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© St. Petersburg Times, published September 27, 2001
You remember Ben Crenshaw? Two-time Masters champion, 1999 U.S. Ryder Cup team captain, renowned putter, great guy.
He's not been heard from much recently, spending weekends at home even when it is not his intention. Crenshaw, winner of 19 PGA Tour titles, has made just one cut in 11 tries this year on the PGA Tour, with one round in the 60s. Last year, he made one cut in 13 tries. He didn't make a cut in 13 attempts in 1999.
That makes Crenshaw's approaching 50th birthday a blessing rather than a curse. The Senior PGA Tour beckons.
"I've said this for about six months," Crenshaw said. "I'm looking forward to completing a tournament. I'm looking forward to playing without a cut. That's No. 1. And No. 2, (wife) Julie is going to point me to South Florida and I'll just start."
Crenshaw turns 50 in January and plans a full schedule, beginning with the Florida swing of events in February, including the Verizon Classic at the TPC of Tampa Bay.
But Crenshaw is the first to admit that instant success is not assured. He's seen players such as Tom Watson and Tom Kite join the circuit in recent years, and they have been far from dominant.
And it's been a while since Crenshaw tasted success. His last top-20 finish came in 1997 at the Kemper Open, his last top 10 in 1996 at the Colonial. He has not won since the 1995 Masters.
"I'm going to try and play 20-plus events," Crenshaw said. "I have three wonderful daughters and I hate to leave them. (But) in order to be competitive I'll need to play that much. It's not like you can just fall out there and expect to do well. I have a lot of work to do."
ARNIE'S TAKE: Arnold Palmer, who grew up in Latrobe, Pa., less than 20 miles from where one of the hijacked planes of Sept. 11 crashed, is having trouble with the tragedy.
"It's very difficult for me to imagine someone wanting to commit the kind of acts that they have committed against the American people," Palmer said. "Being a pilot myself, and having flown all my life everywhere I go, and reading and hearing the things that happened in those flights and what happens in America, I'm like everyone else. I'm mad. I'm angry, and I want to do something about it. ... I don't understand the religion that tells you it's okay to do something like this."
JUST WONDERING: If Pine Valley could sell out 100 spots at $1,000 per player in less than a day, with all the money going to the Twin Towers Fund, how fast could Augusta National sell out? And at what price?
CLIMBING: Palm Harbor's Jay Overton continues to make the most of his Senior PGA Tour appearances. The former director of golf at Innisbrook had his best finish, a tie for sixth, at the SAS Championship Sunday, earning $54,400 to raise his season total to $147,738 in just five events. He has risen to 73rd on the money list. The top 75 at the end of the season are exempt into the final of the Senior PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament. If he were to make the top 50 -- which right now is at more than $337,000 -- Overton would have limited status on the tour next year. Overton is playing in this week's Golf Rush Classic on a sponsor's exemption.
LOCALLY: Greens fees and cart fees from rounds played today at Northdale Golf Club in Tampa will be donated to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. The same program took place Wednesday at Lansbrook Golf Club in Palm Harbor. Additional donations will be accepted. To reach Lansbrook, call (727) 784-7333. To reach Northdale, call (813) 962-0428. ... PGA Tour player John Huston will take part in a charity golf tournament for Skycrest Elementary in Clearwater on Oct. 8 at Countryside Country Club. There will be a 1 p.m. shotgun start and cost is $175 per person. Call (727) 797-1186 for information. ... The Birdies for Charity Program associated with the Tampa Bay Classic will have a drawing today for the winner of a 2002 Buick Rendezvous. The car was to go to the individual who guessed the number of birdies made in the tournament, which was canceled because of the terrorist attacks. Instead, a drawing is taking place with all pledge cards. The program generated approximately $100,000 in pledges, with another $100,000 divided up as part of the TECO Energy bonus pool. The winner will be notified.
AROUND GOLF: With his victory in Pennsylvania on Sunday, Robert Allenby joined Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson as players to win at least twice in both 2000 and 2001. ... Despite withdrawing from last week's tournament in France, Woods plans to participate in overseas events in Japan in November, along with the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Hawaii and the Skins Game, according to the Associated Press. Woods is likely to play the National Car Rental Classic at Disney World next month. ... In winning the SAS Championship, Bruce Lietzke hit 42 of his last 43 greens in regulation, including all 18 on Sunday. Lietzke has earned more money this season in seven senior events ($813,600) than he did in any of his 25 seasons on the PGA Tour. ... Valero Energy Corp., one of the nation's largest oil refiners, has agreed to pay $15.3-million to be title sponsor of the Texas Open for the next five years. The deal was announced Wednesday, a day before this year's Texas Open begins. The tournament, one of the oldest on the pro tour, has been in financial distress because it lacked a prime corporate sponsor.
- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.