1987 … one day, two great golfers !

Does anyone recognize this guy? It’s Chi Chi Rodriguez, the professional golfer. The first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

It was 1987 and he was in Pinehurst, NC playing in a Senior’s Tournament. This is also the locale of the hospital where I was working, (in the ER), and we were all excited because Chi Chi had just signed the register … wanting to be examined by the docs for stomach pains.

It was a slow day and he received an inordinate amount of attention from the doctors. You notice that is in the plural. I think just about every doctor in the house found a reason to “treat” him…and, to be fair, Chi Chi loved the attention.

This was a few years before we became automated and we still had a hand-written sign-in log at the front desk. Imagine my surprise when the next name, directly after his, was that of my husband. He was having some breathing problems and decided to come in and get some relief. When he saw Chi Chi’s name above his he gave a chuckle and said, “What do you know? Two great golfers in one day!” Somehow that message was not passed on to the Doctor’s who could barely be drawn away from the “real” golfer to tend to my husband !

I was sorely tempted to copy that log page and have it framed but I couldn’t afford losing my job over it. HIPPA wasn’t enacted until 1996 but I knew enough not to break the “privacy rule” and I left well enough alone !