I have had the privilege of knowing Fuzzy Zoeller for almost forty years, not only as a friend but also as a partner. Anyone who knew Fuzzy, even briefly, carries a story about him. He had a remarkable way of making people feel like they were his closest friend and of lifting the lives of those around him.
Fuzzy was always upbeat and positive. Even when a bad bounce cost him a tournament, he never complained. He would simply say that life brings good breaks and bad breaks, and dwelling on the negative only drags you and everyone around you down. That was one of the many lessons I learned from him.
If you have a story about how Fuzzy touched your life, I encourage you to share it.
Fuzzy was the most generous person I have ever known. He gave back to this community, to local charities, and to organizations across the world. Many public figures gain fame and move away from their hometowns. Fuzzy stayed. He raised his family here, invested here, and loved southern Indiana and the people who call it home. Along with his partners Ned Pfau, Kenny Huber, and Sonny Sprigler, he built the Covered Bridge golf community and hosted the Wolf Challenge charity tournament for twenty years. The event was a major benefit to our community and raised millions of dollars for charities.
Here is a story you will not find in the press.
Thirty-eight years ago, at the Oldsmobile Classic in Orlando, Fuzzy heard about two young boys who had recently lost their mother to cancer. He asked to meet them. Their father, Bill Lewis, brought his sons Geoff, age eleven, and Josh, age ten, to Disney to have dinner with Fuzzy and his wife, Diane. After dinner, Fuzzy invited the boys to walk inside the ropes with him on Sunday during the tournament. It did not erase their pain, but it gave them strength in a moment when they needed it most. Fuzzy stayed in their lives from that day on and became a father-like presence for them.
Years later, at age thirty-one, Geoff was diagnosed with colon cancer and passed away eight years after that. Before he died, Fuzzy helped him fulfill one of his dreams, bowhunting for a bull elk. Geoff, Josh, and their father later started the Lewis Cancer Family Fund. With Fuzzy’s support through donated Master’s tickets, auction items, Fuzzy Vodka, and his participation in their annual golf outing, the fund has raised more than one point seven million dollars. Just two weeks ago, Fuzzy and I hosted Josh and his friends at our farm for their annual deer hunt.
This is only one example of how Fuzzy changed lives, especially the lives of children. He had a generous heart, and I know there are many more stories out there. I hope you will share them.
You can upload your memory here.
On behalf of all who loved him, thank you for helping us celebrate the life of a remarkable friend and athlete.
— Bob Koetter
