Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 30, 1994 TAG: 9407010004
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Today on the famed No.2 course at Pinehurst (N.C.) Resort & Country Club, the longtime club professional from Roanoke gets the ``mully'' of a golfing lifetime.
Given a late reprieve when 1967 Masters champion Gay Brewer withdrew from the field Friday, King unexpectedly finds himself teeing it up with Arnie, Jack, Lee and the rest of golf's over-50 gang in today's first round of the U.S. Senior Open.
``Man, I'm on Cloud Nine,'' said King, head professional at Roanoke's Blue Hills Golf Club since 1972.
``I feel a little bit out of place. I was on the practice green Tuesday and there was [Tom] Wargo and [Ray] Floyd right next to me.
``And I got to shake hands with the `King' [Arnold Palmer] on the first tee of the practice round. I asked him if he remembered coming to Roanoke in 1957 and winning a tournament. He said he did.''
King is paired with former Masters champions Tommy Aaron and Charles Coody for the first two rounds. The trio goes off at 9 a.m. today and 1:20 p.m. Friday.
``I'm sure I'm going to be nervous as hell on that first tee,'' King said. ``Johnny [his younger brother and Blue Hills assistant] is caddying for me, so he said he'd tee the ball up and then let me try to hit it.
``The first goal we have set is to make the [36-hole] cut. Anything can happen if you start making some putts.
``Win the thing? Well, that would be about like hitting the lottery. It's probably a 7 million-to-1 shot. I don't know if I have enough guts. Come to No.18 on Sunday with a one-shot [lead] and you've got to hit a 3-iron in there and make par ... well ... it takes a lot of nerve and guts to hit that shot.''
Ten days ago, King was just another long shot in a record mass of 2,331 players attempting to win one of the tournament's 90 non-exempt spots available at 39 sites.
In 32-man qualifying for one Senior Open spot at The Crossings in Richmond, King and Gary Strickfaden, a former Roanoke resident now living in Virginia Beach, each shot 1-over-par 73. King three-putted for bogey on the first hole of a playoff, handing Strickfaden the coveted berth.
``I wasn't feeling too good after that,'' King said. ``I looked over and there was Linda [his wife] crying. Then, I had to ride back to Roanoke with her. Shoot, I figured the deal was all over.''
Four days later, King was playing his customary daily round with the Blue Hills boys when he spotted Johnny charging toward him in a cart, waving his arms frantically.
``Johnny runs up and says, `You're not going to believe this, but a guy from the USGA [U.S. Golf Association] just called and said they wanted you in the [Senior] Open.'
``We bear-hugged each other right there. I ran back to the shop, called 'em and said, `Send me all the stuff and I'll be there.`
Despite ``about running Johnny to death'' in a Tuesday practice round, King said the revered Pinehurst track fits his game.
``Bermuda grass in the fairways, bentgrass greens and tight lies, that's what I grew up on,'' King said. ``They used to call Blue Hills `The Brickyard,' so I know how to hit the run-up shots.''
No matter what he shoots, King said he's assured of one low.
``I'm the youngest guy here,'' he said. ``I just turned 50 in January. If I'm lucky, maybe I can show all these old men a thing or two.''
Other Virginians in the 159-player field include Strickfaden, an amateur who was one of Roanoke's top players in the 1980s; Richmond amateur Vinny Giles; and Senior PGA Tour regulars J.C. Snead of Hot Springs and Bruce Lehnhard of Manassas.
by CNB