O.J. Simpson hits greens at Thumper Pond
Published Wednesday, June 25, 2008
OTTERTAIL — OTTERTAIL — Where does a former National Football League star go to escape the heat and humidity of Miami?
For O.J. Simpson, the answer is Otter Tail County.
Simpson is spending the week at Otter Tail Lake and Fergus Falls visiting friends and family of his girlfriend Christine Prody and taking a break from the Florida heat.
Prody is a former Fergus Falls resident. Simpson is a close friend with her brother Barrett Prody, who has a home in Fergus Falls, a cabin on Otter Tail Lake and owns a Fargo-based consulting business for automotive industry.
The Prodys’ father, Clair Prody, lives in Fergus Falls and is the executive director of Lakeland Mental Health in the city.
Simpson has been promising Barrett Prody a visit to Otter Tail County for some time, he said.
“He’s been telling me for some time that I need to come up to his area because I’d be pleasantly surprised,” Simpson said.
Being that Prody’s area is Minnesota, Simpson has always been skeptical.
“I’ve always said, ‘As long as there’s hot weather’,” h e said.
As Simpson prepared for a 1:10 tee time at Thumper Pond Golf Course in Ottertail the temperatures were a pleasant 77 degrees.
“Barrett was right, I’m pleasantly surprised,” Simpson said.
Simpson says he’s living the life of a true retired man in Miami. He’s out the door each day by 6:10 a.m. to play a round of golf, returns home for a morning nap, and then does some reading before the noon hour. He spends the rest of his day doing some writing and taking care of his home — or as he calls it, “Keeping the fort going.”
But as of last week the Simpson “fort” has been a little more quiet than usual. Simpson bode farewell to his college-age children last week as they headed off to summer school at Boston College and the University of Florida. That gave Simpson some free time on his hands to visit Minnesota.
“I came up for a few days to do some fishing and some golfing. I hope to get some Minnesota walleye,” he said. “I wanted to take a few days away from that hot, hot, hot Miami.”
Simpson also had another thing to accomplish on his trip, too.
“I’ve been dating Christine for about 12 years now and have never met her father. After 12 years I thought it was about time I meet the parents,” Simpson said.
Simpson flew into Fargo Tuesday night. Prody said he purposely set the flight up with a Fargo arrival as opposed to Minneapolis because Simpson has always kidded him about living near the North Dakota city.
“He kids me all the time and has a hard time thinking I live near Fargo because he has the movie on his mind,” Prody said.
Simpson quickly got a new image of Fargo after going straight from the airport to the JT Cigarro Shop at 855 45th Street for a night of socializing.
“I had one of the best cigars I’ve ever had in my life, and that says a lot, because when you live in Miami, you’re forced into being a cigar smoker,” Simpson said.
Simpson says he slept in Wednesday after his night of socializing and then headed with Prody to Zorbaz on Otter Tail Lake where he had breakfast and a Bloody Mary.
“After last night I needed a little hair of the dog,” Simpson said.
By 1 p.m. Simpson and Prody were at Thumper Pond getting ready for their game of golf.
Golf, Simpson says, has been his saving grace.
“It keeps me sane after all the stuff I’ve gone through over the years,” he said.
Simpson captured the national spotlight during his trial and subsequent acquittal in the 1994 knife slaying of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman. In September he's set to go on trial to face charges of orchestrating the armed robbery of two sports memorabilia dealers in a Las Vegas hotel room. Simpson has pleaded not guilty.
On Wednesday Simpson was excited to be breaking out a new club — a 25-degree Bobby Jones hybrid.
“It’s tailor-made for drives,” he said.
He teed up with his classic Titliest Pro V ball, took his first drive, and watched the ball sail to the left and off the faraway into a heavily treed area.
“Is this a par 5?” Simpson asked members of his golf party.
When somebody replied with a ‘yes’ he appeared relieved.
“”My first hit I had no muscle, no muscle — but I’ll hit par!” he said.