BALTIMORE — The sun crept above the hills at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills for the first day of the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship on Thursday morning. Buses unloaded crowds of fans, many wearing polos, khaki shorts and hats. The excessive heat — temperatures climbed into the 90s — didn’t stop them from lining the driving range to watch Phil Mickelson take practice swings. They sat in the stands behind the first hole tee box, watching golfers smack balls across the fairway while evaluating the clubs they were using.
Golf fans of all ages scattered across Caves Valley as they watched the world’s top golfers compete in the Baltimore area for the first time in 59 years. Through the smiles, laughter and the sudden “oohs” and “ahs,” it was obvious that fans were living the dream.
“To be able to have a [PGA Tour] event here, basically a playoff event here, where I played so many rounds of golf growing up, it’s a treat,” former Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, a Baltimore native, said. “It’s a dream come true for me.”
Harold Varner III quickly understood why the course is called Caves Valley. Varner, who finished 5-under-par in the first round Thursday as part of the second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs, felt he could hear the entire golf course whenever he sank a putt. “That’s pretty cool,” Varner said. “Yeah, there’s a lot of people. I like people a lot. I like to make them scream.”
After walking from the bus stop to the top of Caves Valley, Joe Clark, 76, of the Eastern Shore decided to open his pull-out chair and park himself at the top of the ninth hole. Clark soaked in the fresh air as he patiently waited for the golfers to arrive. The top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings are competing for a spot in the top 30 to advance to the Tour Championship next weekend in Atlanta for a shot at a $15 million grand prize.
“It’s been great,” Clark said. “Nobody’s in a hurry. I have a hard time walking so it took me forever to get from the bus stop up to here. Nobody hassled me, saying, ‘Get the old guy with the bad legs out of here.’ ”
Clark has been golfing since he was 11. Last year was rough, he said, as golf courses were closed for months because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It got to a point where his wife, Helen, recommended he pick another hobby. Clark declined.
“I cut grass and play golf,” Clark said. “I was going nuts.”
To attend the BMW Championship with fans, Clark quipped he was “free at last. Lord almighty, free at last.”
Clark couldn’t help but laugh about Helen, a volunteer at the tournament, posting a photo of her and Tony Finau on Facebook. “She said, ‘Sorry, Rory [McIlroy], we’re done,’ ” Clark said, laughing.
While enjoying the tournament with friends and family, Jacob Langford, 17, walked around focused on the players. Langford, a senior on the Calvert Hall golf team, analyzed how each golfer approached the game.
“I’m looking forward to learning from all of them,” Langford said. “Seeing how they communicate with their team, their coaches and caddies.”
The sun made it hard to keep track of the ball whenever it was hit into the sky. Lloyd Hampton, 58, of Essex, had a good eye, however. He stood with his son, Donte, 33, along the fairway of the second hole, tracking the movement of each ball that was hit. “Right, right, right, it’s drawing right,” Hampton said as a ball brushed off the trees and dropped on the right side of the fairway.
Hampton has been golfing for more than 20 years, while Donte has been into the sport for just three. Hampton and Donte went to the Players Championship in Florida this year, but to attend a PGA Tour event in your backyard brings a whole new perspective to the game.
“It’s unbelievable being able to share it with your son,” Hampton said. “He and I both have a love for the game, so it’s exciting for us to be here.”
Donte was looking forward to watching Mickelson, a six-time major champion, including a victory at the PGA Championship in Kiawah Island, S.C., earlier this year. “He’s a legend,” Donte said. “He’s been in the game for 20 years, went head-to-head against Tiger [Woods]. I’m strictly here for him.”
Hampton, who is Black, enjoys seeing diversity within golf. Throughout the day, Hampton, who said Woods is his favorite player, was eager to get a glimpse of Finau and Varner. “It brings something special to the atmosphere to see a person of color,” Hampton said. “It’s exciting to see [Finau]. We couldn’t ask for anything better.”
Hampton couldn’t help but think Baltimore would be a perfect place to host more PGA tournaments.
“If you look at Maryland sports, it has a fan base, and of course it has a fan base for golfers,” Hampton said. “I think the area itself would be able to represent golf. Hopefully, the PGA will take this into consideration and bring more major tournaments back this way.”
