Excitement continues to build ahead of the launch of Happy Gilmore 2, which is currently in filming ahead of a provisional summer 2025 release date on Netflix. The original is one of, if not the, best golf film of all time.
In recent months, Adam Sandler and others involved in the sequel have dropped various tidbits and information around plot lines and cameos. We know Eminem and NFL superstar tight end Travis Kelce will be involved, as will popular characters Shooter McGavin, Virginia Venit and Hal, played by Ben Stiller.
To get the juices flowing, I decided to watch the original and, with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek, highlight some of the golf-related inaccuracies and implausible moments from my favourite golf film.
My colleague Fergus Bisset has also previously penned an article on the five things you can learn from Happy Gilmore.
Without further ado, away we go, in chronological order…
First hit
The first time Happy hits a golf shot, he cracks one down the boulevard and hits a window of a house in the distance. “That house is 400 yards away!” one removal guy exclaims. Based on how far the ball flies in the air, the house should be several miles away – dubious distances are a common theme in Happy Gilmore. Then, his next two shots get to the house in about two seconds. It’s all very confusing.
Driving range
Happy moves to the driving range and challenges people at the golf club to step up and outdrive him. We see him fly a ball past the 400-yard marker – which, incidentally, I’ve never seen on any driving range – but it’s still rising on a very low trajectory, even though the shot before went into the stratosphere.
Coveted spots
Firstly, how does Happy get into the Waterbury Open? It’s clearly a prestigious event if a spot on the Pro Tour is on the line. Secondly, why would a club tournament afford someone a pathway to a career and vast riches in the pro ranks? Neither makes any sense. And why would the world’s top golfer be in attendance? It’s like Scottie Scheffler rocking up at some random facility’s club championship.
Tour Championship
It’s peculiar that the Tour Championship is held in higher regard than any Major Championship. In fact, Majors aren’t even mentioned. And it’s odd that Shooter McGavin doesn’t have a Gold Jacket given he seems to coast to victory in every other tournament.
First-tee announcers
The film is obsessed with having starters who put on posh/phony English accents. The one at the Waterbury Open announces the players' surnames first for some reason. You wouldn’t find the great Ivor Robson doing that. He then turns decidedly American when he tells Happy to “get out of the way”. Later, we see a starter with a posh English accent at Happy’s first pro event in Portland. Even the doctor who tends to Happy after he’s struck by a car puts on a dodgy English accent.
Time out
After Happy takes an air shot on the 1st tee at the Waterbury Open, Chubbs calls a timeout. Why he does that and who exactly he’s signalling to is unclear. On another note, he gives Happy some fairly poor advice throughout the film, encouraging him to ‘tap it in’ and focus on his hips, which aren’t really fundamental to the big-hitter’s golf swing.
Distance debacle
As I mentioned before, the distance Happy’s drives purportedly travel are completely incongruous with the visuals we see. On one occasion, his drive passes mountains and lakes and still only goes 400 yards. Even if he clearly slices the ball or catches the ground, his ball still goes 400 yards. Amazing.
Gallery groans
On the first green at the Waterbury Open, Happy putts his ball off the green. He then plays a pretty good recovery from a collar of rough by a bunker with a putter, but the gallery groans for some reason.
Waterboy
Later in that round, he hits an iron shot into a pond, before jumping in, identifying his ball and raising it aloft to the gallery, who love it. No one seems concerned about the penalty shot he’s incurred and he even moves up on the leaderboard after that hole!
Final green
On the 18th hole at the Waterbury Open, Chubbs tells Happy he has four putts to win. The scoreboard in the background shows Happy on six-under-par. So, he shoots somewhere between six-under and two-under in his first ever round. Impressive!
Dynamic duo
A huge part of live sport broadcasting is the commentary team, who can make or break an event. Unfortunately for Vern Lundquist, he has to do a lot of heavy lifting at every tournament as his co-commentator literally doesn’t say a word at any point. The most he manages is a grunt when he’s asked who Happy Gilmore is. It’s amazing he’s still employed at the Tour Championship.
Poor advice
They say a good caddie can save you shots every round. Well, not Shooter’s. At one point, he suggests a 5-iron for a greenside chip that clearly requires loft. A deserving firing ensues.
A foregone conclusion
At one event (possibly the Michelob Invitational or Dallas Open), Shooter is confidently announced as the winner while others are still on the course. We then go to the 17th green, where Happy is reading a putt. The scoreboard behind shows one competitor on 7-under-par through 16 holes, the same score as Shooter!
Bob Barker
It’s a great cameo from Bob Barker, but he should perhaps have been more understanding of Happy’s travails. He’s literally heckled on every shot and Barker doesn’t once acknowledge it, nor does anyone else in the gallery. Or security for that matter.
New putter
Ahead of the Tour Championship, Chubbs gifts Happy a custom-made Odyssey putter. I’m not an expert on golf’s equipment rules and regulations, but I’m pretty sure it’s illegal.
Unlikely putt
On the back nine at the Tour Championship, Happy hits a putt some six feet past the cup, but it miraculously rolls back down a non-existent hill and into the cup. A very rogue pin position.
Human after all
After Happy is struck by a car, Shooter proclaims that “Happy Gilmore is human after all”. Yes, because he’s been hit by a bloody car! That probably had something to do with his decreased driving distance.
Rough with the smooth
During Happy’s final-round struggles at the Tour Championship, he takes five hacks from the rough, the last of which sends his ball into a pond. But somehow, his score only goes down one shot on the scoreboard!
Twice as nice
During the recovery montage after Happy’s grandmother gives him a pep talk, we see Happy hole the same putt twice in the space of three shots.
Top of his game
I know Shooter is under pressure during the final round – after all, he’ll lose a lot of money if he has to give away grandma’s house to Happy. But I find it hard to believe he’d top a driver into a pond during such a crucial round.
Unexpected announcement
Why is the commissioner of the Pro Tour announcing to the gallery what the final hole is?
Dodgy rulings
The commissioner, Doug, also doubles up as a rules official to give to terrible rulings. He insists Shooter must play the ball from a gentleman’s trainer because “the rule says play it as it lies.” He then insists Happy must take his shot after the scaffolding by the 18th green collapses, presumably influenced by Shooter. Happy is planning to play the ball as it lies, just after the obstruction is removed!
