LOS ANGELES — Ten minutes had gone by, and the seat behind the Lakers’ press conference podium remained empty.
Reporters up and down the rows of chairs in front of the podium were glued to their phones and computers, keeping an eye on Augusta National Golf Club and the final moments of the Masters tournament.
Rory McIlroy faded his tee shot into the pine straw, forcing a dramatic finish for his second consecutive Masters title, a final round that saw the Northern Irish golfer press his luck on the final few holes.
McIlroy went on to weave the ball through the trees, scoop the ball out of a bunker and putt twice for bogey to become just the fourth golfer in history to win consecutive Masters titles (the first since Tiger Woods in 2001-2002) and slip the green jacket back over his shoulders.
Moments after McIlroy’s putt on the 18th hole dropped in, Redick entered the press conference room to laughter from the assembled reporters.
They were watching golf. And so was he.
“I would have been here earlier,” Redick said as he sat down, “but Rory hit it in the trees.”
Golf has become a uniter for the Lakers throughout their roller coaster regular season, which came to a close on Sunday night. LeBron James picked up golf for the first time at 40, a promise to himself to do something he had never done in his life before, he said earlier this season.
“I love the sport,” James said a few weeks ago. “I appreciate the sport. I love how difficult it is. I love the challenge.”
His son, Bronny James, has followed his dad onto the greens. Luke Kennard and Jake LaRavia enjoy golfing as well, joining the father-son duo alongside Luka Doncic – also a newfound golfer – in Orlando for a coaches vs. players scramble in March.
Redick said watching McIlroy this time around, compared to his first Masters victory last year after the championship had evaded him time and again, was a different experience. The Lakers’ head coach said he had been rooting for McIlroy last year, cheering him on to see him finally earn the jacket and complete the career Grand Slam.
This year, Redick said, he was curious to see how McIlroy was handling his shots, especially on the 18th hole.
“How do you manage, or you failed on the tee shot?” Redick said. “It’s not where he wanted to be. And how do you manage that next shot? And obviously, everybody knows I’m an avid golfer. I love golf. I’m the biggest head case on the golf course in the world.”
McIlroy maneuvered his way to a bogey finish and a one-stroke victory over top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, staying within himself to keep composure on his final putts. Redick said he learns from watching golf and athletes such as McIlroy, comparing those moments to the world around him.
“It’s been awesome for me because I think there’s so many parallels to life and there’s so many parallels to every other sport within the game of golf and I just wanted to see how Rory sort of managed that,” Redick said.
