Late-bloomer Hicks breaks through in a big way
By Dave Lagarde, PGATOUR.com Correspondent
COLLINGWOOD, Ontario, Canada -- Funny thing about that shop-worn golf phrase about when it's your time to win it's your time.
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Consider Justin Hicks, who proved that timing is everything in the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic presented by Samsung this week. Had the Gretzky been a regular Nationwide Tour event rather than a celebrity pro-am, Hicks, who entered the week buried in 160th place on the 2008 money list, likely would have been on the outside looking in. But the Gretzky played with a field of 160 professionals, 16 more than normal, serendipitously opening the door for an unwitting winner.
Talk about seizing the four days. They became Justin time. So now meet Hicks, the freshly minted first-time champion who claimed his first significant professional victory with a two-putt par on the first playoff hole against Casey Wittenberg, who airmailed the green with his third on the 608-yard par-5 18th.
Sometimes all a player needs is a little break to turn a season, and perhaps even a career, around. And Hicks sure got one here in this resort area 90 miles north of Toronto.
"Some weeks it's a logjam just to get into a tournament,'' Hicks said. "I can remember weeks when I was first alternate, like Chicago (Bank of America Open). I got there at 6 a.m. on Thursday morning, had breakfast and then waited on the tee all day. And I never got it.''
That wasn't the case this week when Hicks gladly accepted the break and then made much of his own luck. After all, he did sign for a 2-under-par 69 at the Georgian Bay Club in the final round and posted an aggregate of 16-under-par 269 that included a 9-under 63 at The Raven at Lora Bay, the other track used in the first two rounds to accommodate the sizable field.
The key moment Sunday came on the 71st hole. Hicks trailed Wittenberg, the third-round leader, for 16 holes. Wittenberg's lead was two when he overshot the green on the 184-yard par 3 and chipped some 20 feet past the cup. Hicks then drained an improbable downhill 40-footer that broke approximately 10 feet to the right for a birdie and the pivotal swing.
"I just kept telling myself to keep giving myself chances,'' Hicks said. "Weird things can happen at the end of tournaments.''
With his victory, Hicks, 33, claimed some handsome crystal and a specially designed gold ring made on the order of those made for players who win Super Bowls or, in this particular case, titles in the National Hockey League. Those will last a lifetime. The immediate gratification came when Hicks was handed the first-place check of $144,017, the largest ever awarded in 18-plus seasons on the Nationwide Tour.
"You know I've never been in a position to think about the top 25 before,'' said Hicks, referring to the number of players on the final money list who are awarded PGA TOUR cards at the end of the season.
Well, Hicks, a conditional member who made just seven starts prior to this week, certainly is now. He made a quantum leap of 147 places up to 13th. By no means is he home free with $152,481. But he understands the significance of his move.
"Now it's within my grasp,'' he said. "Maybe I have a few high finishes in me or I can duplicate this week.''
Hicks is a self-described "late bloomer'' who has attempted to remain patient while learning the ropes. The thing is, he's been on the ropes more often than not. A native of Wyandotte, Mich., he fled the frigid Midwestern winters more than 11 years ago, moving to Florida to follow his professional dream. He did what so many obscure, hungry young pros do, banging around the Sunshine State's plethora of mini-tours, including the South Florida Golf Tour, the Golden Bear Tour, the Montgomery Tour and the Maverick Tour.
And he learned the hard way about how cash-poor some of those bottom feeders can be. The operator of the Maverick Tour disappeared one day and hasn't been heard from since. Hicks wouldn't mind finding him, since he still holds a rubberized check made out for 25,000 non-existent dollars.
Hick made a successful run through local and sectional qualifying to get into the 2008 U.S. Open and then sent people scurrying information about him when he shared the first-round lead. He faded to a tie for 74th but he knew a confidence boost was coming simply from being in the atmosphere.
"I told everyone that it was going to be the start of something good,'' he said. "I remember playing some good golf the rest of the year after I qualified for the '04 Open at Shinnecock. There's something about being in that quality of field that can help.''
It didn't last week when Hicks missed the cut in the Knoxville Open presented by Food City.
"I was wondering what happened,'' he said. "I expected to play well.''
The solid play just took a while to arrive. Hicks should have known something special was going to happen this week from the minute he arrived in the Georgian Bay Club men's locker room. That's when he was assigned to locker 99, the number the Great One made famous.
"Sometimes you jokingly say stuff about things like that, but I didn't this week,'' he said. "But apparently it was a message from somebody up above.''
It read: Justin, it's your time.
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