AN expat who defeated Tiger Woods to win the US open has told the Olive Press how golf saved his life and helped him ‘escape’ gang culture and drugs.
Opening up for the first time, Michael Campbell, revealed how one of his best friends had nearly died after being stabbed in a fight.
The New Zealand Maori, who lives in Marbella, described the incident at the age of 15 as being a ‘turning point’ in his life.
“It was a defining moment when I saw my friend get stabbed. And he nearly died. It was a really harrowing moment,” he revealed.
“He survived, thank God. But afterwards I said, ‘OK, get me out of here’. And I used golf as a pathway out.”
Speaking at Aloha Golf Club, where he is a member, he recalled how he had grown up in a very poor suburb of Wellington – without shoes – and with few ways to escape poverty.
“Basically, golf saved my life. I was heading in the wrong direction. Alcohol, drugs, you name it.
Maybe I’m telling you too much here, but OK, why not? Now it’s time to tell the story.
“Yeah, I grew up in a very, what’s the word? Low-decile kind of community. You know what I mean by that? You know, we lived in council housing. We didn’t have shoes. I mean, shoes were a luxury.
“It was a rough area and I got involved with the wrong people. Simple as that. It really wasn’t good.”
Likening it to the Hollywood hit, Once Were Warriors, about Maori gang culture in Wellington, he continued: “I’ve been in those fights. I’ve been to those pubs. It’s rough. Maori culture is a very tough culture.”
But after his friend got stabbed, the father-of-two turned his life around, starting to get into sports and, in particular, golf.
“There were a lot of people who doubted me, thinking I was stupid doing that,” he continued.
“No Maoris play golf, they insisted. Play rugby, rugby, rugby, they told me”.
But he decided to swim against the current: “I said to myself, “That’s it. I’m going to prove them wrong. I’m going to break the mould.”
And so he did, going on to become the 2005 US Open Champion, defeating Tiger Woods, as well as playing in all the major tours, including the Masters and PGA Championship.
“I played rugby for 10 years. But I knew I wasn’t big enough or strong enough or fast enough to play for the All Blacks. So I thought, OK. I’ll give golf a go.
“My dad was a keen golfer. So he said: ‘Look, Michael, let’s change this around, there’s a golf course five minutes away. Let’s play golf.’ And that was it. I was hooked.
“It was certainly tough, because it was definitely a white man’s sport. There were no professional Maoris on tour. In fact there were no black players at all until Tiger turned up. So it was a proud moment when I turned pro.”
It turned out he was a natural who became a six handicapper within a year and plus-three within two years.
“I just found golf quite easy. I don’t know why,” he continued.
Campbell, who now lives in Guadalmina – near his academy at the Villa Padierna spa hotel – says he eventually moved to Costa del Sol 13 years ago because it is ‘the home of golf’.
“It has been fun to get back to the game that’s given me so much in my life. It has really enriched me, really.”
But now it is time to give back, he insists.
“I’m in the back nine of my career now. It’s time to stop focusing on myself and start passing on everything I’ve learned to the next generation.”
His trainees are mostly semi pros from north Europe who visit as Campbell insists they can ‘get that 1%’ about how to handle pressure while playing.
Also, as an ambassador for the Stayshore Legends Tour, he wants to ‘grow the game.’
He recently travelled to Cambodia as part of a mission to help find new young recruits at a couple of schools.
“It was heart-filling to see these kids trying to grab a golf club for the first time and trying to hit it.
“Hopefully it will inspire them. Not only just to play golf, but also just to be the best they can be. It could be anything. Because I believe that everybody has something.”
Additional reporting Barry Tabrizi
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