Caddying in Par-3 highlight for North Augusta leukemia survivor

Brennan Simkins walked up the fifth green, marked his ball and lined up a putt that skirted the right of the hole. From the gallery, it was difficult to tell the difference between Simkins, a seventh-grader from North Augusta, and the professional golfers playing in Wednesday’s Par-3 Contest.

The 13-year-old’s journey to caddying for 1971 Masters champion Charles Coody in the Par-3 was far from ordinary. On the eve of his seventh birthday in 2009, Simkins was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. He received a rare four bone marrow transplants in 18 months and has been in remission for four years.

Simkins was familiar with Augusta Na­­­tional Golf Club but had never met Coody or worn the white caddie suit. With a big smile on his face before the round began, he couldn’t wait to hold a putter.

“It was pretty cool. Different than watching it behind the ropes,” Simkins said after sinking an 8-foot putt on the final hole.

North Augusta resident Walker Posey, a longtime friend of Coody and neighbor of the Simkins family, mentioned Simkins’s story to Coody when they were sharing lunch. Coody had another family friend with a grandson who was also treated for acute myeloid leukemia.

“Brennan’s a good teacher. He’s a smart boy. So is Christopher. They taught me a lot of things out there,” Coody said.

Brennan Simkins and Christo­pher, his brother, flanked Coody walking tee-to-green on No. 5. Then they posed for a photo with Augusta National member and former Secretary of State Con­doleezza Rice at the sixth tee box.

The two brothers walked off the Par-3 Course like champions. They retrieved golf balls from their pockets to give to other children who waited for autographs and souvenirs.