Session with his son helps Cook to win season finale

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A trip to the driving range to watch his son hit helped John Cook to victory in the Schwab Cup Championship.

Inspiration, like motivation, comes in different shapes and forms.

John Cook had plenty of motivation to win the Charles Schwab Cup Championship for the second straight year.

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It was his first victory of the Champions Tour season on his last chance. It meant a lot to Cook finally to win in 2010 because he knows he was good enough.

Mission accomplished.

That was Cook's motivation. Credit his 24-year-old son, Jason, for a good dose of inspiration.

Jason is in the field for the second stage of PGA TOUR q-school at Bear Creek in Murietta, Calif., next week. He passed the first stage in late October at Oak Valley in Beamont, California in style. He needed a birdie on the finishing hole, a 471-yard par 4 and got it.

Father and son spent time together on the eve of the final round of the Charles Schwab Cup Championship. John, second behind Michael Allen through 54 holes, wasn't in the mood for a lot of post-round practice. It was time to switch gears so John watched Jason hit balls on the practice ground.

"I went back up to the range and actually watched my son hit balls," John said. "I just kind of chilled a little bit and hit a couple balls and watched him hit balls, and he hits it pretty good, I can tell you that.

"And I just kind of kept watching him (thinking), 'Wow. If I hit some of those shots tomorrow, those are pretty good.' And it just kind of relaxed me, got me thinking about watching him, and you know, how proud we are of our kids, and especially when someone is going through what you did 30-some years ago and understand what they're trying to work on."

For John Cook, the payoff came the next day when he shot 68 to rally past Allen at Harding Park on a difficult day. Rain delayed the start of the final round which was played in a steady drizzle. It didn't cool off Cook's blazing putter. He made everything.

Jason Cook has a lot of moxie to go with a lot of game. The final-hole birdie made an impression on Dad.

"He ended up last week under some tough conditions and birdied his last hole to get in," John said. "That's stuff you don't teach. You gotta have that. So just watching him hit some balls was a nice little calming effect."

Jason Cook works with John Mallinger and John Merritt. Dad doesn't coach. He'd rather watch and play with his son and impart his years of knowledge in a more subtle, understated manner.

"I hope he pays attention and observes and watches and understands," John said. "We do play a lot together and I just marvel at some of his shots. Very much TOUR quality. Not to put any pressure on him but the kid can really play. And he's improved leaps and bounds in the last 18 months. It's incredible."

John Cook has established a reputation on the Champions Tour as a late-season wonder. He's won all five of his titles in October and November. He's had 10 top 10s in those two months and 33 rounds in the 60s. One more stat: He's 103-under-par.

"It would've been very disappointing to me this year if I didn't win," said Cook, who was confident his Charles Schwab Cup title last year would kick-start a big 2010. "With the exception of about three or four weeks, I played very well this year and had numerous chances.

"In the past I've had a lot of top 10s, but this year I had a lot of top 5s and a lot of top 3s, and when you have top 3s, that means you've had some chances to win. If I'd have gone through this year without a win, it would have been disappointing, to say the least. I was happy, of course, about playing well and being competitive, but this is the Champions Tour. This is about winning."