Maverick McNealy hugs his wife Maya Daniels after his win at the 2024 RSM Classic.
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
PGA Tour veteran Maverick McNealy he finally withdrew his first win on the PGA Tour on Sunday at 2024 RSM Classicand it was a family affair for the 29-year-old.
After snapping his 140 start drought with a birdie on the 18th hole Sea Island Coastal CourseMcNealy hugged his wife, Maya Daniels, on the green and both were overcome with emotion.
Soon after, Maya had a pre-planned task to accomplish: call McNealy’s parents as soon as possible.
“Mom and dad are watching at home, everyone is excited. They were my first call,” McNealy said after his round. “Maya knew her job, if she was going to go well today, to get them on the phone as quickly as possible coming off 18. I I’m the luckiest guy ever.”
Maya stepped up to the plate, connecting the two parents who were “generally incredulous” with their son, who is in the biggest moment of his seven-year career.
However, the call did not go far, with McNealy admitting that the main topic of conversation was his emotional mother.
“We were mostly making fun of mom because she was crying,” McNealy joked.
But even with Maya, mom, and dad sharing the moment with him, McNealy was missing a key family member, one who might be his biggest fan of all: Grandma.
When a reporter said he heard McNealy’s grandmother was too nervous to watch his final shot, the pro shared that while he hadn’t spoken to her yet, she has been a part of his success throughout his career. his. Then he discovered a long tradition: Whenever McNealy has a big payday, he sends flowers to his grandmother. And the better his conclusions, the better the gifts for grandma.
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“I had a deal from my days on the Korn Ferry Tour where if I made $50,000 in a given week, I had to send her flowers,” McNealy said. “She doesn’t seem to mind that it happens a lot more with PGA Tour purses than Korn Ferry Tour. It’s kind of her bragging rights around the retirement home. Then, the first 10 she gets chocolates too.”
McNealy stayed on topic, explaining how important his golf career is to his grandmother:
“She is my biggest fan. I know, I know her watching my golf in many ways keeps her going, gives her something to look forward to to the point where she won’t let people talk to her when she’s watching me playing. It’s pretty special.”
But the newly minted PGA Tour winner also revealed that he knows he has to keep up the gifts because when he doesn’t, bad things start happening in his life.
“My grandmother is a witch,” he joked. “If I forget to send her flowers, strange things happen. Food poisoning, snapping clubs, tea balls, it’s the weirdest thing ever, so I have to stick with it.”
With that revelation, McNealy seemed to realize that his RSM Classic victory, by far the biggest success of his career to date, would require more gifts for grandma than usual, at least to avoid any potential fallout. negative next season.
“I should probably give her something a little more special,” he said.
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