BARBER CARRIES ON : His Victory in the Senior Division Is for a Friend and Former Caddy Who Is Dying

They plopped a crown on Miller Barber’s head Saturday.

But he didn’t feel much like a king.

One of his best friends is dying.

So Miller Barber will fly home tonight, back to Sherman, Tex. He’ll carry with him that crown, his prize for winning the senior division of the MONY Tournament of Champions. He’ll hurry off the plane. He’ll get to the hospital. He’ll see Roy Stone lying there in bed with cancer.

He’ll plop down the crown.

“I won, Roy,” he’ll say. “And this crown is for you.”

Roy Stone was his caddy. They ran together for 23 years. Barber says Stone was family. Stone used to take Barber’s kids to feed the ducks. When the kids were older, he’d take them to tee off. He also took care of Barber’s mother, who was ill.

“And today’s caddies aren’t dependable like Roy was,” Barber said. “I could give him a million bucks and say take it to New York, and it’d be there, not a dime missing. He was always on time. A different breed.”

He used to drive Barber’s car to tournaments, too. Barber would have driven the car himself, but trekking from Texas to California, for instance, can be a drag. “Don’t worry, I’ll drive,” Stone would say.

So Barber would fly.

Ben Hogan noticed this. So did Don January. Later, so did Jack Nicklaus. Barber would lend Stone to them.

“Anyone who knows golf knows Roy,” Barber said.

One day, Stone found out he had cancer, and about a year ago he had an operation. The doctor came out and told Barber: “He’s got about a year to live.”

Time’s almost up.

Barber arrived at Carlsbad with this on his mind. Usually, he doesn’t do so well here, never winning in 14 tries and finishing last in the senior division two years ago.

“But I was trying to win so bad, so I could take something home to Roy,” he said.

And he won easily, even with an ordinary caddy. Arnold Palmer, who finished five strokes back in second place, was paired with Barber, and, naturally, Arnie was the spectacle. On the 18th green, Palmer missed a short putt and Arnie’s Army went “ Ahhhhhhh .” Barber made a putt to end the tournament and there was just mild applause.

And as Barber walked toward the interview room, he was mumbling about Stone.

He said: “Roy was 225 pounds, and now he weighs 135. It’s eating him up.”

He said: “When my time comes, I hope the good Lord lets me go with a bang. I don’t want to suffer.”

Inside the interview room, he answered all the questions. Yes, he’d birdied on the 10th and 11th holes. Yes, it’d been an honor to play with Arnie. Yes, the weather was brilliant.

Nobody asked about Stone.

Nobody thinks about caddies.

Well, Miller Barber does.

He’ll plop down that crown and make Roy Stone feel like a king, even if it is only for a month.