Rested Rahm takes lead in Memphis with opening-round 62

Charlie Rymer wasn’t sure he could swing a golf club with that port imbedded in his chest near his collarbone. Not to mention, the chemotherapy it delivered into his body made his hands shake so badly he joked that he might take a divot with his putter. But last Wednesday, he was hitting balls and getting ready for a member-guest – barely four months after doctors had resected a foot of his colon and 14 days after ringing the bell at M.D. Anderson in Houston to signal his last infusion of those life-saving drugs. “There’s no chance I can break 85, but I’m going to be out there with my buddies, having a good time and enjoying every minute of it,” Rymer said. The last two years haven’t been much fun for the former PGA TOUR pro turned broadcaster, though, after doctors discovered a polyp during a routine colonoscopy. At first, doctors decided to monitor it. But after six months, and then three more months, his physician was still concerned. So Rymer went to a specialist who twice performed an advanced polypectomy in hopes of avoiding the resection. Neither was successful. So, Rymer had the right hemicolectomy on March 10 and 12 inches of his colon were removed. All the previous biopsies had revealed no cancer but when the pathology was done on the full section the news was not good. Rymer had stage 3 colon cancer. And the cancer had spread to the 54-year-old’s lymph nodes. “And I’m like, what? I had no idea that that was coming,” he recalls. “I was just expecting, the surgery was successful. You’re good to go. You don’t have to worry about this.” Within six weeks, Rymer had started chemotherapy at M.D. Anderson. He’d have the infusion, which generally lasted three hours, and then begin a two-week regimen of chemo by pill, four of them, twice a day. And that didn’t count the drugs he was prescribed for the side effects – nausea, anxiety, insomnia – that made Rymer feel like a “walking pharmacist.” Mercifully, he was able to take a week off before beginning the process again. After four cycles of the dual chemotherapy, Rymer is cancer-free and now in surveillance mode where he’ll undergo body scans every six months and advanced blood work every three. He says the highest chance of recurrence is in the first year. “And because I’ve had the surgery — surgery alone gave me about a 50% chance of recurrence in year one and the chemo reduces that to about a 25% chance of recurrence in year one,” Rymer says. “Year two, that’s halved. Year three, it’s halved. “So, if you get through the first three years, you’re good to go without getting any further treatment. … If it does come back, they say it’ll come back somewhere other than my colon, but … we can get after that early. So, I hope I don’t have to go down that road, but that’s sort of what the situation is.” Rymer had kept his diagnosis relatively private, the news mostly confined to family and friends. When he felt well enough, he continued his work as an ambassador for Myrtle Beach golf and as executive vice president of McLemore Club, a resort in northern Georgia. He was also able to film parts of the second season of “The Charlie Rymer Golf Show” on ESPN2 during his off weeks from the chemo. He did discuss his cancer struggle on one episode, but it hasn’t aired yet. When he finished his last chemotherapy treatment on June 6, though, Rymer decided to tweet a video of him ringing the bell. The reaction was swift, and a little overwhelming. The tweet got more than 7,000 likes and 433 comments, many from people asking about his treatment – and most importantly telling Rymer they were scheduling their colonoscopy immediately. “It means the world. It really does,” Rymer says, his voice halting. “… I don’t normally read a lot of remarks on Twitter, but just the folks out there that had either, most of them I hadn’t ever met, but had either watched me play or do TV over the years, just the supportive comments that came in were just incredible. “One of the reasons I was hesitant to put it out was like, nobody cares that somebody’s going through this, but then you find out they do care.” Rymer says fellow broadcasters Mark Rolfing and Paul Azinger, both of whom are cancer survivors, have frequently called to check up on him. Judy Rankin has reached out, as well, along with many others in the golf business. He’s heard from friends in the entertainment industry like Colt Ford and Vince Gill. He’s even reconnected with his best friend from high school. Rymer, who describes himself as a “church-going person,” says the prayers and support are incredibly impactful. “I just would encourage folks when they have friends that are going through this or another severe health challenge, if you’re on the fence of whether I ought to drop a text or call, go ahead and drop it because it’s going to mean a lot more than what you think,” Rymer says, pausing before finishing his thought. “I hate to break down crying on you, but these this last six months I’ve cried more than I ever thought I was capable of crying. So, it makes you sort of look at things a little, a lot differently.” Until last week, Rymer had only played golf twice this year – both times before the surgery – which was the longest break he’d taken from the game since he was 4 years old. And the operation set him back when he developed ileus, where his digestive system didn’t reset for nine days, and he lost 22 pounds. Once he recovered, Rymer started thinking about playing again. He ordered a new set of clubs and once he finished chemo, he started hitting balls again. He thinks it will take about a month to get all the medications out of his system to steady his hands. He’s also dealing with neuropathy. “I haven’t felt my toes in three months. And then the other thing is weight gain with this stuff. So not only have I not felt my toes in three months, hell, I haven’t seen my toes in three months,” says Rymer, proving his trademark sense of humor is still in tact. He also jokes about holding a carton of ice cream with oven mitts because the nerve endings in his hands couldn’t handle anything that wasn’t room temperature or warmer. And the disappointment of finding out that the side effects of both medications was weight gain. “I’m like, really?” Rymer says with a wry laugh. “Plus they put you on steroids too, so, I feel like I stepped on air hose.” Rymer says he couldn’t have survived the last two years without the support of Carol, his wife of 31 years, who also happens to be a registered nurse, and in his words an “absolute superstar.” He says the cancer ordeal has made the couple and their two sons grow closer. “Listen, I’m 54, and my life’s been a blessing,” Rymer says. “I’ve been fortunate to see and do things and have experiences that some folks take 20 lives to do. And then because of my faith, I don’t live my life with fear. But I’m hoping the big man has some more plans for me here.” One of the things Rymer wants to do is encourage everyone to take their health seriously and get a colonoscopy along with other cancer screenings. He can’t help but think about a friend who wouldn’t – “He almost bragged about it,” Rymer says – who has passed away. “When I was out in Houston and I got a chance to ring the bell, I thought you know what I’m going to put that on (Twitter) and just let people know what I’ve been going through,” Rymer says. “And the more I think about it — and I’m hoping this is the case — it seems like mine is rather than being life and death is just terribly, horribly inconvenient. “And I almost feel obligated to sort of share the experience and say, yeah, I’ve had a tough go with this, but if I hadn’t had a colonoscopy, two or three years down the road from now my stomach would be hurting or I’d have some other symptom and I’d go to the doctor and it would be, you’ve got six months, get your affairs in order.” Thankfully, Rymer didn’t wait. And neither should the rest of us.

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HONOLULU, Hawaii – Zach Johnson had to delay his arrival to Hawaii due to the flu and with things being so uncomfortable he spent six days straight over the new year unable to leave his house. A planned trip to the Big Island for his family was canceled with the 12-time PGA TOUR winner instead coming straight to Oahu, later than expected. Even then he really wasn’t ready. So his opening round 7-under 63 in the Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Country Club to share the top spot after Round 1 came somewhat as a surprise. “I was not right getting on the plane to come here. I am one that likes to prepare,â€� Johnson said. “I got here Friday, and I touched a golf club Saturday through Wednesday. Saturday was awful. It was about a three-hour session. It was at least two hours too many because I was not right. “My legs were shot and my back hurt.â€� Things progressed for Johnson with some normality returning on Wednesday but he still tempered his expectations in a course he’s had great success. Johnson won the Sony Open in 2009 and has been inside the top 10 three of the last four years at Waialae. “Probably (unexpected) more than expected,â€� he said of his start. “But I’ve had many weeks where I’m rested from a mental standpoint, certainly a physical standpoint, where I play great. “I remember a couple of times I’ve had a couple ski trips and I come back the next week, didn’t even touch a club, and I start preparing on the golf course, and I play great. I don’t necessarily win, but I play great. I know it can happen.â€� Johnson’s last win was the 2015 Open Championship at St Andrews but his fall showed a 13th win might not be far off. In three starts he finished no lower that 23rd leaving him currently 45th in the FedExCup. CALL OF THE DAY OBSERVATIONS KIRK EYES PUTTING REDEMPTION: Four-time PGA TOUR winner Chris Kirk has rid himself of some lazy behavior as he eyes a return to his best golf. And it might be working as he opened the Sony Open with a 7-under 63 to share the lead. Kirk has pinpointed his putting as the biggest key if he is to return to his winning ways with the last of his four wins coming at the 2015 DEAN & DELUCA at Colonial. His T4 finish at Sea Island last November was his first top five PGA TOUR finish since being runner-up at the Sanderson Farms Championship in October 2016. Last season Kirk played well in the fall, with three top 10s, before failing to do so again. It added up to a 92nd-place finish in the FedExCup. “The real reason I didn’t play well last year is I’ve had my worst putting year I had since I’ve been on TOUR,â€� he said bluntly after being ranked 125th in Strokes Gained: Putting. “I actually hit it fine, but I’m not somebody that’s going to overpower a golf course ever. My game is hit fairways, hit irons close, and make some putts. To have a year like that where I really struggled putting made it very difficult mentally and difficult in every possible way that it could.â€� As such Kirk has reverted to using the putting drills that helped him at his best a few years ago, forcing himself to do them post round regardless of his scores. He ranked 17th in the field in the opening round. “I had a great day today, and I’m about to go do it. It takes about 5 or 10 minutes. It’s laziness, I guess, not doing it consistently over the last couple of years,â€� he said. “I’m hoping that will stay consistent this year, and if I putt consistently well, then I think I’ll have a good year.â€� HARMAN ALONG: Brian Harman kept his Hawaii vibes going after putting himself in contention again this week. A week after finishing runner-up behind Dustin Johnson’s exploits at the Sentry Tournament of Champions Harman notched an opening round 6-under 64 to share third place just one shot off the lead at Waialae. “I don’t feel like I’m doing anything heroic or special,â€� Harman said. “I’ve been working pretty hard. My tee shots, I feel like I’ve kind of tightened up just a little bit. I think I only missed three, four greens maybe, which is pretty tough to do around here.â€� KISNER PAYS OFF DEBT: Kevin Kisner cannot be accused of failing to deliver on his bets after the Georgia alum adorned an Alabama jersey on the 17th hole at Waialae Thursday. Kisner, a very proud Bulldog, lost his bet with Justin Thomas, a Crimson Tide alum, over the result of the National Championship football game this week. As such Kisner threw on the jersey as they walked from tee to green on the par-3, a hole he bogeyed. “I’m blaming that bogey on him. I would have never hit that bad of a shot if I wasn’t thinking about that ‘Bama jersey,â€� Kisner laughed. “No, it’s all in good fun. We’re going to do a lot of good with that and raise a bunch of money. We’re going to raffle it off through my foundation, sell a bunch of raffle tickets, pick out a winner, and then give that money back to the children in our community. Justin is good enough to let me do it, and I’ll get him back in the future.â€� NOTABLES Justin Thomas – The defending champion and FedExCup winner shot a respectable 3-under 67 to be tied 20th, eight shots worse than his opening 59 a year ago. Jordan Spieth – The former FedExCup champion and world No. 2 torpedoed a great round with a quadruple-bogey 8 on his penultimate hole. He settled for a 1-under 69 to share 65th. Charles Howell III – Posted a 3-under 67, his 16th consecutive round in the 60s at the Sony Open in Hawaii and 24th out of the last 25. He owns nine top-10 finishes in 16 starts at the Sony Open in Hawaii (T8-2017, T8-2014, T3-2013, T2-2012, T5-2010, 4-2009, T2-2007, T3-2005, T4-2002). J.J. Henry – In his 500th start on the PGA TOUR Henry shot a 3-over 73. Jimmy Walker – The two-time Sony Open winner – who continues his climb back from Lyme disease – struggled to a 4-over 74. QUOTABLES I had a double from a fairway bunker, and I was in it and thought about it, and it was the first fairway bunker shot I’ve had in like two months.It’s Hawaii. How could I not be enjoying a beautiful walk with my incredible caddie and family and friends out here.It helps when you make a bunker shot and make a couple long ones.I didn’t play or practice a ton when I was at home, and when I did, you’re usually wearing a jacket or a sweater. So how your swing feels in 50 degrees or 45 degrees versus how it’s going to feel in 80-some degrees here, is very different.It’s definitely the best ‘Kis’ has ever looked in a jersey. SUPERLATIVES Low round: 7-under 63 – Chris Kirk and Zach Johnson each had seven birdies without any bogeys. Longest drive: 382-yards – Harold Varner III drilled his tee shot on the par-4 first hole. He was unable to find the green on approach though and settled for a par. Longest putt: 51 feet, three inches – Nicholas Lindheim made birdie on the par-4 10th, his opening hole. He made 148 feet, nine inches worth in his round. Easiest hole: The par-5 18th played at almost a shot under par at 4.236 with eight eagles, 94 birdies and nothing over par. Hardest hole: The par-3 11th played at 3.292 with just six birdies and 48 bogeys.

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