The Swiss group met again early Saturday morning in Tampa. J.R. presided over the meeting. “Gentlemen, everyone here must understand the importance of this match. Bradford must win, so there can’t be any slipups. The contingency plan will go into effect if the match is too close to call after eight holes. I’ll give the signal. Are there any questions? Do you all know what to do?”
There were no questions.
While the Swiss were meeting, Bill and Marty were discussing campaign strategy and lack of funds. “We are in a dead heat, Bill, and almost out of money. The $10M you found for the last ad campaign is almost gone. Any suggestions?
“Actually, I do, Marty. The only problem is that it might cause a mutual friend of ours some problems. Without getting into any details, what’s your position on this?”
“Do what you have to do; we can always make it right after I’m elected.”
Twenty minutes later Bill made a call to Mario and asked if he wanted to purchase an insurance policy. A $5M contribution to Marty’s campaign would guarantee Buzz victory.
“It’s a small price to pay, Bill. Are you sure you can deliver?”
“I’m sure, Mario. This is what I have in mind.”
“Let’s do it. I don’t like it either, but I need Buzz to win. You’ll have the money Monday.”
Bill made one more call to someone that he had used for several dirty jobs over the past few years. “It’s a go.”
“Si, amigo. You can count on me.”
Bradford was one up as they headed to the Par 5, 525-yard 9th. There was a tailwind so Bradford decided to hit driver rather than lay up short of the fairway bunker. He knew Buzz could reach this green in two and he would need a birdie to halve the hole
Bradford took a long, slow backswing and concentrated on pivoting over his left leg to create torque and power. He was determined not to block the ball right, but he overcompensated. The result was an ugly duck-hook, his worst drive of the day. There is nothing but trouble left of the fairway, but Dave got lucky and the ball stopped in the rough three feet short of the trees. With a decent lie, he would still be able to reach the green in three. He was still alive.
Buzz didn’t need his driver. He hit a hard 3-wood that caught the tail wind and sailed across the left edge of the bunker to the blue, 200 yard marker. He was in perfect position to go at the green in two.
Dave’s lie was not good. It was nestled down in 3-inch grass and was slightly below his feet, the kind of shot that was easy to shank. He considered using his “Ginty”, the forerunner to today’s hybrids. The two grooves on the bottom made it easier to cut through the rough. A perfect shot would still leave him 150 yards from the green so Dave decided to take his medicine and punched out with an 8-iron, leaving him an 175 yards. He was still in the hole, but just barely.
Buzz’ drive was perfect. He only had 195 to carry the creek and 200 to the pin, an easy 4-iron. No one was more surprised than Dave when he hit the ball 178 yards. The ball caught the wood pilings protecting the green and fell back into the water. Buzz threw his club down in disgust. Bradford was back in the hole with a good chance to go 2-up at the turn.
Dave’s thinking changed completely when Buzz’ ball hit the water. Par would force Buzz to get up and down from 40-yards, not an easy job on any hole, particularly after you just dumped a ball in the water. He chose a 4-wood. It was a little too much club, but he wanted no part of the water. He ended up on the back of the green, almost 30-feet from the front pin with a good chance to make par.
The pressure was on Buzz and he responded. He flew a sand wedge almost to the pin and watched as it took one bounce and stopped inches from the hole. Bradford conceded the par and went about his business. With the added pressure, Dave’s 30-footer seemed more like 50 feet and he was happy when his long birdie putt stopped a foot from the hole. Buzz conceded and the players headed for the clubhouse. Bradford was 1-up with nine holes to go.
Chris caught up with Dave as he was entering the clubhouse. “Nice playing, Dave, keep it up.”
“Thanks. By the way, did you see where Mary went? She was with us until the eighth tee and then disappeared.”
“One of the kids called and needed a ride somewhere. She’ll catch up to us on the back nine. She told me to wish you luck.”
“Thanks, Chris,” Dave said as he entered the clubhouse. “By the way, I appreciate your keeping tabs on me, but if you don’t mind, you might want to wait here. The members don’t appreciate women in the men’s locker room.”
“I get it. May I get you a coke or something?
“Water would be great. No lemon.”
As Bradford stood at attention and waited for nature to run its course, he thought about the front nine. He had played well and was ahead, but it seemed like he was just hanging on. He shot a 38 or 39 but Buzz had played better. It seemed like Buzz could turn it on whenever he needed to. It was almost like he was toying with him.
Bradford was just wrapping up when he heard someone come out of a stall and walk behind him. The next moment he was slammed into the latrine with his face buried into the tile. It wasn’t funny, but all he could think of was that he would die with his zipper open. He felt more embarrassed than scared.
Dave’s mood changed quickly when the man grabbed his hair and pulled his head back so he could see the pictures of Mary. “If you want to see her again, lose the match. If you win, the men that took these pictures will make her a happy woman before they kill her. Understand?”
Now Dave was frightened. “Yes, I understand. I’ll lose the match. Just don’t hurt her. I’ll do what you want, but please don’t hurt her.”
“Okay. Now you just stay here for five minutes and play with yourself. Close your eyes. If you yell out or try to follow us, she’s dead. Understand?”
“Yes, five minutes.”
A moment later Dave heard the door slam shut and he was alone. He splashed water on his face but it didn’t do much good. He was still in a daze. Dave’s nose was bleeding and he had a bump on his forehead from the collision with the wall. He was still trying to gather himself and decide what to do when he heard a knock on the door and Chris ask “Dave, are you all right in there?”
“Come in Chris. We need to talk.”
She entered and saw immediately there was a problem. In a flash her hand came out of her purse holding a gun as she headed toward the stalls.
“It’s okay, Chris, they’re gone. Did you see a couple guys leave a few minutes ago?”
“I did see two men walk quickly through the pro shop. They were wearing golf clothes, but didn’t look like golfers. They seemed in a hurry, but I figured they were on the tee or something. Damn it, I should have trusted my instincts. Tell me what happened.”
Dave showed her the pictures. “They said they would kill her if I won. They also hinted they would rape her first. They weren’t kidding around. Any suggestions?”
“You have to trust me on this one. We’ll get Mary back, safe and sound. I think we know where she is. I didn’t tell you earlier, but as a precaution we had her followed when she left before. You just try to concentrate on the match. It’s even more important that you win. They are desperate and will make mistakes.”
“How can I play golf with this hanging over my head? I want to cancel right now.”
“I understand, Dave, but please, give it a try. There is so much depending on this and we are so close. Besides, if you pull out now I think they might panic and there is no telling what they will do. We need time to get Mary.”
Bradford thought for a few minutes and decided Chris was right. “Okay, I’ll try but I can’t guarantee anything.”
“That a boy, Dave. I need to make a call and get things started. You might not see me on the back nine, but there will be another agent taking care of you. Just trust us.”
“Chris, I’m counting on you. Mary means everything to me.”
“Good luck.”
Chapter 10
Par 4 – 410 yard
Buzz?
?? Story