Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2014 - 13

(the golfi ng life
)
Team Player
Former Twins catcher
Tim Laudner enjoys
competition and
camaraderie on the
golf course
By Joseph Oberle
H
ockey players are often good
golfers because of the similar
swing motion-but what
about baseball players? Since golf and
baseball are played during the same season,
it might be diffi cult to perfect both.
Well, former Minnesota Twins catcher
Tim Laudner, who owns a World Series
ring and carried a handicap index of 0.2
last season, proves it's possible.
" You must have good athletic posture,
and you need a good athletic move at the
baseball and golf ball, " Laudner says. " The
tempos are a bit different, but your ability
to relax when doing both will certainly
garner more success. "
It helps that Laudner played both as a
kid. When his family moved to Brooklyn
Center, Minn., 7-year-old Laudner
sought out friends to play at the local
nine-holer, Joyners.
" We didn't spend time inside on our
computers-we didn't have any, " Laudner
says. " We had to fi nd things to do,
whether it would be playing Little League
or getting dropped off at the local muni
or riding bikes to Coon Rapids Dam to
catch a giant carp. "
Golf soon took a back seat as Laudner
excelled at baseball. He went to the
state tournament with Park Center High
School, was drafted by the Cincinnati
Reds in 1976, decided to attend the University
of Missouri instead and then was
drafted by the Twins in 1979. He played
nine seasons for his hometown team,
helping them win the 1987 World Series
and becoming an All-Star in 1988. He retired
after the 1989 season and has been
Tim Laudner
" I'm not a golfer.
I'm a baseball
player who
happens to
play golf. "
staying competitive on the golf course
ever since.
" When you get out of baseball you
don't just shut that off, your desire to be
competitive, " he says. " When I started
playing seriously after I retired, I met
some really good guys, and they obliged
me by sending a limo to make sure that
I got to the golf course every Saturday
morning [with my wallet]. It was either
get better or pay all the money. "
Laudner now has three holes-in-one
under his belt, but before he had the fi rst,
his friendly group used to needle him
about it. They listed theirs off and then
asked Laudner how many he had. " I'd
say, 'Well, I don't have any, but how many
World Series rings do you knuckleheads
have?' They'd say, 'Oh, hey, well never
mind, let's just play golf.' "
Laudner has competed in numerous
MGA events, qualifying for two State
Amateurs. Now at age 55, he is enjoying
the competition on the MGA Senior Tour
and competes whenever his schedule allows.
He doesn't pound many balls on the
range, because it's not very good for his
surgically repaired knee.
" It's like taking batting practice, " he
says. " I don't do that anymore either. "
Laudner appreciates the camaraderie
he fi nds on the course. The relationships
he's made there keep him coming back.
He says he plays an individual sport with
a team sport mentality, reveling in his
competitors' achievements as much as his
own. Playing baseball fostered that team
mentality.
Laudner brings that same team spirit to
his job covering the Twins for FOX Sports
North. As a broadcast analyst, Laudner
enjoys being around the ballpark and
working with the " very talented professionals "
on his new team.
Always quick with a quip, he can be
heard in the Twins press box, especially
after the offi cial scorer calls an errant
pitch that got by the catcher a passed ball.
" There's no such thing, " he says.
Laudner plays in the occasional proam
and has emceed golf events for his
friend Don Berry at Edinburgh, where
Laudner keeps his golf membership. He is
amazed that anyone would want to hear
what he has to say about golf, contending,
" I'm not a golfer. I'm a baseball player
who happens to play golf. "
He does pretty well at both.
www.mngolf.org
Spring 2014 MINNESOTAGOLFER 11
PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX SPORTS NORTH
http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2014

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