Character Relationship Map: Banning

Characters

• Mike Banning (played by Robert Wagner) — protagonist

  A rising PGA Tour star once known as Mike McDermot, he is falsely accused of trying to arrange a fixed putt after refusing to participate in the scheme. At the El Presidente club, he uses the name Mik...

• Angela Barr (played by Jill St. John) — supporting

  A local aristocrat who enters the club's competitive bidding for the Calcutta teams. She outbids the President's daughter for Banning's team, becoming his backer in the high-stakes tournament. Her bid...

• Jonathan Linus (played by Guy Stockwell) — supporting

  A professional golfer who first approaches Mike McDermot about splitting a winner's purse in exchange for a deliberately missed putt. After McDermot refuses, Linus turns to Tommy Del Gaddo and helps f...

• Chris Patton (played by James Farentino) — supporting

  A golfer in the Calcutta tournament who tells the organizing committee that Banning is a former professional. Banning learns that Patton disclosed this information and confronts him in a fight that ne...

• Cynthia Linus (played by Susan Clark) — supporting

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Jonathan Linus → Cynthia Linus (Romantic Husband) — Jonathan's marriage gives him access to wealth and club ownership.

  The plot states that Linus retires from the PGA Tour and marries into a rich family; the character list identifies Cynthia Linus as his wife.

• Mike Banning → Jonathan Linus (Professional PGA Competitors) — They begin as professional golf competitors before their conflict escalates.

  The plot states that Mike McDermot and Jonathan Linus were competitors on the PGA Tour.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Mike Banning → Cynthia Linus (Conflict Club Adversaries) — Mike's threat places him in opposition to the club's Linus family interests.

  Cynthia is identified as part of the Linus family connected to the El Presidente, while Banning returns to the club and threatens to expose its princi...

• Mike Banning → Chris Patton (Conflict Adversaries) — Chris's disclosure threatens Mike's tournament position and provokes violence.

  Chris Patton tells the organizing committee that Banning is a former professional, after which Banning confronts him and nearly kills him in a fight.

• Mike Banning → Angela Barr (Alliance Tournament Teammates) — Angela becomes Mike's financial backer and teammate in the high-stakes tournament.

  Angela Barr wins the competitive bidding for Banning's team in the Calcutta tournament.

Story Analysis

A disgraced golfer returns under a new identity and risks everything in a high-stakes tournament to escape the consequences of a false accusation.

Plot Progression

1. The Framed Professional — Mike rises on the PGA Tour but refuses Jonathan's proposal to manipulate a final putt. Jonathan then helps accuse Mike of the scheme.
2. Return To El Presidente — Jonathan retires, marries into wealth, and becomes connected to the El Presidente club. Mike returns under a new name and receives an assistant professional's job.
3. The Dangerous Wager — Mike arranges a Calcutta tournament because he needs money to repay the loan connected to his trial. His poker deception and Angela's winning bid establish the contest's financial pressure.
4. Exposure And Violence — Chris reveals Mike's professional past to the tournament committee. Mike gives up his handicap, confronts Chris, and nearly kills him after learning who exposed him.
5. The Final Golf Test — Jonathan replaces Chris and the tournament reaches sudden death. Mike answers the pressure with a nearly impossible shot over the trees in the decisive stretch.