A Quick Jim Gray Story from the US Open

This afternoon, I was looking through some of the pictures on my cell phone - trying to delete the crappy ones - and I came upon a picture of Jim Gray. Of all people.

I snapped a quick pic of Jim when in the Lexus tent at the US Open in June. When I walked in, it struck me as totally bizarre that Gray would be in there. I mean, Chris Berman would be expected to be in there. That dude gets driven around the course in a cart because he doesn't do the whole walking thing. Drones who love the guy shout out at him on the course, even while golfers are hitting the ball. Miraculously, the guy is a rock star - though I think I realized his appeal is that he appears to people as some normal, mediocre guy who has become an institution in Middle of Nowhere, Connecticut.

But Jim Gray? In retrospect, and thinking about his role in The Decision fiasco, I can understand. Still, at the time, I was rather befuddled. I thought Gray might have been invited in by a friend - or just some random Lexus person. He was hanging out with a drink and a cookie, talking to a couple of people. No one else was really coming up to him to talk. Honestly, in those situations, only media geeks like myself really even care about that kind of sighting.

Anyhow, my wife and I were in the tent, eating some lunch or something. We sit down, start eating, but I keep an eye on Gray. I mean, what is he doing there? Yeah, the media center is about a million miles away from the course, so getting a break at the 18th fairway is a great respite, but how long will he stay? The questions swirl around my head. Do other media members get to do this? Is it against the rules?

The more of my sandwich that I eat, the more fidgety Gray gets. He gets up and walks over to a desk where Lexus had two computers with Internet access and a USGA screen. There's a printer there also. He grabs a blank sheet from the spool, pulls out a marker and starts studying. He's doing research in the Lexus tent! Scribble stats, looking at players, working furiously. I didn't even know this was possible!

Effectively, it's really no different than being in the media center - except for the top shelf booze, nicer seats, and the ocean view. To work, a member of the media needs a PC, some desk space, access to quotes and the Internet. Sure, the nicer the better, but that's basically it. And Gray created a workspace right there.

The guy went back and forth between the desk and where he had been sitting for about ten minutes. I guess that was all the broadcast prep he needed. He got his few belongings, said his goodbyes, and disappeared out of my life. (I'll bet he totally knew LeBron was going to Miami at that point.)

I was inspired - not because of the work ethic, I'm always working - but because I didn't think I would work on the course with a cup of booze in my hand. And so I started doing that. In fact, as I was posting the "Tiger, Are You My Daddy?" pic, I thought of Jim Gray.