Three share lead at Turtle Bay golf

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Dana Quigley played in his 230th consecutive Champions Tour event yesterday when he teed off in the Turtle Bay Championship in Kahuku, Hawai'i, Associated Press

While breezes blew up to 25 mph and Jan Stephenson made more news for her racially insensitive comments to Golf Magazine than her historic appearance on the Champions Tour, the trio each shot 4-under-par 68. Stephenson played the final six holes even par to salvage an 80.

Quigley, who won the MasterCard Championship on the Big Island in January, and Irwin, who has won six times — officially — in the state, have made a habit of featuring Hawai'i on their highlight reel. Caldwell's surge into a share of first — he played the back nine in 4-under 32 — was more of a surprise. This is only his sixth tournament of the season and he has not been in the lead of a tour event in more than 14 years.

The nasty nature of the wind kept the leaderboard fluid. Jerry McGee and Quigley shared the lead at 5-under for a short time, but McGee bogeyed two of his last four holes.

After Quigley's second bogey, at No. 17, he was tied with Tom Purtzer at 4-under for a moment. Then Purtzer was victimized by the final hole, taking a triple-bogey eight to finish at 71. He was not alone. The 18th was a par-5 rarity yesterday with an over-par average (5.11).

Meanwhile Irwin, seeking to become the first senior to win the same event four consecutive years, tried to put it into auto-pilot in paradise. But, he said, "auto-pilot blew away."

It might not matter. Despite playing with a bad back and bad cold that he caught from his grandson, Irwin shot 60-something in this tournament for the 15th time in 22 rounds. He won this event twice when it was played on Maui (Ka'anapali Classic) and both years on O'ahu's North Shore.

"Perhaps we're on our way to recovery," Irwin said of his back. "It's still not 100 percent but I would ratchet it up to 85 to 90. And it's hard to not feel at home on a course you have had success on."

The three-time Champions Player of the Year is No. 11 on this year's money list. It is a step down from the form that has won more than $18 million on this tour, but he is still The Man among seniors and the one Quigley would most like to emulate — especially here.

"If that evolved ... I think there's enough room in Hawai'i for two of us," Quigley said. "He can pick an island and I'll go to one of the others.

"If I can play with Hale tomorrow and Sunday, I've got a shot to win."

Quigley, extending his ironman record to 230 consecutive tournaments this week, is seventh on the money list and ecstatic about the wind. "I welcome these conditions," said the guy with the wind-friendly low-ball trajectory. "I don't hope for it to be windy, but when it happens I go into no-big-deal mode."

Quigley birdied his first three holes and was 6-under after 12. He missed three- and eight-foot par putts coming in and simply shrugged. "With the wind," he said, "people will make bogeys today."

Stephenson, 51, made her share, bogeying eight of her first 12 holes. When she finally sank a par putt on the 13th she laughed loud and long in relief, admitting she had been nervous since her second shot, extremely nervous leading up to this week and "too devastated" to eat after realizing the turmoil she had created with her published comment that "Asians are killing our (LPGA) tour."

The 16-time LPGA champion got into this tournament on a sponsor's exemption. When it was announced, Stephenson said playing here was a way to promote the LPGA and its relatively new offshoot, the Women's Senior Golf Tour, of which she was a founding member.

Champions players seemed generally supportive of her appearance, but her choice of courses surprised them. At 7,044 yards, the Palmer Course is one of the longer on tour. With the wind, it is one of the toughest.

"She's a terrific player and great champion," Jim Colbert told The Golf Channel, "but this venue is really hard on a lot of us. It's quite long. ... I don't think this is the best place to show her game because she's got a lot of game."

Hilo's Steve Veriato shot 74 and is tied for 30th. He has finished in the top five at this tournament three times.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.