Colonial Pro-Am had Bill Murray going for it ... which is nice

Bill Murray, who played the memorable assistant groundskeeper Carl Spackler in the 1980 movie Caddyshack, joined 2015 Masters champion and No. 2 player in the world Jordan Spieth at the Dean & DeLuca Invitational Colonial Pro-Am on Wednesday.

“It’s a beautiful course,” said Murray, who often chatted with the crowd, and signed autographs. “I love this course and it’s a wonderful crowd.”

In what was perhaps his best shot of the day, Murray drained a 20-foot putt on No. 16, and got a loud roar from the crowd. Murray then dropped the “mic” or in this case, his putter, took off both gloves and unbuttoned the top of his shirt. He slowly walked over, gave a security guard a high-five, and a took a seat just off the green.

“He was a shot maker, carving it left and right, hitting it high and low and he showed up for the big moments,” Spieth said. “He knew when the crowd was there, he knew when to pull off the shots and pick up his game. He’s a performer, he knows what he’s doing.”

Early in the round, Murray hooked a drive into the rough on the second hole. “Who kicked my ball?” he asked fans, drawing a laugh.

“We had a great time and it was really nice for Bill to come here,” Spieth said. “Us north Texans are big fans and I think he heard that today from the crowd.”

Special guest

Fort Worth-based defense contractor Howell Instruments sponsored U.S. Army 1st Sgt. (ret.) John Faulkenberry, a combat veteran who was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with Valor, in the pro-am.

“I saw it as an excellent opportunity for us to give back,” Howell chief executive Arthur “Shep” Brown said.

Go with the flow

Celebrity chef Tim Love, when asked if he was bumped from the Jordan Spieth foursome because of Bill Murray, said he went where he was told.

“Oh, I don’t know,” said Love, who appeared amused by the question. “I’m with the Dean & DeLuca group, so somebody was with Jordan and somebody was with Adam Scott, and so yeah.”

Sticking to football

TCU football coach Gary Patterson joked that he’s not about to turn in his whistle for a wedge, even though he had his first career hole-in-one earlier this month on No. 16 at Colonial Country Club.

Patterson fired a 7-iron from 158 yards for the ace on May 14, but wasn’t ready to boast about it following his pro-am round on Wednesday .

“I didn’t have [an ace] today,” Patterson said. “It was my first hole-in-one, but I’m not going to quit my day job.”

Patterson wouldn’t even consider the ace among his best personal achievements, saying: “No. Until they start paying me to do aces, no. I’d rather win the Rose Bowl.”

It’s in the bag

Tee boxes for the pros are marked with small replica Dean & DeLuca shopping bags, but the company’s CEO and owner found a different bag when his errant approach shot on No. 18 flew into a loaded clear plastic trash bag. He didn’t go after it.

“I was a bit shy so I walked away,” said Kuhn Ying, one of Bill Murray and Jordan Spieth’s partners Wednesday. “I’m happy it didn’t hit anyone.”

The miscue shot hardly diminished the day, he added.

“It was fun, exciting for me and a good experience,” said Ying, who also met with PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem. “[Murray and Spieth] are very, very nice, so it makes everything easier. He’s a very nice guy, very funny. The crowd liked him a lot.”

Staff writers Eric Zarate and Drew Davison contributed to this report.

This story was originally published May 25, 2016 at 9:19 PM with the headline "Colonial Pro-Am had Bill Murray going for it ... which is nice."