No one was more clutch than Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter at going in the hole. Now on his to-do list? Getting a golf ball to do the same thing.
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GOLF: Baseball worked out pretty well for you. Did golf interest you growing up?
Derek Jeter: I had no interest in golf. I really started playing after I retired, and I became addicted to it. Two years after that, got married, started havin’ kids. So I just don’t have time to do it on a regular basis to get better.
G: What is it about the game that gripped you?
DJ: You can’t perfect it. Every day is different. There are too many factors in golf. It’s one of the most difficult things I’ve done. You’re like, “Okay, my hand’s here, my elbow’s there, my shoulder’s here,” and you hit it. And then, “Oh, I forgot about the wind!”
G: You never did that at the plate? “My elbow’s here, my shoulder’s here…”
DJ: No. No, no, no. ’Cause you do it from when you grow up. Most professional athletes aren’t golfers. Most of ’em take it up later in life.
G: You played with a really interesting cast of characters when you were with the Yankees: Jorge Posada, Paul O’Neill, Bernie Williams, Mariano. Who’d have won in a four-ball match between the position players and the pitchers?
DJ: Clemens and Pettitte. Pitchers, they work once every five days. We had real jobs. [Laughs.] We worked every day. Plus, pitchers have that whole weight transition from back side to front side. It all correlates to golf. Yeah, pitchers have the advantage.
G: You once played a round of golf with Barack Obama. What was that like?
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DJ: This was shortly after I retired [in 2014]. I really hadn’t played golf much. It was in Vegas, at Shadow Creek. He found out I was there and invited me to play. I’m on the range and was shankin’ every ball ’cause I didn’t know how to play, and I didn’t know how to fix it. [Laughs.] At some point, good golfers — if you have somethin’ wrong, you can fix it. I can’t fix it, right? So they were watchin’ all of this. I was nervous. I mean, you ever go out on a golf course and there’s nobody there? The Secret Service lined every fairway. [Obama] never hit a ball out of bounds ’cause they’d just kick it back for him. But, yeah, it was a great experience.
G: Is there a golf trip you’d really love to take?
DJ: I haven’t really been around or played that many different golf courses ’cause I was never very good. But, I think, at some point, you can at least hack your way through it, so I hope to play more. I’ve been invited a few times to play Augusta. I just haven’t gone.
G: Hmm. How many times have you said no to playing Augusta?
DJ: Six.
G: The Captain might definitely want to rethink that one.
DJ: Right? I will. Eventually.