been for Bart, I don’t know what I would have done on the Champions Tour,” Brad said. “If I had putted on the PGA Tour the way that I putt now … I would have probably won seven or eight golf tournaments. And Bart is really the guy that got me doing that.”
The brothers do have regrets this week. One is that their parents are not at Torrey Pines to see them play. Bart’s qualifying performance last week simply did not leave enough time to make the proper arrangements.
“I think my mom and dad may have reached the age where we’re not going to be able to take them to golf tournaments all that much any more,” Brad said.
And while the USGA has paired megastars like Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson together over the first two days, they did not put the Bryant brothers together in a grouping.
“I’m sort of thinking about going and watching Tiger and Phil this week; I think that will be pretty good,” Brad said, then added tongue in cheek. “I just don’t understand why they didn’t pair Bart and me. I thought, ‘You’ve got Tiger and Phil in the same group … Bart and Brad in the same group.’
“We would have at least brought 15 or 20 extra people out.”
There's still a chance they could play together if both were to make the 36-hole cut. A long shot? Maybe, but for Brad and Bart, playing together at Torrey Pines would make this the ultimate Bryant Brothers Open.
Phillip Howley is a freelance writer whose work has previously appeared on www.usopen.com.
