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David Feherty will perform at the F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts on June 4.

Bill O’Boyle Aimee Dilger Photos/The Times Leader4/3/2008

WILKES-BARRE — David Feherty nearly missed the cut on life, but the affable Irishman with a distinctive brogue remains in the field, bringing his witty charm and humor to golf audiences and non-golfers alike.

Feherty will bring his show — “David Feherty Live Off Tour” — to the F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts on June 4th.

He has struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and bi-polar disorder. He candidly talks about his life — the good and the not so good — with the sincere hope of helping others.

Feherty took time to talk about his upcoming visit to Wilkes-Barre. He was dealing with a dental issue, having a crown fall out, requiring a temporary fix.

“I think they used Super Glue on it,” Feherty said. “Right now I look like I should be on an episode of Moonshiners.”

The wit is non-stop for Feherty. Anyone who has heard him on CBS golf broadcasts or on his Golf Channel show “Feherty,” knows just how funny the guy can be.

A search of Feherty quotes revealed these gems:

” I am sorry Nick Faldo couldn’t be here this week. He is attending the birth of his next wife.”

“Jim Furyk’s swing looks like an octopus falling out of a tree.”

“Watching Phil Mickelson play golf is like watching a drunk chasing a balloon near the edge of a cliff.”

Feherty said this will be his first visit to Wilkes-Barre. He said from what he’s learned, Northeast Pennsylvania is his kind of place, strengthened by blue-collar people with a solid work ethic and love of family.

He said those attending his show will hear things they’ve never heard before in a style that is all Feherty’s.

“It’s anecdotal,” he said. “It’s stand-up. But it’s not a show for kids. People will definitely know me a little better at the end of it. They will laugh for 90 minutes or so.”

Feherty said he loves to tell stories of golf legends like Arnold Palmer, Ken Venturi and Byron Nelson.

“I tell stories that will die if people like me don’t continue to tell them.” he said.

Feherty will be 57 in August. He said the way he was living his life, it seemed unlikely that he would reach 50.

“Sometimes I feel like I’m on borrowed time,” Feherty said. “I talk about my struggles, which actually have a humorous side as well.”

Feherty had just finished covering The Masters for CBS. He said the low scores this year were more indicative of how well the field was playing rather than favorable conditions at the fabled course.

Jordan Spieth went wire-to-wire to win The Masters. Spieth is 21 and he reminded Feherty of another 21-year-old who won his first Masters several years ago — Tiger Woods.

“I never thought we would see that again,” Feherty said.

Feherty said Spieth played like a seasoned veteran, nailing two putts — on No. 15 and No. 16 in the final round — that he said were two of the greatest putts he had ever seen.

“Those two putts kept that gap between Jordan and the field,” Feherty said. “And he made them when he was in an incredibly uncomfortable position — at the top of the leader board at The Masters.”

Feherty said he hopes the media won’t follow Spieth’s every move. He said Spieth and Rory McIlroy are golf’s “two kids on white horses.”

Feherty said Woods played well at The Masters and, at times, not so well — not Tigeresque. And Woods also seemed, well, different than before.

“For a while there I wondered who he was and why this guy was wearing Tiger Woods’ clothes,” Feherty said. “Tiger has been so incredible for the game of golf. He has generated so much interest and money for golf. And I still believe that when Tiger does play like Tiger, nobody else can win.”

On the Golf Channel website, it tells of Feherty’s efforts on behalf of our wounded warriors. According to the website, in 2005, Feherty was part of a Thanksgiving goodwill tour to Iraq and returned with a new mission, determined to do something to better the lives of those he calls “American heroes.”

He founded “Feherty’s Troops First Foundation,” which works with wounded soldiers who come home without limbs or have been severely disfigured. The affiliation inspired him to become an American citizen in 2010.

That hit home with me. My father lost his right leg in World War II and wore a wooden prosthesis. His disability never slowed him down, working a full-time job for 30 years before retiring. Feherty’s efforts for these soldiers is to be more than commended.

“Losing a limb, or the ability to use a limb, is one thing,” Feherty said on the Golf Channel site. “But the dignity they lose with it is perhaps even more important. And to be able to give them some of that dignity back is my mission these days. It’s not a charity. It’s just us trying to pay back a very small part of the check that we owe them.”

Through his struggles, Feherty has made it through to the other side. He makes us laugh and he makes us think. He challenges us to take notice of the really important things in life, while bringing his unique approach to a game that for far too long was mired in an atmosphere of stodginess and affluence.

Feherty’s hope, and it is a sincere hope, is that his openness about his struggles might help others realize they aren’t alone in dealing with illnesses. He crawled into the black hole of alcohol and drug abuse and he managed to walk upright out the other side.

In the game of life, where we all hope to make a positive impact on someone somewhere, Feherty has made the cut. In fact, he may be at the very top of that leader board.