GOPHER IT!
Caddyshack, Happy Gilmore are must-watch golf movies
Golf season is in full swing, so what better time to roll out our five all-time favorite golf movies? Two of the five are obvious, with No. 1 being a no-brainer. No, really. It does not require even half a brain to enjoy Bill Murray talking about “total consciousness” and Rodney Dangerfield dancing to Journey. And if you have to ask what movie the Murray and Dangerfield refers to, well, you deserve a triple bogey.
What else sticks out about our rankings is that most are comedies. Golf is so difficult to play well that you either have to laugh or cry. We chose the chuckling option.
We wanted a cross-generational list, and this 1952 romantic comedy starring Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn fits the bill. Directed by George Cukor (”My Fair Lady,” “Born Yesterday,” “The Philadelphia Story”) Pat and Mike tells the story of a female golfer (Hepburn) whose game suffers when her fiance watches her play. Tracy is a sports manager who offers to help the situation, and his own romantic interests, by keeping the fiance away from Hepburn
4. “The Caddy”
Another oldie (1953) but goodie. Dean Martin is a golf pro. Jerry Lewis is his caddie. The pair land in show business after getting kicked out of golf. It’s campy, but deserves its place of honor as one of the best Martin-lewis films.
3. “Tin Cup”
Every golfer needs to see this 1996 romantic comedy, if for no other reason than the final-hole meltdown during the U.S. Open. Kevin Costner plays Roy Mcavoy, a down-on-his-luck former pro whose bad attitude forces him into a job as a golf teacher in Texas. He regains enthusiasm for the game after giving lessons to psychiatrist Molly Griswold (Rene Russo), whose boyfriend (Don Johnson) is an arrogant tour player. Mcavoy qualifies for the U.S. Open and is in contention until, well, we won’t spoil the ending.
2. “The Greatest Game Ever Played”
Golf prides itself on its rich history, and this 2006 historical sports drama is based on the true story of Francis Ouimet, who as a huge underdog became the first amateur to win the 1913 U.S.
Open. Shia Labeouf plays Ouimet, whose shocking win over British legend Harry Vardon ranks among the biggest upsets in sports history.
2. “Happy Gilmore”
What’s not to like? A wannabe hockey player (Adam Sandler) finds he has a talent for hitting a golf ball a long way, which sets up an implausible but humorous plot in which the foul-mouthed Gilmore enters a tournament to try to win enough money to keep his grandmother from losing her home. Craziness ensues in this 1996 comedy, with Gilmore overcoming long odds to become an unlikely golf hero. Bonus: Bob Barker shows up in one of movie-making’s most hilarious cameos.
1. “Caddyshack”
Of course.
So many famous lines in this 1980 classic comedy starring Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Rodney Dangerfield and Ted Knight.
A caddie named Danny Noonon (Michael O’keefe) with golfing talent enters the world of country club snobbery, where burned-out pro Ty Webb (Chase) takes him under his wing, teaching him the “Na-na-na-ba-ba-ba” secret of golf, even as Judge Smails (Knight) pressures him to partner with him in the club championship.
Dangerfield, meanwhile, is the antisnob who plays loud music out of his golf bag and tells crude jokes.
Finally, there is greenskeeper Carl Spackler, who chases gophers when he’s not reciting deep insights provided by the the Dalai Lama. And remember, the heavy stuff isn’t going to come down for quite awhile. roller@dispatch.com @rollercd