Devlin lends hand to Foundation

Even this weekend’s typhoon wasn’t enough to dampen the spirits of golf great Bruce Devlin, who is on island as guest player in the 2nd Annual NMC Foundation Open.

The eight-time PGA Tour champion brought out his Vision Track golf teaching aid Friday at the Kingfisher Golf Links and taught some 15 enthusiasts the correct way of swinging at a golf ball.

Devlin said he was amazed at the level of interest the sport has on the island and that it just blew his mind that such a small place like Saipan would have five top-notch golf courses.

He even said that the Kingfisher Golf Links could be brought to PGA championship-caliber condition provided it gets spruced up the right way.

On Saturday, the 66-year-old Devlin tried his best to play a hole of golf with all participants of the fund-raising golf event.

But with Typhoon Tingting delivering her steady dose of rain and wind at the golf course, Devlin unfortunately ran out of time and wasn’t able to play with all the golfers and instead posed for souvenir photos with the rest of the field.

Four days into his stay on the island, Devlin said that he really enjoyed his visit.

“The hospitality here is great. People here are nice to me and I just can’t say enough about it. I’m definitely open to come back next year.”

The rain has not only wrought havoc on the schedule of the golf event but also has prevented Devlin from seeing Saipan’s famous landmarks. He said he hopes to do a bit of sightseeing before he leaves.

There’s also a kids clinic on the pipeline for Devlin this morning at the Lao Lao Bay Golf Course provided the rain doesn’t ruin it first.

Devlin came to Saipan through an invitation from the NMC Foundation. Devlin is friends with Jerry Tan and John Cox, president and board member of the Foundation, respectively.

Devlin currently works for a Boston company and is still pretty much active in designing golf courses around the world. Devlin has designed more than 150 golf courses since 1966,

A native of Armidale, Australia, Devlin now makes Scottsdale, Arizona his home, where he lives with his wife of 46 years, Gloria.

He has three children – Kelvin, Kerrie and Kurt. He said the two boys inherited his love for golf but his daughter is pretty much like his wife who – in his own words—has hit a grand total of 10 golf balls her entire lifetime.