Going for broke wins pair $3 million

Adam Candee

Tuesday, May 17, 2005 | 9:54 a.m.

MESQUITE - Controlled chaos swirled all around him, much like the powerful winds that dominated thoughts and actions throughout the sixth and final day of this unique golf challenge.

So 27-year-old David Ping, the newest millionaire in the country, simply took a step back from his sobbing family and moved away from the cameras before lying down prostrate on the 18th green at CasaBlanca Golf Course. He wore a smile of disbelief as he stared up at nothing in particular in the overcast sky, taking in the moment that life dramatically changed for him and for his playing partner, Garth Mulroy.

Ping and Mulroy, all of 26 years old, outlasted club pros Mark Mielke and Rick Hartmann on Monday afternoon to earn victory in the inaugural Big Stakes Match Play, claiming the $3 million grand prize by winning 2-up. Ping and Mulroy, both mini-tour professionals, will split the money and pay back their sponsors, NFL linemen Barry Stokes and Ross Verba.

Stokes of the Atlanta Falcons and Verba of the Cleveland Browns split the $100,000 entry fee to back Ping and Mulroy. The friendship that spawned the deal is actually that of Ping and Stokes, the latter helping sponsor the former through the past few years.

"This is about sponsoring the kids," Stokes said. "It ain't about us."

The two hulking linemen chomped on cigars and celebrated greenside with their prize investments Monday, while the wives, siblings and parents of Ping and Mulroy struggled just to dial cell phones as they shook in excitement.

"I have absolutely no clue what the hell I'm going to do from here forward," Ping said.

Ping, a La Habra, Calif., native, and Mulroy, a South African living in Raleigh, N.C., met just last year at a Gateway Tour event in Phoenix when they were paired together. Mielke and Hartmann, both of whom have played in U.S. Opens and PGA Championships, work on Long Island in New York at separate clubs. Mielke and Hartmann will split $675,000 for finishing second.

The Big Stakes, a brainchild of former NFL quarterback Steve Bartkowski, advertised itself as the tournament where most anyone could challenge for the money. On its Web site, a banner states: "What a great opportunity for the guy next door. Imagine playing for $3,000,000!"

Well, the only guys next door were the group of four sitting atop the roof of a house along the 13th fairway at the CasaBlanca course, parked in lawn chairs and enjoying some beers while watching the action. To be eligible for the Big Stakes, players could not have held an exemption on any major tour within the past three years, but most of the entrants were highly talented golfers.

The four-ball matches began Wednesday, as 64 teams vied for a piece of the $6.4 million purse that ranks as one of the largest in the world. A team had to win at least two matches to earn back its entry fee, claiming more cash for each victory.

"It was really hard work," Hartmann said.

The teams went to the 11th tee all square before Ping and Mulroy grabbed a 1-up lead, using a second-shot driver ripped from the fairway onto the green. Mulroy's driver proved to be a huge difference on the back nine, including a pair of wind-aided shots that carried more than 400 yards.

The fierce wind controlled the action, with gusts up to 50 miles per hour consistently forcing players to back off shots after addressing the ball and even aiming straight putts outside the cup to account for its effect.

"This is borderline almost unplayable, I'd have to guess," Ping said.

Mulroy drained a clutch 5-foot putt at No. 13 to give his team a 2-up lead with five holes to play. He and Ping pushed the match to dormie at No. 17 with a number of pressure shots, including Ping's acrobatic bunker shot from a terrible lie to within 6 feet at No. 14; Mulroy's 405-yard drive at No. 15; and Ping's high flop shot from well behind the green to within 3 feet at No. 16.

After Mielke kept the match alive with a tricky 3-footer at No. 16, Hartmann gave them hope by nailing a second-shot 6-iron at the par-4 17th to within 3 feet and then hitting the pressure putt after having to wait close to 10 minutes after the shot to try it.

With their lead cut to 1-up at No. 18, Ping and Mulroy decided to play for the win instead of protecting the lead. After Ping blocked a 3-wood well off to the right, Mulroy had a choice to make: keep the ball safe or take a rip.

"I said, 'What should I do?"' Mulroy said. "He said, 'Hit driver.' "

Mulroy easily cleared 400 yards on the drive, landing his ball just short of the fringe while Mielke and Hartmann played from 70 yards away.

"We'd sat back on the last hole and thought we were in good shape," Ping said. "So if we sat back on this hole, the same thing could have happened. We didn't want that to happen."

Hartmann got on in two, but missed a 30-footer for birdie by inches. Both Mielke and Mulroy pitched to within 8 feet, but Mielke putted first and barely missed his try. In a classy showing, Mielke and Hartmann conceded Mulroy's final putt.

With $3 million deposited into their pockets, what was the first thought to cross their minds?

"The money didn't," Ping said. "It was just that the freaking thing was over."