Michael Bullock: After last year’s fairy tale, club pro returns to Valhalla PGA Championship Spotlight Golf

There’s an old saying that everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame, but Michael Block is in the sports spotlight for the second year in a row with a fairytale PGA Championship experience.

Bullock, who works for Arroyo Trabuco in Southern California, will be a stranger to most when he becomes one of 20 club pros to qualify for the 2023 Oak Hill game. name, but announced himself to the golf world with an unforgettable game.

Brooks Koepka beats Scottie Scheffler and Viktor Hovland to win Wanamaker Trophy for third time and his first By the time he was five Grand Slam champions, Block was establishing himself as a celebrity thanks to a performance so worthy of a script that a documentary was being made about his accomplishments.

Bullock’s hole-in-one, viral interviews and incredible moments saw him finish tied for 15th, the best finish for a club pro since 1986, and his performance was good enough to secure an automatic spot at this year’s event. .

After a year of invitations from PGA Tour sponsors, business deals, and interactions with stars in sports and entertainment, Bullock returns to Valhalla for the second men’s major of the year – Live on Sky Sports Golf from Thursday – though he played down hopes of repeating the success.

“There’s literally no way on God’s green earth that I could have done what I did last year!” Bullock told Sky Sports exclusively ahead of this year’s game. “I feel like I have more pressure because there are more eyes on me, but at the same time I feel like I have less pressure than before because I’ve done it.”

The establishment of the Block Party

The then-46-year-old had missed the cut in his previous six major tournaments, but he quickly exceeded his low pre-tournament expectations with back-to-back 70s over the first two days, putting him in the lead heading into the weekend. Ten, just five shots off the lead.

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Thursday, May 16, 1:00 p.m.

“I really only had two goals that week,” Bullock said. explained Sky Sports Golf begins live broadcasts on Thursday ahead of this year’s Valhalla game. “Making the cut is a huge goal, as is becoming the low-score pro so I can be on the 18th green on Sunday afternoon.

“Both of these were done on a Friday as no other club professionals made the cut, so it allowed me to really relax over the weekend – even though it was the most pressure I’ve ever been under in my golfing life!”

He started getting extra attention on Saturday when he had a “surreal” live walk and talk with legendary announcer Jim Nantz and experienced huge chants of “Blockie!” He stood out from the crowd when he shot a third-round 70 alongside former world No. 1 Justin Rose.

“That day it dawned on me what was happening,” Bullock admits. “Every player in the dressing room encouraged me to keep having fun and keep doing what I’m doing, but as Saturday went on it started to get more serious.”

In a video that went viral on social media, Bullock was nearly speechless when a reporter revealed after the game that he had partnered up with four-time major champion Rory McIlroy on Sunday. Admit it’s “the coolest thing in the world.”

“This is something I never expected in my life,” Bullock said. “I really enjoyed my time with him [McIlroy]. He’s awesome. The crowd was great. I had one of the best days of my life!

Hollywood style in Oak Hill

Bullock started with the final day’s six matches knowing that a top-four finish would ensure his place at next April’s Masters, but he admitted he had no idea that a top-15 finish would automatically allow him to return to the 2024 Masters.

When he stepped onto the par-3 15th hole at two over par for the round, hopes of finishing in the top 15 seemed unlikely, but when he hit the hole for a sensational dunk , but elicited the biggest cheers of the week from the packed house.

“I feel chills all over just thinking about it!” Bullock explained. “I’ve never been in that situation, I don’t know if I’ve played too much in front of so many people, and I’ve never had a hole-in-one in a tournament, so putting it all together there What a crazy moment!

Bullock bogeyed the next hole and called for par on the 72nd hole, where he fired his second shot into the crowd before hitting a stunning up-and-down move to ensure he stayed at the top of the field into 2024 .

“I couldn’t believe my game held up under that kind of pressure, I still can’t believe I did it,” Bullock added. “I knew if I could stand up, the crowd would go crazy, but I was very lucky on the chip. When I saw the replay, I thought ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’

“Before that week, I had only cried once in my life, but from Friday night to Sunday night, I must have cried 50 times! It was like Oak Hill had really messed with my emotions, and now I was having those emotions again. All came out.

“On the plane flying here [ahead of Valhalla] I was watching the stupidest movie in the world, I can’t remember what it was, but I shouldn’t have cried over it. Then I sat on the plane and burst into tears!

What happened next to “Blockie”?

Bullock said his performance made him “look cooler” to his children as his Instagram following grew, and in the following weeks he took advantage of a sponsor exemption to compete in the Charles Schwab Challenge and RBC Canada The frenzied media coverage of the Open opportunity continues.

He listed Tiger Woods’ trash talk, Michael Jordan’s text messages, being involved in an F1 driver video shoot and winning a championship with DJ Khaled as “20 to 30 pinch-me” moments in the past year, although he also admitted that His rapid rise to fame has given him a new appreciation for the best in the world.

“The things that Scheffler does every week and still plays the way he plays. And then what Rory has done as well, what Tiger Woods has done his whole life. I can understand why they act certain ways and they might Don’t do interviews or turn down something because of how many requests they’ll get.

“I’ve only been playing for a few weeks or whatever and they’ve been doing it their whole lives and they’re playing amazing golf at the same time. I have a lot of respect for those guys and I can’t keep doing this – it’s amazing what they do. .

Another block party in Valhalla?

Bullock intends to travel to England later this year for the final qualifying round of the British Open and complete “one of his biggest check marks” after failing to qualify in 2023, but will first focus on enjoying his recent appearance at the PGA Championship. every moment.

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Thursday, May 16, 10:45 pm

“My wife says ‘Just be careful about what you’re doing and take a moment to get back into Blockie mode.’ We call it Blockie mode, and it’s just having fun. I’m having fun, playing well, and I’m stressed out. It’s possible to get nervous and get nervous quickly, but that doesn’t work in the golf swing.

“I actually asked my wife at dinner one day why my goal should be this year and she said ‘Michael, try to advance and go from there’, so that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

“I’m going to try to have a good score in the first round, move on to the second round and try to advance again. It would be great if I can be on the green with the winner again on Sunday.”

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