Tales from the Tour: Pro Cycling Stories of Victory and Drama

Golf’s world number one Scottie Scheffler had a simple goal at the Paris Olympics this year – “Have fun.” It worked pretty well. He shot an incredible 62 in the final round to grab the gold medal.

That’s been Scheffler’s motto all year, actually. From January in Hawaii to December when he was named PGA Tour Player of the Year, he used the word “fun” 183 times in press conferences while dominating the sport with nine wins.

But golf’s not just about the victories. Sometimes it’s the small moments that tell the best stories.

Take Tommy Fleetwood’s dad, Peter, watching his son practice in Hawaii. It was his first time in paradise, sitting in a golf cart on a perfect day. When asked about family vacations growing up, he just smiled.

“We didn’t take holidays,” he said. “We couldn’t afford them. We went to junior golf tournaments in the summer. That was our holidays. And that was good.”

Money’s a different story these days. Just ask Xander Schauffele’s caddie, Austin Kaiser. The two former college teammates were joking about Kaiser’s earnings from those massive $20 million tournament purses.

“You get paid too much,” Schauffele told him.

Kaiser fired right back: “Yeah, but you’re the one paying me!”

Even golf legend Jack Nicklaus, now 84, shows how much the game means to players. He can still remember losing a junior tournament at Los Angeles Country Club nearly 70 years ago – right down to the opponent (Hugh Royer Jr.) and almost the exact score.

Not every story had a happy ending. World number one Nelly Korda was crushing it with five straight wins heading into the U.S. Women’s Open. Then came the 12th hole at Lancaster. Three balls in the water later, she walked away with a crushing score of 10.

Her coach Jamie Mulligan watched it all unfold from the grandstand. “This is kind of tough to watch,” he said quietly.

Steve Stricker had a better year, dominating senior golf with six wins including three majors. At the awards dinner, his daughter Bobbi knew what was coming: “If he looks at my mom he’s going to lose it.” Sure enough, when Stricker turned to thank his family, he couldn’t speak for seven seconds.

The year’s best story might be from those Olympics. After winning gold, Scheffler gave his caddie Ted Scott a special Olympic medallion for team members.

“I’ve never had a pro look me in the eyes and say he couldn’t do it without me,” Scott said. “It was special.”

Special year indeed.