Details have emerged about the 94-year-old spectator who died Friday at the U.S. Open at Erin Hills, including news that his death came just three days after his wife’s.
According to a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel report, the spectator was Marshall “Chick” Jacobs, a veteran of both World War II and the Korean War. Jacobs receive both a Silver Star and a Purple Heart for his service, and he was also at one time a single-digit handicap who served as a marshal for several years at the Greater Milwaukee Open.
His wife, Lucille, died Tuesday at age 88. The couple was married for 68 years, and Marshall still went forward with plans to attend the U.S. Open alongside his son, Bill. The elder Jacobs was in “poor health” following a broken hip earlier this year, but he had circled the event back in 2010 when Erin Hills was first named as the host site.
Father and son were in the grandstand behind the sixth green for “three hours of bliss,” according to Bill. Shortly after the pair watched Steve Stricker get up and down from a greenside bunker, Marshall became unresponsive and later died.
“He got to see his favorite golfer (Stricker) make that last putt,” Bill Jacobs said. “Jesus came down and said, ‘Hey, Marshall, I’m going to bring you up and reunite you with your wife. Because obviously, you don’t want to spend any more time here.'”
Bill and his sister, Patti, returned to Erin Hills to watch the final round. After the USGA informed Stricker of the story, he signed a player credential which the family hopes to frame in time for the joint funeral that will be held on Friday.
Source: Internet
