U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 28, 1995

Bob Hullender

David Oakley

BOB HULLENDER: Thanks. I have been an amateur golfer for a long time and an amateur sportsmen, for I guess, as long as I was able to play any sport. And I have always, if the ball -- if it had a ball and it would bounce, I liked to play it. But in about 1972 I started having a lot of problems with osteoarthritis in my hips and had to give up a lot of the activities. I used to pitch, fast pitch softball I gave that up in the '70s. Racquetball became a thing that I couldn't get around with because of the pain in the hips; so I started playing golf a lot more at that time and felt like that with golf at least I could play through the pain and still be competitive in a sport that I'd always said I was going to play as I got older. I used to jokingly talk to my friend and say "golf was an old man's game; I am still going to play basketball, softball, all those things while I was young. I will get around to golf." Well, I did a little bit, not by choice. I got around to it because of the pain in my hips. By 1980, they had told me that I needed a total hip replacement on the right side. Being in the Air Force at that time, I was not too enthused about having that done, and so I delayed that until 1986 at which time I had my right hip replaced with what is called an AML prosthesis. It was done by a Dr. John Costy (phonetic) down at Biloxi (ph), Mississippi base in Keys Air Force. In about 12 weeks, I was again playing golf and I might say with a lot less pain. That was a very educational experience for me because I learned from the first one the right things to do, the type of exercise and everything required for rehabilitation. There is three really important things in getting your recovery from a total hip replacement. Number 1, you need the right prosthesis put in there for your style of activity. Number 2, you need a great surgeon to do it and number 3, it is you - you need to put forth the effort and the dedication and the rehabilitation which I did somewhat in the first one. I did okay with that one. But I was still working at the time. With the second one that I had done, I exercised up to eight hours a day everyday for the first 12 weeks to recover from that. And in seven weeks I was again playing golf. With those two hip replacements you learn that some of the things most of you and I do and before those hip replacements you take for granted things like being able to walk. That doesn't sound like a big deal unless you can't walk. And I had not walked in several years before the first hip replacement, and I couldn't walk when the second one was going bad either. It had been about two and a half years since I had walked 18 holes. When I had the second one done, eight months to the day and almost to the minute after the second one I was walking down the first fairway at Cherry Hills in the United States Senior Open with two artificial hips, and I had no problem walking that particular golf course. And I have played in this one several times. I can walk 18 holes any day of the week or everyday of the week because it is just not that big a deal for me anymore. Other than the big deal is I can walk and believe me, that is nice to be able to do.

DAVID OAKLEY: Well, actually I had turned pro when I was 25 the first time.

DAVID OAKLEY: I played for about three years. I tried to qualify for the Tour, I think, three times and the closest I came, I missed it by one shot at West Palm Beach. I think it was like in'72 something like that,'71. Really good school of Tom Watson and Steve Melnik, Mahaffee a lot of really good players that are obviously still around were in that school. But I did go over and played in Asia, and I played in Europe a couple of times; played across Canada and really enjoyed it, but I felt that the travel was kind of tough, and I decided that after three years I would, you know, find something else to do and spend time with my family, which that didn't happen to work out, but I am remarried now. This is my son Christopher, 9 years old. So for the last 20 years I have worked as a liquidator for twelve years running around the country; in the last eight years or so as a manager with Levitz Furniture. About two years ago, I decided seeing some friends that I have known in the past that were doing real well on the Senior Tour, that might be a possible avenue to try once again. I talked with my wife and she said, sure, I'd much rather have you doing that or doing something besides working retail where I was working as a manager and working every day of the week, weekends, every holiday; every other day until 9:00 in the morning until 9:00 at night, get home at 10:00 o'clock. So I started aiming towards, when I was going to turn 50 which is April the 27th, two months ago, and I went down to Florida just before Thanksgiving and started playing the mini tours and played pretty well on the Tommy Armour Tour and the next step I felt was to try the senior series as soon as I turned 50. And as it turned out, I did get to play up in Saint Louis and here in Chantilly, but about three months ago the doctor up here -- I had had a P.S.A. Test done every six months or a year for the last four years when I first found out that the P.S.A. Level was a little higher than it should be and it was hovering around 5 and suddenly last December it jumped up to 14, which is way, way too high. So my doctor said you need to go see somebody down there in Orlando right away and find out what is going on. We found out there was some cancer in the prostate. They said you could do a number of things, but at my age and my condition, the best would be to go ahead and have it removed. My wife -- I wasn't going to do it down there, but I wondered who was going to take me for a couple of weeks when I got out of the surgery and decided I better come, home back home here. My wife called over to John Hopkins; through her persistence got me in there. It is very hard to get in, terrific hospital. I got a doctor, Dr. Mostwin who was very supportive, not only, you know, psychologically, but just did a great job as far as telling me what to expect; what not to expect and everything I heard was that it is going to take about six weeks after the surgery before you should even try to swing or do anything. I went ahead and sent in my entry just on the off chance that four weeks after the surgery they might be wrong, and I would be able to at least try because I was so excited about being here in the Washington area where I grew up. Three weeks after that, actually 5 weeks ago today, I was you know, in the operation and you have to wear a catheter for three weeks to help you recover you know, from the surgery, so that came out Tuesday, two weeks ago. And I asked the doctor -- actually, first I asked him, you know, what do we do about sex, when do I start thinking about sex again? He said, well, you are going to have to wait about six weeks after the operation. I said, okay, now the important part, can I play golf next week. And he said well, is it important and I said, yeah, I'd really like to try. He says, well, that is going to be four weeks after your operation, right, I said yes. He said well you can try, if you start hurting, you are going to have to quit. I said I will. He said I think you will be too tired, so I waited until Sunday, and I went out Sunday morning and played over at Westwood where I belong and you know, I walked 18 holes with my little bitty light bag and made it around. I was tired as hell, but at least I knew I could get around and didn't hurt too bad to swing, so then I went out to Columbia on Monday and played really well, and got in. And every day, you know, feeling a little bit better, so that is basically it.

DAVID OAKLEY: Well, I was 2 under with 4 to go and you know, it is like you are not supposed to do it but everybody sort of does. I started looking for the clubhouse, I guess, or thinking about -- I thought even par would easily get in. I just said, don't, you know, don't start trying to get finished too quick and I finished double bogey, bogey, par, par. But the way I did it, I did not miss a shot on either one of those two bad holes. I hit the ball too good as a matter of fact, and it flew over, just over the green and I didn't have much of a shot coming back on the double bogey. But I got it in, and I wasn't tired at all. I felt great. I wasn't sure that 71 was going to make it but as we checked a couple hours later, the scores were really high and the course played hard. I was really much more tired later that afternoon. I think the adrenaline kicked in, and I just didn't feel tired at all playing.

BOB HULLENDER: I played at Cherry Hills and it is an emotional battle within me to stay under control even though you know, last year I won the World Seniors, the International Seniors, U.S. Senior Challenge. I won the our State Senior Amateur for the second time. I won the Georgia L. Coleman down in Seminole. I have won a lot of big amateur tournaments, but there is no comparison with that for me emotionally when you walk on the first tee at the U.S. Senior Open. It is just -- it is difficult for me to keep my emotions under control because I haven't been there enough to do that. I get a little better each time, seems like, but it is still a learning experience and a very exciting thing for me; particularly when people want to make a big deal about the two artificial hips, but in reality, I don't feel like they slow me down at all. That is not a factor in my playing golf anymore. Those are functioning extremely well. It is my emotions; not the two hips that prevents me from playing at the peak level.

DAVID OAKLEY: Can you do that maybe up here between the ears?

BOB HULLENDER: I walk every morning.

BOB HULLENDER: Right. I didn't walk very much at all, period, because of the pain level. If I walk from here to the back of the room, I was in pain because you are in constant pain really, but the walking really makes it bad.

DAVID OAKLEY: Jim Albus. I have known Jim since we went over to the Asia Tour together and then we played a lot down in Florida Winter Tour when I was playing professionally. And also met Bob Betley over there on the Senior Tour. Then I went to school with Bob Murphy.

DAVID OAKLEY: Right. University of Florida. He played number one his senior year. My junior year I played number 2. Next year I played behind Steve Melnik, who I guess is getting ready to turn 50 too.

DAVID OAKLEY: That is sort of a yes and no. A lot of my friends kept saying you know, because all they heard was six weeks also that you are not supposed to do anything until then. So I mean, my wife, Doris, wouldn't let me pick up anything. I am not supposed to pick up anything over 10 pounds. And so everybody said, you know, don't do it because you know, you got too much ahead of you, don't hurt yourself, and I said if the doctor says don't do it, I won't. But he said go ahead, so it was great.

DAVID OAKLEY: I imagine I am going to be very nervous. The last couple of tournaments I have played after playing all winter down in Florida, it was really a great preparation. I found that in -- when I have played the emotions, I have kept them in check much, much better than I used to. I did play in the U.S. Open at Oakmont when Johnny Miller won, and I played over in the British Open when Trevino won at Muirfield. Usually, I feel pretty good on the first tee. I am really looking forward to it. I don't think the nerves are going to be nearly as bad as you know, just trying to play well and having a lot of friends watching. You don't want to let them down as well.

DAVID OAKLEY: You know, it is really, really hard. The fairways just seemed to narrow up into nothing. I had played at Oakmont and U.S. Amateur like a couple of years before that when Steve Melnik won, and I thought that they were going to sort of be alike. I played pretty well in the Amateur, that was before it went to match play, but when I played in the U.S. Open, it was just -- it was like a different golf course. They made it so hard, and I guess it was a lot more people, maybe that is what made it so much harder, but it was really hard.

DAVID OAKLEY: Yeah, I had a sponsor that was sponsoring myself and Ken Harrelson, the Hawk, we traveled together for about a year, and we decided we were going to go over there and try to qualify. We had a great trip; flew up to New York and Ken went to the guy that takes your ticket, and says, hey, big guy, he introduced him, he gave him $50 and the guy put us in first class. So we flew all the way up to England first class. We got there played, practice round played with Bruce Devlin who I remet again yesterday. I think Ken qualified either first or second. I think he qualified back then on maybe three or four different courses and I was on the same course with Ken and I was like about fourth or something. But we both got in the tournament and it was -- it really was a tremendous experience.

DAVID OAKLEY: Yeah, went up to Saint Louis; had to qualify, shot 72 and 71 was low. I got in. And I had written them a letter asking for sponsors exemption to Chantilly with the story about the being from here, operation coming up, and George Howe (phonetic), who is in charge of it, told me before the last round that he was holding an exemption for me and I think it was -- I was only a couple of shots out of lead. I was in pretty good shape. He said if you are in the top 20, you are exempt the following week. So if you need it, you got it. He said, hopefully you won't need it. I said I'd much rather get in that way. I finished 8th so I did get in and I played real well at Chantilly; missed winning by a shot.

DAVID OAKLEY: Right.

DAVID OAKLEY: Yeah, I have played there maybe 10 or 12 times ever since you know, I was in high school. Never played very well there, but other than this last time.

DAVID OAKLEY: I am a little ways away. I used -- well, for the last few years I really tried to do stretching, you know, stomach crunches, situps, some pushups, and that is one reason the doctor said I recovered pretty quickly because I did take care of myself. But I haven't been able to do any of that because you know, just pulls on my abdomen if I try to, so I am a little weaker than -- I wasn't very strong to start with, but I am weaker and -- but I am okay, I think.

DAVID OAKLEY: The operation was exactly 5 weeks ago today. I think it was May the 24 or 27 or something like that. Or 23. I am not sure exactly what the date was but I know it was 5 weeks ago. The qualifying was last Monday, so that was one day short of four weeks after the operation.

BOB HULLENDER: No, osteoarthritis.

BOB HULLENDER: I don't know that the service was related to that. I have always been a very competitive individual and I think that characteristic is what helped me through the rehabilitation. I was determined that I was going to play golf and two artificial hips was not going to stop me.

BOB HULLENDER: Yes, but not associated with the hips. We all -- depending on the tournament and everything, you will lose your concentration at times, but in reality, maybe I am wrong about this, but I feel like I am probably in better condition to walk this golf course than at least 75% of the individuals who will be walking.

BOB HULLENDER: Because I walk everyday. I am not sure they do.

BOB HULLENDER: Right. I had two assignments in the Pentagon. My last assignment was there. I was a member when I was here at Army Navy Country Club and played there with some of the people who are-- well, Peter Jacobi is in this tournament, so I still have an awful lot of friends in the Washington area.