5 year old Isaac Riches is soon to start kindergarten, but that didn’t stop him from hopping on a plane to New York City, go on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and get inside the ropes with his buddy, Jason Day, at the Presidents Cup.
Previously invited to Orlando, Florida by Fallon’s producers when the Arnold Palmer invitational was on early in 2017, the Riches family struggled to get a passport in time and had to decline the offer. Later this year, while Isaac’s dad was in outback Queensland (Charleville) the phone rang again, it was Fallon’s producers asking if he would like to come on the show in September.
On set with two other promising young golfers, Isaac (the youngest of the juniors) captured the hearts of the audience when he said he would one day like to give Jason Day a ‘hug or a cuddle’. Shortly thereafter, Jason Day walked onstage alongside American superstar Jordan Spieth and young Isaac got to meet his idol in person (and give him a hug). The following two days, Isaac was inside the ropes with Jason Day (and Jordan Spieth) at the Presidents Cup.
A friendship was born and Isaac will see his hero again at the Emirates Australian Open in November.
Isaac is loving his golf, under the guidance of Andrew Walkley, who was voted NSW’s Top PGA Teaching Professional for 2017. A member of Armidale Golf Club, Isaac’s favourite thing to do is get on the course with his dad for a few holes.
A four-time winner of the Australian Golf Media Awards, including Best Photojournalism, Best Opinion, Best Column and Best Photographic Presentation, Inside Golf Group Editor Richard Fellner is the quintessential Golf Tragic, having played the game for over 50 years (but has never gotten any better!) He has played and reviewed courses all over the world, and has interviewed many of the great players of the game (including Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and Greg Norman). Richard is a member of both the Australian Golf Media Association and the Golf Society of Australia, and has been a featured guest on many Australian "sports talk" radio shows and networks, including ABC Grandstand, SEN 1116, Melbourne Talk Radio 1377, 2GB and others.
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