Posted on: Sunday, January 13, 2002

FERD LEWIS
Steady Toms has good view anywhere

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Sports Columnist

As he stared out the open interview room door across the rolling surf with Koko Head in the distance, David Toms sighed and allowed, "it is a nice view here (in Hawai'i) — a little better than the Quad Cities Open."

But, then, if you are Toms, the view is great wherever you happen to be these days.

From Coal Valley, Ill., to Wai'alae, what's not to like when you are playing the championship caliber of golf he is?

Who wouldn't enjoy the view from what could be, after today, the top of the PGA Tour money list and more than $1 million?

For sure the skies are a little bluer, the crowds a little friendlier and the paychecks a lot fatter for the 35-year-old these last amazing 13 months.

What Toms has done in the Sony Open in Hawai'i, where a 12-under par 198 has him well positioned two strokes behind leader Jerry Kelly heading into today's championship round shootout, is ensure himself a shot at a tournament title for the third consecutive tournament.

Seven birdies yesterday — including the first two holes — allowed Toms to make up seven strokes, propelling him into what has become weekly contention.

Barring an uncharacteristic collapse by the steadiest player of late on the tour, Toms will leave here with his fifth top-10 finish over the last six tournaments dating back to the waning months of the 2001 season.

For the man who expects to spend his next break goose hunting, it has been one long open season on both par and the competition. Last year only some guy named Tiger Woods won more tournaments than Toms, who took three of them and had six other top- 10 finishes. Only Woods and Phil Mickelson won more money than the Louisiana native's $3.8 million last season.

Indeed, the expectations are lofty for Toms these days. "My golf game is better," he says. "My bad days are not as bad as they used to be. I think the expectations (today) when I tee off on No. 1, when I'm on the range warming up, I expect to have a chance to win.

"I might not play good, but I'm going to feel like I'm going to play well."

And, why not? Things have been going so well that when Toms' 10-foot putt didn't fall and he lost a playoff to Sergio Garcia at the Mercedes last week at Kapalua, he was able to put it behind him in barely 48 hours.

"I feel like I'm playing good, solid golf right now," Toms says. "I'm not doing anything special. I'm not making everything, I'm not driving the ball great. ... I'm just scoring well the last few weeks."

And when you are Toms and you are doing that, wherever you are it can look like paradise.