Writing this story with my 91-year young friend John W. Fox was fun!
So here I am sitting in the media center after Round 2 of the 2016 Dick’s Sporting Goods Open and who sits down next to other than the legendary sportswriter John Fox, no I need to make that John W. Fox he tells me. He opens with who do you think I met on the very first day I worked for what was then The Binghamton Evening Press? Also commenting that there is no such thing as an evening newspaper anymore. The day was Monday, in July 1949 which also was his first Monday ever in Binghamton, New York. That was ten years before my birth and I remember having Mr. Fox autograph his last column in the Press & Sun Bulletin a few years ago. He wrote columns for 56 years. This is going to be a rambling but good article!
Does he read the newspaper now? “It hurts!” Why? Content. Conversation ended, too personable.
So Mr. Fox what are your thoughts of the 2016 Dick’s Sporting Goods Open? What do you think the story line is?
Definitely you can’t use this. Reporter one spot over laughs out loud! “John, you should know better than that!
In 2014, with the newest ‘Mr. 59’ Kevin Sutherland and ‘Mr. 61 Year Sportswriter’ John Fox.
How would you prepare to cover a golf tournament? “Get another gin and tonic.” “The last time I covered a golf tournament?” “Get there earlier and meet the guys that I was following before they went out.”
Where do you storylines or hooks come from. Where do you get your ideas? Back in the day? “Usually after talking to them, it was a conversation you didn’t expect that would develop into a story.”
Mr. Fox admits that he pulled for the European teams in Ryder Cups because his wife Terry was Irish. He remembers Padraig Harrington coming to play in the B.C. Open to prepare for the Ryder Cup at Brookline CC. He didn’t get much from his interviews but his wife did after talking with Padraig’s wife for two days!
After a restroom break and listening to my high school buddy Jeff Lake’s band I returned to ask Mr. Fox about deadlines. Not that I have any to meet. “I was a deadline buster!” Late or early buster? “Earlier? Sometimes if writing three days in advance.” “I loved being with the afternoon paper, you could take it home with you and look at angles, look up history. Angles is the key word.” So now this is a three way conversation with Jeff Platsky two seats over. I google him and he is the SENIOR EDITOR AT PRESS & SUN-BULLETIN and now he is tasking Mr. Fox with assignments for tomorrow.
Jeff Lake, my high school buddy and his popular band “Straight Up.!
What your typical day like? “God that was so long ago, really!” John W. Fox will be 92 next month. What time was the deadline for the evening paper? One time we carried Red Smith and Dick Young. Who is Red Smith? I don’t know. What, you are a kid! John, I could be your kid!
Walter Wellesley “Red” Smith, was an American sportswriter who rose to become one of America’s most widely read sports columnists. Smith’s journalistic career spans over five decades and his work influenced an entire generation of writers. Smith became the second sports columnist ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary in 1976. Writing in 1989, sportswriter David Halberstam called Smith “the greatest sportswriter of the two eras.”
“He never went to the dressing room and wrote from the press box, even for the later editions.
Dick Young was a sportswriter best known for his direct and abrasive style, and his 45-year association with the New York Daily News. He was elected to the writers’ wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978, and was a former president of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
John asks Jeff who his favorite sportswriter was… and Jeff’s response was I can tell you who I detest! So and so would get comped by the Chamber of Commerce and put in vouchers to the newspaper. Uh oh, this is getting a little personal. Jeff likes John Feinstein and his books on golf and tennis. Wow, didn’t know Feinstein wrote tennis. Wonder what the name of that book is, A Good Courting Gone Bad?
I asked if Feinstein ever came to Endicott to cover the B.C. Open or DSGO? Two resounding don’t think he has.
The 10th annual Dick’s Sporting Goods Open. Renewed this year for the next three years through 2019!
I asked John if he knew what a hyperlink was and showed him my cut-and-paste from Wikipedia from above. About the same as pasting up Dick Young columns and republishing them? Another time, same tactics?
Okay, John we have to wrap this up as I have a meeting with Marie to plan our 40th high school reunion. Listening to Jeff’s band and snapping a few pictures ties into that Marie and I have been summoned to the Principal’s office on Monday at 1 pm. She said no worries, if it was the Assistant Principal’s office we would be in big trouble! Since 6th grade I has successfully avoided both!
Okay John, we have Paul Goydos (67-66) and John Riegger (66-67) tied for the lead at 11-under.
Let’s get some quotes.
Andy snatches one from John Riegger: Q: How’s it feel to be tied for the lead heading into the final round tomorrow? JOHN RIEGGER: You know, I hadn’t really given it any thought. I’ve been dealing with some medical stuff and I’m just trying to hope that I wake up tomorrow and I feel all right and I can play.
John, did you get anything from Goydos? “Noooo, c’mon, you are bleeding me!”
Scott Dunlap (64-70) is one behind the leaders.
Wes Short Jr. (69-66) and Neal Lancaster (69-66) are tied for fourth.
John Daly (68-68), Stephen Ames (68-68) and Bart Bryant 66-70) are tied for sixth place.
John, what about John Daly?
“John Daly is and always will be John Daly!”
And John W. Fox will always be John W. Fox!
Clustered leaderboard going into the final round. Largest Come-From-Behind Win this year is 4 strokes which means 9 players are within striking distance!
Not sure who will “out-Fox” En Joie and win the 2016 DSGO tomorrow but I think I “out-Foxed” the competition today writing this article with the always charming John W. Fox!
By the way the person Mr. Fox met his very first day on the job in 1949 was Dr. Cary Middlecoff, the reigning U.S. Open Champion. He was visiting Vestal Hills, fulfilling a commitment made before he won that first major. Mr. Fox would tell you, as he did me, based on his personal experience that it was the old Vestal Hills CC down by the Susquehanna River where the Vestal Plaza, now the University Plaza, is located.
After Mr. Fox left I asked Jeff what his fondest memory of working with him. When he gave him the tip that Binghamton was getting the B-Mets franchise. His wife was from Little Falls New, York and he went to see a NY-Penn League Mets game. He ran into little Al Jackson who asked him where he was from. After saying Binghamton, little Al Jackson
Did he ever buy you lunch? No!
I like that Mr. Fox remembers me from my high school sports days and we got a chance to share this time together. Life is good!
I like that Mr. Fox said “hello Andy” without hesitation when I met him, for the first time in a year, in the media center yesterday. I also like that he helped me write my story today and I hope to see him again tomorrow. I also hope John Riegger has a good night’s rest, wakes up tomorrow and can play the final round. But Big John, this just might be his day to come knocking on the Champions Tour with his first win in his 7th event!
Gotta love my job!
