THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 10, 1994 TAG: 9407100201
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
Imagine if Arkansas' Scotty Thurman, after making that big 3-pointer to win the NCAA basketball championship in April, had joined the Houston Rockets in May and played a key role in their NBA title run. Or what if Charlie Ward had begun January by quarterbacking Florida State to the NCAA football championship and closed January by leading Dallas to the Super Bowl crown?
Justin Leonard could accomplish golf's equivalent of those two feats today.
Just five weeks ago, Leonard won the NCAA championship while playing for Texas. He heads into the final round of today's Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic - OK, it's not exactly the NBA Finals or the Super Bowl, but it is a PGA Tour event - in third place, just two shots behind leader Mark McCumber. Leonard has strung together rounds of 67, 69 and 67 at Kingsmill's River Course.
``It's a great feeling,'' Leonard said. ``It's something I haven't felt at this level. I'm looking forward to (Sunday).''
For good reason. Leonard has two more sponsor's exemptions for tournaments this year at the New England Classic and at the Federal Express St. Jude Classic. If he finishes in the top 10 this week, he'll be eligible to play in next week's Deposit Guaranty.
If Leonard can hold his position he'd earn $74,800, which combined with the $8,880 he's already earned in two previous tour events would give him enough official winnings to be eligible to play on tour the remainder of the year.
HECKLING: Mark McCumber came into the interview room while Leonard was holding court with reporters. When someone asked Leonard a question and made reference to him not having much money, McCumber shot out: ``How do you know he doesn't? He might be loaded.''
If Leonard keeps playing like he has the last three days, he will be one day.
CURT CURTIS: Curtis Strange, whose 76 Saturday was the second-worst round of the day next to Larry Rinker's 79, did some commentary on ESPN after the round and had some choice words about John Daly.
Daly said in England the other day a lot of players on tour do cocaine and ``other crazy stuff,'' and said the tour should begin drug testing.
Strange told the television audience he talked to many of the other players at the Anheuser-Busch about the comments. Strange said the consensus among the players is that ``John Daly should crawl back under whatever rock he crawled out from.''
WHOOPS: What was McCumber's reaction when he realized he'd made a major mental lapse by failing to mark his ball before picking it up on the fourth hole? ``I thought I'd had heatstroke,'' McCumber said.
PART-TIME WORK: McCumber has won seven times on tour, but not since 1989. He's cut his schedule back drastically in the last few years because he wanted to spend more time with his family and because of a flourishing golf course design business.
McCumber, who played 21 events last year and has entered just 12 of 27 tournaments so far this year, said he's taken a page out of the book of Bruce Lietzke, who takes long breaks from the tour and swears he doesn't touch his clubs when he is not on tour.
``I've copied him,'' McCumber said. ``He teases me some times and says, Mark, you went past me.' '' by CNB