Ben Crane has gone from TOUR's Sultan of Slow to Lord of Laughs

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Ben Crane has transformed his image by becoming a YouTube sensation.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Ben Crane had just hit an approach from the eighth fairway during The Heritage at Harbour Town three weeks ago. As his playing partner, Ian Poulter, settled over the ball and prepared to launch his own shot toward the green, a woman's voice punctured the spring air.

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On slow play
On dance moves

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"Oh my gosh, Ben Crane," she yelled, waving her arms in excitement. "I've lost 100 pounds on your workout video."

To his credit, Poulter took the interruption in stride. In fact, he backed off the shot and said, in his droll British accent, "That's funny. That's actually quite funny."

Coming from Poulter, one of the PGA TOUR's Twitter kings, that was high praise. Crane's videos have taken on a life of their own in social media, as well as on his website, bencranegolf.com, transforming his image in the process.

The man who was known as one of the most deliberate -- well, let's just come right out and say it, slow -- golfers on the TOUR is now its resident comedian. The four tongue-in-cheek videos on the aforementioned workout, Crane's pre-round routine, slow play and dance have shown a side of him that most golf fans didn't know.

There are two more to be launched later this year. One has a gymnastics theme while the other will feature a high-octane foursome of guest stars: Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan and Ryan Palmer.

"We've got costumes, a studio rented and we're going for it," Crane said. "The boy band is coming back."

Not that Crane ever went anywhere. He's already won three times on TOUR, most recently at last year's Farmers Insurance Open. For a long time, though, Crane was best known as the plodding player Rory Sabbatini left behind on the 17th green at the 2005 Booz Allen Classic.

While Crane, who has finished sixth or better in the last three PLAYERS Championships, has made a conscious effort to speed up, he understands the public perception.

"I think that a lot of people knew me as someone who is passionate about my walk of faith, someone who's committed to my family and then on the golf course as someone who's been in the limelight on slow play," Crane said. "My image, amongst some of the golfers, is slow golfer/nice guy.

"So when friends go from slow golfer/nice guy to 'WOW,' it's like the perfect storm of my image to the videos, it's such a contrast. It's had more affect because of it."

Crane's close friends on TOUR agree. John Rollins, who lives near Crane in the Dallas area, remembers his buddy doing a trick with two wine corks at dinner one night. As he performed, Crane knocked over a glass of red wine, spilling it on his white shirt and white pants.

Crane didn't miss a beat, though. "Without flinching, I go, guys, keep you eyes on the cork," Crane said. "I am wearing wine, and I just keep going on with the trick." He even posed for a picture with the waiter after the table had been cleared.

"For us who know Ben well, that's the side of Ben that we see," Rollins said. "... He gets the slow-playing, kind of Bible-beating reputation but he's a great guy that likes to have fun and cut up when he's away from the golf course."

The videos were a byproduct of a 50th birthday celebration for one of Crane's friends. This buddy had a high-powered roster of friends -- including George Clooney, Lance Armstrong and Cindy Crawford -- and Crane was among those asked to send in a 90-second video clip of what the man meant to him.

"So I sat down in front of the camera ... and it was the most boring thing I'd ever seen in my life," Crane said, "I didn't even finish watching my 90 seconds."

So he called his friend Sam Martin, who helped produce several charity videos for Crane and his wife Heather. The golfer remembers Martin encouraging him to "jump way over the line. You have to literally sell out to this dance or whatever we're going to do for it to come off as funny."

So Crane told Martin to turn on the camera. "I've got this," he said simply. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The video made for the birthday celebration was similar to the dancing one that was most recently released. But the two feared the somewhat manic gyrations and skin-tight costumes might have too much "shock value for my image being the boring golfer," Crane said with a grin. So his coach, Greg Rose suggested a workout theme for the first video to be mass-produced.

And so a star was born. A star wearing a red wetsuit purchased for $5 at Goodwill, a black helmet and goggles. A star who brandished a "snake shaker" and skipped over yoga balls. A star who surrendered completely to his inner kid.

Crane knew he had a hit when his wife Heather, normally a hard sell because she's so even-keeled, started laughing. He wanted to showcase his sense of humor, but no one involved knew the videos would develop such a cult following.

"I think the thought was always there that this could be something positive and could sort of break up what people do think of him," Heather said. "But nobody imagined that it would take off like this.

"I think it shows that people want to see more -- people are intrigued by the players and what their lives are like. They are interested if there is funny stuff to see and a lighter side. It's more of a connection. They look so serious on TV. They don't even look like real people. Something like this gives them more of a human side."

The reaction from his peers has been positive, as well. Crane said Phil Mickelson came up to him at Phoenix earlier this year. He had just watched the workout video and Crane remembers Mickelson telling him "It's unbelievable. We need more of this stuff in the game of golf."

Judging by the reaction of the fans, Mickelson is right. Some fans can recite the lines from the video just like others conjure up the money quotes from "Caddyshack." They'll call out the "Snake shaker," too.

"Now I'm starting to get people saying the beginning of the dance video," Crane said. "They're saying the lines: 'I'm so bored watching you. I don't even want to hang out with you.' A lot of times I'll finish the line for them so we've got this good banter going."

On Wednesday at THE PLAYERS Championship, Heather and Ben drove into the parking lot at TPC Sawgrass. Two youngsters in a golf cart pulled up and asked it they wanted a lift. As the teens were taking the Cranes to a charity event out at the 17th hole, one of the kids told Crane how much he liked the workout video.

Heather's personal favorite is the video on slow play -- particularly the shot out of the bunker. Their two young children are just fascinated with their father's antics, and 4-year-old CeCe even knows some of the lines -- "I'm in the middle of the now, Mother," she'll say.

"I think they like the goofy side in him because he's playful with the kids," Heather says. "He's created this character of Pirate Dan. He has a wooden block in his eye and he does this funny voice and the kids love it.

"It might show up in a video sometime."