Palmer gives thrill to fans

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Arnold Palmer blasts out of a bunker on the fifth hole. Palmer ended a two-year draught in the game, picking up two skins and $50,000. Associated Press

Watson leads after the first nine holes with $70,000 and three skins, all thanks to a six-foot putt on the par-5 seventh hole. He was the only player close to the hole in two shots and blasted out of a bunker to set up his birdie.

The final nine holes, worth $420,000 (including a $30,000 carryover), will be played at Wailea Gold beginning at 1:30 p.m. today. It will be shown on TV tomorrow morning. Yesterday's action, watched by about 2,000 in ideal conditions, will be shown today.

At 54 Watson, the senior tour's 2003 Player of the Year, is the youngest here by a decade. He is two decades younger than Palmer, but this game's most senior citizen — and revered champion — created much of the commotion yesterday.

Palmer birdied both par-3s to earn $50,000 and two skins. More important, to Palmer and pretty much everyone who cares about golf and his place in its history, he ended a skins drought that had lasted more than two years and 52 holes.

"I'm proud of this guy," Watson said. "I told him he's not supposed to do that at his age."

Then Watson looked Palmer in the eye and grinned. "You can't hear or you don't listen, which is it?" Watson asked.

"A little of both," admitted Palmer, who claimed his four birdies for the day were as many as he had "in the last year."

Palmer's success came with a style as unorthodox as his swing.

On the third hole (175 yards), he yelped after hitting a drive with his 4-iron, upset he had "caught it heavy." The ball rolled, — and rolled and rolled — to within 10 feet of the hole.

"Fortunately I had more club than I needed and it worked out well," Palmer admitted. "When you get to hitting it like I do, you take a little extra club just in case you miss it."

Palmer grabbed his putter with his left hand low — the cross-handed grip many embrace when they struggle — and dropped the ball dead center. On the eighth (193 yards), he drilled a 3-iron to 12 feet and curled the putt in.

"I haven't been making any putts," Palmer said. "All the years I've played I've only putted cross-handed a very few times. I said daggonit, you haven't won a skin in a couple years. You need to do something a little more dramatic. So I made up my mind I was going to practice for three days cross-handed and then putt cross-handed regardless of what happened. You saw the result. Every putt I hit had a reasonable chance to go in, and that is the reason I did it."

He was asked if he would do it again today. Lee Trevino, the defending champion who was shut out yesterday, piped up. "I am," Trevino said. "I don't care if I don't play good. I'm putting cross-handed."

Nicklaus became the all-time leader in Champions Skins cash when he won two skins and $40,000 with eagle at No. 2. He took another skin, and $20,000 more, with a 10-foot birdie putt on the fourth, after hooking his drive over the crowd.

He has collected $1,705,000 in his 14 senior skins appearances. The format rewards a player only if he beats the other three on a hole. If no one wins outright, the money carries over to the next hole.

Despite a quirk in his swing, which he said he corrected in "five shots" after the round, Nicklaus shot his age (64) for the first time yesterday, between the back-nine Pro-Am and front-nine skins.

SHORT PUTTS: Michelle Wie will make another appearance this morning, playing in the Pro-Am. ... Her next official tournament will be the Hawai'i Pearl Open, Friday through Sunday at Pearl Country Club. She is the only female in the field, which includes 92 players from Japan, PCC Director of Golf David Ishii and "Uncle" Kevin Hayashi, Wie's playing partner at the Sony Open in Hawai'i. ... Wie will replace Barry Johnson on Jack Nicklaus' amateur team this morning. The other amateurs, who played with Johnson yesterday, are Denny Lynch, Geoff Fedurek and Caleb Chan. ... Each senior skins player donates 10 percent of his winnings to charity. This year, 5 percent goes to the David Thomas Foundation for Adoption, started by the late Wendy's owner.

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