The first time Maverick McNealy saw Viraat Badhwar was at the Junior World Golf Championship in San Diego. The 15-year-old McNealy was putting on the par-4 10th hole when a ball rolled up near the green.
“I see this guy who looks like he’s 30 walking up to take a look at the flag,” McNealy said. “I was so intimidated. He ended up beating me by 17 or 18 shots.”
They officially met two years later when they became teammates at Stanford. Badhwar took a circuitous route, growing up in New Delhi, the capital of India (population: 21.75 million), then moved to Queensland, Australia, at age 11.
McNealy was born in Stanford Hospital and raised in Portola Valley (population: 4,500), a par-5 from Stanford Golf Course, where he honed his game with his father, Scott, and younger brothers Dakota, Scout and Colt. McNealy won the men’s club championship at age 13.
An only child, the burly Badhwar -- he weighed 190 at age 15, his current weight -- was exposed to nearly a dozen sports at age 5, but golf quickly won out. A non-golfer, his father, Varisht, drove him to a local driving range every day and poured through books to teach his son technique, rules and strategy.
Realizing his talent and passion for the game, Badhwar’s parents moved to Australia so he could receive advanced instruction and play better courses. Badhwar assembled an impressive resume and became one of the top juniors. He captured the 2013 Australian Masters of the Amateurs and played on the national team.
Conrad Ray, the Knowles Family Director of Men’s Golf, never saw him compete in person, but received glowing recommendations and conversed with Badhwar on Skype.
“To this day, he’s the only guy who showed up for his recruiting visit in a coat and tie,” said Ray.
The slender McNealy was a standout defender in junior hockey. The only college offer he received was from Harvard to play hockey. McNealy opted to play golf at Stanford as a walk-on.
“I’d be lying if I said I knew he would turn out to the player he is and is going to be,” Ray said.
•••
•••
Fast friends
McNealy and Badhwar bonded instantly. Both are soft-spoken, polite, goal-oriented, disciplined, thoughtful, humble, analytical and driven. They also boast a dry sense of humor and can read each other’s thoughts.
“He had a 5 o’clock shadow by 2 o’clock,” McNealy said.
They lived in the same dorm as sophomores and have been roommates for the last two years. Both have taken many classes together and will graduate next month with degrees in management science and engineering.
“He was way ahead of me in high school,” said Badhwar. “I think he had 40 AP credits. He was taking Math 51 when I was trying to pass Math 41.”
McNealy loves country music and the San Jose Sharks. Badhwar prefers Drake and cricket.
Sort of.
“Growing up in India, you can’t not like cricket,” Badhwar said. “I never liked it enough to play.”
McNealy converted Badhwar into a hockey fan.
“As many games as I’ve watched with him on TV, it’s hard not to be,” he said.
Their golf games are polar opposites. Badhwar earned the nickname “Beast” for his fast, forceful downswing and low draws.
“He looked like he was killing snakes on occasion,” said Ray, now in his 12th season at the helm.
But Badhwar is deadly with the putter. He and McNealy have engaged in hundreds of contests on the practice green.
“I never beat him our freshmen year,” McNealy said.
McNealy launches high, majestic fades and is the top-ranked amateur in the world. He is a great ball-striker, a technician, and rarely beats himself.
While Badhwar has been a steady contributor the last four years, McNealy blossomed into the best amateur on the planet. Both set their sights on pro careers when they arrived and are still contemplating their next moves. They also have opportunities in the business world.
No matter what they decide, their only focus at the moment is helping the No. 8 Cardinal qualify for the NCAA Championship at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois later this month. Both will compete at home for the last time next week when Stanford hosts the NCAA Regional.
Neither is a stranger to pressure. As freshmen in 2014, they were key contributors for the Cardinal in the NCAA Championships at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Kansas. Stanford won the stroke play portion of the tournament, and both had a chance to lift the Cardinal into the match-play final against Alabama, but came up short in a gut-wrenching 3-2 semifinal loss to Oklahoma State.
“We want desperately to be in that position again,” said Badhwar.
•••
•••
Overachiever
McNealy’s goal his first season was to travel to two events. He qualified for eight and recorded four top 10 finishes.
“Quite honestly, I had a hard time seeing myself making the starting lineup,” McNealy said.
That’s not how Patrick Rodgers saw it. At the time, Rodgers was the No. 1-ranked amateur in the world and meticulous about his preparation. So were teammates Cameron Wilson and David Boote.
“I mimicked everything they did,” said McNealy, who spends three hours after every round writing down thoughts and stats in a journal.
He earned a spot in the lineup for the Western Intercollegiate at Pasatiempo Golf Club in Santa Cruz, a unique college event that pairs two players from the same team together. McNealy drew Rodgers, and they played 36 holes together the first day.
On the van ride home, McNealy asked Rodgers to assess his game and how he could improve. The next morning, much to his surprise, McNealy found a two-page email from Rodgers in his inbox.
“It was incredibly detailed and thought out,” McNealy said. “He said you’ve shown you have the game to compete and contend, and I believe you have the game to win.”
McNealy was pleased, but didn’t take it to heart until the summer. He qualified for the U.S. Open, and with Rodgers and NCAA individual champion Wilson lost to graduation, someone needed to stand up.
“They were big shoes, but I thought maybe I could fill that role,” said McNealy.
•••
•••
Sophomore sensation
He wasted no time. Spending countless hours to improve his putting, McNealy claimed a five-stroke season-opening victory at the Southwestern Intercollegiate, carding 66-72-65. During one final round stretch, he fashioned seven straight 3s.
The next week he won again at Olympia Fields outside of Chicago, site of the 2003 U.S. Open.
“That’s kind of when I thought, ‘Wow, I might actually be able to do some good things in golf,’ ’’ he said.
At the Pac-12 Championships in Pullman, Washington, he blazed through rounds of 65-68-68-61 to finish 18-under, setting conference records for total scoring and lowest round.
McNealy won six times, and was named Pac-12 Player of the Year and a PING All-America first team choice. He also received the Jack Nicklaus Award as national player of the year.
“I think it’s a total anomaly,” said Ray, a former Cardinal golfer who played with Tiger Woods.
“He played other sports, was athletic and willing to work hard. The steepness of his learning curve is amazing.”
Wilson, now competing on the Web.com Tour, knew McNealy had talent, but underestimated him.
“For every player people think are going to turn into a world beater, so few guys actually do what Maverick did under the radar,” he said.
It wasn’t by accident. According to Badhwar, nobody has worked harder.
“People think his success came out of nowhere, that he was the 1,000th-ranked amateur who came to Stanford and got kind of lucky,” said Badhwar. “I could see it coming from Day 1. He did everything he possibly could to be the best golfer.”
McNealy added four victories as a junior and repeated as the Pac-12 Player of Year and a PING All-America first teamer. But it was hardly smooth sailing.
•••
•••
Tragedy strikes
In December of 2015, Badhwar’s father died suddenly from a heart attack.
“Mav’s been through every up and down I’ve had at Stanford,” Badhwar said. “He was the first person I talked to after I got the phone call at 2 a.m. I cried on his shoulder all night.”
The McNealy family invited Badhwar to spend a few days at their house before returning to Australia and consider him family.
“All that’s missing is the last name,” McNealy said.
A long-planned visit to Australia was already scheduled, but the circumstances changed. McNealy accompanied his friend home and helped him bury his father.
“It wasn’t much fun and my family was very distraught,” said Badhwar. “He played golf with me to get my mind off it.”
McNealy called the trip “one of the best of my life. V spent basically his whole college experience in my world and I’ve grown up in the Stanford bubble. It was really special to see where he came from why he is the guy he is.”
Bhadwar’s mother, Kumud, is proud of the way her son stepped up, and glad McNealy was there.
“Maverick and his family have been a big supporter of Viraat,” she said. “I am so appreciative that the McNealy’s are his home away from home.”
Scott and Susan McNealy, Maverick’s parents, treat Badhwar like a son.
“I’ve sort of adopted him,” Scott said. “He knows he can call and ask me for advice. We’ve had long talks. I would trust V like I trust any of my boys. He’s incredibly responsible.”
•••
•••
The record
McNealy added three more titles last fall on the golf course, but struggled in the spring. Mentally and physically fatigued from a heavy class load and the rigors of college golf, McNealy took a month off to recuperate.
Some speculated it was due to the pressure of trying to overtake Woods and Rodgers, who also won 11 times during their Stanford careers. Others wondered if it was stress related, wondering if McNealy would skip his senior season and turn professional.
Turns out, it was neither.
Woods accomplished his feat in two seasons, winning 11 of 26 college starts. Rodgers played three years, teeing up in 35 events. McNealy will make his 44th start at the NCAA Regional Championships.
“It’s kind of apples and oranges,” said McNealy. “Those guys did it on different timelines. My real goal after four years was to make the biggest impact I could on the team. Coach always says you have four years to make your mark.”
And he has. McNealy, Woods, Rodgers and David Chung are the only Cardinal players who have reached the amateur ranking of No. 1 in the world.
“At the end of the day, they have been icons for our program,” Ray said. “It’s rare air.”
McNealy has no second thoughts about staying in school.
“It wasn’t even a decision,” he said. “Golf is huge part of my life, but it’s not the only thing. I was thinking one year at Stanford versus one more year on the PGA Tour or wherever else … I wouldn’t have traded this experience for anything. I’ll have a pretty cool piece of paper in about a month.”
As McNealy was for him, Badhwar is there for McNealy. They use each other as sounding boards and have had many heart to hearts. Although both take life seriously and don’t suffer fools, Badhwar is more laid back from his Australian upbringing and isn’t afraid to share his opinion.
“Some of my best golf realizations and pieces of advice are from V,” said McNealy. “He said I had lost some of my focus and intensity. I thought about it and it made a ton of sense.”
Last fall, McNealy won the Nike Invitational by shooting 65-66-68. He has five top-5s heading into the NCAA Regional Championships.
“The stats, scoring averages and wins might not say it, but I think I’m a better player now than I was a year ago,” he said. “I’m definitely more experienced and have learned a lot this year.
College is a great environment to do that in.”
McNealy recently won the Byron Nelson Award presented to a fourth-year senior who has excelled in golf and academics while exhibiting character, integrity and citizenship. For the third straight year, he is also a finalist for the Ben Hogan Award given to the nation’s top collegiate golfer.
•••
•••
Business beckons
While Badhwar has been relatively inconsistent on the course, he is a highly-respected team leader and has the ability to post low scores. Twice, he was named All-Pac-12 honorable mention, and he made the conference all-academic first team last year.
“Viraat is a very mature guy,” said Ray. “Being from a different country has made him appreciate Stanford more. He has this amazing network of people and opportunities. I know his dad would be super proud of him.”
Scott McNealy, chairman and CEO of Wayin and co-founder of Sun Microsystems, thinks Badhwar will be a natural at business.
“Viraat is going to be an outstanding executive,” he said. “Everybody will want to work with him because he’s easy to be with, smart, focused, gets his work done and has lot of integrity.”
His oldest son agreed.
“He has another gear that very few people have,” said McNealy. “When he needs to get something done, he has an uncanny ability to get it done, do it well and do it fast.”
Badhwar might wind up playing top level amateur golf. He envisions a scenario where he and McNealy play together in the Masters Tournament.
For all of McNealy’s accomplishments, Badhwar has bragging rights at Stanford Golf Course.
In 2015, he blazed a course record 11-under 59.
“I called it on the first hole,” said McNealy, whose low home round is a 60. “He made a 20-footer for eagle and I said, ‘V, you’re on pace for a 59.’ ’’
McNealy fired a 65 but was forced to deliver 60 pushups – 10 being their standard wager for shot differential.
“Honestly, it was a just a good day at the office,” Badhwar said. “Maverick has 33 good days for 11 months.”
McNealy will never forget their first pre-round lunch at the course.
“V opens up the menu and says, ‘What’s a queesa-dila?’ ’’ he said. “I said, ‘I think I’m going to like this guy.’ ’’
Countered Badhwar, “I didn’t grow up with much Mexican food.”
•••
•••
The future
Badhwar knows how lucky he is to go to Stanford. His parents made many sacrifices to help him chase his dream and ensure a bright future.
“I think about this a lot,” said Badhwar. “For that to have led me here is very, very special. A lot of things had to go my way and I am very fortunate. It gives me chills.”
McNealy is exempt for next month’s U.S. Open, where Badhwar will caddie for him at Erin Hills Country Club in Wisconsin. He’ll also play in the British Open, the U.S. Amateur, and is likely to make the U.S. Walker Cup Team in September. By then, his next step will be clear.
“Right now, I’m preparing as if I’m turning pro and I don’t want to close any doors,” McNealy said. “If I don’t start preparing now, I would close that door in September. I don’t know if I want to be a professional golfer my entire life. I know there’s something else I want to do.”
Ray is convinced.
“Whether through philanthropy, initiatives or thoughtful comments,” he said. “I think he takes that to heart more than any other student-athlete I’ve had here at Stanford.”
Has McNealy wondered what life would be like had he pursued hockey?
“A little bit,” he said. “I think I might be missing a tooth or two and I’d probably be 30 or 40 pounds heavier.”
One thing seems certain: the friendship between McNealy and Badhwar will always be tight.
“The average person has five best friends,” said Badhwar. “Considering how much time I spend with him, he’s probably three of them.”
•••
•••