From childhood hero to playing partner, Adrian Meronk’s fairytale Open meeting with Tiger Woods at the 1998 Masters has served as both an inspiration, and a turning point in his life.
He’s not the only one. After all, if a man who grew up idolizing Tom Watson and Phil Mickelson can be considered a fan favorite, and even a superstar, it puts him somewhere between a legend and a hero.
Still to this day, Meronk says he still thinks about it often. When he turned 40 this year, he found himself in the same spot: in his late-20s, on the cusp of middle age, the father of a young girl and a stepfather in his early-to-mid twenties.
The only difference? Now he has a young, successful superstar to root for.
“I think you can take anything from that experience, from the moment you start to be a fan again, to that pivotal moment, what a moment that was for me,” Meronk told ABC News.
“I couldn’t wait to play with him again. I just wanted to be his friend again. I didn’t want him to be a number one, and I didn’t want him to be number two.”
That all changed when Meronk and Woods teamed up at the 1998 Masters.
The story of how they met has become a tale of redemption, redemption as the legendary golfer of his generation rediscovered his passion for the game that got him to the big time. As they walked through the PGA on the first day of the tournament, Meronk had a chance to say “thank you” to the now-retired professional who was his first-ever favorite athlete in high school.
“I was still so young and didn’t really know any better,” Meronk said. Even then, he had his head on a swivel.
“I had never seen someone like him, and I was just blown away just how good he was. And then when he got his PGA [tournament] card, I went and got mine and then I found out he used it to go get his, his girlfriend, his wife, his parents and his whole family, like seven of them. I mean, it
