Lexi and Benji Thompson Together Again
TCN EXCLUSIVE: Caddie Benji Thompson details mad dash to retrieve Lexi Thompson's passport
Cheers to caddie Benji Thompson going above and beyond the call of duty, Lexi Thompson (no relation) was spared a travel nightmare on Monday… sort of.
But, even still, it caused some unintentional headaches for fellow golfers in England this week for the Women's British Open.
According to Golf Channel's Randall Mell, Thompson's bag was i of 38 player bags existence driven from the site of concluding calendar week'due south Evian Championship in France to Woburn Golf Social club outside London for the Women'southward British Open.
Ian Wright, erstwhile caddie for Seve Ballesteros, was driving the van.
"I knew I wasn't going to get much sleep and my only thought as a caddie was, 'my player needs me and I'k going to practice whatever it takes to get the task done.'" — Benji Thompson
Wright had started his journey with the luggage when he received a phone call Sunday night saying that Lexi Thompson had accidentally left her passport in her golf game pocketbook – documentation she needed to fly out of Geneva and into England.
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Wright was asked to pull over and wait for Benji Thompson, who would take a cab to gather the passport and render information technology to his boss.
The delay meant Wright wasn't able to drop the bags off in England until 5 p.m. on Mon – v-half-dozen hours afterwards than planned – causing many players to miss out on a practice round in the last major of the LPGA season.
Lexi Thompson yet had travel bug one time she got the passport, as her British Airways flight was cancelled, which didn't allow her to arrive on Monday.
The Caddie Network reached out to Benji Thompson via electronic mail to find out what Sunday night's adventure was like for him.
Here's what he told TCN:
I got a text from Lexi around 9 o'clock Sunday night saying, "Dude nosotros might not go outta here."
I was at the hotel down in Geneva and she was yet in Evian. I texted back and forth with Lexi and her dad for well-nigh an hr trying to figure out the options and how to become the passports dorsum to them chop-chop. The best option, I thought, was for me to travel and get them at the course on Monday and either fly back with them or FedEx them. Somehow, Lexi'south dad, Scott, got in touch with the commuter and he said he was near an hour south of the Geneva airport.
My flying was at 7:twenty a.g. on Monday, and the five:15 a.yard. shuttle double-decker was picking me and my caddie buddies upwards. Later speaking with the forepart desk-bound and a cab driver, and making sure they took American Express, I was on my way around 10:45 p.thou. Sunday night. I knew I wasn't going to become much slumber and my just idea every bit a caddie was, "my player needs me and I'm going to do any it takes to get the job done."
I had my GPS going besides as the cab driver'southward. The driver was driving fast for me to get at that place and return quickly. He was doing smashing until about three miles away from our destination. I told him we needed to get to the correct, and he insisted we go to the left. He got aggravated with me (trying to give him directions) and in some other language, he yelled at me! I figured at that time it was best to just sit down dorsum and let him do his job. I could admittedly tell we were going in the wrong direction and had to sit back and just let it happen. After 20 minutes of him going the incorrect mode, looking at my phone texting with my wife (her thinking I'thou getting kidnapped), Lexi and Scott helping with location of driver and van, curving roads and well-nigh to puke, he decided to enquire for my assist! We got turned effectually and finally made it to the gas station where Ian, the van driver, was parked. Our 28-mile bulldoze had turned into about an hour and a half after we left the hotel.
We pulled upwardly and Ian had almost v golf bags and three pieces of clothing luggage outside of the van on the ground. He's a picayune older and it had taken a toll on him, and, hey, this wasn't his problem or job to do. I immediately knew this was about to be a nightmare of a task to get to her travel golf bag. After I cleared the area, I started pulling these numberless off and getting them out of the way. No wonder the players and caddies who used this service didn't have anything with them when they arrived in London (It was all in the heavy-ass golf bag traveling cases)! Once I got nigh 30-xl bags out, I saw Lexi's on the bottom, and cha-ching! I knew where the passports were and was able to dig down and get them out. I fabricated certain I had both of them and put them in my pocket.
Now is when the fun started… Every one of those heavy bags I removed I had to put back. They had to be packed very tight and in that location is a certain fashion for all this to fit. Somehow, I got all of the bags back in the van, and I nonetheless don't know how I did it. Looking at all of information technology out on the ground I was telling myself there is a way and just kept plugging. When I finished, it took the cab commuter and Ian belongings the bags and me sliding the door to make it close.
Finally, I've got the passports, all packed upwardly and headed back with the cab driver. We made it dorsum to my hotel in about 45 minutes and it was at present ane a.m., and I couldn't give thanks him enough for taking me and waiting while I did it. The cab fare toll $300 Swiss francs, which is pretty much the same every bit the dollar right now. I'm non worried… Lexi is getting that nib!
All I can say for myself, Lexi and Scott is that we are very deplorable for the delay that we caused everyone. We never even idea it would filibuster Ian and cause all of this trouble. I'm certain that every player in the field would take been trying to do the same matter that we were. If you don't take your passport yous can't leave, and at the time all nosotros were trying to exercise was track down the passports!
Source: https://www.thecaddienetwork.com/tcn-exclusive-caddie-benji-thompson-details-mad-dash-to-retrieve-lexi-thompsons-passport/
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