This caddie tried to impress Michael Jordan. It didn’t go well

As if the stress isn’t already ratcheted excessive sufficient at a Ryder Cupattempt throwing in one of many best athletes of all time wanting on.

That was the scenario for Brad Faxon‘s caddie, John Burke, on the 1997 matches at Valderrama in Spain. As he advised GOLF Subpar co-hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz, it wasn’t that he cracked below the stress to do his job — it was the sight of Michael Jordan that received him.

Burke advised Knost and Stoltz it was his second Ryder Cup, and he was already feeling some nerves when he noticed the Chicago Bulls star by the tee field.

“No one is aware of he’s there,” Burke stated. “That is the primary time he’s ever gone and he hadn’t advised anyone and every little thing like that.”

Jordan was within the midst of his second run of three-straight NBA Championships with the Bulls. Burke was starstruck.

“He seems at me and he provides me this manly fist pump, like solely Jordan can do,” Burke stated. “I’m caught off guard and I gave him the stupidest fist pump again. He checked out me like I used to be the most important fool that ever walked. And that was my take from that Ryder Cup.”

As if issues couldn’t get any worse for Burke, he tried to make up for the embarrassment of letting down His Airness.

As Jordan was sitting in U.S. captain Tom Kite’s cart — the place water was saved for the gamers — Burke took it upon himself to indicate off his machismo.

“Each of his legs are type of blocking the cooler,” Burke stated of Jordan. “And [Faxon] was parched as a result of, you already know, he’s so nervous and each everyone is. So I run as much as [Jordan] and I hit him as exhausting as I can within the knees and I stated, ‘Get out of the best way,’ and seize the water.”

That went about in addition to the flubbed fist pump.

“He gave me that very same look again,” Burke stated. “It didn’t work. It backfired.”

Burke has had a few different Jordan run-ins since and one time he even dared ask MJ about that day at Valderrama.

“I stated, ‘You do not forget that?’” Burke recalled. “And he goes, ‘Yeah, I do not forget that.’ And he by no means stated something to me the remainder of the day.”

For extra from Burke, together with his failed try to caddie for Adam Scott and getting Wayne Gretsky’s autograph whereas in rivalry at Pebble Seashore, take heed to the total episode beneath.

Jack Hirsh

Golf.com Editor

Jack Hirsh is an assistant editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State College, incomes levels in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his highschool golf crew and nonetheless *tries* to stay aggressive in native amateurs. Earlier than becoming a member of GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but additionally producing, anchoring and even presenting the climate. He will be reached at jack.hirsh@golf.com.