Golf’s Michael Block received a text message from NBA legend Micheal Jordan after his PGA Championship heroics.
He had spent most of the year as a club professional in Southern California and shot to fame by making the cut at the Oak Hill East Course this past weekend. The 46-year-old received the biggest cheer of the weekend after converting a sensational hole-in-one in his final round to tie for 15th place and finish one under par.
The golfer has received multiple messages since his accomplishment, including one from arguably the greatest basketball player of all time and an avid golf fan.
"I literally scroll and scroll and scroll, and it’s never-ending. I can’t even get to the bottom of any of my feeds to even see how many or who’s seeing me. So it’s been crazy," Block said via ESPN. "I’m a big Jordan guy my whole life. I was a little kid in Iowa saving 100 bucks for a pair of Jordans back in the day. what he saw is why he loves the game of golf so much."
Block needed to finish inside the top 15 in order to qualify for next year’s PGA Championship. He entered the final day inside the top 10 and was paired with Rory McIlroy. After hitting the spectacular hole-in-one, Block was unaware of the incredible shot until he was informed by the Northern Irishman.
Block’s closed on 71 to finish on one-over par and received a warm embrace from the four-time major winner. “No way, no way,” he said. “Did that go in? I saw it go straight at it but I had no idea after that. Wow. I never looked at the leaderboard for the entire day," he said. "I probably wouldn't have made it [if I did]. I had no clue whatsoever."
He added: "I just wanted to do it for that crowd right there. I'm going to go home the happiest guy in the world. It has been a very good week." Block had featured in 25 PGA Tour events, but made the cut at just four of them. Most of his success was achieved on the Southern California PGA and won the Player of the Year honours nine times in the last 10 years, awards which earned him his PGA Tour starts.
He qualified for the second major of the year courtesy of a runner-up finish at the 2023 PGA Professional Championship, an event where all those who finished inside the top 20 earned a spot in the major.
Block certainly made the most of his time at Oak Hill and he was well received by the fans throughout the week as he gave them a superb finish.
"Unbelievable," Block told Sky Sports. "I could see while it was up in the air that it was going right at the hole, but I did not see it go in. The crowd was cheering, so I was like, 'thank you'. I thought maybe it was pretty close, but then Rory turns around and goes, 'it went in the hole'. I had no idea. You've got to be kidding me right now."
