Author: lenz

A Q&A with USGA’s Tom O’Toole

The U.S. Golf Assn. is based in Far Hills, N.J., and its leaders don’t get to Chicago all that much. That’s why Tom O’Toole’s recent stopover offered a good opportunity to find out what’s new with golf’s ruling body in the United States.

O’Toole, the USGA president, is from St. Louis. He’s been involved with USGA matters since 1988 and is in his seventh year as a member of the USGA Executive Committee. O’Toole is in his first year as president after serving as secretary in 2010 and vice president from 2011 to 2013. He has also been a USGA rules official on more than 135 championships including every U.S. Open since 1990.

While O’Toole’s visit was designed to connect with key supporters and benefactors for next year’s U.S. Amateur at Olympia Fields, KemperSports arranged for some select media to question him about current issues in our game. O’Toole spoke expansively, and this is the boiled down version of what he said:

QUESTION: While it’s great that the U.S. Amateur is coming (its 115th playing is from Aug. 17-23, 2015, on the North and South courses at Olympia Fields), Chicago is not on the current list for a U.S. Open – or any other USGA championship, for that matter. Will any big events – particular U.S. Opens – be coming?

O’TOOLE: It’s been the long-standing practice of the USGA that we don’t talk about invitations that we receive for particular championships because we protect the confidentiality of clubs and regions and communities that are in that mix. That said, Chicago certainly is a wonderful golf town. We’ve had great U.S. Opens here, even in the last couple of decades with Hale Irwin winning at Medinah (1990) and Jim Furyk at Olympia Fields (2003).

We would always look to interact with a club that would issue an invitation, or facility if it’s not a private membership club like Medinah or Olympia Fields, to bring the U.S. Open back to this storied town of Chicago.

QUESTION: Which club, or facility, would be the best bet for that?

O’TOOLE: Suffice to say that our experience next year at Olympia Fields will be one that will be looked at closely. I’m sure it will cause the club possibly to entertain other discussions with us about future championships at the club.

QUESTION: This year was an unusual one for the USGA, in that both the men’s U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open were played on the same course for the first time, and in back-to-back weeks. In retrospect, was that a good idea and will it likely be tried again?

O’TOOLE: We’ll continue to look at something like that. We knew there was associated risk with doing that, predominantly centered around the Women’s championship. We don’t want to be braggadocios, but we pretty much avoided those risks and ended up with two great weeks of championship golf.

We always thought it would be an unbelievable celebration of women’s golf. You don’t always achieve your objective when you start down a road like that, but I think we did that. There were more eyes on women’s golf that second week. Our ratings were fabulous, the best they’d ever been for the Women’s Open. We had great galleries. It was mission accomplished.

QUESTION: Given the USGA’s new, more lucrative television contract, could some of that money be used to start a U.S. Senior Women’s Open?

O’TOOLE: That’s been a hotbed of discussion. Mike Davis and Dan Burton, who chair our Championship Committee, met with players on the (LPGA) Legends Tour. We had a good exchange, and we’re looking at it very in-depth. It’s the only sector of golfers we don’t have a national championship for. We don’t want to rush to have one if we don’t think the championship is viable.

Do we have a number of golfers from both the female professional ranks or female amateur ranks who would want to participate? We’re looking at what the Legends Tour is, how big its fields are. They range anywhere from the mid-40s up to 100. What would be the right fit for that? We promised this group that this was not lip service, that we were taking a very serious look at this championship.

I want to get this resolved by year’s end so we can say, we’ve made a decision, we’re going to go forward, we’re not, and here is the reason for either answer. I’d look for something this year.

QUESTION: One tournament that went away this year was the U.S. Public Links, for both men and women. Any regrets about that?

O’TOOLE: It was somewhat of a sad time when we retired that championship, but society has changed. We need to be celebrating that point, the fact that we don’t have in any of our national championships any requirements about what your socioeconomic background is, what golf club or facility you play for or represent.

It’s a wonderful thing that in this day and age we’ve evolved past that, particularly in a sport that’s been accused of being an elitist sport, exclusionary and not inclusionary. We don’t need those championships anymore because our society is open, our game is open. It’s something to be exhilarated about and not be disappointed about.

QUESTION: Finally, the U.S. Amateur that is coming to Olympia Fields next year may not be the most heavily followed of the USGA events but your organization in many ways finds it the most important. Why is that?

O’TOOLE: Well, it’s our oldest championship (it was first held in 1895) and the USGA is an amateur body. That’s why we were formed in December of 1894 – to conduct championships that are primarily of the amateur variety.

I don’t think there’s any debate in men’s amateur golf that the most coveted title is the Havemeyer Trophy (which goes to the U.S. Amateur champion). It just has a long connection with what the USGA represents and the epitome of what we’re trying to do in our championship presentation. The level of competition that you enjoy at the Amateur is the best in the amateur game. We have a particular attachment to it for what it means in championship golf going forward.

There was one day that defined this golf season

This golf season, of course, is far from over. We diehards know that fall golf is the best. Still, the conclusion of the PGA Championship does mean the end of the major championships and a good time to reflect on developments from the 2014 season.

SO, IF YOU had asked me I would have told you……

THE MOST INTERESTING day golf-wise was Aug. 16. Doesn’t it strike you as intriguing that the lowest rounds in the history of both senior professional tours were shot on the same day?

Sherri Steinhauer (left) celebrated her 63 on the Pete Dye Course with caddie Lisa DiPaulo.

On the men’s side Kevin Sutherland notched the first 59 in Champions Tour history and on the women’s front Sherri Steinhauer posted the lowest round in the 14-year history of the Legends circuit – a 9-under-par 63.

Sutherland’s hot round came in the 54-hole Dick’s Sporting Goods Open at En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, N.Y. – a layout that was the long-time base for the PGA Tour’s B.C. Open, which is no longer held.

Steinhauer’s round came on one of the reputedly toughest newer layouts, the Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort in Indiana. It opened in 2009 and will host the Senior PGA Championship in 2015. Steinhauer played it at 5,890 yards, but her score was every bit as significant as Sutherland’s was. Steinhauer’s round was the lowest score – man or woman – ever shot on the tricky layout that’s already been tested by top club professionals and college players under tournament conditions.

BY FAR the most striking player-caddie combination I have ever seen was LPGA Hall of Famer Joanne Carner and her sister Helen. Carner is 75 (but can still play) and Helen is 83. They don’t look at all alike and their personalities are different as well.

Joanne Carner (left) and her sister Helen made a striking team at the Legends Championship.

Helen didn’t take up golf until Joanne gave here a set of clubs for her 70th birthday. Now she’s hooked and Joanne says she’s a great caddie.

“Helen doesn’t say much, but she can run down the fairway,’’ said Joanne.

MY ADVICE to U.S. Ryder Cup captain Tom Watson would be to make Keegan Bradley, Webb Simpson and Brandt Snedeker his picks. (Watson was scheduled to make his announcement on Sept. 2).

The fact that Watson was even considering Tiger Woods “because he’s Tiger Woods’’ was ridiculous. You don’t take a player who’s endured the season Woods has, regardless of his career record. You wouldn’t take Jack Nicklaus, now would you?

Watson shouldn’t take any of the injured players, either. Given its lack of success lately, the U.S. needs fresh blood on this team. It’ll have it, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the team did quite well despite low expectations from others.

JANE BLALOCK IS one of the very best leaders in golf world-wide. She is also the least publicized. Do you even know the name of the group she heads?

Answer: the LPGA Legends Tour. Blalock created it 14 years ago, has kept it going with little support from the LPGA itself and occasionally even tees it up in tournaments.

For your information, the Legends is for women 45 and over and it has a Super Seniors division for those 63 and over (that’s where Blalock plays). The circuit has seven tournaments this year and Blalock says there’ll be at last 10 in 2015.

BEFORE WE leave the women’s side, there’s one more point to make: the U.S. Golf Assn. should create a U.S. Women’s Senior Open as soon as possible. There’s enough players to make it viable. Blalock says at least 100 of her players will enter and there are many more good senior amateurs from around the country.

The USGA already has a U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur. Adding a U.S. Women’s Senior Open to its schedule is long, long overdue.

BEST NEW event of 2014 was the National Par-3 Team Championship, which is in progress on the famed Threetops course at Treetops Resort in Gaylord, Mich. At least it seems like a lot of fun – just the type of event that golf needs to inspire a wide variety of players. You can enter through Sept. 11 by contacting the resort.

This is a two-person team event with the top 28 teams advancing to the finals on Sept. 27. (I’ll be making a rare tournament appearance in this one).

Threetops hosted the ESPN Par 3 Shootout in the late 90s and early 2000s and it involved the appearance of some top tour players. This is a nice form of revival for that popular event.

THIS WON’T SHOCK anyone, but I want to go on record anyway. The torch has been passed from Tiger Woods to Rory McIlroy as the world’s premier golfer.

Woods had a great run, right up there with those of Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer before him. I expect Woods to get healthy and win some tournaments again – maybe even another major – but McIlroy is the man now and will be for quite awhile.

NEXT YEAR will be much more exciting in Chicago than this one has been. The main reason is there’ll be more big tournaments.

The BMW Championship is coming back to Conway Farms. Rich Harvest Farms will host the Palmer Cup, a Ryder Cup-style event for college stars and the Illinois Open will likely undergo a much-needed transformation. I’m especially intrigued to see what form that transformation takes.

FINALLY, FOR THOSE WHO like to plan well in advance (like me), here’s some useful information:

The summer of 2016 will be historically significant in all segments of golf, with three big global events. Not all the particulars are set yet, but this much is known:

The LPGA International Crown will be held at Rich Harvest Farms. It’ll have July dates – though the days haven’t been determined – because the LPGA wants to get its big event played before golf returns to the Olympics.

Brazil is the Olympic site, and the golf competition will be played some time between Aug. 5-21. Then comes the Ryder Cup, back on American soil at Hazeltine in Chaska, Minn. It’ll be played there from Sept. 27 to Oct. 2. It’ll be the first time the Ryder Cup has been played in October since 2010 and only the second time in more than 30 years

This Ryder Cup is especially noteworthy, as it will climax the PGA of America’s Centennial Celebration.

Countdown is on for Par-3 national team tourney

GAYLORD, MI. – The northern Michigan community of Gaylord has 17 golf courses, all of them quite good. It’s one of the best places you can go if you’re looking for a golf-getaway destination. I should know. I’ve probably visited the area 10 times over the last two decades.

This spot on Threetops’ No. 7 tee was where Lee Trevino hit the most lucrative shot in golf in 2001 — a hole-in-one at the green far below.

This year, though, there’s something new going on. In mid-July the Treetops Resort introduced the National Par-3 Team Championship. It’ll run through Sept. 27, but you can expect to head more about it because this first version has been deemed a success and it’s not even over yet.

Jim McGuigan, head golf professional at Treetops North Resort, reported that 81 two-man teams had entered in the first six weeks of the event. Most were all male, but there are no restrictions.

“Looking forward, we wanted everybody playing the same set of tees,’’ said McGuigan, “but we could go to a second set that might bring in more women.’’

Age group categories might stimulate more entries, too, but that’s a topic for discussion for 2015. For now, the concept works as an introductory event. Each player pays $10 (in addition to his greens fee) to enter. Competitive format is a two-man best ball on the famed Threetops layout. Scores must be verified by at least one person in the group, and multiple entries are also encouraged.

Bright flowers greet all the players when they arrive at the first tee at Threetops.

“The word national is used because of the players we’re attracting,’’ said McGuigan. Players from seven states and Canada have already entered.

Playing the event on Threetops also adds to the event’s credibility. Its owner and designer, Rick Smith, opened the course in 1992 and it has been declared “the No. 1 Par 3 course in America’’ with some justification. It gained notoriety long ago as the site of the ESPN Par 3 Shootout, a nationally televised event with its participants including Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Ray Floyd, Fred Couples, Phil Mickelson, Chris DiMarco and Paul Azinger.

In 2001 the event created big news when Trevino made a hole-in-one at No. 7 which won him $1,090,000 – the most lucrative shot in golf. The event ran only from 1999-2006 but the course’s popularity never wavered. It features spectacular holes with dramatic elevation changes.

Yardage from the back tees for regular play is 1,435 yards with the best hole being the steep downhill third, longest on the course at 219 yards.

The decision to create another high-profile event was the brainchild of Florida-based Andrew Wood, who heads his Legendary Marketing firm. He worked with Treetops North general manager Barry Owens and director of golf Kevin McKinley in developing the concept and McGuigan and assistant professional Spencer Bloom are handling the administrative duties.

You must play from these tee markers in the National Par 3 Team Championship and that makes the challenge more difficult.

Threetops is available to all players when the Par 3 National Championship is in progress, but those who enter the big event must play from a set of tees slightly behind the tips used for normal play.

McGuigan said the tournament tee placements are “near’’ those used for the ESPN Par 3 Shootout in its heyday.

Players have until Sept. 11 to play qualifying rounds. The top 28 teams, plus ties, will qualify for the final shootout on Sept. 27 and there’ll be no entry fee for the qualifiers. The grand prize is a golf trip to Scotland, including airfare. Finalists will also have an opportunity on each of the nine holes to earn $10,000 for a hole-in-one, and other prizes will also be awarded.

The low score after six weeks was a 3-under-par 24 posted by two teams. One of the members of the leading teams was Justin Kowatcz, a member of Treetops’ Club 81 (the resort has 81 holes available). The others, though, are visitors to the area.

“We’ve never done this before but even par (27) will probably get you into the finals,’’ McGuigan said.

As an incentive to potential qualifiers Treetops is offering a package starting at $118 per person based on double occupancy through Sept. 11 that covers one night’s lodging, one round on Threetops with the qualifier entry fee and one breakfast buffet.

While the National Par 3 Championship was the biggest development under discussion at the 27th annual Gaylord Golf Mecca gathering of media members, FootGolf has also been added at the Rick Smith Tradition course.

As was the case at many Midwestern golf destinations, difficult winter weather slowed the start to Gaylord’s spring activities but Paul Beachnau, executive director of Gaylord Michigan USA, reported play in full swing during the summer months and the courses played during the Mecca – Michaywe, Threetops, Rick Smith Signature and The Tribute at Otsego Club & Resort – were all in excellent condition.

LPGA LEGENDS: Final round rainout makes Rinker a champion

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The final round of the LPGA Legends Championship was impacted by weather for the second straight year Sunday, and this time it prevented a ball from being struck.

Anticipating weather problems, Legends officials scheduled a 7:30 a.m. start of play off both the Nos. 1 and 10 tees, but a night of rain left the course too wet for play to begin on Sunday morning. Consideration was given to starting play five hours later, perhaps in a shotgun format, but the rain became stronger and fog made visibility difficult. A car accident on the road leading in to the course also was a factor in the decision to shorten the tournament to 36 holes.

That meant that Laurie Rinker, the leader after Saturday’s second round, was declared the champion and the winner of the $60,000 first-place check. She accepted the trophy to a standing ovation in the Dye Course pavilion and had words of wisdom for her brother Lee, a golf professional who will be playing in the Senior PGA Championship on the course next May.

“I texted my brother a picture of the trophy because he’ll be here next year,’’ said Rinker. “Maybe I can give him a tip or two.’’

She might also advise Lee to hire her caddie. Caleb Powers, a local bag-toter who was on her bag for both her tournaments on the Dye Course (they’re pictured together, below).

“He’s the best,’’ said Rinker. “He knows the course better than anybody. He told me where to hit it, and this week I could do it. French Lick’s a very special place. I’ve told people how beautiful it is, and the course is in fabulous shape.’’

Rinker, from Stuart, Fla., was joint runner-up in the first LPGA Legends Championship when Canadian Lorie Kane won the title. Kane had a two-stroke margin after the final round of 2013 was played in cold, rainy weather. She finished in a tie for 17th in her title defense after rounds of 75 and 73.

After two days of great weather rain and fog covered the Pete Dye Course and made the layout After two days of great weather rain and fog made it difficult to even see the Pete Dye Course from the clubhouse.

Sherri Steinhauer was within one stroke of Rinker after 36 holes thanks to a blistering 9-under-par 63 on Saturday. Steinhauer’s round is believed to be the lowest in the Legends’ 14-year history, two better than the 65 Kane shot in the Wendy’s Charity Challenge in 2011. Steinhauer’s runner-up check was for $36,969.

After two days of great weather rain and fog covered the Pete Dye Course and made the layout barely visible from the clubhouse.

Rosie Jones, winner of the Wendy’s Charity Classic in Michigan last Sunday, wound up third after Sunday’s round was cancelled. She was two strokes behind Steinhauer and earned $27,720. The tourney purse was $500,000, the highest on the Legends Tour.

Rinker, who shot 66 in the second round, posted a winning total of 7-under-par 137. It was her third win on the Legends circuit, the others coming in the BJ Charities Pro-Am in 2012 and the Legends Tour Open in 2013.

Rinker’s wins as an LPGA regular came at the Boston Five Classic in 1984 and the Corning (N.Y.) Classic in 1986. She also won the Bridgestone Ladies Open in Japan in 1984 and had three runner-up finishes on the LPGA circuit in 1987. Her brothers, Lee and Larry, are also golf professionals and Laurie teamed with Larry to win the JC Penney Classic in 1985.

Sunday’s cancellation also meant the six-player Super Seniors event was cut from 36 to 18 holes. It ended in a three-way tie for the title based on the 77s shot by Shelley Hamlin, Jane Blalock and Judy Dickinson on Saturday. Each pocketed $750. Blalock, CEO of the Legends Tour, also was inducted into the Legends Hall of Fame as part of the pre-tournament festivities.

LPGA LEGENDS: Steinhauer’s 63 likely a tour record

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – Sherri Steinhauer posted a round for the ages on the LPGA Legends Tour Saturday, but – as good as her 9-under-par 63 was – it wasn’t good enough to give her the lead going into Sunday’s final round of the $500,000 Legends Championship, played on the tricky Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort.

Sherri Steinhauer (left) celebrates her 9-under-par round with caddie Lisa DePaulo.

Steinhauer, who posted a 75 in Friday’s first round, made bogey on her first hole Saturday, then reeled off 10 birdies in the last 17 holes for what’s believed to be the lowest round in the 14-year history of the Legends circuit. It’s also the lowest round – male or female – shot in competition on the Dye Course.

Legends’ officials believe the previous low was 65 by Lorie Kane in the 2011 Wendy’s Charity Challenge in Michigan but they wanted to check further before declaring Steinhauer’s round the best in the history of the circuit. It was a career-best for Steinhauer, who shot 64 four times while playing on the LPGA Tour.

All those birdies on Saturday boosted Steinhauer, 51 years old and from Madison, Wis., to 6-under 138 total for the first 36 holes. That left her one stroke behind Laurie Rinker, who posted her 6-under 66 about an hour after Steinhauer finished. They’ll be paired in the final group for Sunday’s final round.

Their closest challenger after 36 holes was Rosie Jones, the co-leader after Round 1. She shot 71 Saturday and is at 4-under 140 heading into the final 18, with a $60,000 first-place prize is on the line. The other first-round leader, Lisa Grimes, is a stroke behind Jones and the only other players under par are Barb Mucha (2-under 142) and Trish Johnson (1-under 143).

“I’m excited for tomorrow,’’ said Rinker, who tied for second last year – two strokes behind champion Kane. “I feel pretty comfortable on this course. You’ve got to play along and take what it gives you. The key is being very patient and take a lot of deep breaths.’’

Steinhauer wasn’t thinking along those lines Saturday. She was made after her bogey at No. 1, then went along for the ride the rest of the way.

“It was quite a day,’’ she said. “I started hitting it close and making the putts. It felt really good, and then you just get out of your own way and keep swinging. I tried to not think about it and just enjoy it.’’

Enjoying it was no problem. She answered the first-hole bogey with a 20-foot birdie putt at No. 2, the made birdies from five feet at the fourth, eight feet at the fifth, one foot after a fine chip at the seventh and eight feet at the ninth.

The back side started with birdie putts of 15 feet at No. 10 and four feet at No. 11, but the highlight of the day came two holes later when Steinhauer put a 4-iron second shot from 176 yards to six inches of the cup. She finished her birdie run with a 10-footer at the 14th and a long double-breaker at the 17th. As it turned out, the 10-foot downhill birdie putt that she left short at No. 18 cost her a share of the 36-hole lead.

Using local caddie Caleb Powers for the second straight year, Rinker started Round 2 four strokes better than Steinhauer and was steady throughout. She hit 17 greens in regulation and putted from 60 feet for eagle from the fringe at No. 18. She took three to get in, however, so her lead remained at only one stroke.

“Anything can happen tomorrow,’’ said Steinhauer, who won eight times –twice in major championships, on the LPGA Tour before winning her first Legends tournament at Innisbrook in Florida in 2012.

Her only other Legends win came in last year’s Wendy’s Charity Challenge in Michigan, but Jones kept her from defending her title in that 18-hole event last Sunday.

“It would be nice to add this tournament,’’ said Steinhauer, “but there’s a long way to go. I can’t get ahead of myself.’’

She’s downplaying the significance of winning the Legends’ biggest tournament for another reason, too. Both Steinhauer and her caddie, Lisa DePaulo, have been touched by cancer issues that diminish the significance of what happens to them on the course.

“Lisa and I went to college at Texas,’’ explained Steinhauer. “My mom died of cancer in 2010 and Lisa’s taking care of her mom, who has cancer and isn’t doing very well. A college teammate, Piper Wagner, was also just given less than two months to live. We’re playing for all of them. Golf is just a game, and I’m just out here playing and fortunate to be able to play the game I love.’’

Saturday’s play also included the start of the six-player Super Seniors division for players 63 and over. Jane Blalock, CEO of the Legends Tour and winner of last year’s Super Seniors, is tied for the leader with Judy Dickinson and Shelley Hamlin. All shot 77s on Saturday.

Legends do their part to help children’s hospital

FRENCH LICK, Ind. — Braden Tamosaitis got to roll some putts on the Pete Dye Course on Saturday and also meet many of the players competing in the second round of the LPGA Legends Championship.

Nine-year old Braden Tamosaitis got an up-close-and-personal look at the LPGA Legends Championship.

Braden, age 9, enjoyed the experience thoroughly and the players he touched most certainly did, as well.

“He’s a special little kid,’’ summed up Dave Harner, director of golf at French Lick.

Braden was born with spina bifida, hydrocephalus and Arnold Chiari II malformation. He underwent surgery the day after he was born and again on the second day of his life. Altogether he’s had 17 surgeries, but they haven’t dimmed his spirit for life. He was delighted to report that a couple of putts on the practice green even found the hole.

“He’s a very happy kid, and a better interview than I am,’’ said his father, Kevin, who drove his family over two hours (from Camby, Ind., near Indianapolis) on Friday night so that they could participate in Saturday’s Walk for Riley while the Legends tournament was in progress.

Riley Children’s Hospital at IU Health is the new charity partner with the Legends Championship. The hospital will received a check for $100,000 following Sunday’s final round to continue its work with families dealing with severe health problems.

“French Lick really stepped up,’’ said Kevin Tamosaitis. “We’ve been welcomed with open arms and treated like VIPs.’’

Harner said Riley Children’s Hospital’s involvement developed because `we wanted something everyone in Indiana could identify with and be a part of.’’ Harner knew of Braden and the Riley programs because his own son was involved in the Riley Dance Marathon at Indiana University.

“Riley affects all 92 counties in the state of Indiana plus Kentucky, Illinois and Ohio,’’ said Joe Vezzoso, vice president of hotel operations for French Lick Resort. “This is a win-win for everyone.’’

The Tamosaitis family isn’t new to the special events tied into Riley Hospital. Braden was named Indiana’s 2013 Children’s Miracle Network Champion, and that enabled him to represent the state in a celebratory event in Orlando, Fla., and then take a flight to Washington D.C. where – among other things — he met with President Obama.

Braden’s battle with spina bifida, though, continues. He watched Saturday’s event from a wheelchair near the No. 8 tee and more surgeries at Riley wouldn’t be unexpected.

“He looks forward to them,’’ said his father, “because he gets room service and his friends are there, both patients and doctors. He’s very comfortable there. It’s not like a home-away-from-home; it’s like our other home.’’

Five families from Riley participated in Saturday’s Walk. They were scattered around the course, and those participating in the Walk got to interact the Riley families. That made the Walk all the more special for over 75 youngsters who came from all parts of the area.

“The First Tee of Louisville brought 35 kids,’’ said Harner. “We had them from three years old through high school.’’

Walk participants and the Riley families participated together in an introductory event on the Dye Course putting green, with two of the LPGA competitors – Lorie Kane and Ann-Marie Palli – offered instruction. Then the families went to checkpoints along the course and the Walk for Riley participants took off on a tour of the spectacular, hilly course. They received stickers at each checkpoint and those who covered the full 18 holes received a small gift upon completion of the hike.

LPGA LEGENDS: Co-leaders present a sharp contrast in golf careers

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – There’s a tie at the top of the leaderboard after Round 1 of the LPGA Legends Championship, and the co-leaders couldn’t be much more different.

Rosie Jones and Lisa Grimes both covered the Pete Dye Course in 3-under-par 69. Jones is one of the stalwarts on the Legends circuit and won last week’s Wendy’s Charity Challenge in Jackson, Mich. Grimes is playing in only her fourth Legends event.

Only three other players bettered par on the first 18 of the $500,000 championship that pays $60,000 to the champion on Sunday. Barb Mucha is one stroke off the lead and 2-under for the tournament./ Danielle Ammaccapane and Laurie Rinker, who tied for second last year, are another shot back.

Ammaccapane’s sister Dina set the women’s course record of 64 in the first round last year. Rinker tied for second with Val Skinner in 2013, two shots behind champion Lorie Kane. Kane struggled with a 3-over 75 in the first round of her title defense on Friday.

Though the careers of Jones and Grimes are much different, they both found ways to make birdies on Friday. Grimes, an early starter, highlighted her round with a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 16th but then gave the stroke back with a three-putt bogey on the next hole.

Grimes didn’t compete in last year’s Legends Championship because it conflicted with a qualifying round for the LPGA Teaching Division Championship. Grimes, a full-time teacher, lives seven months of the year in Arizona and teaches at Gold Canyon, near Phoenix. She lives the other five months in Minnesota and is director of instruction at Alexandria Country Club, the same course where Champions Tour standout Tom Lehman grew up.

“Teaching is my passion, but I still enjoy playing,’’ said Grimes, who has won the Minnesota Women’s Open several times and played part-time on both the LPGA circuit and its Futures (now Symetra) Tour. She finished top-10 in two of her three previous appearances on the Legends Tour.

“It’s great to have something to play in after you’re done on the (LPGA) tour,’’ said Grimes. “I still have the drive to play, but it’s not fun to play with those 25-year-olds.’’

The Pete Dye Course is filled with spectacular views, starting with the waterfall at the front gate.

As has been the case in her previous Legends tournaments Grimes has her brother Dave Kluver on her bag. He’s a PGA professional in Arizona who used to caddie for Rex Caldwell and Jim Thorpe on the PGA Tour.

Jones, by contrast, won 13 times on the LPGA Tour and took her seventh Legends title in a sudden death playoff with Nancy Scranton on Sunday. She finished tied for seventh in last year’s Legends Championship. The 3-under 69 she posted on Friday matched her winning score in the 18-hole event at Country Club of Jackson in Michigan on Sunday. She claimed that title with a victory over Nancy Scranton thanks to a 25-foot putt on the first hole of a sudden death playoff.

“Any time you play this golf course under par you’ve got to feel good about yourself,’’ said Jones. “I’m feeling confident about my game. My ball-striking is as good as it’s been in the last couple years.’’

Last year’s inaugural Legends Championship was played in September, and the weather wasn’t as picture-perfect as it was on Friday.

The number of sponsorship signage has nearly tripled for the second staging of the LPGA Legends Championship.

“I remember the greens as being much harder as far as approaches were concerned,’’ said Jones. “This is a little different golf course, and I liked it.’’

Jones had Grimes as a target all day long and caught her thanks to a hot front nine. Jones fell out of the lead with a three-putt bogey at No. 10 but went back into a tie at the top thanks to an eight-foot downhill birdie putt at No. 13.

The tourney had one late withdrawal when Pat Bradley pulled out, citing illness. The field resumes play at 8 a.m. on Saturday and Friday’s starters will be joined by six Super Seniors who will play a 36-hole competition of their own. Jane Blalock, CEO of the Legends Tour, won last year’s Super Seniors event and will go after a repeat after being inducted into the circuit’s Hall of Fame on Thursday night.

Leukemia survivor was a big hit at Legends event

Ashtyn Brown’s final swing at the LPGA Legends Championship may not have produced the desired result, but there’s no doubt she was the star of the show.

As the ambassador for Riley Children’s Hospital at IU Health, Ashtyn was the honorary starter for the 54-hole tournament on Friday. She hooked her tee shot, just a minor distraction in a saga that began in March when the hospital’s partnership with the tournament was announced.

The end result, said French Lick director of golf Dave Harner, was a $100,000 donation to the hospital through tournament activities.

Along the way Ashtyn gave several speeches describing her brutal battle with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. She also went on a media tour with Legends star Rosie Jones and played in Jones’ tournament in Roswell, Ga.

Once the Legends arrived at French Lick Ashtyn was a focal point at Thursday’s pro-am activities as well as the dinner in which she gave one more touching speech to a big gathering in the rotunda of the West Baden Springs Hotel at French Lick Resort.

In the pro-am she was paired with Joanne Carner, the LPGA Hall of Famer, and was the cart partner of Steve Ferguson, chairman of the board of Cook Group. There’s about a 50-year difference in age between Carner and Ashtyn, and their round together didn’t quite last 18 holes because of time constraints involving the Hall of Fame dinner.

“It was just incredible just to be out there with those ladies, especially Joanne,’’ said Ashtyn. “She has so much experience in golf and is a great lady as well. It’s not surprising or shocking how great these people on the Legends Tour are, and my being a golfer myself, you strive to be like them.’’

The Legends event wasn’t the first for Ashtyn in her role with the hospital. She also have speeches in golf-related settings in Indianapolis and at the PGA’s Children’s Miracle Network event in Orlando, Fla.

In all her speeches she related how she was diagnosed with the disease twice. The first was in 1999, and she endured over two years of chemotherapy. Three years later she suffered a relapse and needed another two-plus years of chemo, radiation and a trial medication that proved to be a miracle drug.

At one point, she said, her weight had dropped to 35 pounds and she was given a 10 percent chance to survive. Along the way she lost 10 of her friends along with her doctor to cancer, but Ashtyn beat the odds.

“Through speaking it’s helped me heal, just as much as I want to help other people,’’ she said. “I’ve gone through so much hurt.’’

But she is moving on from those trying days and will check in at the University of Indianapolis on Monday for her senior year. She calls the Legends experience “something I’ll remember forever.’’

In high school in Richmond, Ind., Ashtyn was a member of the state-runner-up girls golf team in her sophomore year and carried golf into college. After two years at Ball State she transferred to Indianapolis and is part of a strong team there. Though she’s a senior academically, she took a redshirt season previously and has two years of athletic eligibility remaining. She plans to make the most of it.

“I want to take my game as far as I can,’’ she said; “I love the game, but realistically I’ve got to get much better than I am now. I want my game to be the best it can be.’’

Blalock sees a bright future for LPGA Legends Tour

FRENCH LICK, Ind. — Jane Blalock and Nancy Lopez will be inducted into the LPGA Legends Hall of Fame on Thursday night. They’ll also oversee ribbon-cutting at the circuit’s new Hall of Fame at the West Baden Springs Hotel.

Steve Ferguson, chairman of the board of the Cook Group, celebrates the opening of LPGA Legends Hall of Fame with inductees (from right) Jane Blalock, Nancy Lopez, Jan Stephenson and Kathy Whitworth.

The big night precedes Friday’s start to the 54-hole LPGA Legends Championship on the spectacular Pete Dye Course here. Both Blalock and Lopez will play in the three-day event, but receiving well-deserved recognition for their golf accomplishments will take precedence.

Lopez has been one of the most popular players ever in women’s golf, having won 48 times on the LPGA Tour before moving on to the Legends circuit. Blalock was a gritty competitor, too, as shown by her 29 LPGA titles and LPGA record for most consecutive cuts made (299) but her efforts off the course overshadow her stellar playing record.

Without Blalock there would likely be no Legends Tour. She, along with 24 other senior players, put in $5,000 apiece to get things started in the 1990s. They didn’t receive much support from LPGA headquarters then but – led by Blalock as chief executive officer – the Legends Tour has carried on.

“Some people think I own it,’’ said Blalock. “I don’t. I just run everything.’’

Nancy Lopez checks out her own memorabilia in the Legends new Hall of Fame.

And, operating with a small staff from her Boston office, she’s run it well.

“Our first real tournament was in Green Bay, Wis., in 2000,’’ recalled Blalock. “It was great. We had 15,000 people a day. I’ll never forget the goose bumps when I arrived there for the first day. We were front-page news. Then the LPGA took notice and became a little more helpful. We were off and running.’’

It hasn’t been the smoothest ride since then. The Green Bay event, which had a $500,000 purse, thrived for three years and another popular tournament in DesMoines had a four-year run. Both had changes in local leadership, though, and didn’t survive.

Still, the circuit managed to put on several events each year and the same players were even more successful in Blalock’s other golf venture – a series of one-day clinics under the banner of LPGA Golf Clinics for Women. The clinic series is in its 24th year and the Legends Tour in its 14th.

This week Blalock revealed some big news for the circuit. Walgreen’s has signed on for two more years to host tournaments in Phoenix and Delray Beach, Fla., and Juli Inkster, winding down her career on the LPGA circuit, has agree to join the Legends for its Handa Cup team event in Mississippi next month. It’ll be played at the Old Waverly course where Inkster won the 1999 U.S. Women’s Open.

Last year the Legends had 11 tournaments. This year there’s seven but the number will be up again next year. Blalock expects to have at least 10 events when the 2015 schedule is announced and the circuit could grow dramatically in subsequent years if the long-discussed U.S. Women’s Senior Open becomes a reality.

The U.S. Golf Assn. is considering creating such a championship, and president Tom O’Toole said meetings with Legends members on the topic at both Phoenix and Pinehurst, N.C., weren’t just “lip service’’ on the USGA’s part. The LPGA is supporting the Legends’ cause as well.

“There were a few different commissioners, and for a time the LPGA didn’t hurt us, but certainly didn’t help us, either,’’ said Blalock. “That’s changing now with Mike Whan (as commissioner). He’s a visionary, a go-getter. He’s got the Symetra Tour in good order and he’s picking up more tournaments for the LPGA. He knew he had to right his own ship, so now we’ll get more support.’’

Famous artist Leroy Nieman captured Jane Blalock in her playing days.

Since the two preliminary meetings with the USGA Blalock said that Whan has asked her “for more ammunition, which I gave him….We put together a powerful document. Now I feel it’s not if (we’ll get a U.S. Women’s Senior Open), but when.’’

“I’m optimistic for the first time,’’ said Blalock, “and I want to get it in 2016 while Lopez is still playing. Can you imagine how much that would help our tour? The LPGA is talking about doing a championship for us, too. I met with Mike Whan in June, and he brought it up.’’

To stimulate more interaction with the USGA the Legends offered invitations to both the winner and runner-up from the U.S. Women’s Amateur to compete in the Legends’ November stop in Florida and both accepted.

One USGA concern was whether there’d be enough senior women willing to compete to make the U.S. Senior Women’s Open a viable championship. Blalock says there are “easily 100’’ who would try just on the pro side and the Legends would provide most of them.

Back in 2000 the circuit called itself the Women’s Senior Golf Tour. Many of its players didn’t like the “senior’’ connotation and then the men’s circuit changed its name from the Senior PGA Tour to the Champions Tour. The led the women to change, too.

“We did some brainstorming,’’ said Blalock, “and feel that Legends is a really good name. It doesn’t mean you have to be old. It denotes quality. It works.’’

LPGA Legends Tour braces for its biggest tournament

A statue of course architect and namesake Pete Dye will greet members of the LPGA Legends Tour when they compete in their biggest tournament this week.

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The Legends Championship, which made its debut on the Pete Dye Course here last year, is bigger and better for its second staging. It begins on Friday as the climax to a week of festivities designed to celebrate women’s golf.

The two-day Alice Dye Invitational drew 112 amateur players from throughout the Midwest on Monday and Tuesday, with competition on both the Pete Dye and Donald Ross courses. The Legends day-long clinic on Wednesday drew 58 amateur participants and Thursday’s pro-am will be packed with 195 players.
Sponsorship has also increased significantly.

“This is one of many big events we’ve hosted at French Lick,’’ said director of golf Dave Harner. “We’re rapidly becoming known as a destination for championship golf.’’

Prior to the start of the competition on Friday there’ll be an induction ceremony for the Legends Hall of Fame, which was created for the inaugural event last year. Jan Stephenson and Kathy Whitworth were the first inductees and Mickey Wright, Betsy Rawls, Louise Suggs and Alice Dye were also honored with membership. Wright, Rawls and Suggs won previous LPGA tournaments played at French Lick in the 1950s.

This time, following the induction of Nancy Lopez and Legends co-founder Jane Blalock, there’ll be a ribbon-cutting to open the Legends Hall of Fame at the West Baden Springs Hotel.

The Legends Championship is the only 54-hole event on the 14-year old circuit, but the last three events have all gone beyond regulation.

In May Liselotte Neumann won the Walgreen’s Charity Classic in Arizona in a playoff with Danielle Ammaccapane. In June Barb Moxness won the Judson College & Legends Pro-Am Challenge in Georgia in a playoff with Alicia Dibos.

The Legends Championship was immediately preceded by the Wendy’s Championship Challenge in Michigan, and Rosie Jones defeated Nancy Scranton in a playoff there. It was Jones’ seven win on the Legends circuit and she’s also in the field here.

Canadian Lorie Kane was the first winner of the Legends Championship, and she’ll defend her title. The inaugural Legends Championship was held in late September and finished in cold, rainy weather. Kane posted a 3-under-par 213 total to win by two strokes over Laurie Rinker and Val Skinner on the rugged but spectacular Dye layout.

“Being the inaugural winner was a thrill, but I’m looking forward to playing the course earlier in the summer, compared to last year,’’ said Kane, who earned $60,000 for her victory. This year she’ll be part of a 60-player field that will battle for the biggest purse on the Legends Tour — $500,000.

The tourney also includes a 36-hole Super Seniors Division on Saturday and Sunday. Blalock won that category, for players 63 and over, last year with a 5-over-par 149 total. The tourney will benefit the Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health Foundation.