Adam Sandler reacts to real-life golfer named Happy Gilmore: 'Pulling for you'

One of Adam Sandler's most popular roles in the 90s included that of golfer Happy Gilmore in the 1996 comedy movie of the same name. It seems there's now a real-life teen golfer, who also goes by the same iconic name. Gilmore, whose real name is actually Landon, recently announced his commitment to play college golf at Ball State University.

“I am very grateful for the opportunity Coach Fleck has given me!” Gilmore said on Twitter. “I would like to thank my family, my friends and coaches who push me everyday!” The 56-year-old actor reacted to the news and took to Twitter to give a shout-out to the young golfer wishing him luck. “Go get 'em Happy,” the "Murder Mystery 2" actor, Adam Sandler, tweeted. “Pulling for you.”

A verified Twitter account for Shooter McGavin, actor Christopher McDonald’s character in the film, also praised the teen in his announcement, according to TODAY. “Congrats, but I tell you what, you’d be something in one of those long drive contests,” the account wrote. “Hell, you’d probably make a very good living. Traveling around, hustling at driving ranges. Just a thought.”

As for the popular comedy from the 90s directed by Dennis Dugan, Sandler’s character is a rejected hockey player who realizes that he may have the skill for a completely different sport: golf. When he finds out that his grandma is about to lose her home, he joins a golf tournament to win money to save her house.

But how did Landon end up earning the nickname Happy? He told The Indianapolis Star that he adopted the name when he started playing in golf tournaments at about six years old. “My mom said it was before this, but I really remember it when I was like 9 years old,” he said. “Then, when I was like 13, I started going by ‘Happy’ all the time.”

Landon admitted he always gets a reaction when he introduces himself. “They will look at me funny,” he added. “But if my golf bag is there and has my name on it, that will kind of help a little bit. But it never fails. At some point, they will ask me, ‘Is that your real name?’ or ‘How did you get that name?’ Something along those lines.” He also confessed that he hasn't practiced Sandler's iconic swing move in the film in some time now. “I haven’t done it for a while, so I’m probably a little bit rusty,” he explained. “But just give me a couple of balls, and I can usually make pretty good contact.”

One thing he does have in common with the character is his driver. “I’m pretty long (off the tee),” he said. “Here, lately, I’ve been struggling with my driver, but typically I’m very good off the tee and my putting is usually pretty good. I’ve been working hard on getting my wedges up because my irons are decent, but my strong suits are definitely off the tee and off the green.”

When asked if the nickname adds any pressure to his game Gilmore said: “I don’t think it adds any pressure to me. But I do know that whatever I do is going to be seen. Especially as far as leaderboards, when people are scrolling down and see ‘Happy Gilmore,’ they are going to look at it, obviously. So I do know that, but I don’t let it get in my head or that I have to play good because of it. I just go out and do my thing.”