Q&A: Miller’s last major

Any club pro teeing it up in his first PGA TOUR event, as Brian Morris will do at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship starting Thursday, would likely admit to being quite nervous. Not Morris, though. Sure, he’ll feel what he calls “competitive butterflies,” but he only gets truly nervous when he goes to see his doctors at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston every three months. Almost two years ago, those physicians cut into the back of his skull and removed a malignant tumor from his brain. They later discovered stage IV cancer in his stomach and esophagus, too, and, at his most recent check-up, inoperable tumors in his neck. By all rights, this inspirational and indomitable man probably shouldn’t be living out a dream this week at Port Royal Golf Course. But he is, and Morris’ very presence in the field should teach the rest of us about not taking our own lives for granted. “I used to be terrible with nerves,” Morris says. “But since I got diagnosed with cancer, it’s like hitting a tee shot don’t really – like I embrace it now because I’m able to do it and I probably shouldn’t be because according to the doctors and how my cancer was growing and stuff. “I’ve been past my expiration date, you know?” It was after suffering vertigo-like symptoms at work that Morris, the 53-year-old head pro at Ocean View Golf Course in Devonshire, Bermuda, began to look for answers. Expecting nothing was seriously wrong, he asked a co-worker to drop him at the hospital and come back later. “The doctor, you know, he does that finger across your eyes, and you follow the finger,” Morris recalls. “One of my eyes was moving. One of my eyes was, he said it was like a jittery type of like jerking. And he was like, oh, boy. “So, he gave me a CAT scan,” Morris continues. “We went from CAT scan to an MRI to intensive care to air ambulance to brain surgery on Monday.” There was no time to wait; the cancer had to come out immediately. Morris’ wife, Laurie, was told to pack a carry-on bag, and within 24 hours the couple arrived at Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. True to his optimistic nature, Morris puts a positive spin on the conversation he had with his doctor before surgery. “(He said) ‘Don’t forget, I’m in your brain,’” Morris recalls. “‘You know, I’m taking the tumor out, but anything could happen.’ It could be paralysis. It could be this. It could be death. And I was blinking like uncontrollably. And he said, ‘Are you OK?’ And I say, ‘Yep, I’m fine. I’m just practicing waking up. That’s what I want to do.’” Morris admits he was terrified. He remembers kissing his wife and wondering what was going to happen next. “Like, do you wake up?” he says. “I was so pleased when I woke up. I can’t remember who my nurse was, but I told her I loved her. She was like, ‘Oh my God, that’s kind of forward.’” Morris had cleared one hurdle, but on Dec. 23, 2019, two days after the surgery, he was told his brain cancer was terminal and had metastasized to his stomach and esophagus. Fast-forward to today, with Morris about to play in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship on a sponsor’s exemption – the invitation brought him to tears when he received it – and you can see why he believes he’ll be playing with a purpose. Not just this week but going forward. After all, it’s been two years since doctors told him to get his affairs in order. He and Laurie talk about this week and the gift of whatever time he has remaining when they feel stressed. “I’m wondering like maybe I have this to help others,” Morris says. “Maybe that’s the plan, you know? … Maybe I got it to show other people that, hey, you can fight this, man. You could battle it because I could’ve laid down. I could’ve settled my affairs and just accepted that, hey, I’m going to die in six months. I believe my doctors 100 percent, but I don’t believe that. Here I am. Every day I get up, I’m so thankful. “And here I am,” he continues. “Every day I get up, I’m so thankful. I get my breath and I just don’t plan long-term. I plan my life in like three-month increments.” Morris stayed in the hospital for four days and, not cleared to travel, Boston for two weeks. He missed Christmas with his family. “Christmas is huge for us,” he says. But he was surprised on New Year’s Eve when nine relatives and friends knocked on his door. “They showed up with all the kids and whatnot,” he recalls. “… And we spent New Year’s Eve in Boston. I cried again.” For nearly two years, he has undergone chemotherapy every three weeks – his most recent treatment was last Friday. The first course of chemo didn’t work, nor did the immunotherapy that was meant to direct his cells to fight the cancer. He’s currently receiving an experimental drug that he calls his “last shot” and will find out at Dana-Farber in December if it’s working. The drugs invading his system leave boil-like lesions on his legs. Even more challenging for the golfer is the neuropathy he’d developed in his hands and feet. It’s a constant feeling of pain, like he’s being stuck with pins and needles, and it limits his ability to walk long distances. The neuropathy and the cancer have taken a toll, and tournament officials will allow Morris to ride in a cart this week. But make no mistake, he can play. Morris attempted to qualify for this year’s U.S. Senior Open and tied for 12th in a New England PGA event last month. “When I go to the airport, I have a hard time standing up for a half an hour,” he says. “But I could play golf for four hours and I swear it’s because of where I am when I’m playing. I’m just thinking of how you make this shot and that shot. You know what I mean? So, I don’t realize I’m tired until I play 18. And then I’m like pooped and I come home and take a nap.” Morris, who has given lessons to celebrities like the late Patrick Swayze, Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas, played cricket, soccer and golf as a kid. He proved a quick learner in all three, but particularly enjoyed going with his dad to the golf course on Sundays. “I used to love the way they dressed back in the day in like green pants and red pants and diamond studders and pom-poms on the hat,” says Morris, who especially revered Fred Couples. “And I was always waiting to be able to play with them.” He got that opportunity when he was 12 and soon began thinking about becoming a pro. But his father died in an accident when he was 19, and Morris was so distraught he briefly quit. “I went to one of the cliffs here in Bermuda and I threw all my golf clubs and all my shoes and everything off the cliff,” he says. “I was disgusted with golf because it didn’t mean anything to me without my dad. I never wanted to play again.” Morris’ mom died of cancer later that year, adding to his despair. He worked as a bartender to help support his siblings and didn’t play golf again for nearly a decade. “One day somebody invited me to go play golf and I didn’t want to go, but I did,” he says. “I made triple on the first hole. I’ll never forget it. And then the second hole, I missed the green and I was like, ‘This game sucks, I told you guys.’ And I chipped it in (for birdie).” After enrolling in the now-closed Golf Academy of the South in Orlando, Florida, he honed his game and learned to teach. He also learned to repair clubs and manage a pro shop. He graduated with honors in 2003 and has been the head pro at two clubs in Bermuda. “I got sidetracked,” he admits. “I don’t like to use the word regret. You know what I mean? I made a fair decision that day, throwing all my golf clubs away. I wish I would have stayed. But it happens. I was young. I was only a teenager and life just changed so fast for me. “But I got through that and 10 years I was out of golf. I was probably better for it because maybe had I got into that business then it probably wouldn’t have worked out. Maybe I just needed time to mature and whatnot. And like I said, it’s been 25 years now. I love it.” Far from obsessed with his own problems, Morris has raised more than $200,000 to help the families of other cancer patients pay their hospital bills. How? By three times playing 180 holes in a 24-hour marathon, a sprint that lets him briefly forget that he himself has terminal cancer. “You have so much alone time,” he says, “and you don’t realize it when you’re driving, when you’re brushing your teeth, using the bathroom, getting in the shower – you have so much alone time and you’re so scared, man, because you know, like, you’ve got a wife, you’ve got kids. You’re always worried about leaving them. “And so, you think about it every day,” he continues. “When they tell you that you’re dying, you think about dying every day, you know? Not the bad things really, it’s just the thought of like leaving your family, leaving the people at your job, and leaving your kids. So yeah, you think about it, but when I play golf, I don’t have time to, because I don’t want to miss a six-footer.” Morris says he’s had more good days than bad of late, and he thinks the adrenaline and excitement of this week will help keep him strong. His only goal is to shoot the lowest score he can at Port Royal on Thursday and make Bermudians proud. When tournament director Justin Belanger extended the exemption to Morris two weeks ago, he told local newspapers that the week would be about “more than golf; it’s about this community. … “It will be great to see the island join us in supporting his dream and cheering him on.” Morris embraces that opportunity. He’s looking forward to having Laurie and three of his four kids – his daughter will be watching on TV at her home in England – as well as aunts, uncles and friends in his gallery. “It makes a difference to me how I play,” he says. “But to them, it doesn’t matter. They just want to see me because they know what I’m going through. As far as being proud of me, all those boxes are checked. I just want them to enjoy the moment like I do. “We have a lot to be thankful for outside of the bad things. There’s so much to life without dwelling on the bad stuff, you know?” Morris says it’s hard to overestimate the impact this week has had on his mental well-being, as well as his overall health. He says he plans to “experience it like nobody else,” and “eat it up, man” – but not just for himself. The week is also for the entire island, and all cancer survivors. “I’m going to enjoy people cheering for me,” he says. “I’m going to enjoy people writing about me. And I just hope that (this) story and whatnot gets out there to people that have cancer or have a sickness that think that it’s all doom and gloom, because it’s not. “I believe that a positive attitude and a positive outlook is probably better than any miracle drug,” he adds. “And if you could look at somebody and maybe draw some inspiration from them to get you motivated, then I’ve done my job and I don’t believe in just touching one person. I want to touch as many as I can.”

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AUSTIN, Texas — Needing to win the final hole to advance, Robert MacIntrye drilled a driver to 3 feet of the cup on he 371-yard 18th hole. Moments later, Sergio Garcia ended one of the record eight sudden-death playoffs with a hole-in-one. RELATED: Bracket, Scoring | Things you may have missed, WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Day 3 Already the most fickle event in golf, the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play on Friday was an endless frenzy. Kevin Na discussed with Dustin Johnson about waiting for a putt to be conceded — 6 inches — and then birdied the last two holes to oust the No. 1 player in the world. Patrick Cantlay, practically flawless with 14 birdies and an eagle over two days, managed only two birdies and lost a playoff with a three-putt. When it finally ended, Jon Rahm at No. 3 was the only player from the top 20 seeds who made it to the knockout stage of the weekend at Austin Country Club. “You just never know what can happen out there,” Billy Horschel said after beating Max Homa on the third playoff hole. Just about everything did. Garcia beat Lee Westwood in the longest of the eight playoffs with a 9-iron from 161 yards to a front pin on the par-3 fourth hole that landed just beyond the pin and trickled back into the cup. Equally stunning was the drive of MacIntyre, the 24-year-old from Scotland with plenty of spunk and loads of fight. He was 1 down against Adam Long, who was poised to advance with Johnson in the group ahead about to lose to Na. Johnson backed away from his 6-foot par putt — Na only had 4 feet for birdie — and his caddie, brother Austin, stepped in a few feet from the cup to help read the putt. Out of nowhere, a ball shot up the left side of the bank around the green and rolled in front of the caddie’s feet. Dustin had to mark MacIntyre’s ball so he could putt. MacIntyre was oblivious to what happened except he knew he hit the shot of his life. “Probably one of the best and one of the luckiest golf shots I’ve hit in my life,” MacIntyre said. “You’ve just got to keep fighting until the end, and it just shows anything can happen in this game.” His only chance was a low bullet, and it caught the downward slope for extra run toward the left side of the green, which MacIntyre couldn’t see. He heard it was on the green. “I didn’t have a clue how close,” MacIntyre said. I’m thinking it’s going to be just on the green below the slope. Going to have hopefully two putts maybe to win the hole. But when I seen where they put the ball back down I was like, `No way!’ “And that’s what you play the game for, these moments.” Given how three days of group play has gone, there is no telling what to expect on the win-or-go-home weekend. It will include a trio of Texas Longhorns, including Jordan Spieth for the first time since 2016. He won three straight holes around the turn and, unlike Thursday when he let Matthew Wolff off the hook, Spieth managed to close out Corey Conners. Scottie Scheffler halved his match when Xander Schauffele made an 8-foot birdie putt on the last hole, and then Scheffler returned the favor with a 12-foot birdie on the second extra hole. The other Longhorn is Dylan Frittelli of South Africa, who became the first No. 64 seed in Match Play history to make it to the weekend. Frittelli had company. Two other players seeded at No. 60 or lower made it to the knockout stage. Ian Poulter won his third straight match as the No. 60 seed, while Erik van Rooyen (62) advanced by beating Daniel Berger with a par on the second playoff hole. Poulter and Matt Kuchar are the only players to have won all three matches. Kuchar knocked out defending champion Kevin Kisner with a 20-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole. The 64-man field based on the world ranking was divided into groups of 16 based, with the final 16 assigned to the “D” group. Eight of those players are still in the game. Rahm was the only player from the “A” group of top 16 seeds. Brian Harman felt a small measure of redemption. He shot the equivalent of a 64 in the opening round and still lost to Cantlay, who had seven birdies and an eagle. But when Cantlay fell flat and lost to Hideki Matsuyama, that sent Cantlay and Harman back out for a sudden-death playoff that Harman won when Cantlay’s 4-foot par putt lipped out. Garcia was amazed by his ace, but he was quick to point out that he had to make a 10-footer and an 8-footer for par on the previous two holes just to stay in the match during the playoff. The eight playoffs to decide group winners broke the previous mark of five in 2017 since group play began six yeas ago. “The two putts I made … massive to keep myself going,” Garcia said. “And then obviously the shot on 4, it’s a great shot, but then you get lucky that first of all it doesn’t hit the flag because it must have been very close to hitting the flag, and then it rolls back in. Obviously, very happy about that.”

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We can't take our eyes off Will Zalatoris; well, at least when we can find him. If you, like I, build your lineup in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf before the page is updated to reflect the field for the next tournament - that usually occurs on Tuesdays - locating golfers who weren't committed at the deadline on Fridays requires additional steps. Zalatoris didn't qualify for the Sanderson Farms Championship until he recorded a top 10 at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship. Not long after, he accepted the top-10 exemption to play this week, so he didn't appear in the "Field" in the ADD GOLFER function of the game. RELATED: Power Rankings | Preview the course, storylines | Expert Picks In the future, if you don't want to (or can't) wait until the "Field" is updated on Tuesday, follow these steps to locate additions after the commitment deadline. 1) On the My Roster page, click on ADD GOLFER; 2) On the pop-up that appears, click on "All"; 3) Enter a few letters in "Search" (e.g. "ZAL"); 4) All results of your search will populate immediately beneath that area; 5) Add the golfer as usual. As a reminder, bonus points for non-members in your starting lineup in the final round are added manually on the day after the conclusion of the tournament (although sometimes on the same day if it's an early Monday finish). Adjustments for playoff losses, data corrections and other fixes also occur at the same time, when applicable. Results, points and ranks aren't final until then. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf My roster for the Sanderson Farms Championship (in alphabetical order): Sam Burns Sungjae Im Sebastián Muñoz Doc Redman Scottie Scheffler Will Zalatoris You'll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Bronson Burgoon; Brian Harman; Charley Hoffman; Anirban Lahiri; Denny McCarthy; Pat Perez; Kristoffer Ventura; Xinjun Zhang Driving: Stewart Cink; Lucas Glover; Emiliano Grillo; Charley Hoffman; Tyler McCumber; Davis Riley; Kristoffer Ventura POWER RANKINGS WILD CARD Zach Johnson ... Easily could have slotted in the Power Rankings proper. He logged top 10s in two of his last three starts and finished T14 in his course debut here last year. In full disclosure, I owned him in my season-long private league in 2019-20 and was underwhelmed, so I'm probably not emotionally disconnected yet to buy into the recent surge. I drafted him primarily because he was in the last year of the exemptions for winning the 2015 Open Championship, but only the PGA Championship was held, as you know. Don't worry, I'm catching up. Sometimes this space for these capsules serves as a confessional. DRAWS Tyler McCumber ... He's a proven winner and he's gone on tears before, so expectations are higher than usual coming off the runner-up finish at Corales. He prevailed three times on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica (Ecuador, Mexico, Peru) and thrice more on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada, the latter grouping during a four-start stretch in a five-week span in the summer of 2018. Emiliano Grillo ... As long as he continues to putt well enough, he'll contribute. Just don't expect frequent leaderboard appearances. Connected on his sixth straight cut made with a T21 at Corales where he was inside the top 10 in both total driving and greens hit. Also ranked fourth in par-5 scoring for the week. Placed T39 in his first look at Country Club of Jackson last year. Henrik Stenson ... He was a classic Wild Card last week and delivered a steady T21. Figuring that it was a proper springboard for the new season, confidence remains high because of who we know him to be and his fit for his debut on the track. Ideal in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, although his cachet likely will dull intended sharp angles. Lucas Glover ... While he's somewhat inside the cone of converging trends what with a T17 at the U.S. Open in his last start and three top 25s among four cuts made at the CC of Jackson, there's potentially an additional layer of inspiration in the mix this week. His maternal grandmother, Lucille, died last Friday. He named his first born after her. Anirban Lahiri ... Isolated in his homeland of India for an extended period of time due to the pandemic, he was among the contingent who didn't resume competing until later and for whom the eligibility adjustments are necessary. Now three starts into his return and fresh off a T6 at Corales where he led the field in putts per GIR and par-4 scoring. Finished T45 here last year, so he has course knowledge. Sprinkle shares into your DFS lineups. MJ Daffue Charley Hoffman Beau Hossler Russell Knox Charl Schwartzel Brian Stuard Kristoffer Ventura FADES Byeong Hun An ... This is relative because he's so hit and miss. At best, consider him fractionally in DFS and invest aggressively by attaching other risks with a devil-may-care attitude. Course-history buffs are salivating over his third-place finish as a first-timer here last year, but his full-season value still trumps short-term ownership. Ryan Armour ... His breakthrough victory here in 2017 is his only notable performance in five trips, three of which resulted in missed cuts. He's also just 1-for-7 upon arrival. Chez Reavie ... After an uptick over the summer, he's regressed into a pattern of inconsistency. Of course, that's in a vacuum and ignores the restructuring of the seasons, but everyone is in the same boat. Also seeing CC of Jackson for the first time. Sergio Garcia ... The tournament debutant remains in a funk with only one top-30 finish in the U.S. in 16 months and just one payday in his last four starts (T66, Wyndham). Brandt Snedeker ... He dealt with a sore back over the summer, so he's yet to eliminate the doubt that it's no longer a problem. In 10 starts post-hiatus, has yet to ignite with six missed cuts and no top 40s. Matt Jones ... After converting on his projection at Corales with a T14, it's time to leave him alone. He's 0-for-4 at CC of Jackson. Henrik Norlander ... After a T59 at Sedgefield, he's gone 0-for-3. During a similar spell last year, he turned in a pair of 74s here and missed the cut. Keegan Bradley Rafa Cabrera Bello Will Gordon Mark Hubbard Tom Lewis Maverick McNealy Scott Piercy Matthias Schwab Sahith Theegala RETURNING TO COMPETITION Bronson Burgoon ... Now that his second child has been born, he can return to his day job. You'll find more on him in Sleepers. Andrew Putnam ... Called it quits during his second round of the U.S. Open with a sore back. Going all the way back to the last three starts before the hiatus, he's just 2-for-12 and without a top-35 finish. Robert Garrigus ... In the field at the Korn Ferry Tour's Savannah Golf Championship. He had to walk off Corales in the second round last week due to heat exhaustion. NOTABLE WDs Louis Oosthuizen ... Would have been making his tournament debut, instead it's a second consecutive week off after finishing third at the U.S. Open. Bud Cauley ... He's a disappointing omit for two reasons. First, he posted top 15s in two of his last three starts. Second, he was on the short list of attractive non-winners who are boxing out to become the seventh consecutive breakthrough at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Brian Gay ... No matter what happens this season, he made it - the four-time PGA TOUR winner has bridged to the PGA TOUR Champions when he turns 50 in December of 2021, and he didn't need the eligibility adjustments for this season. He finished 115th in the FedExCup in 2019-20. POWER RANKINGS RECAP - CORALES PUNTACANA RESORT & CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP Power Ranking Golfer Result 1 Mackenzie Hughes 3rd 2 Adam Long 5th 3 Sam Burns T28 4 Will Zalatoris T8 5 Kristoffer Ventura T52 6 Denny McCarthy T41 7 Brian Stuard T33 8 Xinjun Zhang T11 9 Emiliano Grillo T21 10 Matt Jones T14 11 Charles Howell III MC 12 Graeme McDowell MC 13 Corey Conners MC 14 James Hahn T6 15 Scott Brown T56 Wild Card Henrik Stenson SLEEPERS RECAP - CORALES PUNTACANA RESORT & CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP Golfer Result Patton Kizzire T41 Seamus Power MC Sam Ryder T52 Sepp Straka T33 Justin Suh T14 BIRTHDAYS AMONG ACTIVE GOLFERS ON THE PGA TOUR September 29 ... Matthew NeSmith (27) September 30 ... none October 1 ... Grayson Murray (27) October 2 ... George McNeill (45); Zack Sucher (34) October 3 ... Danny Willett (33) October 4 ... none October 5 ... Kelly Kraft (32)

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