The camaraderie among Alabama Crimson Tide players, coaches, alumni, and fans runs deep.
Roll Tide: Nick Saban phones Lee Hodges after dominating 3M Open win
Nick Saban, one of the greatest coaches in college football history, congratulated Lee Hodges after his first win on the PGA Tour.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
Football coach Nick Saban is well aware of that.
So too is Lee Hodges, a former graduate of Alabama. Hodges crushed the field this past weekend at the 3M Open, winning by seven strokes.
Hence why Saban reached out to Hodges to congratulate him on Sunday evening.
“Congratulations,” Saban said. “That’s fantastic. Had a great one, huh? I usually watch at night and I was rooting for you.”
“There’s not many times you win by seven, so it was pretty fun,” Hodges responded.
His seven-shot win in Minnesota marked the first time Hodges won on the PGA Tour. It is also the largest margin of victory on the PGA Tour in more than three years. Rory McIlroy was the last to do it, winning by seven shots at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open.
With the win, Hodges received 500 FedEx Cup points. That vaulted him from 74th to 33rd in the FedEx Cup standings.
With only the Top 70 qualifying for the first playoff event in Memphis, Hodges now has a guaranteed spot in the PGA Tour’s postseason.
“I’m playing some really good golf,” Hodges said after his win. “I’m excited to have the opportunity to do some special things in the playoffs now. Anytime you win, you really set yourself up for some special stuff.”
“My caddie was telling me on 18, I honestly didn’t even think about it, but we get to play Augusta next year,” Hodges continued. “That is something else. That was probably the coolest thing I heard all day. I’m just really thankful.”
Hodges had himself a pretty nice Sunday. He won his first PGA Tour event, earned a trip to The Masters, and received a congratulatory call from Coach Saban.
And once he is done competing in the FedEx Cup playoffs, Hodges can turn his attention to Crimson Tide football, which begins practicing this week.
Saban’s team opens up its 2023 season by hosting Middle Tennessee State on Sept. 2.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
