When Jerry Kelly thinks of his friend Rob Andringa, it’s tough.
"It's still emotional every year," Jerry Kelly says. “I always shed a few tears at media day, much less when the tournament starts.
Kelly grew up playing youth hockey with the future Wisconsin captain.
"Little Robby, more than anything,” Kelly recalls. “Playing down in the basement. The lefthander that we had in the group, which was awesome."
Sadly, Andringa passed away in 2020 at the age of 51 after battling colon cancer. So his friend Jerry preaches the word at this week's Cologuard Classic, to get checked out.
"It's a lot more of a mission than I’ve ever had,” he admits. “People need to know we’ve really saved lives here. We really have."
At the age of 57, Kelly battles nagging injuries but presses on with his eighth season on the PGA Champions Tour.
"We're old,” he laughs. “I’m 57 now, this is my eighth season on the Champions Tour, which is shocking. We’ve all got something. We’re playing a sport for a living and yes, it is a sport. And we are athletes."
Jerry Kelly says he'd love to win the Cologuard Classic. His buddy Steve Stricker did take the title, in 2018.
Joe Durant won this year's tournament on Sunday.
