The Original Influencer

Justin Mullen posted an absolutely perfect tribute to my guy Pat Owen . Please take a moment to check out his post and read the article on Pat's retirement. Justin perfectly summed up what Pat means to so many of us. It inspired me to attempt to put into words what he has meant to me. I'm not sure I'd be sitting here writing this without him, I don't know if I would have ever married my amazing wife or had two wonderful daughters. My challenge is to try and put into words what he's meant to me without writing a novel or getting emotional doing it. ??I will attempt and likely fail at both, but here goes.

Shortly after graduating college, I landed my dream job (at the time) of working for a professional sports team. I was selling season tickets and corporate packages to anyone who would pick up the phone for the Washington Capitals. Back then they played at the Cap Center in Landover Maryland, which was literally falling apart at the seams. They also weren't very good and didn't win a lot of games. Selling tickets as my boss told me on day 1 was like selling ice to Eskimo's. When the Caps moved to a shiny new stadium in downtown DC they didn't need nearly as many salespeople because fans actually wanted to go to those games. Most of us younger guys were expendable and let go. At that time it felt like the end of the world.

A few months later Pat Owen was kind enough to give me a job at the US Naval Academy Golf Club picking up range balls, cleaning carts, filling sand bottles...etc... a far cry from sales. I had fallen in love with golf and was considering it as an occupation, so I started at the bottom. I was also working at one the more legendary pubs in Annapolis at night. I was making some decent money and having a really good time. I eventually moved into a role in the Golf Shop where I was an assistant of sorts answering the phone, helping guests, managing inventory and honing my customer service skills. This will be my first story of one of many important lessons I learned from Pat at this time.

I was working in the shop alone one day, the phone was ringing off the hook and I had a line of people waiting to be helped. An elderly gentleman approached the counter and asked if he could have a bucket of range balls. Without even looking up I grabbed a bucket and quickly dropped it on the counter and went about helping others. The next day Pat called me back into his office for a chat. He was never one to get angry although I'm sure I gave him 1000 reasons to. He told me he'd gotten a complaint about my customer service skills from a very well known Admiral. At first I think I was defensive, explaining how busy I was and that I had no idea who he even was. While explaining to me the importance of treating every customer at our course like they were an Admiral he also devised a plan to rectify the situation. He gave me some background details on the Admiral for the purposes of a future conversation and told me what type of car he drove and when he usually came to the course. He suggested the next time the Admiral showed up, I drop whatever I'm doing and rush out to his car, help him unload his bags while simultaneously apologizing for my poor customer service the last time we’d met.? The plan worked, the Admiral forgave me and we always had great interactions from that point forward.? Several lessons were learned here.? Everyone is an Admiral, no matter what line of work you are in, treat everyone with respect and always give great customer service.? Second, mistakes don’t have to be fatal, they can end up more helpful than anything else.? Finally, always know your audience!?

Where Pat probably changed my life the most was after I had been there about two years.? I was 26 years old working at a Golf Course and a Bar making decent money and probably having too much fun.? I think Pat saw that I was wasting my potential and he slowly found ways to push me out of the nest so to speak.? I was way too comfortable, my friends were moving ahead in their careers and getting married and actually becoming responsible adults.? At the end of the golf season in 1998 he wrote me a two-page letter which I still keep in my desk to this day.? Nobody outside of my family had taken such an interest in my life and success.? He didn’t fire me as much as encouraged me to find a way to move forward with my life.? He praised me for the things I did well and carefully worded the areas I needed to improve to be successful in life.? I’m sure it wasn’t an easy thing for him to do because I needed a lot of improvement to say the least.? It was the most thoughtful and caring kick in the ass that anyone has ever received.?

I took everything he wrote to heart because I knew all he wanted was the best for me. ?He genuinely wanted to see me live up to my potential in life.? I’ve taken the letter out many times over the years and re-read it, still in awe that someone took the time and cared that much about me.? To this day a big motivator in my life is that I’ve never wanted to disappoint Pat or let him down.?

While I’m happy to share the photo to prove the existence of such a letter, the details shall for the most part remain between us.? One of the main points he tried to make is another I will never forget.? Wherever you go, whatever you do, throw 100% of yourself into it and make yourself indispensable.? Work so hard they will say we can’t live without this guy.

I didn’t see Pat or visit the golf course very often over the next handful of years.? I was busy following his advice and doing everything I could to eventually show him I’d taken it seriously.? In 2008 after 3 years on a waitlist, I fulfilled a goal I had set for myself to return to the United States Naval Academy Golf Club as a Civilian Member.? I wasn’t really sure how Pat would receive me after the years had passed.? Since then, we’ve played hundreds of rounds of golf together, been on more road trips than I can remember, seen hundreds of concerts, talked for hours, laughed a million times.? He welcomed me with open arms and he is one of my closest friends in the world.?

Part of what makes Pat so remarkable is that I’m one of thousands of people he's impacted in this way.? He’s a legendary collegiate Golf Coach and all of his players adore him.? He was a father figure to many of his athletes and saw several through some of the worst tragedies you could imagine.? They all still call him Coach; they all still love him like family.? I often think how lucky I am, with all those Midshipmen he was impacting he still somehow found the time to be that person for me.?

This winter I had the good fortune of taking a long weekend golf trip with Pat, his son Patrick Owen and one of our other members.? It was on this trip that I had two moments I’ll never forget.? The first is quick and easy, I was lucky enough witness Pat get the second hole-in-one of his life.? I don’t know that I’ve ever been more excited or happy for a another person in my life.? What preceded the hole-in-one encompasses who Pat Owen is in so many ways.? Our foursome was being treated to a round of golf at one of the most beautiful private golf clubs I’ve ever seen.? There is no way any of us ever step foot on that property without being with Pat.? We were given lockers for a day with our names on them, treated to lunch and drinks with the Head Professional and owner of the club.? During the lunch I could tell how much the Head Professional admired Pat.? Towards the end of lunch he shared how thankful he was for Pat, and shared that he wouldn’t be where he was without him.? He went on to tell of a recommendation letter Pat wrote for him that helped him land his first Head Professional job.? He was a coach at an opposing college but he knew a letter from Pat would go a long way, which in fact it did.? Pat was modest and gracious as he always is but in that moment I could sense there was a little more to the story.? I could tell that Pat had absolutely no idea what he was talking about!? This isn’t a slight, this is due to the fact that Pat has written thousands of similar letters over the years.? This Professional has an amazing life and is as happy as anyone I’ve ever met and he largely credits Pat for helping him get there.? How many of us are out there sitting where we are sitting, better humans, better professionals because of Pat Owen ?? All I know is when you have that kind of influence on that many people, you have made this world a better place and that is exactly what he has done. Pat later confirmed he was absolutely clueless about the letter and didn't remember writing it ??

?As I finish this up realizing I’ve failed both stated goals to not make this a novel and to not get emotional writing it, I’ll wrap it up with some fun facts about Pat that everyone might not know.

• He still writes handwritten letters & notes as do many of his former players?
• He gave my oldest daughter her first job
• Most know he was a collegiate golfer but he also wrestled for 2 years at JHU
• He's an Annapolis pickup Hoops legend
• He tended Bar at Armadillo's
• Before there was a 19th hole, Pat used to make sandwiches in the morning to sell at the course, this was after bartending all night!
• Belichick and Billionaire's call him for favors
• Jay Wright was honored to meet him
• He gives out a different book for Christmas every year
• He coached two of the greatest golfers ever at the Naval Academy in Aaron Wright and Billy Hurley actually most know this but it's still cool!
• He had his first hole-in-one in 1997 which won him a brand-new Lexus, he took the cash instead and bought a 1965 Mustang Convertible
• He's the smartest and most competitive person you'll ever meet
• He'd literally give you the shirt off his back

Congratulations on much more than an amazing career Pat Owen

I look forward to many more concerts, laughs, stories, golf trips, RMG days and being a part of this next chapter of your life.? Thank you for seeing the best in me when I didn’t deserve it and always believing in me.?

Navy’s Pat Owen to Retire as Head Pro, Director of Men’s and Women’s Golf - Naval Academy Athletics (navysports.com)