Rinker’s Golf Tips June 15th Guest Mark Wiebe. On Father’s Day and U.S. Open Championship Sunday at Pinehurst, we remembered Payne Stewart. Mark Wiebe met Payne Stewart at the Brook Hollow Country Club during the Trans-Miss Amateur while they were in college. Mark said they went over schedules where they might meet up at another tournament and their friendship had started. They would later room together playing the mini-tours before they would qualify for the PGA Tour…Born in Seaside, Oregon, Mark Wiebe grew up in Escondido, California and started playing golf with his dad who was the football coach at a Junior College there. Mark would help his dad on the sidelines carrying his clip board and headphones all the way from eight years old through high school. Mark played multiple sports including football, basketball, a little baseball, and even wrestled one year, all while he was playing golf. Mark said the best tip he ever got was “keep the left arm straight and head down.” He jokingly said that was valuable learning back then. Mark went one year to Junior College and after winning the State Junior College Tournament he was offered a scholarship to San Jose State.
I asked Mark about how he had the patience to endure not qualifying for the PGA Tour until 1983 and he said, “If you have a goal and something you want to do in life, and you have that passion that’s burning, sometimes you take the short cut and get there earlier and sometimes you don’t, but the deal is to get there, and I said I’m not going to stop until I get there, then I’ll figure some things out. There is no time limit. I was on a mission and it took longer to get to the show.” After Mark played the Tour in 1984 it was back to Tour School and he said he didn’t arrive with his “A” game. So, he went with his “Out Shot” which can be whatever, but you know where the ball is going and which way it’s curving. Mark said that in golf right now, he sees machines breaking down. Don’t see guys punching out and losing their stubbornness.
I asked Mark to tell a good Payne Stewart story and he said at the 1981 Spring Tour School, they were rooming together in Lake Buena Vista, Florida and staying on the top floor of the hotel about seven stories up. The rain started coming in with this “narly storm” as they were standing out on the balcony. All of a sudden there was a flash boom, that scared the crap out of Mark and he walked back into the room. Payne comes in and says, “Bud, if it’s your time to go then it’s your time to go.” Mark said yeah well I’m not going to push it. Payne walks back out on the balcony and there is another flash boom! Payne walks back in the room as says, “I think you’re right Wiebs, we don’t need to push it!” Mark said it was one of the few times that Payne agreed with him.
I asked Mark about his philosophies in teaching and he said that he doesn’t have a method when he teaches. There is a certain way that the club needs to work for each person and that is predicated on flexibility, build, grip pressure and several other things. Mark said he was passionate about working with kids who had aspirations for competing and getting a college scholarship. He could have a high level of conversation with them, and kids have magic in their swings, if they are natural and have flow to it. Mark said he preaches that there is a natural way the body moves, and that’s the way you should swing for the rest of your lives. Mark Wiebe is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour and has five victories on the Champion’s Tour including the 2013 Senior British Open. You can reach Mark @Markwiebe33 on Twitter.