Daily Buzz: Dufner is cool ... again

Published Sep. 9, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

Sam Gardner

If you hadn’t already settled on Jason Dufner for this year’s "coolest guy in golf"  award, this story should just about seal the deal.

Last month, on the Tuesday before the start of the PGA Championship, Dufner played a practice round at Oak Hill Country Club, the site of the tournament.

The match pitted Dufner and Dustin Johnson against Keegan Bradley and Rob Labritz, a New York club pro who qualified for the final spot in the PGA on this shot from 95 yards out on a playoff hole at June’s PGA Professional National Championship in Oregon:

Anyway, before the practice round, Dufner, Johnson, Bradley and Labritz settled on a bet.

"Dufner says, 'What are we playing for? A hundred thousand? Two hundred thousand?'" Labritz told GolfChannel.com. "He’s like, 'Keegan, what did you make, $7 million last year? I thought you wanted to play for some cash.'

“I said, 'Guys, that’s a little out of my price range. I had to cancel two ladies clinics and a junior clinic just to be here today.' So we played for a $500 closeout.”

After 14 holes, Bradley and Labritz found themselves four shots down, so they pressed for an extra $250 over the final four holes, meaning that the original $500 bet was still in place, but Bradley and Labritz stood to win $250 if they won the final four holes.

Unfortunately, after halving the final hole, Bradley and Labritz failed to cash in on that gamble too, putting each of the players $750 in the hole at the end of the round.

“I didn’t have $750 in my wallet, so I went into the locker, got my checkbook out and wrote a check to Dufner. I left it in his locker," Labritz told GolfChannel.com, noting that the memo section of the check read 'SORRY FOR THE CHECK + THX FOR THE WHOOPIN.'

Fast forward five days and Dufner was shooting a final-round 68 on Sunday to win the PGA Championship, his first major win after a near-miss at the U.S. Open earlier this summer. That PGA win came with a $1.445 million payday — or $1,445,750 if you count Labritz’s check.

But instead of cashing Labritz’s check, Dufner did the most awesome thing he could have done and sent it back to Labritz, with a note that read:

ROB,

GREAT TIME PLAYING WITH YOU LAST TUESDAY. I JUST COULDN’T CASH THIS CHECK. ALL THE BEST TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY IN 2013 + HOPE TO SEE YOU IN 2014 @ VALHALLA.

JASON DUFNER

"Oh my God, are you kidding me?" Labritz told GolfChannel.com after receiving his voided check. "That’s just phenomenal. It’s just a classy move. I think he’s a great guy."

So do we, Rob. So do we.

Now, for some links:

• Lock Haven University snapped a 52-game losing streak with its season-opening win.

• Saturday was a weird day on the gridiron:

• How does Aaron Rodgers spend the 40 seconds between plays?

• Western Kentucky turned the ball over five times in six plays against Tennessee:

• Another one from the “what a great guy” file — here’s what Novak Djokovic was doing five minutes after a grueling five-set U.S. Open semifinal win on Saturday:

• The University of Kentucky paid tribute to Rick Pitino's Basketball Hall of Fame enshrinement with a full-page ad.

• And at his enshrinement, Pitino made fun of his “walk through that door” press conference from his days as Celtics coach:

• Via The Big Lead, this is probably not what De’Anthony Thomas had in mind on this kick return:

• And again, via The Big Lead, mad Brian Kelly is mad:

• Details are starting to emerge in the Vanderbilt football rape case.

• Michigan’s band performed a Beyonce-themed halftime show against Notre Dame, and it was fierce:

• Tom Izzo watches Michigan State games from the student section:

• The Miami Heat are reportedly considering signing Michael Beasley. And apparently it isn't a joke.

• A Purdue player who was already playing with two broken hands broke his leg on Saturday:

• Kansas State coach Bill Snyder sent a congratulatory note to North Dakota State quarterback Brock Jensen after NDSU beat KSU in Week 1:

• Colorado's live animal mascot, Ralphie, didn't make her pregame run Saturday after being spooked by smoke coming from the players' tunnel.

• After battling cancer, Brandon Davidson hopes to make the Edmonton Oilers roster.

• The Blue Jays' Melky Cabrera had a tumor removed from his spine.

• Fat guy hook and ladder touchdown? Fat guy hook and ladder touchdown:

• Michigan celebrated its win over Notre Dame by playing the Chicken Dance song:

• Like I always say, never let a baby get in the way of a good foul ball:

• In addition to Hulk Hogan and LeBron James, Chris Christie also took in Sunday night’s Cowboys-Giants game:

• You won't believe what Georgia OL Kolton Houston went through to try to rid his body of steroids.

share