Posted on: Thursday, October 10, 2002
GOLF REPORT
Turtle Bay envisions stronger Seniors field
By Bill Kwon
Advertiser Golf Writer
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| Hale Irwin won his sixth PGA tournament in Hawai'i when he beat Gary McCord in a playoff in the Turtle Bay Championship this past Sunday at Turtle Bay's Palmer Course. Irwin won the event for the second year in a row.
Associated Press |
The Senior PGA Tour pros came, saw and Hale Irwin won the Turtle Bay Championship. But no one, including Irwin, really conquered the resort's Palmer Course on O'ahu's windswept North Shore.
Eight-under-par 208 was the best score for 54 holes with Irwin finally winning his first senior tour playoff in his sixth try to nudge Gary McCord aside for the $225,000 top prize.
Irwin, whose game thrives in Hawai'i, also clinched the tour's Charles Schwab Cup and its
$1 million annuity by winning the event for the second year in a row since it moved to the Turtle Bay Resort from Ka'anapali, Maui.
The senior tour's all-time money winner won twice there, too, giving him six official PGA victories in Hawai'i. Calling the Islands his "primary home" when it comes to golf, Irwin also won the Senior Skins Games three times locally.
Dennis Rose, Turtle Bay's director of golf, calls Irwin's record in Hawai'i "amazing."
"Isn't that something? Not just Hale and Hawai'i in general, but Hale and Turtle Bay in particular," Rose says.
Irwin, a three-time U.S. Open champion who now represents the Hokuli'a on the Big Island after a 22-year affiliation with Kapalua, also had a lot of kind words for the Palmer layout.
"This is one of the best courses we play all year on the Senior Tour," Irwin said. With his back-to-back Turtle Bay victories, one can bet that Irwin is looking forward to making it a three-peat next year.
Irwin and the other seniors raved about the new sea isle 2000 paspallum greens that were put in since last year's inaugural tournament.
The consensus, though, was that the greens were a little slow.
"The greens were a little slow but they rolled really good, considering they're only four months old," Rose said. If the speed of the greens were a bit slow, it was the tour's doing, he added.
"The tour chose to play it 8 or 9 on the stimpmeter (a machine that measures speed of the green), not us. It's normally 10 to 11 in tournament play," Rose said. "It'll probably be faster next year and I'm not sure they'll like it."
Rose wasn't surprised that 8-under was good enough to win. It was what he expected, especially with the usual windy conditions at Turtle Bay.
"The tournament was a great success," said Rose, whose only disappointment was the relatively weak field. Only five of the senior tour's top 10 players showed up. No Tom Kite, who won the MasterCard Championship at Hualalai to start the year, no Tom Watson, not even Jim Thorpe, who withdrew the Monday of the tournament.
Rose admits it's difficult getting the best seniors to show up during the end of their season.
"There were a couple of factors. The Schwab Cup was pretty much over between Hale and (Bob Gilder). And, at the end of the year, they're getting tired," Rose said.
Mark Rolfing, NBC's golf analyst, says the onus should be on the Senior PGA Tour to ensure the quality of the field.
"Every event should get the best field possible," said Rolfing, who believes that the reduction of the number of events next year will definitely help the Turtle Bay Championship.
Like Rose, Rolfing also was excited by the event's successful showing.
"I thought after coming from the Ryder Cup, it would be a letdown for me. It was good senior golf and with the Irwin-McCord playoff, you couldn't have asked for anything better than that," Rolfing said.
Oak Tree Capital Management, the resort's new owner, is committed to hosting the Turtle Bay Championship for two more years with an option to continue. Besides putting in new greens, it has restored all 80 of the resort's cabanas to deluxe status and has nearly refurbished all of the hotel's 445 rooms.
"We see the benefits of it," Rose said. But he added that the company is still looking for a title or presenting sponsor to help defray costs of hosting the senior tour event.
"The PGA Tour needs to help in finding a sponsor," says Rolfing. "It's difficult for a resort to be host site and sponsor."
Getting a title sponsor is on Rose's wish list.
"Also a stronger field and Steve Veriato to win it next year," Rose said, referring to his former Big Island golfing buddy, who finished tied for sixth to earn $54,000 after finishing with an eagle at the signature par-5 18th hole Sunday. On Sergio's side The American media might be on Sergio Garcia's case for his exuberant antics after Europe's Ryder Cup victory at the Belfrey. But not Rolfing, who was there to cover the event for NBC, besides providing a daily report to Advertiser readers.
"I don't have any problem with it," Rolfing said about Garcia's behavior. "The celebration was nothing like what the Americans did at Boston when they won."
Besides, Garcia's a natural jumping jack anyway, according to Rolfing, who still remembers Garcia bounding down the fairway after an unforgettable shot in the 2001 PGA Championship. Sergio even jumped on his back during the U.S. Open at Bethpage in New York.
"I was with Sergio's group in the third round on Saturday in front of the most raucous crowd I've ever seen in golf. The crowd was wild and was on Sergio for what he had said about Tiger the day before," Rolfing recalled.
Sergio had ducked into a restroom while Rolfing waited on the 15th tee, which was near the 16th green and 17th tee. Someone in the gallery spotted Rolfing, whose hair is starting to thin, and yelled, "Hey, Mark. Haven't you ever heard of Rogaine?"
"Soon the whole crowd began chanting, 'Rogaine! Rogaine! ' " Rolfing said. "Sergio heard it and began pumping his arms up, encouraging them to keep it up. Then he jumped on my back and started rubbing the top of my head."
Maybe we'll get to see more jumping for joy by the hyperactive Sergio when he defends his title in the Mercedes Championships next January at Kapalua. Come on, give the kid a break. After all, he's only 22.
"He's good for golf," says Rolfing.
Bill Kwon can be reached at bkwon@aloha.net
