Do you recognize this PGA Tour winner who went incognito in Happy Gilmore 2?
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A multiple tour champion and Ryder Cup winner played Adam Sandler’s swing double in Happy Gilmore 2. Can you work out who it is?
Have you seen Happy Gilmore 2 yet? If not, why? And if so, did you recognize the PGA Tour winner who suited up as Adam Sandler to nail those famous beastly drives?
It’s a film fans of the 1996 original have always yearned for. It had been so long many had given up hope. But it has finally arrived, and you can read all about the good and the bad – with no spoilers – in our Happy Gilmore 2 review.
Anyway, it might be heartbreaking for some to read that it is not actually Sandler swinging the club. The 58-year-old comedian and actor can play, but not quite to the gold-jacket-winning level the movies would have you believe.
Speaking recently to The Makeshift Golf Project, Sandler explained what kind of score makes someone a good golfer in his eyes.
“If a guy or a lady comes up to me and says, ‘Yesterday I shot an 82,’ I say, ‘OK, they know what they’re doing.’ Low 80s is nice.”
He then shared a nice story about his dad and how he was fighting for every shot even as he battled for his life. A true golfer to the end.
“When my dad was sick and he was dying and he had cancer and he was in the hospital room and we were talking and having our last conversations, I was trying to make sure I remembered everything.
“I go, ‘Dad, best score at Manchester Country Club is 71, right?’
“And he goes, ‘70.’ My bad, daddy.”
As for his own low score…
“My best on nine… I shot a 36 in Hawaii,” Sandler bragged. “During the pandemic I was playing every day and I shot a f***ing 36 and I blew up on the back nine. Thirty-six, I was like, ‘Am I good at golf now?!’
“I should’ve not done the back nine. It went straight to s***!
“I can pretend [and] film me scoring very well.”
Speaking of the film, Sandler turned to quite an unlikely figure to swing his swing. There were a number of big-name cameos from the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, but the person drafted in to do the most famous Happy Gilmore in golf was in fact six-time PGA Tour winner Hunter Mahan.
Mahan, 43, reached a career-high fourth in the world but no longer plays professionally, so in many respects, he was an ideal candidate.
He had the ability – you never lose it – and the time to hone the unique action. He was also delighted to be asked and wasted no time in accepting.
“When they called and said Happy Gilmore needs a golf swing double, I said say no more,” Mahan wrote in an Instagram post. “Honored to get to be a part of #HappyGilmore2 and witness Adam Sandler’s comedic genius come to life firsthand!
“Here’s a little behind the scenes look of my transformation into Happy – shoutout to the hair and makeup team, that crew is incredible and so hard working!
“And some fun from set. Such an awesome experience and capped it off by bringing my daughter Zoe to the premiere earlier this week! Happy Gilmore 2 is out now on Netflix!”
You can watch the clip on Mahan’s Instagram page and, as the man himself says, enjoy Happy Gilmore 2 on Netflix.
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PGA Tour winner and Ryder Cup player Hunter Mahan was cast as Adam Sandler's swing double in Happy Gilmore 2.
