By the 11:05 a.m. start time for the third round of the Sony Open in Hawaii on Saturday, everything was back to normal.
The sun was shining, fans were filing in through the front gate and the parking lot outside the Waialae Country Club clubhouse looked like a luxury car lot.
It was impossible to tell that just three hours earlier players were legitimately concerned for their lives after a cell phone notification received by many people at 8:07 a.m. read: “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.”
Golfers took off for the mountain or headed to a nearby golf course. and at least one seriously contemplated jumping into the ocean and swimming away from shore.
Others, like defending champion Justin Thomas, just took it in stride.
“Just sat on my couch, listened to music, watched TV and kind of opened up the sliding door,” Thomas said after shooting a 4-under 66 to move into a tie for ninth place. “There was nothing I could do. It was either going to happen or it wasn’t.”
Thomas never got the alert on his phone and found out via text message from a buddy, Jordan Spieth, the highest-ranked golfer in the field at No. 2 in the world behind Dustin Johnson. Spieth was busy trying to find a signal for his phone to call his family after receiving the alert.
“I kind of thought maybe if we had a car, it would be wise to get in and drive as far away from town as possible,” Spieth said after carding a 4-under 66. “It was pretty scary at the hotel when they came over the loudspeaker and said everyone take shelter, this isn’t a drill.”
Spieth, who is as prepared as any golfer every time he steps on a course, had no clue what to do when alerted of a potential missile attack.
“I figured when missiles were launched, it takes like hours (to reach Hawaii), and I found out afterward I guess it could reach in like 20 minutes, so if I knew that I wouldn’t have been outside (the hotel room) taking calls.”
Russell Knox, whose eagle on the closing hole at 18 moved him into a tie for sixth place at 12 under after shooting a 65, got the message on his phone while his wife was out for an early-morning walk.
“My first reaction was it made my heart start beating a little faster,” Knox said. “I went out to the balcony of the hotel. I don’t know what I was expecting to see, like a missile flying into Waikiki. I don’t know. It was a horrible message to get, obviously.”
It didn’t seem to affect the players at the top of the leaderboard. Once second-round leader Brian Harman tapped in for par to finish the day, all 10 players on the front page had shot 68 or better.
Only 17 of the 76 golfers who teed it up failed to shoot at least par, making it a pleasant day on the course.
When it did get tough, the events of this morning served to put everything in perspective.
“The theme of the day was, no matter what was going on, (caddie) Mike (Greller) would say or I would say back to him, ‘At least we’re alive,’ ” Spieth said. “Which isn’t really funny, but it was kind of nuts.”
Sony Open Notebook by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd
