Drunks and debutantes call his name

HILTON HEAD ISLAND — He chews tobacco like a baseball player, talks like a stock car driver and plays golf like a hometown hustler.

That unlikely combination describes Boo Weekley, the redneck country boy who won the Heritage at Harbour Town Sunday afternoon, his second such victory in two years.

These back-to-back wins give this lazy, Lowcountry golf tournament a champion who looks a lot more like the folks outside the ropes than the ones inside the ropes.

That's because Weekley represents the everyman aspect of golf, the guy who feels as comfortable holding a fishing pole as he does a pitching wedge.

All of which makes him very popular at the Heritage, despite the chorus of 'boos' when he walked up to the 18th green Sunday with a four-shot lead.

That's because he has the kind of nickname drunks and debutantes love to shout when he passes by, nodding and letting the people know that he knows who they are.

'Why not talk to them?' Weekley said of the fans and his relationship with them. 'The way I feel about it, they're paying my bills.'

You'd be friendly too if somebody handed you a check for $990,000.

A bad habit

Still, it's easy to believe that Boo Weekley would do this just for the laughs. He's a naturally funny fellow whose homespun honesty keeps everybody entertained.

When talking this week about chewing tobacco, he said, 'I just like to spit a lot. Kind of have to have something in my mouth, I reckon.

'I don't have it (chewing tobacco) in the whole round. I put it in a couple of holes and throw it out a couple of holes. Whenever I think I feel like I need one, or get tired of spitting white stuff. It's just a habit. It's a bad one, but it's just a habit.'

Seeing that plug in his jaw when he's eyeing an iron shot makes him a cult hero to millions of public course players who feel a kinship with someone who didn't learn the game at a swanky country club.

Indeed, Weekley still lives in his hometown of Milton, Fla., and plays at his local course not far from the Alabama line, if you're spitting for distance.

When asked Sunday if he thought he served as an inspiration to guys who talk and chew like him, he said, 'I'm pretty sure I do. I hope it's mostly the kids. That's who you want to touch is the kids. But I hope they don't chew.'

A sad day

Boo isn't perfect, but he is loveable.

Maybe because he wears camouflage hats, lives in a mobile home and says he only wants to play this game long enough to earn a lot of money so he can spend more time hunting and fishing.

'This golf is a crazy game,' he said. 'That's why I only want to do it for so long and get out of it.'

A million here, a million there.

At 34 years old, Weekley has already won more than $4 million playing professional golf. Enough that he and his wife are finally building a house next door to the trailer where they've been living.

But you have to believe him when he says that one day he'll look at his bank account, spit on the campfire and walk away.

He won't say when that will be. We only know it'll be a sad day for golf when he does.

Reach Ken Burger at kburger@postandcourier.com or (843) 937-5598.