While some punters will be happily cheering on Michael Block at this week’s Australian Open in Sydney, there is a faction who believe he shouldn’t be there at all.
The 47-year-old American club professional became a golf cult hero at this year’s PGA Championship at Oak Hill, when he slam dunked a hole-in-one during the final round while playing alongside Irish champion Rory McIlroy.
A slam dunk – where the ball goes straight into the cup without touching the green – is possibly the rarest feat in the sport. To do it at a major tournament, and as an invited club pro, was previously unheard of.
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The moment instantly shot Block to a fame he wasn’t expecting, or particularly ready for.
But on top of becoming an overnight internet sensation, Block’s T15 finish at the PGA Championship earned him $438,000 and automatic exemption for a number of top tournaments around the globe, including the Australian Open.
“I like to earn my way into most things, this one I was lucky enough to get an exemption,” Block told SEN radio on Monday after landing in Sydney.
“It was a no-brainer I was going to come to Sydney and play here. It is absolutely spectacular, it is reminiscent of Augusta National, to be honest.”
While much of the sporting world relished seeing a club pro upstage the game’s best at a major tournament, his achievements haven’t been appreciated by everyone.
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Australian pro Scott Hend is one who took umbrage with Block’s inclusion at this week’s Open – to be played at Sydney’s The Australian and The Lakes.
“Well done to Michael and his agent for getting whatever they did for this to happen,” Hend tweeted in October in response to the news.
“This is just showing and confirming where a once respected tournament is heading… poor leadership, at the very least.”
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Block, speaking to media on Monday, conceded his cult hero status had rankled some in the sport.
“I’ve got a lot of fans and I’ve got some people who don’t wish me the best,” he said.
“It is what it is. I’m trying to learn that. I’m trying to learn how to not allow that to get in my head as I’m out playing.”
Block revealed on SEN he hasn’t actually had time to give one lesson since his PGA Championship heroics, but reckons the newfound fame hasn’t changed him.
“Money hasn’t changed a single thing about my life,” he said.
“I drive the same truck, I work at the same club, I live in the same house… and I’m not going to change anything.
“I would have paid everything in my bank account to have the experience I had at the PGA, I can’t believe that happened to me.”
As for Sydney, Block is keen to sample the harbourside pubs and bars in between rounds at the Open.
He considers himself a friend of Min Woo Lee – the rising Aussie star who won the Australian PGA Championship at the weekend – and hopes to catch a glimpse of Cameron Smith in action on the greens.
“I’m going to find Cam if I can here and just watch him putt for like an hour, because that guy’s putting stroke is ridiculous,” he said.
The Australian Open starts Thursday at both courses.