The Loop

O'Meara and son

March 08, 2009

It isn't often that parents offers (for public consumption, at least) a frank assessment of their offspring, but Mark O'Meara has done so in discussing his son Shaun, who plays golf at the University of California Irvine.

"Shaun I think is a very talented player and he could be as good as he wants to be," O'Meara said. "But his level of commitment is a little different than what I had. I had a Volkswagon Rabbit, you know. I mean, I don't know what to say. I started with nothing. Were not that my kids don't have a lot. They've got a lot. They've got a nice lifestyle. Sometimes the dedication and the desire and the drive is not what it needs to be to be playing the level he wants to be playing at.

"I try to help him. I'm there for him...but he's got to be the one. It's just like anyone. Tiger Woods is a great player. Hank Haney is a very nice teacher, but Hank doesn't hit the shots out there, you know?

Sooner or later the player's got to step up and play the game. That's kind of what Shaun needs to do."

-- John Strege