Strength. Faith. Support. Love.
Forever they have been emotional concepts that are delivered in different ways. You’d be hard-pressed, however, to find a time when they were given texture quite like they were the week of July 11-15.
That was the week 19-year-old Conner Willett stood among a world that had come crashing down and chose to do something about it. He played golf.
Wait. That’s not quite accurate. Conner Willett played golf like he knew how, brilliantly and fervently. He played the way his biggest fan, his father Rick, had watched him play in vibrant junior days when tournaments were won and back-to-back trips were made to the Drive, Chip, and Putt National Finals the week of the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club.
Breezing through 36 holes of stroke play to qualify, Conner Willett rolled through five opponents in match play to stand with the trophy at the 114th Massachusetts Amateur Championship. The prize was his, yes, but amid layers of emotion, he shared the moment with his mother, Beth Anne, and his sister, Kaitlyn, and with a parade of great friends, fellow members from Charles River CC, and onlookers at Concord CC, most of whom had been transfixed by this Conner Willett performance and likely shared a sentiment so many of us had:
How had this young man been able to stand up against the heartache of his father’s death one day before the championship began? What had afforded him the fortitude to even step to the first tee?
The answer, said Conner, was simple.
“My father gave me a plastic club when I was in diapers. We played probably three or four days a week. Golf is what we shared 100 percent.”
So, as every swing took him deeper into the tournament, Willett knew he’d spend more time at Concord CC and that would mean less time at home where there were too many reminders that Rick was no longer there. “Home sucked,” he said solemnly. “I wanted to just play as many holes as I could.”
^ ^ ^
Surreal, how this story unfolded.
Conner Willett had shot 140 for 36 holes at Timber Banks GC in Baldwinsville, N.Y., to secure first alternate in a U.S. Amateur qualifier, and was driving home with his mother when a phone call brought horrific news.
Rick Willett, 52, had choked on a piece of meat after playing in a member-guest at Charles River CC and had been rushed to the hospital. It was Thursday, July 7. Three days later, Rick died from complications.
Your heartache is unfathomable when you hear the story. But what shouldn’t get lost in the despair is the manner in which young men and great friends from junior circles stepped up and showered a friend in love. John Broderick and Wyatt Barlage, former classmates of Conner’s at Belmont Hill, came over to the Willett home in Wellesley. So, too, did Ethan Whitney and Weston Jones.
“It hit us all in a different way,” said Whitney. “Rick was such a great guy, extremely generous. He was one of the boys.”
Knowing the father as they did and loving Conner as they did, Whitney and Broderick were supportive of their friend’s decision to play. “I told him on Friday night, ‘He would want you to play. He would (be furious) if you didn’t play,’ ” said Whitney. “Conner agreed 100 percent.”
As fate would have it, Whitney and Willett won their first-round matches and drew one another in the Round of 16.
“There were a lot of emotions the night before,” said Whitney, “and I talked a lot with my dad. Then on the putting green before our match, Conner came up and told me, ‘If you take it easy on me I’ll never speak to you.’ ”
There was one thing they agreed upon before they played – the loser would caddie for the winner for the duration.
Conner, who had used his father’s brother, Brian Willett, as his caddie in both qualifying rounds and the Round of 32 match, had Weston Jones loop for him in the victory over Whitney.
It meant Whitney was on Willett’s bag the rest of the way. And having been ousted already in the tournament, it meant that Broderick and Jones and Barlage and a small parade of junior golf comrades were in attendance for Willett’s wins in the quarterfinals against Christian Emmerich, the semifinals over Billy Argus, and the final with Ryan Downes.
They will tell you that golf can be a lonely walk, that you don’t have teammates to pick you up. Likely, this is true in many instances, but don’t tell Willett that he didn’t win one for a team July 15.
“It was a long week. I didn’t sleep much and I didn’t eat much,” said Conner. “But I thought of my dad constantly and I knew we were in this together.”
In Ethan Whitney, Willett had the perfect caddie. “No one better for that job,” said Broderick. “Ethan’s so energic, so happy and upbeat.”
More than three weeks have passed and still there is so much to digest from a story that overflowed with emotion.
“I’m still numb. I’m still processing it,” said Willett.
These lads grew up together on the Challenge Cup circuit, in Mass Golf junior circles, and the sport has ushered them onto college programs – Willett (Georgetown), Jones (Rutgers), and Whitney (Temple) are sophomores; Broderick (Vanderbilt) will be a freshman.
But if the sport brought them together, it’s a tragic happening that no one ever could have imagined that made them grow up a little quicker and likely will forever galvanize their friendship.
“I think we definitely realize how close we all actually are,” said Whitney.
“It was such a shocking week,” said Broderick. “Less than a week before, we were all with Rick. This was painful for all of us. It made an impact on all of us. But it was our job to help Conner.”
College is nearly upon them, but with the Willett victory still worth a celebratory group hug, if you will, a few days in Colorado will be shared by this group of friends. Some golf will be played and hopefully laughter will blanket the trip.
With each day, Willett savors all the times he heard someone tell him “that your dad is proud of you,” because deep down, he knows it’s true.
“I definitely got a sense that people rallied behind me. I knew in match play that my story was brewing, so I’m very happy I did it that week.”
There’s a long line of us who are equally pleased.
