by Brian Beaky
CG Editor
As a writer, I’m supposed to be good with words. But when I read on Sunday morning that Jamie Fay, the longtime assistant marketing director at Chambers Bay, had been killed by a falling tree while driving his car in Gig Harbor the day before, I was stunned into silence.
A day later, there are still no words that seem appropriate to the sheer tragedy of the circumstance. One moment, the 36-year-old was driving home from CostCo with his three-year-old daughter in the backseat. The next moment, he was gone (his daughter, thankfully, is safe). I mean, how stupid and unfair is that?
Cascade Golfer published its first issue on June 6, 2007. The cover featured Ryan Moore, with a teaser in the corner about a new links course opening in two week’s time, just outside Tacoma. It was one of the first features about Chambers Bay published anywhere in the world.
In the eight years since, we’ve published more than 30 issues and become the most-read golf magazine in Western Washington, while Chambers — with the awarding of the U.S. Open the following February — has become one of the world’s most talked-about tracks. Throughout that time, our business interests have been closely aligned; there are few courses in the region with whom we’ve had a closer working relationship.
And that’s largely because of Jamie Fay.
When we wanted to launch our Cascade Golfer Cup series at Chambers Bay, Jamie helped make it happen. When we wanted to give all of our Cup players free rounds to Chambers — a seemingly impossible ask — Jamie got it done. When we needed access to the course for photos, or a story, Jamie took care of it. When my father died suddenly last September, the photo used at his memorial was taken from the last round he and I ever played together, a round at Chambers Bay. Jamie made that day possible for us.
Whether in the clubhouse at Chambers Bay, on the floor of golf shows in Seattle or Portland, or just out in public, Jamie always had the same big smile, the same friendly handshake, the same warm spirit. He loved talking about his two girls, and always asked about my own kids. He made me feel welcome, and appreciated. I only ever interacted with Jamie in professional settings, but he always made me feel like a friend.
Over the last 24 hours, I’ve heard from a number of friends and coworkers who also knew Jamie, and have expressed equal parts shock, dismay and disbelief. It’s a cliche that you never know how much you’re appreciated until you die; hopefully, the dozens of messages we’ve read and heard from Jamie’s grieving friends and coworkers (including Michael Greller, Jordan Spieth’s caddie, and a moving tribute by Q13’s Aaron Levine) convey a spirit of which he was aware in life, and that he appreciated the positive impact he had every day on those around him.
A GoFundMe account has been established to help support Jamie’s wife, Jen, and their two young daughters, for whom Jamie was the sole breadwinner. We’re also in the process of putting together our own fundraiser to support the family, details of which will be announced soon.
In the meantime, we’ll continue to send our best wishes to the staff at Chambers Bay, who are grieving the loss of a coworker and friend, and of course to Jamie’s close friends and family, who have been dealt a sudden and senseless shock.
It is literally impossible for me to think of Chambers Bay without thinking of Jamie Fay, and I doubt I will ever set foot on the property again without remembering his welcoming smile. I’ll go back, certainly, but it will never be exactly the same.
