Nancy Lopez - Part 2 (The Early Tour Years)

Join us for a riveting conversation with the winner of 48 LPGA Tour events, Nancy Lopez, as she shares her inspiring journey from her time at the University of Tulsa to the top ranks of professional golf. In this episode, Nancy opens up about her life both on and off the greens, providing an in-depth look at the pressures of professional golf and the impact of her father's guidance. Discover how she cleverly navigated the balance between her academics and burgeoning golf career, and the role that the University of Tulsa and the Colgate Palmolive Golf Scholarship played in shaping her incredible journey.

We take a walk through Nancy's incredible accolades, from her 1978 Rookie of the Year win to her streak of five consecutive tournament triumphs. But it wasn't all smooth sailing; Nancy opens up about a chilling incident on the LPGA tour where she was followed by two men, and how her quick thinking potentially saved her from a dangerous situation. This episode goes beyond just the golf, revealing the person behind the legend and her experiences in a male-dominated sport.

Have you ever wondered how crucial a caddy is to a golfer's success? We wrap up our engaging talk with Nancy highlighting this often overlooked aspect of golf. Listen as Nancy recounts an instance where her caddy's invaluable assistance helped her navigate a challenging shot. This episode isn't just for golf enthusiasts, it's a must-listen for anyone seeking inspiration, as we provide a unique peek into the life and career of one of golf's greatest. Don't miss out on walking the greens with Nancy Lopez as she continues her incredible life story, “FORE the Good of the Game.”

Transcript

Mike Gonzalez 0:15

Well you mentioned uh uh more than once uh you used the term pressure. Bruce, we've talked about this with a number of our guests. Um tell us a little bit about pressure, uh particularly in a major setting. How did it manifest itself with Nancy Lopez and how'd you deal with it?

Nancy Lopez 0:32

Well, you know, when I felt like I dealt with pressure in any tournament just by being prepared for me to really be ready to play um in the golf tournament. I think majors were probably tougher because you knew that you had to have the best golf game when you went to majors because the golf courses were going to be tough, um, especially US Open golf courses, fast greens, undulating, high, rough, narrow fairways. Um, and you know, you had to really prepare for that because that's where you could really get rid of some of the nerves, is knowing that you were really prepared and knew you could hit those shots. Um I think, you know, when I always teed off, I was nervous. First hole is always nervous. Um, I thought, you know, because and I realized that at the end of my career when I wasn't nervous anymore, that it was time to go home. Um because you need to be nervous. And I felt, you know, when I was nervous on the last few holes, like if you're one shot up or one shot behind or even, how you handle each situation. And I know when I was nervous on those last few holes, I played better. Um, I didn't make mistakes. And I don't know if nerves were what kept that going, but I just felt really confident and the nerves were good. I mean, I always would take a deep breath. Um, I didn't want anybody to see me doing that, though. I didn't want anybody to think I was nervous. So I always kind of hid the nerves in that respect because you do you'll watch players on TV now where they take that big deep breath like that, and you see it. I just never wanted anybody to think or know that I was nervous. So I kind of handled it in a different different situation where I kind of held it in, but I did feel nervous, and and I truly believe nerves helped me play better. I don't I don't think they were they helped me not play better, except in one US Open.

Bruce Devlin 2:38

So, Nancy, before we get into that fabulous uh professional career, I look through your uh two years at University of Tulsa. Boy, what a freshman year, all American, female athlete of the year at Tulsa, individual women's collegiate champion on the Curtis Cup team, on the world amateur team. Boy, what a what a year that was for you.

Nancy Lopez 3:04

Um, it was a lot of fun. Um I think going to Tulsa was uh a good thing for me. A lot of people would were saying you should turn professional after you finish high school. And you know, I just knew I wasn't ready. I knew playing, I I when I was with the LPGA players and watching them by playing in the US Open or we had a tournament in Hilton Head, um, I kind of looked and I said to myself, are they really happy? Is that really what I want to do? Do I really want to play professional golf? And I really watched and examined all the players as I watched them warming up. Um, you know, it was fun watching them get free golf balls from the different golf companies. I'm like, wow, they get free golf balls and they got free gloves and they, yeah, they dressed really nice. And I was like, that looks like a lot of fun, but are they really happy? Um, so I wanted to go to school. Um, I think because I needed to have that time to grow up because living at home, my mom and dad, I was pretty sheltered um in that, you know, I had I had a lot of rules for my mom, which is okay because that's how I raised my girls. Um, had a lot of rules, but I think I needed that freedom to go to school. Um, I knew that if I didn't turn professional, how was I gonna make a living? And so those were things I thought about. And then that was during Title IX when I started college, but it hadn't really come to fruition, I guess I could say, um, because there was no scholarships for girls back in 1977. Um, and I wanted to go to Arizona State, and they would not give me a scholarship, not even a little bit of a scholarship. So Tulsa University was starting um a college or golf golf school for girls, and um they reached out to me, and just happened that during that time I won the Colgate Palm Olive Golf Scholarship. David Foster was a big advocate for women's golf, and I won his scholarship, which was it was for your your need, your golf, and your grades. And so I won that scholarship, which I I I went to um New York to get that scholarship uh awarded to me. Um my mom and dad were there, which was a great experience for them. And so I won that scholarship in Tulsa said they would pay for the the other half of that scholarship. So I had a full ride to go to school. And I wanted, I went to Tulsa too because I wanted to get an engineering degree, um, which I didn't know, you know, what field I was gonna go into, but I said, you know, that I liked numbers, I was good with numbers. I wasn't like really, really smart. I had to study really hard. And um I thought that would be a good way to make a living if I couldn't do it on the golf course.

Bruce Devlin 6:11

Yeah.

Nancy Lopez 6:11

Um, so I'm on the golf team and loving it because I think playing team sports um was really fun. I mean, I played in the Curtis Cup and the World Cup, which was awesome. And um, so being able to play on the girls' golf team, and Dale McNamara was our coach, she was awesome too, and Tulsa was great. Um, but after two years of going to school and playing on the team and having a great two years, um the school reached out to me and said, you know, you're gonna have to make better grades, um, or you're not gonna be able to play on the golf team. And I was making straight C's. I mean, I had calculus and college algebra, college trig, I had computer programming, I had all these classes and trying to play on the golf team when we were gone all the time. And I had tutors teaching me all this stuff. Um, and it was really hard. And I after two years, I started to think, I said, wow, I either have to quit playing golf and just focus on a career in engineering or quit school and go on the tour. Um, so I I had won a lot of the collegiate events when we were playing. I got a little bored with golf. Um, so I felt like, you know, maybe I need to try to get on the tour. And I made that decision. I on my own. My dad, I know wanted me to turn professional one day, but he never would say it. Um, so I didn't have that pressure. So um I called my dad. I said, Dad, I I've got to make a decision. I I I don't know if I can keep up my school, my grades in school, and I think I'm gonna try and turn professional. And he was he was excited, he was happy that I made that decision. And um so I went to Ohio, uh, outside of Toledo to qualify for the LPGA tour. And back then, to qualify for the LPG tour was easy compared to what it is now. Um, we it was like a tournament, and you had to have an average score of 78 for four days. Um so I finished second in the U.S. Open at Hazeltine the week before I went to qualifying school. So when I when I won the money in Hazeltine, I I won second place$7,500. So I was able to keep that money because I was declared professional. Um, so I had money and it was kind of neat. I know when I got my$7,500 check, I thought I was a millionaire. And um I had signed with IMG at that time and and and for month for a few months I kept that check. Um and I would pull it out and look at it, you know, in the morning. Man,$7,500 check in my hand. Um, and I remember Mr. McCormick called me and he was so nice to me. He he he pretty much sponsored me because I didn't want my dad to to spend any money on my on my professional career. And he said, just you know, do whatever you can, you can pay me back. And I started making money pretty quickly, so I never had to pay him back. But anyway, he called and said, You need to send that check because we need to pay your bills. And I didn't want to.

Bruce Devlin 9:19

Good idea.

Nancy Lopez 9:20

Yeah, so I went to qualifying school, and of course, you know, trying to have a 78 average for four days seemed simple um after playing in the US Open. So I tee off and I think I shot 71 the first day, and then 73 the second day, and I made I made the cut, then I went on and my scores just kept going up because I get getting more and more nervous. Um but I ended up getting my card. Um, and then you have to take a rules test, which I ended up flunking that. Um and I had to take it again. But that you know, I was like, they're just when the rules, when you read them back in those days, they always try to put a tricky word in there so that you would miss it probably if you didn't really think about it. So I had to take the test twice because I didn't know the rules of golf, I guess. Um and there was some trickery going on, but um, but I ended up getting my tour card and I ended up finishing, if I can remember, it seems like forever, I finished second in my first three LPG tournaments that I played in, um, counting that US Open. And I remember going to Europe, the the I think that was the third one I finished second in. And um, and my mom not really being a big golfer, I called home and I said, Mom, I finished second again in the US Open. Or sorry, not the US Open, but in the it was a uh the tournament in Europe was uh one, it wasn't a major then. Um so anyway, I told her I finished second in that tournament, and she said, You keep finishing second. When are you gonna win?

Bruce Devlin 10:59

Yeah, like, come on, Nancy.

Nancy Lopez 11:01

Mom, it's not that easy to win. Um, second and first is a big difference. And so it was just funny. She made me laugh when she asked me when I was gonna win, and I was kind of excited that I finished second. Um, so it it was a good start. I was able to win money early in my career, so I didn't have a lot of pressure about you know, winning money week in and week out, because I think that's the biggest thing on tour when you turn professional and you don't have any money, you've got to win or make decent money to get to the next tournament. And I think a lot of players felt that. And fortunately for me, I didn't feel that um because I started winning money right off the bat and I was able to kind of relax and not worry about getting to the next tournament. And and during those days, um I would do outings for$500 on a Monday just to be, you know, it was something I told IMG, I said, I want to do outings if I have to do them every Monday, I'll do that. But I need to make money because I don't want my dad to have to support me at all. And so I did outings for Newsweek magazine, and and it was amazing because when you don't have any money, five hundred dollars was a lot on Mondays, and then for a day, yeah, yeah. And I remember um I hit a shot at one of the pro-am or pro am days that I did on Monday on a par three, and you got five hundred dollars to the pin. Well, I ended up winning five hundred dollars because I hit it closer than anybody, and I'm like, this is so awesome. I won$500 just hitting one shot closest to the pin. Um, so as my career quickly grew, I started making um more money on my daily appearances. But I remember when my agent called me from IMG and he said, Nancy, you know, you're not gonna do those outings for$500 on Monday anymore. I'm like, why? Why?

Bruce Devlin 12:59

He said, of course, we're gonna charge more.

Nancy Lopez 13:02

He says, because now he says, he says, I think we can get$25,000 for every appearance you make. I'm like, are they nuts? Are they crazy? You're gonna pay me$25,000 just to play on Monday.

Bruce Devlin 13:16

I was like, this is great.

Nancy Lopez 13:18

Yeah. Um, of course, you know, I was 19, 20, and and it was just uh an awesome start to a career that, you know, I love golf. I love the LPG tour. And I was just as happy as I could be. I mean, it was just a tremendous beginning for me uh to choose golf and then be able to be successful, at least at the very beginning for sure.

Mike Gonzalez 13:40

Yeah. So before we recap your career and then uh go through some of the early days, because as you said, you came out of the box fire. And I do want you to relate a story for our listeners, if you would, because you mentioned to me before that you had a chance to play in the Curtis Cup at Lithum in 1976, and you had sort of a unique experience with the rest of your teammates, didn't you?

Buckingham Palace Tour and LPGA Career

Nancy Lopez 14:00

Yeah. Um while we were there um to play the the Curtis Cup, and uh we were in England, and we got an invitation from Queen Elizabeth to come and have tea with her at Buckingham Palace, which of course we were all like, I mean, oh my god, I mean, I first of all, who did she contact? Let us know that. Um, I mean, I was 17 years old, and when we heard we were gonna go meet the queen at Buckingham Palace, I mean, that was something that you just read about in fairy tale books back when I was little and young and growing up. And so um, we had to prepare for it. We had to learn how to curtsy. Um, we had to wear our skirts down past our knees. Um, we had to wear white gloves, um, and you couldn't touch her. That was one where you couldn't touch her. Um, they didn't want us to ask her any questions. And I I was telling Mike, I said, How can you meet the queen and not ask her any questions? So as we walk, we walk through the gates of Buckingham Palace and we're walking past the guards. Um, and then we get into this big courtyard. It's just all rocks back behind those walls, just all rocks. We end up walking up a little path, and then went into this room that had these huge photos of the queen, the king, you know, the family, um, which I went through that room when I took um my two oldest daughters to England um uh for a trip. Um uh I think it was during uh summer vacation, and I took them and when we took the tour through Buckingham Palace, we were in that same room, which was amazing. I thought, oh my gosh, I was in this room back when I was on the Kurdiscot.

Mike Gonzalez 17:32

Yesterday, as a matter of fact. Um Bruce, you want to recap this sensational LPGA career of Nancy Lopez?

Bruce Devlin 17:39

Oh boy, how much time have we got? No, we're what we're gonna do is we're gonna well here, look at this. Uh 78 rookie of the year. Uh leading money winner, 78, 79, 85, player of the year, 78, 79, 85, 88, Vare trophy, 78, 79, 85. I mean, what a career. Boy, you just jumped right out of the box, didn't you?

Nancy Lopez 18:09

And I had three babies. Yeah, that's right.

Mike Gonzalez 18:13

Yeah, throughout throughout all of the years.

Nancy Lopez 18:15

Yeah, um, it was um, well, you know, I just loved playing. I loved competing, and I loved the LPG Tour, and I still love the LPJ Tour and want to promote it always. Um, it was my other family, um, being able to travel with the other players and and compete week week in and week out and have friendships and um, you know, meeting people. I met so many wonderful people in my career that are still friends today. Um, you know, my dad he told me that I was gonna win a lot more than I lost, and that wasn't a negative. He just wanted me to to go out there and play the best I could because he said there was somebody that was gonna beat me, and it could be every week. And he wanted me to be a good winner and a good loser. Um, so he taught me all those things that I played on the LPJ tour, and um he followed me a lot on the tour um and until at the end where he really couldn't walk much. But um, but he um he was my motivation on the LPJ tour, my dad was. Um he always always had a hug for me, and um, I always tell stories about him because he was um a character. Um I remember this is how he was as a father uh uh when I was playing amateur golf and then playing professional, but he was always positive, and I know that's why I was successful on the LPG tour because I had a great golfing coach, father, best friend, whatever um I can call him in all the positive ways. He um was just um the person that was in my mind all the time when I was out there playing golf. And um I remember playing in the US Open in Philadelphia, and I was an amateur, and and um it was a tough golf course, and it kicked my butt for two days. And um I I had really practiced hard and really thought I was gonna play well there, but didn't suit my eye, never felt comfortable there. And after two days, I was 12 over par, knew I was gonna miss a cut, and I walked off the green sobbing a little bit, and my dad looked at me and he hugged me and he said, Nancy, if it's okay, I don't want to see you at 25 over par anyway. And I I I went from crying to laughing because if it was okay with my dad, then everything was good with my dad.

Bruce Devlin 20:40

Everything was fine.

Nancy Lopez 20:41

Yeah, so you know, playing on the LPG tour and and being able to I only hold on to one record right now, and that's uh rookie of the year, player of the year, and bear trophy winner.

Bruce Devlin 20:53

And first year out, too.

Nancy Lopez 20:55

Yeah, and I and I that's one that you know I I I would love to keep it. And so whenever there's a player that's a rookie and she can win rookie of the year, player of the year, I just hope she doesn't win the Bear Trophy. I don't wish that on her, but I just want to hold on to that one if I can. Um, but you know, playing on the LPJ tour, being so young, it was it was really, really so much fun. Um, you know, it was like, okay, I'm played good today and the press wants to hear what I have to say. I mean, when you're young like that, it's just so new and and so, like I said, so much fun. And, you know, then competing and and then then feeling the pressure of being on the LPG tour and kind of carrying the torch for them for a little while. That that was the tough part of it. Um, because every sponsor wanted you to come and play in their tournament. And back then, I think we had about 41 tournaments, and you just can't play tournaments. So um Pressure from the commissioner, you know, coming to my home and asking me to please play in tournaments. And it was really, really tough during that time. But, you know, I knew that what my role was as an LPJ player. And I never felt like I did things for Nancy Lopez. I I did it because my tour needed me. And um, and through that, it it it helped me to become who I was on the LPG tour with the press and with the the fans and with the the uh sponsors. But there were days I was kicking dirt all the way to to maybe a uh press conference that I didn't want to do. Um or you know, after you when we won, I won nine tournaments my rookie year, you have to go back the next year and do all the press conferences to to prepare for that tournament. So winning nine, I had to do nine trips to nine different states.

Bruce Devlin 22:56

Press stays, yeah. For to do you did you did something else too that first year, didn't you? You won five tournaments in a row.

Nancy Lopez 23:05

Yes, I did. I won five tournaments.

Bruce Devlin 23:07

Tell us about that.

Nancy Lopez 23:08

Well, um, I can't tell you which ones they were out of my memory banks, but um I can tell you the fifth one I won in a row, and that was in Rochester, New York. Um that um and the way it happened too, uh, Bruce, I won four. I took off a week and then won that the fifth. So I won the five in a row that I played in.

Bruce Devlin 23:34

Right.

Nancy Lopez 23:34

Um so I go to Rochester and um Rochester is kind of like my hometown now. People fell in love with with me, which was and I fell in love with them. They wanted to see me win five in a row because the press was covering it. I mean, they they even put my name on some of the leaderboards at PGA events because I was winning so much. Um, I think they put my name on the board at Cherry Hill when they were playing there. I think they put me in like third place. I had Lopez up there, which is that's funny. Um, but um, so I'm playing in Rochester, and there was I felt pressure, but I I was playing good with that pressure. And I knew well, what happened that week too, I think it was on Friday, um, I was hitting this hook, and there were a lot of people. I mean, the fairways were lined with people because they wanted to see if I could win Five and Rule. I'm hitting this terrible hook, and my dad always said, if you're if you're if you're hitting it poorly, either you know, pull a three-wood out or do something different, just get rid of that negative. So I st or play it. So I start playing this hook. So I'm aiming right over those people. So it hook, it hook, and on the tenth hole on Friday, it didn't hook. I get to do my drive, and I used to hit a rocket when my ball came off my club, it was hot, and it was going into the crowd, and I know it's gonna hurt somebody. And I can't even get the word four out. I'm trying to yell four, my caddy's yelling four, and it's like three or four deep of people, and that ball hits in the crowd and it hits and it goes up into the air, and my caddy's yelling for it not to go out of bounds, and I'm saying, out of bounds, I've just killed somebody. I don't care for people out of bounds. So we get up there to my ball, and I'm shaking. I mean, I'm I am upset because I know I've hurt somebody. I get up to to where the crowd's surrounding this gentleman, and he's laying there on the ground, there's blood everywhere, and his hand is holding his head, and I'm crying. I'm like, Are you okay? Are you okay? Because I stop and think, what if I would have killed him? What would have happened in my whole career? Would I have quit playing golf? I was so shook up from that, it was horrifying. And um, I look, I'm I'm pretty much hovering over him, and he's looking up at me, bleeding, and I said, Are you okay? And he's smiling. He says, I'm fine. I was like, Oh my god. So I we walk away, you know, he's fine. They're you know, they're coming to help him, and uh, and we're walking on, and I'm crying. I ended up double bogeying that hole. I was so upset. And as I tee off on 11, I'm trying to get back focused on what's going on. And I looked at Roscoe, my caddy, who I fired nine times. Uh, he worked for me 13 years. I fired him nine times.

Mike Gonzalez 26:34

Roscoe Jones, yeah.

Nancy Lopez 26:36

I loved him, and then I could just kill him. Um so we're walking down 11, and I decided to make this a positive. I said, Roscoe, I said, if we win this tournament, we're gonna dedicate it to that guy I almost killed. And uh so I I as the days go on, that's my goal. So now I'm trying to win my fifth in a row after I've almost killed somebody. And um I know that that backside always was it was a tough side for me. And I knew that I had to play well on Sunday, and I was in the final group on Sunday, um, and I knew I had to play well on the backside, and Jane Blaylock was who was leading the tournament at that time, and um so I shot even poor, I believe, on the front side. Now the true test was going on that backside and playing it well. Um, well, I ended up winning and I won my fifth in a row, and it was an accomplishment for me because there was so much buildup and there was there was a lot of pressure on the outside, but it was like I can do this. I I wanted to, it was a goal I wanted to do. And when you're playing good like that, the fairways get wider, the greens get bigger, the holes get bigger, and you just feel like you can hit every shot great. And and that's pretty much what happened at in that fifth in a row. Um, and then I did dedicate the tournament to his name was Jerry Messalella. Um he was a dentist. He's still alive because I went back to Rochester this year uh for a charity celebration. Um, they wanted to do a celebration of my life of my life, my golf there in Rochester, which was really, really special. Um, and um they they surprised me with Jerry Messalella. He came to the luncheon and um, you know, he he became a friend. I mean, I invited him to my wedding, and he came to my wedding, and he just he became a friend. So um there are a lot of great memories there in Rochester, New York for me. And um I think one of the my favorite things too was I love their white hots, and they were so good because after I finished playing, I'd always go have a white hot with all my friends, and and after I won, that's how we celebrated.

Mike Gonzalez 28:53

Uh yeah, so uh I think the progression was uh you win in Baltimore, and then you win the Coke Classic, and then the Golden Lights Championship. Uh you won uh what would have been your first major, which we'll talk about, the LPGA championship, and then boom, Bankers Trust Classic, and uh off you go. Five straight wins, nine in your first year. So I want you to paint two pictures for us. The first one I want to talk about is you know, you're 20, 21 years old, you're just coming out on tour. Everything's new to you, right? I mean, that first that first trip around the sun, you don't know any hotels, you don't know the golf courses, you you barely know who you're playing with. Paint that picture for our listeners of what that was like back uh during that time frame.

Nancy Lopez 29:38

You know, when I started on the tour, and like you said, you you didn't know where to stay, you kind of asked some of the players. They they always gave you a fact sheet. Of course, you stayed where you know you could afford to. Um most of the place we stayed were hot were motels. So you're pretty much, you know, you you park outside. My mom and dad always taught me to be safe, so you know, always before I got out of my car, I'd look around, make sure there was nobody there to hurt me. And and you still thought about those things back way, way back then. Um there was one experience for me. Um, we were in I don't know if it was Baltimore, but um being young the way that I was, I mean, I stayed by myself. Um we were playing in a golf tournament, and um whenever I watch movies or anything, I always uh kind of related it to my life. So I'm playing in this tournament, and there's this cute blonde guy following me. And I was like, that guy's really cute, but could he be weird? And so I um it after he was following me on Tuesday and he followed me on Wednesday, and I kind of found out who he was. He was a member there at the club and he had good parents, and um he kept following me. Well, he ended up asking me out on a date, and I went on the date. It was, I think it was Friday. I went on the date with him on Friday and and really liked him. He was so cute, and uh so that Saturday night, um oh, okay, before that happened, there was a gentleman that knocked on my door. And back then there was not a peephole in my door, so I opened it, and here I was this little twin-year-old, you know, naive and stupid. Opened the door, and there's this guy standing there. And this is not the blonde guy, this is some other guy standing there at my door, and I'm like, hello? And I didn't think anything of it. He goes, he goes, hi Nancy, and then I I got nervous and saying hi Nancy. I thought he was just somebody looking for something uh in that hotel or motel. And he said, um, he said, he said, I saw you at the golf course and you have such a great smile. And I was like, oh my god. He says, he said, would you like to go to dinner? I said, I I I have plans. I I didn't have plans, but I said I had plans. Um so I said, thank you very much. But you know, so I closed the door. I was like, oh my gosh, that guy followed me to the to the motel. Well, I'm in my room for another few hours. Somebody knocks on the door. I didn't think anything of it. I opened it again, and there's that same guy. Same guy. Like, what am I thinking? He's got flowers in his hand, and um, I'm like, where did you get those flowers? He goes, Oh, I picked them out of somebody's yard. It was so weird. So I said, How did you find out what my room was? He goes, Well, I went to the front desk and the guy, and this is really weird. I mean, he says the guy went behind to go do something, and so I went around the desk to find out what your room number was. And I out, I said, you know, I really have to go get ready for dinner with my other friends. So I close the door and I am like, this is so horrible. So I think that happened on Thursday night because my caddy Roscoe that I fired nine times, I told him he had to start following me back to my hotel, make sure no guys follow me back to my hotel. And he would sit outside my room and make sure nobody followed me back. That's how it was at that time. So, anyway, I ended up going, you know, this other little affair of mine with this blonde guy that I wanted to be able to go on a date with, I went out with him on Friday. So Saturday night, um, back in those days when people would call rooms, they pretty much, you know, plugged it in, I think. And then if they didn't plug it, the phone kept ringing. So I'm in my room and I hear this phone ringing in the room next door to me about midnight. And I'm like, oh my gosh, why didn't somebody answer that phone? Rings and rings and rings. So now I'm starting to think, oh my gosh, that guy has come back and he's killed the guy at the front desk. Killed him. Oh my gosh, now I'm getting really scared because you know I'm talking about movies, movies kind of send you that way. But I I call the front desk and nobody answers. I said, Oh my gosh.

Bruce Devlin 34:30

So I call he's dead.

Nancy Lopez 34:32

He's dead. I call the police, and he the police didn't know who Nancy Lopez was. And it just really much started my career. And I said, This is Nancy Lopez. I'm on the LPG tour, and I think the guy at the front desk is dead. Because no, he does not answer the phone, and the phone is ringing next door to me, and nobody's answering it. And I and I kind of told him about what was going on with this guy that followed me. So the police come and somebody knocks at my door. And of course, I am not going to answer the door this time. I said, hello, who is that? And he says, It's Officer So-and-so and Miss Lopez, there's nobody dead at the front desk.

Bruce Devlin 35:15

He'd already sleep for you.

Nancy Lopez 35:18

I'm like, okay, great. But what happened? He says, Well, he connected the call and he fell asleep. And oh my gosh, I was just so, I mean, it was crazy.

Mike Gonzalez 35:32

Thank you for listening to another episode of For the Good of the Game. And please, wherever you listen to your podcast on Apple and Spotify, if you like what you hear, please subscribe, spread the word, and tell your friends until we tee it up again for the good of the game. So long, everybody.

Intro Music 35:56

It went smackdown fairway. And it's time to slice, just smit your flag. My head is as long as you're still in the stage, you're okay.