From Issue #25, Fall 1995

ROBERT LANDERS AND THE MOO CREW

By Pam Pickens

Since Carol (editor) and I aren't golfers, we may never have heard about Robert Landers if it weren't for an article sent to us by Mrs. Moo (AZ).

Farmer-turned-golfer, 51 year-old Robert Landers hails from Azle, TX, where he once raised cattle. Now he's raising a ruckus on the golf course with his unorthodox uniform of blue jeans, flannel shirts, and tennis shoes, his unusual swing more reminiscent of chopping wood than slicing a golf ball, and his bizarre gallery of fans called "The Moo Crew."

In a kind of Field of Dreams fantasy, Robert Landers qualified for the Senior PGA Tour where he played this summer with such famous golfers as Lee Trevino and Gary Player. He became an instant celebrity on the Seniors tour where he was interviewed by CBS, NBC, CNN, ESPN, and even an Australian TV station. He was featured in every paper from USA Today to The New York Times. Everyone, it seems, was MOOVED by his story.

According to Mr. Landers he'd wanted to play the Senior Circuit for years, but it wasn't until he lost his job when the clothing store he worked for went out of business that he finally got his chance. His wife, Freddie, issued an ultimatum. "One day," says Mr. Landers, "she told me to either get a job or get serious about golf. I picked golf."

So where did Robert Landers get his start? On the farm, of course. He hit balls on his 73 acres of pasture every day, rain or shine, up to 60,000 per year. He even built his own sand trap by digging a hole and filling it with sand he dug from a creek on the property. However, it was a short-lived practice site. The cows liked it so much they took it over. "They like to lay in there," he says.

He may be off the farm for now, but Mr. Landers has not forgotten his roots. His golf bag has Holstein spots. His golf club covers are cow heads. His gallery of fans wear Holstein-patterned caps and "MOOOOO" their support.

Mr. Landers has even formed his own golf company which will market such items as golf clubs featuring a special "Holy Cow" graphite shaft with the black-and-white Holstein pattern. No golfer, of course, will want to be without "cow chippers" otherwise known as wedges. Also, the company will sell the book "Greener Pastures" the story of Landers' rise from the farm to the fairways. He even has a toll-free telephone number: 1-800-MOOCREW. Mr. Landers and his business manager have offered MOOsletter subscribers a 20% discount on cow-spotted golf bags, caps, tees, and other MOO CREW merchandise. You can call the toll-free 800 number for a brochure and order form or request one from the MOOsletter and be sure to use your subscriber number and subtract 20% from your total when placing an order.

So what's next? A movie of course. Hollywood came MOOING and soon we can expect to see a suave movie star playing Robert Landers up on the silver screen. While he hasn't said who he'd like to play him and Freddie, we have some suggestions. How about Roger MOOre and Sandra BULLock?