SPRINGFIELD, N.J. — It doesn’t rank with the time he leaped upon a car that he had won with a hole-in-one. Nor did it rival the celebration following his PGA Championship win over Tiger Woods in 2002.
But when Rich Beem’s pitch from about 27 yards settled just 2 feet shy of the hole at Baltusrol’s par-5 18th, the soon-to-be 46-year-old raised his arms triumphantly. “Even I could shake that putt in,” said Beem.
The birdie to close out a round of 2-over 72 meant that Beem — he of the full-time job with SkySports and settled into retirement from playing — had somehow made the cut at the 98th PGA Championship.