THE START OF `A GREAT FRIENDSHIP'
Jake Owen is a singersongwriter, entrepreneur, businessman and passionate golfer who doesn't often have time for a round of the game he wanted to play professionally.
Owen's sports career aspirations at Florida State University ended with a wakeboarding accident that required reconstruction shoulder surgery. But when one career abruptly ended another began. The entertainer taught himself to play the guitar and now has a long-tenured country singing career.
Still, Owen isn't done with golf. His goal yearly for the last decade is to play four rounds at the AT&T Pebble Beach ProAm with long-time professional partner Jordan Spieth. The duo will be paired again this week at Monterey Peninsula Country Club, Spyglass Hill and Pebble Beach. Practice begins Monday with tournament play on Thursday through Sunday.
“I hit balls and things, but most of my friends will tell you, I am not a player, player,” said Owen, a member of the Golf Club of Tennessee just outside of his Nashville home. “I don't go out and play golf all the time. I just kind of go and hit balls and chip and putt. It just comes to the fact that I've got two little ones at home now.”
Owen, who plays to a two-handicap, first played at the AT&T with veteran Kelly Kraft, who finished second in the 2017 event. The then reigning U.S. Amateur champion was playing for the first time via a sponsor's exemption.
Spieth was also in the field for the first time and also via an exemption. He was paired with Tony Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback turned broadcaster.
“I got the invite to play and I was just elated,” said Owen. “As a kid, I grew up playing golf and wanted to play professionally. To be asked to play in the tournament after watching it on TV all those years, and then going out there and actually being treated as a professional for a week straight and playing the world's most beautiful golf courses? It was really special.” Owen knew of Romo's football success. But Spieth and Kraft, both from Texas, didn't know Owen and vice-versa. Like Spieth, Kraft and Owen are now close friends.
“We had a great time playing together and I just kept saying to Kelly, `Who is the kid?'” said Owen. “Kelly just kept saying, `He's kind of like the golden boy, you know?'
“There's just something special about him. He was just hitting shots you couldn't explain. My dad, who was a great, great player, was on my bag. The two of us together were just able with witnesses this Jordan Spieth thing happening.”
Owen, 41, is 12 years older than Spieth. He often refers to the threetime major winner as a kid. The following season, Romo couldn't play in the AT&T because he fractured his clavicle. Kraft hadn't retained his PGA Tour card. Spieth asked Owen if he wanted to be his playing partner.
“I just noticed, not only was he (Spieth) an incredible player, he carried himself like this gentleman,” said Owen. “But there was still this side to him, yeah, he was still a kid.
“He would get super mad. He would wear it on his sleeve. At the time, I didn't know him well enough to give him any grief.”
The Spieth-Owen paring worked, and they've played in the AT&T together since.
“It was the start of a great friendship,” said Owen.
Spieth won the U.S. Open and the Masters in 2015. He agreed in the same season to play in Owen's charity event in Florida.
“I'll never forget; I've got this picture,” said Owen. “When he got off the plane, he had his garment bag that said `Jordan Spieth, Master's Champion' and he had his green jacket over his shoulder. That stuff doesn't happen.
“I've really been able to watch him mature from a kid intro into a U.S. Open winner, Masters Champion, British Open Champion, and now a father and husband.”
Spieth returns the praise. Owen was his pro-am partner when the 23-year-old won the AT&T in 2017. The friends played together last season when Spieth finished second. They've made and missed the pro-am team cut, with Spieth seriously doing his job and Owen providing levity when it's needed.
“It's almost like playing with a buddy you always play with,” Spieth said. “He's going to give me crap when I miss a putt. It almost kind of gets under your skin and makes you really focus when he's like, `Hey, man, it'd be nice if you contributed to the team on a couple of holes.'
“That's the kind of stuff we'll do back and forth to each other. I think it helps — it just kind of makes you feel like you're in a game at home.”
IF YOU GO
What: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Where: Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course, Monterey Peninsula Country Club Shore Course
Tournament: ThursdaySaturday, 8 a.m., all three courses. Sunday's final round at Pebble Beach GL, 7:30 a.m.
Practice rounds: MondayWednesday all courses, (tournament courses closed to spectators Monday-Tuesday, Pebble Beach GL open on Wednesday)
Wednesday special events:
3M Celebrity Challenge, The Hay, holes 7, 8, 9, 1, 2, 10:30 a.m.; Chevron Challenge Champions vs. Champions, The Hay, putting green, 12:30 p.m.; Million Dollar Hole-in-One for Charity presented by Cisco, Pebble Beach Golf Links, hole 17), 2:30 p.m.
Tickets/more information: www.attpbgolf.com (Wednesday's tickets are $50; Thursday-Sunday tickets are $75-$1,100.)
Coming Wednesday: Swingtime, your guide to the tournament with maps, stories and photos