A 'Classic' to remember for Jim Gallagher and Lindsey Gilmer

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Fifteen years ago in Memphis, Jim Gallagher Jr. fought back the tears as he celebrated the fifth win of his PGA TOUR career. But these were no ordinary tears of joy. These were tears from a promise kept to an 8-year-old girl whose life was uncertain after being diagnosed with cancer.

St. Jude Classic

Jim Gallagher celebrates on the 18th green on TPC Southwind after his 1995 victory at the St. Jude Classic.

A couple of months earlier, Gallagher had learned that Lindsey Gilmer, the daughter of close friends, was suffering from acute lymphocyte leukemia. As the TOUR veteran sat on the porch of his home in Greenwood, Miss. that day in May, he thought about the shocking news. He thought about the tiny, frail girl. He thought about his own healthy kids.

And he thought about what to do -- and what to say -- when he saw Lindsey.

"Then something came to me," Gallagher said.

Noting that the upcoming FedEx St. Jude Classic was on his schedule, Gallagher told Lindsey, "I'm going to try to win the golf tournament for you."

On Tuesday, recalling that moment 15 years ago, Gallagher said other than Lindsey and her family, nobody else knew about the promise. He didn't want to make a big deal about it. "It was our little secret," he said.

Two months later, as Gallagher made the turn in the final round of the 1995 St. Jude Classic, he held a comfortable 4-stroke lead at TPC Southwind. But as he would later say, "the car started leaking oil." It came in the form of a double bogey on the 12th hole and another bogey on the 13th.

"There was one thing that got me through the back nine that day," Gallagher said. "I made a promise to Lindsey and I knew I had to keep it."

A secret that would ultimately fuel a 10-foot par on the 18th hole to avoid a playoff with runners-up Jay Delsing and Ken Green and solidify the fifth TOUR win.

"Nobody could understand why I was crying afterward, but I was truly inspired and touched by Lindsey," Gallagher said. "Sometimes you get lost in the shuffle, but when it is right in front of you, it gives you chills."

It's been 15 years since Gallagher's tribute and thanks to the men and women at St. Jude Children Research Hospital, Lindsey is now a happy and healthy 23-year-old woman.

"I'm happy to be alive and I wouldn't be here without St. Jude," she said. "It was a great moment when Jim won and I'm glad it's part of my life."

This week's tournament will mark the 53rd year of the St. Jude Classic presented by Smith & Nephew. The tournament has raised more than $23 million in children's cancer research since it began with Billy Maxwell's 13-under victory in 1968.

PGA TOUR Chief of Operations Rick George said the tournament embodies what the TOUR stands for -- community and charity.

"We give more back to charity than the other sports combined," Gallagher said. "We can do pretty amazing things with our charitable dollars and I'm proud to be part of an organization like the PGA TOUR."

Lindsey and Jim will be reunited on Saturday in Memphis in what he said might be his last tournament on the PGA TOUR -- not a bad place to create a few more lasting memories.