McCord Meets Hollywood
by Gary McCord
It's directed by Ron Shelton (Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump, Cobb) and starring Kevin Costner, Don Johnson and Renee Russo. It's about Golf; it's about life. I'm sucking oxygen, my first scene is tomorrow.
The first time I was contacted about the movie was three months ago when my agent sent me a script about this golfer who was a pretty good college player from the University of Houston. He went on to play the mini tours and then ended up owning a driving range in the bowels of west Texas. He was a big fish in a little pond. He was surrounded by a group of life sucking cronies that live to go to the range and vegetate their way thru middle age. They could not be more happy. Roy (Tin Cup) eventually losses his driving range in a gambling debt and sets off to qualify for the U.S. Open to come up with the cash to get his life back. The process is hilarious.
Ron Shelton came to see me in Vail, Colorado about taking a part in the movie. I asked him how much money he wanted and Hollywood here I come! Ron was very sincere in his conviction to making a golf movie that looked and sounded realistic.
We played golf in Vail and did some serious hiking in the Rockies, and he filled me in on what would transpire. Ron visited the tour quite often to get a feel for the game. After reading the screenplay, I could see he was mainlining golf already, and we were in good hands.
Ron brought Kevin out to the World Series of Golf in Akron, Ohio. Kevin had just come in from Europe where he was promoting Waterworld. We started on his golf game immediately. Kevin had not played that much golf before but a better student I have never had! Watch the movie; we used no double.
The scene we are going to shoot tomorrow is one involving a charity tournament with David Sims (Don Johnson) and his caddie Tin Cup (Kevin Costner). His playing partner is Craig Stadler (Walrus) and they are playing against Phil Mickelson and myself. Peter Kostis is playing the on course announcer.
The scene sounds simple. We drive off a par five, then Phil and I hit the ball on the green in two. Stadler and Sims drive the ball right off the tee. Stadler goes for the green in two because Tin Cup (caddie) eggs him into doing so. Stadler hits the ball into the water and now the scene starts when Sims (Don Johnson) and Tin Cup (Kevin) get into a verbal battle about Sims wanting to lay up. Tin Cup implores him to go for it, as he would, but Sims is the 3rd leading money winner on the tour, and he's going to do it his way. I have had scenes like this on the tour. The caddie never wins!
I had been on the set for a couple of days when Stadler and Mickelson showed up at the hotel for dinner to meet the director and Kevin. Ron Shelton wanted the guys to feel comfortable with Kevin, and besides all the wives were dying to meet him, including mine. Everyone had a ball and Ron told us that cast call would be at 6:00 a.m.! Stadler groaned with the familiar cry of an animal caught in a rusty trap. He can't look pretty that early.
Peter Kostis picked me up at my room at 6:00. We all had lines that we knew we would blow in front of all of Hollywood. I packed two pair of underwear.
The next two days were shot from sun up to sun down. Twelve hour days for a scene that would run three and a half minutes at best! I'd rather get the yips. All you do is sit and wait for the crew to set up for another angle for the camera to shoot the same take you had already done twenty times before. This will teach you patience.
There were tents on the course set up with food while you were waiting. Stadler never had so much fun! The word is he will check into the Jenny Craig clinic shortly after leaving the set. Stads was magnificent in his first role. He attacked the screen with the same panache that he attacks a driver. The rolled shoulders after a bad drive. The pounding of the driver into the bag to mark it's demise. All Stadler, all good.
When you get done with the days work, they have what they call "daily's." The film from the day is sent by plane to Hollywood, processed and flown back for the actors and director to view at a rented movie theatre for a private showing. I went to look at myself on the big screen. Thank God I have a real job.
Well, we were all sitting around talking about the last two days. Kevin was very helpful in preparing us for our close-ups. He kept telling Mickelson to smile, Stadler to pretend like he was hungry and me not to over-act. Kostis was fine, he kept whispering into the microphone. We all survived our first movie roles and will live to pass on great exaggerations until Tin Cup comes out in June. Until then, lights, camera, action! Hold it! Someone in wardrobe bring me my other pair of underwear.
