The 22 acres of land is outside of Poipu Beach on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. The Schauffele family owns it now, and on it sits a large cargo shipping container that doubles as a “house,” an excavator with a mulcher and several chainsaws. There is no running water or air conditioning, and the only power is generated by solar panels. Bathroom? “You take a spade and you walk into the jungle—that’s your toilet,” Stefan Schauffele says.

Rather fitting for a man whose centuries-old German-French name literally means “man with a small shovel.”

This rustic camp is where professional golfer Xander Schauffele’s parents, Stefan and Ping Yi, have spent weeks at a time away from their tract home in San Diego so they can eventually create an escape from the world for future generations of their family. Stefan is currently on a three-month stint there. Still, there are sacrifices, like not being able to have a television around when your son is contending in the final round of a major championship.

Keyur Khamar

That was the case on Sunday for the elder Schauffele, who rose with the cries of Kauai’s ever-present roosters to work his land. It rained overnight and he wanted to check on the plants he had just put in. Some 4,300 miles away and six hours ahead in time, Xander Schauffele began his round in the 106th PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club tied for the lead and with his best chance to win what had been an elusive first major.

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Over a couple of hours, Stefan checked his phone on his son’s progress, but he didn’t plan to watch any of the round until the back nine. He supposed he could do so at a local sports bar, but then some friends visiting from San Diego called and invited him to their condo. He arrived in time to very calmly—he swears—watch the most important holes of the golf life he had helped create.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but I was flatline,” Stefan told Golf Digest on the phone Sunday night. “Look, I’m observing; that’s what I do.”

Main image: Darren Carroll/PGA of America