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Chip shots
Published: 8/13/2007 3:19 PM
Last Modified: 8/13/2007 3:19 PM

Just a few notes after witnessing Tiger make history at Southern Hills….

Trying to watch Tiger Woods, you take your chances with regard to those enormous galleries. During his tournament-changing Friday round of 63, my wife and I got close-up views on No. 8 and No. 13, with no interest in being trampled by the hole-by-hole sprinters. We camped on our spots for nearly an hour to see him on those occasions so we wouldn’t be five or six people deep.

We found galleries full of polite folks as threesomes played through. Until Tiger arrived, that is, and then newcomers thought little of trying to wiggle directly in front of those already in place. A few found my sharp elbows. Oops.

Someone asked me before the tournament if I was considering writing a short story about great golf movies. Yes, it would have to be short. There’s “Tin Cup,” and how about “Caddyshack,” and some would say “Happy Gilmore,” and, well, once you realize you’ve begun considering “The Legend of Bagger Vance,” you start thinking there’s no story worth writing on this subject.

The pros as I saw them: great traffic control, the air-conditioned bus on the way into the course, water seeming like a bargain at $2.75, the absolute challenge of the Perry Maxwell course design – no tricks needed to make grown men cringe.

The bogeys: the bus with no air conditioning on the way out of the course, concession sandwiches and burgers that could kindly be described as lousy and cold at $6.75, the continued rudeness of course marshals to open the ropes and allow foot traffic between holes No. 9 and No. 18 while players were putting out not far away, caddies fruitlessly flailing their arms as if to say, “Hey, we’re working here!”

A final note: Tired and overheated, I got a good laugh for the drive home. Consider the irony of parking at Oral Roberts University, then returning to the car to find business cards, each advertising one free beer redeemable at a local strip joint, stuffed under the windshield wiper.

At least they didn’t advertise themselves as being the official gentleman’s club of ORU or the PGA.

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I See Movies for Free

“I was born a poor, black child” … not me, actually, but Steve Martin’s character in the “The Jerk.” That absurd opening line is just one of the absurd number of film facts, quotes and minutiae contained in movie critic Michael Smith’s brain, at his disposal to toss out on a moment’s notice. It’s a key requirement as Tulsa World film critic to know these things. Michael learned a few other life facts along the way (seven years as a Crystal’s Pizza & Spaghetti manager) before attempting journalism and joining the Tulsa World in 1996, where he’s covered everything from a school shooting in Fort Gibson to a tornado in Stroud to witnessing an execution. A little community theater coverage was sprinkled in there, too. Movies engender many of his happiest memories, from standing in line for “Star Wars” and “Grease” at the Southroads Cinema to the James Bond and Pink Panther movies that always premiered at the enormous Continental Theater.

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Past Articles By Michael Smith

2/16/2013		Broken Arrow movie theater moves to discount showings
2/15/2013		Review: 'Amour'
2/15/2013		Review: 'A Good Day to Die Hard'
2/15/2013		Review: 'Beautiful Creatures'
2/14/2013		Review: 'Quartet'
2/14/2013		Shirley MacLaine to speak at Osage Casino
2/14/2013		Weekly rewind: February 14
2/14/2013		REVIEW: 'Beautiful Creatures'
2/12/2013		Belgian best picture hopeful 'Amour' opens in Tulsa on Friday
2/10/2013		'Die Hard' marathon at AMC Southroads on Wednesday ends with new film
2/9/2013		Review: 'Identity Thief' a stupid movie from stupid idea
2/8/2013		Oscar audit: Critics choices for best picture hold up over time

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