{"id":595004,"date":"2026-05-20T21:03:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T21:03:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/595004\/"},"modified":"2026-05-20T21:03:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T21:03:11","slug":"aaron-rais-us-pga-win-is-triumph-of-parenting-in-world-of-venal-stars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/595004\/","title":{"rendered":"Aaron Rai\u2019s US PGA win is triumph of parenting in world of venal stars"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have to confess that I knew nothing about the backstory of Aaron Rai as I settled down to watch the final round of the US PGA Championship, one of golf\u2019s majors and a competition wreathed in history. This is the tournament where Walter Hagen made his name; where Jack Nicklaus won five times across three decades; where Bob Tway chipped in from the bunker on the 72nd\u00a0hole to defeat Greg Norman in 1986; where Tiger Woods and Bob May contested one of the most electrifying play-offs in history in 2000, Woods putting like a demon and May refusing to blink. Woods running after his birdie putt at the 16th\u00a0will for ever be carved in the memory.<\/p>\n

But nothing, for this viewer, is likely to ever eclipse the sight of an Englishman \u2014 the son of an immigrant from Kenya and one whose parents hail from India, whose father spent hours cleaning his irons with a pin head and applying baby oil to prevent rust, whose mum worked all hours as a mental-health nurse, who continues to wear two gloves because as a lad he was asked to by a local sponsor, who uses covers for his irons because his dad bought him a set of Titleist clubs when he was seven \u2014 making that monster putt at the 17th, a shot of mettle, composure and unadulterated joy.<\/p>\n

Only after that putt, as the world rushed to figure out who on earth this guy is, did we find out about the facility in Wolverhampton where he learnt his craft<\/a>, a place where the intimidatory effect of golf clubs \u2014 which I remember so vividly growing up, nervous even to go to pay for my green fees in case my collar wasn\u2019t of the right size and shape \u2014 was deliberately put to one side. Talking to John Westerby for The Times, Ian Bonsor, the former owner of 3 Hammers Golf Complex, said: \u201cWe set the place up in 1986 and I wanted it to be an inclusive place. Golf could be a closed shop at the time, you had to wear the right clothes and that sort of thing. We said from the start that if you want to play golf in a T-shirt and trainers, that\u2019s fine by us.\u201d Amen.<\/p>\n

\"AaronRai describes the 3 Hammers Golf Complex as his \u201chappy place\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Five-year-oldRai\u2019s talent was clear before he had even left primary schoolAlamy<\/p>\n

We learnt, too, that Rai was four years old when he first started going to Hammers, that the work ethic of this youngster was evident before he had even left primary school and that he still likes going along to his \u201chappy place\u201d because the hustle and bustle of the environment teaches him to sustain his concentration when he\u2019s on the putting green. Such is the methodical nature of this singular player that he once made 207 ten-foot putts in a row, a feat that, if you stop and think about it, almost defies credibility. I guess I am not alone in glimpsing the influence of his parents on this feat of patience and sustained concentration.<\/p>\n

And perhaps I may say this too. We are inclined to give credit to the parents and support team when a guy like Rai succeeds; when they lift the trophy; when they pocket the winner\u2019s cheque. But I can\u2019t help thinking of the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of parents who put their lives into their children\u2019s sporting careers, who woke up early, who went to bed late, who offered lessons on hard work and resilience, but whose kids never won a major title, or perhaps even turned professional. The duality of sport \u2014 both its grandeur and its beautiful cruelty \u2014 is that many aspire yet precious few succeed.<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s a thought that I hope I can convey adequately: had Rai not won the US PGA, had he never even made it on to the PGA Tour, he would \u2014 I suspect, I hope not without reason \u2014 have become a valued member of whatever profession or community he had been a part of. With the love and example of parents like that \u2014 hard-working, diligent folk, who were widely admired in the local golfing milieu \u2014 he had a start in life that would have proved priceless whether he had gone on to become a coach, teacher, doctor or, like his mother, a superb nurse.<\/p>\n

\"AaronBishnoi, Rai\u2019s wife, was adamant that fame would not change them after his US PGA triumph<\/p>\n

It is sometimes said that sport teaches character. I have never really believed that. I have seen sportspeople become selfish, venal and corrupt. What matters is the values to which young sportspeople are exposed, the culture in which they develop. Perhaps all quotations oversimplify the complexity of human life, but I have always been drawn to the Ancient Greek proverb: \u201cGive me the child until he is seven, and I will show you the man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AaronRai became the first Englishman to win the US PGA Championship for 107 yearsRichard Heathcote\/Getty<\/p>\n

In the case of Rai, perhaps the most eloquent testimony to the values in which he was immersed came from his fellow professionals in the hour of his triumph. \u201cYou won\u2019t find a person on the property who\u2019s not happy for him,\u201d Rory McIlroy<\/a> said. Jon Rahm, who came second, said: \u201cThere\u2019s very few people that are nicer and kinder human beings than Aaron Rai.\u201d Ludvig Aberg, who played alongside the Englishman on Sunday, said: \u201cIf there\u2019s one guy I\u2019d love to lose to, it\u2019s probably him.\u201d Xander Schauffele put it simply: \u201c[He is] an all-world gentleman.\u201d<\/p>\n

I suspect Rai\u2019s parents \u2014 and perhaps his wife, Gaurika Bishnoi, too, who said that fame \u201cwon\u2019t change us\u201d \u2014 will take as much pride from that testimony as the victory itself, and quite right, too. In a rather dispiriting period of cultural fractiousness and political contention, this story has been like a ray of sunshine. As Rick Broadbent put it in a wonderful piece about Rai\u2019s journey<\/a>, as a golfer and a man: \u201cHe\u2019s an all-world gent and a champ to cherish\u201d. Hear, hear.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I have to confess that I knew nothing about the backstory of Aaron Rai as I settled down…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":595005,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[5904,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-595004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=595004"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/595004\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/595005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=595004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=595004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=595004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}