Golf In A Parallel Universe (4 page)

So we land in New York. I have never been a big fan of New York and have not been here too many time. I get to my hotel and settle in about 6:00pm. NBC put me up in a nice hotel. I get to my room and relax. I got a great view of the skyline. Beer was in the fridge. “Cool!’ and I grab one and sit by the window looking out at the New York Skyline. “Wow I cannot believe I am here," I tell myself. And tomorrow the Today's Show and the Tonight's Show?” “Wow”!

So the plan is NBC will send a car at 6:00am. The NBC studios is only 10 minutes away. The show starts at 7:00am and I am scheduled at 7:40am. I am supposed to be in the lobby at 6:00am and they will have someone to pick me up. So I go to bed and I crash. I am exhausted. I have no dreams that I can remember, I just sleep.

I have a wake-up call at 5:00am. I take a shower and drink some coffee, I am not hungry at all. I make it to the lobby about 5:50 and wait in the lobby and sit on the sofa in the lobby. “So what will this be like?", I ask myself. I wonder if they will they have a Limo, and the drive dressed in a Tux? About 5:50 a middle age guy walks in the door, dressed casually and walks over to me and smiles. “Are you Jim Galloway?," he asked in a typical New York accent. I say yea, jump up and shook his hand. He is very personable. “You ready?, he asked. I told him that I am. “Let's go," he replied. He is not driving a Limo, but instead a black Suburban Suv. We take a 10 minute drive to the NBC studios. It is still dark, but New York is very alive. Seem like this town is just jamming with energy all the time. We park in a parking garage. He takes me up to the studio. He said he will be dropping me off with the Stage Assistance and she will handle it from there. We make it up to the studio and we meet Emily. She has a big smile, “Mr. Jim Galloway?," she said as she shakes my hand. She congratulates me on my big Masters win and I thank her. I am a little nervous, this is all new to me. “Coffee?" she asked. “Sure that will be great,” I replied. Would you like a Latte or just coffee. “Just coffee. I do not know much about Lattes, I just know there is a skill to ordering one” I responded smiling. She gets me a coffee, and it is a good quality cup of coffee, no cheap coffee here. She can tell that I am a little nervous and she talks to me and tells me what I will be doing. She seems to have a talent for putting people at ease. She has such a nice personality and she is professional. She takes me to the Green Room. Wow! the Green Room, I always heard about this. But it is not green. I wanted to ask why, but I decided not to. They had donuts and pastries, coffee, and juice. “Nice." I am not on for a while, those pastries look good, I said to myself, so I grabbed one. So I am in the Green Room for a while a couple of other guest for the show come in. One was a political analyst. He was a big golf fan and he congratulated me on my win. Another person was someone who had a lawsuit against some big company that supplied some tainted food to the public, and the other was an actress. She was oblivious to everyone. We all watch the show on the sofa’s on the big screen TV in the Green Room. Finally right at 7:40am, Emily came in. “Jim, you are on." I got up and must have looked nervous, I actually was weak at my knees. She put her left hand on my shoulder and her right hand on my other shoulder. “Jim, don't worry, it will be fine, just be yourself, it will be fun," she said smiling. That calmed me down right away. And at the same time. I was thinking that I like this girl, she is really nice. So I got to the set and it was all fine. In show business it is all very fast, Slam Bam, Thank You Mam. We had our little four minute interview. The host is a big golf fan so he could relate. It was actually fun. After we finished I walked backstage and Emily looked at me. “You see that was not so bad was it?", she said smiling. I just laughed. “No, not bad at all," I replied. She had me sit down in the Green Room again. “ I will get you back to you hotel in a few," she said as off to see someone else. After the show was over, she came in, “Ready Jim?," she asked. I said yes, She walked me to the elevator and she took me down to the driver. As we are walking and talking I am starting to notice that I really like this girl. She is one of those “ Librarian Type” women. plain average looking at first glance, but then if you take a close look you see that she is really pretty and has a warm personality. She had dark “Librarian” type glasses and her brown hair in bun, but you can tell it was long. “Just my type!," I said to myself. "My God, this girl is cute," I tell myself as we continue to walk to the garage. “I am just a hopeless single guy," I tell myself. She takes me down in the back offices where the driver is. “Ok Jim. As you know you are going to be on the Tonight's Show. Even Though that is on late night TV, the actual taping starts at 3:00pm. Our driver will pick you up at 2:00pm," she told me. “I will be ready” I replied, and the driver took me back to the hotel.

I got to the hotel and just hung out. It is only 8:45am, what do I do for the next few hours. I am not really hungry, I had some donuts at NBC. I will just relax and watch TV. I watched ESPN for a while and I was watching some baseball highlights. I never have not been much of a baseball fan, but it really seemed to be interesting to me for some reason. Besides, I am in New York city the home of the Yankees. About 10:00 am, a buddy of mine who is on the tour, John called me, he lives here in New York. He is a good friend, we have had some good times over the years. The last few years, he is in same boat as me. Struggling to make a living on the tour. We have had a few too many “Missed Cut” parties the last couple of years. “Hey Moneybags, you sure looked stiff on Today's Show this morning” he said laughing. We talked for awhile and had a good time. Sunday at the Masters Win Post party, we had talked about hooking up while I am here in New York. He is going to take me out and show me the town. So after we hung up, I was thinking, this may be fun tonight. He is quite a Party Animal, and he knows this city. I have not really had a chance to celebrate my big win. At the Masters Post party I keep it low key, so tonight I think I may just let it go and have fun. I decided to eat lunch about 11:00 am. And that will be it for a while as far as food is concerned. I should be through with NBC by about 4:00pm. So I will hook up with John and let and go out on the town. So I eat and get ready for my 1:00 pm pickup from NBC. I am nervous again. “Wow The Tonight's show!," I say to myself. Been watching that since I was a Kid. So I get down to the lobby about 12:50 pm and the driver is right on time. He comes into the lobby at 1:55pm. He takes me to the car and to my surprise, Emily is sitting in the back seat. “Hey how you doing?” I asked “I surprised to see you," I told her. “Well I got to get out of the building sometimes, been there since 5:00 am," she replied. We chatted and took the short drive to the NBC studios. As we are driving, I realize again, that I really like this girl I feel so comfortable with her.

We get to the studio and go through the process again. Get me and the other guest set in the Green Room. I talk to some of the other guest. A couple know who I am and they know about golf and they sincerely congratulate me. There were a couple of other celebrity types who did not have a clue about golf and who I was. They did not acknowledge me. They were in their own little Show Biz world. I come to realize that a lot of prep work goes on for the show and it is pretty busy for a while. Emily and the staff let us know the process. A lot more busy than the Morning show. About 20 minutes before showtime, we are settled in and all the prep work is basically done and things are slower now. I step out in the hall to stretch.

Emily stops by and she is pretty much caught up on her duties and we chat for a few minutes. I felt so relaxed around her. She is so nice and down to earth and just does not seem like a New York City Show Business type of person. As we are chatting, I asked if she is from New York. She said that she is actually from a small town in upstate Minnesota. “Oh really, I grew in in Nebraska” I said. “Ah so we are kind from the same neck of the woods she says.” “So, how do you like New York?," I asked. “It's OK, but a little fast for me. I have a good job here and NBC. But sometimes I miss the slower pace from back home," she explained to me. So as we are talking, I am thinking she looks like a fish out of water and I can tell she does not belong in New York. I feel the same way. I know I could not handle living here. And I am really starting to like her more and more. As a single guy, you are always looking to meet someone. And the older you get the harder it is. And my last ten years on the tour I have been so busy working on my game and the golf business it is hard to have a relationship. I had a couple, but nothing really serious. Otherwise a few dates and a few other wild times which were fun at the time, but seem regrettable to me now. My hope is to always meet someone and settle down for a normal life. So I am wondering if she is married or single which always the big question when you are single. She does not have a ring on. But that is not always a guaranteed determining factor. So I am panicking like a highschool kid. How do I find out if she is married or in a relationship? “So do you have any family here in New York?," I asked. “Good one Jim” I tell myself. “No just here by myself” she replied sheepishly. Do you still live in Nebraska?," she asked. I told her that I live in Orlando now. I have been there for several years. It is a good place for a professional golfer because the weather is good and I can work on mine game all year. She lights up “Hey my parents retired and moved to Tampa about 3 years ago, they love it," she said smiling. “Ah, great” I said. This whole conversion last about 3 or 4 minutes and I felt like we made some type of connection. I felt like I have known her for years and felt so comfortable with her and I wanted to talk some more. But someone came by, told me to get to the Green Room, almost show time. So I sat down in the Green room.

And I start thinking “OK dummy, she is apparently single, does not like New York, and her parents live close to me in Florida!. What are you waiting for?," I asked myself. But I am a coward when it comes to these type of things and I know it. I rationalize she is in New York, where I never go, she is in Show Business for the great NBC. Yeah, like I have a shot," I rationalize to myself. So I just blow off the idea of any hope of getting to know her.

So the show starts and we all sit in the Green Room and watch the Monologue. As the show goes on, the guest make their appearances. I am the last of the four guest. When they call me in, it is just like I have seen on TV for ever. And this time it is me on the show! I am nervous, but getting used to this show biz stuff. So I am not so nervous once I get out there. So the host is going over my round at the masters and he is obviously not a golfer. He asked a lot of stupid questions and you can tell his whole goal is just to be funny all the time. Then they have this little fake putting green setup on the stage and we get out there and he clowns around on the putting green and asking for tips and I show him how to line up and putt and everything. He is cracking one liner jokes all the time. I feel like this is just a joke. fun but still a joke. But I laugh and be humble and the crowd gives me a big applause when it is over. So the show is over, everything is getting wrapped up. Emily comes by. “Ready to go back to the hotel?," she asked. “Sure” I replied. She takes me down to the office where the driver is. We get the driver and we walk down the hallway and out in the back parking garage area and chatting along the way. We get to the car, she held out her hand and shook my hand. “Thanks for being our guest, we enjoyed having you," she said with a warm smile. “Good luck the rest of the year with your golf career, she told me in a positive tone. I thanked her and got in the car. And she gives me a little wave as I settle in. “Jim, it's over and you blew it!," I am thinking to myself. I try to think real fast. “Wait one sec!," I told the driver. I get out and walk towards her. I see looks a little surprised but eager to see what I have to say. I fumbled nervously and pulled out my wallet and pulled out one of my business cards and handed to her. “Hey, if you take a trip to see your parents in Tampa, here is my card. Call me or text me and if I’m not out playing at a tournament somewhere maybe we can hook up," I told her and in a shy manner. She had a big smile on her face.”Thank you, maybe so, maybe so," she said sincerely. Her response seemed genuine to me. I got back in the car and I waved at her happy face and the driver took me back to the hotel. She is the first girl that I can ever remember feeling like this. As a burned out professional golfer at the age of 32 who has had no real experience is these type of things, “Is this Love?," I asked myself. So I get back to the hotel. I am really happy and jacked up. “Maybe there is hope for me," I tell myself.

My buddy John calls me and ask if I am ready to hookup. I tell him that I am ready to rock. We agreed to meet at the lobby about 5:30pm. So I meet him at 5:30pm and get in a cab. “Let's go for a couple of beers and hang out. I got a lot of good places to go," he told me in festive mood. “We can get something to eat and drink. And then later tonight I got some friends we might run into and this one club," he told me. “Sounds good to me," I replied. So we go to a couple of places for drinks. Everywhere is by Cab. He tells me that what New York is great. You do not need a car. I admit, a cab is a good way to get around. And you can get out and have a good time you do not have to worry about driving. But I don't think New York is for me. We talk a lot. I tell him about Emily at NBC. He told me that she seems like a good catch. “Hey, I got a friend who works at CBS that works in the same type of business. I can put some feelers out there for you," he told me. He said that the Network people all know each other and he may be to find out about her. He told me no promises but you never know. I thinking he is full of hot air because he is always talking about how he knows people. That's just his personality, lots of big promises that he never keeps. We have a good time the rest of the night.

We meet a couple of his friends at a club about 11:00 pm. They were two women which he knows and they are like him. They like to go out and drink all night and party. I am getting tired and I have had too much to drink. I am not a big drinker. On the other hand he is getting wilder and wilder, which is typical for him. We talk and things are getting crazy he is making a move with one of the girls. “Jim, come on man. We got a couple of hot ones here," He whispered to me. I am pretty quite and not sure where all of this is going. He is getting hot and heavy with his one of the girls, which is somewhat his girlfriend. The other girl, her name is Beth. She is talking to me a lot. “Wow she is hot” I am thinking. Things are progressing and she seems interested in me. It looks like things are progressing. But, I just have that strange feeling that I am cheating on someone. Just like at the Masters Party. And just like on the Plane. I just don’t understand. Usually this would be a dream opportunity for me. But I bow out. “Look guys, it has been a long day. I need to get back to the hotel," I told them. “OK, you know the Cab Drill," replied John. “Just flag one down and tell them where you need to go and they will take you there. Beth looks at me, as if she is wondering if maybe if I am asking her to go with me. But I shake their hands say goodbye and I am out the door. I am really confused that I had the very strong feeling that I was cheating on someone. But then realize that I never had that feeling when I was with Emily today.