Brett Ogle might have saved my life.
The Aussie golfer gave me sage advice as a youngster and I have heeded it ever since.
Athletes are often credited with influencing young people. A chance meeting with a sports star can inspire a child to pursue a sport and reach similar heights, and is often credited with setting that child on a path to stardom.
The internet is full of heartwarming tales of children who snap a selfie with their idol and even end up playing with or against them some years later, and of Olympic champions whose influence extends beyond the sporting sphere.
Athletes can motivate young people to stay in school, study hard, be proud of their culture, pursue tertiary studies or even tackle the daunting process of coming out to friends and family.
Sports stars can also have a negative influence on impressionable youth, leading them into addiction, misogyny, anti-social behaviour or questionable hairstyles.
Brett Ogle had a positive influence on me.
He was invited to Kareela Golf Course in southern Sydney to play in a Pro-Am tournament when I was in Primary school. My house backed onto the 17th fairway and Ogle was one of the professional golfers playing alongside local amateurs.
It was on the 17th hole that he did something that could have saved my life.
Before teeing off, the famously affable Ogle was puffing away on a cigarette while chatting to fans. As he stepped up to tee off, he threw the burning cigarette onto the ground before drilling his drive down the middle of the fairway.
As a curious young lad in the presence of an athlete I had seen many times on TV, I picked up the cigarette butt and told my Mum,
“Look, this is Brett Ogle’s”
As he took in the applause of the crowd, he looked around for his cigarette and his eyes settled on me with the burning butt between my fingers. Sheepishly I handed it to him.
“Thanks young fella,” he grinned.
“It’s a terrible habit, whatever you do mate, don’t smoke.”
To this day I have never smoked a cigarette.
Thanks Brett Ogle.
Image: Courtney Cook
