In this week's article I was going to "slam" the recent Skins Game and its all star line-up. And I was going to key in on its inclusion of Brett Wetterich. But truth is I am not really a fan of slamming. All too easy to slam. So I thought, before criticizing Wetterich's inclusion, let's find out a little more about him. I mean, someone made the decision to invite him to an affair that has 35 years of history, and in the past has featured all-star casts of Palmer, Nicklaus, Player and Watson - in the same group.
My first instinct is that he is probably a client of IMG (International Marketing Group). IMG has long since gone beyond just representing famous clients, to also organizing events for their clients to appear in. This justifies the huge endorsement deals they negotiate on behalf of their clients. It makes sense actually. But upon investigation I could find no connection between Wetterich and IMG, but did find the reason for his invite was his 10th place finish on the money list in 2006. What is interesting is those who finished one through nine all turned down the invitation. This is partly testament to the fact that the Skins Game is not what it once was, but equally valid I think is that the purses in pro golf are so big that the money in the Skins Game is clearly not an attraction. Brett himself was shocked when he got the call from his agent saying he was in if he wanted to be. He wanted to be.
Brett, born in Ohio in 1973, started playing at golf at the age of two. He played college golf, but his only scholarship offer was at WallaceStateCommunity College in Hanceville, AL. He turned pro in 1994 and his first PGA Tour appearance was in 1998 when he qualified for the US Open, but missed the cut. In ten years he has appeared in seven majors, four of them being in 2007, with all missed cuts but for a T37 at The Masters and a T32 at the PGA, both in '07. According to the PGA Tour media guide his first official rookie season was in 2000, where he toiled until 2002 before being relegated to the Nationwide Tour for the next two years, where he did win once. A strong finish at the 2004 Nationwide Tour Championship springboarded Wetterich back to the big Tour in '05 but he made just ten cuts in 28 events. Back to Q-School, where he finished T26th to secure his card for 2006, a life-changing experience if ever there was one.
2006 saw Brett's first PGA Tour win in the EDS Byron Nelson Classic and a runner-up finish at The Memorial, two noteable events. A year after finishing 132nd on the money list (a career best to that point) Wetterich's 2006 play led to his being tenth on the money list and, and and and, participation in another noteable event: the Ryder Cup, where he unfortunately attained an 0-2 record.
Riding the comfort of a two year exemption thanks to his 06 Nelson win, Brett did not win in 2007 but did finish inside the Top 30 of both the FedEx Cup standings and the season ending money list. He finished 2nd at the CA Championship which is part of the World Golf Series. That finish netted him $800,000 which, financially, is as good as a win in many other events. He also had a T2 in the Deutsche Bank Championship, the second event of the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Some personal notes on Mr. Wetterich: he has the initials MTW boldly displayed on his golf bag memorializing his late brother, who was killed by a drunk driver in Chicago in 2003. And he donated his $100,000 charitable share from the 2006 Ryder Cup to his alma mater, WallaceStateCommunity College. In 2007 Brett was 7th in driving distance, 170th in driving accuracy, and 169th in putting.
So now we know a little more about Mr. Wetterich; basically a feel-good story of a journeyman pro who, if nothing else, can say he a) won a tournament on the PGA Tour, b) played in the Ryder Cup, and c) played in the 2007 Skins Game. The latter I am not sure was great for the fledgling event, but certainly a highlight for a player seemingly on the rise.
