THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 7, 1994 TAG: 9407070684
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: A-B NOTES
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: Long : 103 lines
A confluence of developments has left the field for the Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic a little short of manpower.
One hundred fifty six is the standard number of players most golf tournaments shoot for. As of the commitment deadline last Friday, 161 players had signed up to play.
But only 154 are scheduled to tee off this morning. Mark Lye, Donnie Hammond, Olin Browne, D.A. Weibring, Neal Lancaster and Rod Curl withdrew. Alternate Chris Perry withdrew as an alternate.
Vance Heafner, Ernie Gonzalez, Mike McCullough and Frank Conner graduated from alternate status to the field, but without enough committed players to replace the withdrawals, two openings remained.
Part of the blame is the date. The British Open is next week and that cuts dramatically into the talent pool. But there is no Nike Tour event this week, so filling the field shouldn't have been a problem.
But it was.
``Those young guys who aren't at the Open this week. . . . I can't explain that,'' Kingsmill touring pro Curtis Strange said.
Just one other PGA Tour event played this season - February's Buick Classic of California - started with less than a full complement of players.
LOVE AT KINGSMILL: One player who is here who never figured to be is Davis Love III. His original schedule, set out more than a year ago, was to play the '93 A-B Classic, then skip it this year to play in the Scottish Open.
But he liked the course and enjoyed Kingsmill's hospitality so much that he decided he couldn't skip the tournament this year.
``It's hard to do when the people are as nice as they are here,'' Love said.
Love hooked up with sports psychologist Bob Rotella. Having fine-tuning his swing at home recently, he starts the Busch in a good frame of mind.
``I've been close, but instead of being patient, I've been forcing it,'' he said. ``Now I feel like I'm heading in a direction, instead of searching for a direction.
``It doesn't take much to be off; it doesn't take much to be on. It's a fine line and I've been on the wrong side of the line for a while now.''
STRANGE OCCURRENCES: Kingsmill touring pro Strange was disqualified from Wednesday's pro-am when he signed an incorrect scorecard.
Following his round, Strange told writers that he had shot a 3-under 68. But the card he signed totaled a 4-under 67.
The error Strange overlooked took place on the par-3 17th. Strange signed for a par; actually he made 4.
And then there's the case of Ernie Gonzalez. An alternate, he didn't arrive until noon Wednesday, and was standing on the practice tee in mid-afternoon when he was asked to join a foursome in the pro-am. Mark Carnevale had just withdrawn midway through his 11th hole, citing problems with the heat.
Gonzalez complied, and played the final seven holes in even par, assisting the team on three back-side birdies.
MORE PRO-AM: A year ago, Ted Tryba led the Busch Classic after 36 holes. He finished tied for eighth and took home a check for $28,600.
Wednesday, he blistered the River Course for an 8-under 63, one off the Kingsmill record, in walking away with individual honors in the pro-am.
Tryba was the last professional on the course. He and his group of Randy Payne, Don Ingermann, Bill Campbell and Louis Morin didn't finish play until 7:30.
Tryba eagled the par-5 15th hole and had a streak of five consecutive birdies on holes No. 2 through No. 6.
Former Busch Classic champion Ronnie Black finished second after posting a 5-under-par 66.
Team honors were split between groups headed by Tom Purtzer, Brad Bryant, Lanny Wadkins and Jay Don Blake. They came in at 18-under-par 53. All the scores:
Ted Tryba 63 $2,000
Ronnie Black 66 $1,600
Dudley Hart 67 $1,200
Jim Gallagher, Jr. 67 $1,200
Mike Donald 67 $1,200
Dave Stockton, Jr. 67 $1,200
Tom Purtzer 68 $285.72
Joey Sindelar 68 $285.72
Brad Bryant 68 $285.72
John Adams 68 $285.72
Brian Claar 68 $285.72
Mark McCumber 68 $285.72
Bill Glasson 68 $285.72
Team scores:
Tom Purtzer team 53 $1,550
Brad Bryant 53 $1,550
Lanny Wadkins 53 $1,550
Jay Don Blake 53 $1,550
David Peoples 54 $680
John Mahaffey 54 $680
Joey Sindelar 54 $680
John Inman 54 $680
Jim Gallagher, Jr. 54 $680
Ben Crenshaw 55 $66.67
Russ Cochran 55 $66.67
Stan Utley 55 $66.67
Hal Sutton 55 $66.67
Tom Sieckmann 55 $66.67
Roger Maltbie 55 $66.67 by CNB