Lilly Deane, aged 11, just could not contain her excitement.
Lilly was screaming out from the ropes on the side of the 13th hole during the PGA Championship practice and her father, Stuart Deane, couldn’t help but smile.
Here he was on the biggest stage in golf and it appeared Lilly was bursting with pride to see him strut down the fairways of Valhalla Golf Club.
“Dad! Dad!”, Lilly screamed, “I got Rory McIlroy’s autograph!”
And with that Deane once again realised just how big a deal it was to have qualified through the PGA Professionals National Championship for the final major of the year.
Deane, a Brisbane-born club pro in Arlington Texas where he lives with his Texan wife and daughter plus seven-month-old son Sam, is teeing it up against the best in the world.
“It is really great to be here, for the club pro this is the epitome,” Deane told AAP.
“I’m lucky, I know a lot of the Aussies like John Senden and Jason Day so there is somewhat of a comfort factor, which is really nice.”
Deane, who had twice missed out on the coveted top 20 in the PGA pro national championship by a shot and lost a playoff another year, cemented his place in style this year.
A hole-out eagle on the par four 17th with a pitching wedge from 134 yards helped him to third place.
He has played a handful of US PGA tour events over the years through Monday qualifiers and was on the secondary tour for a time before multiple injuries conspired against him.
The 42-year-old has now set his sights on proving, on his day, he can compete with the best.
“The goal I have set is to be the low club pro for the week but I figure if I play how I have been playing then top 30 is the goal I set and I don’t think that is unrealistic,” Deane said.
“The big thing will be to get off to a nice solid start, not have to chase anything down, just get out and start well.
“There is nothing to lose here. You have all the support in the world. Your membership, your family, they’re just all so excited you are here so it is a win already.
“But at the same time I am sure most of us club pros are thinking it is not just about coming, it is about competing and showing just because we work on the other side of the industry doesn’t mean a lot of us aren’t really good players.”