THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 13, 1995 TAG: 9507130505
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: Medium: 87 lines
Don't even suggest to Lanny Wadkins that his golf game has suffered because of his Ryder Cup duties.
``I don't think it's affected my game, I think I've just been swinging crappy the last two or three years,'' said Wadkins, who is 115th on the money list this year and was 185th last year, the worst campaign of his 24-year career.
Come September, Wadkins will take a swing at captaining the Ryder Cup squad, on which he has played eight times. He won't play this fall unless he wins his way onto the team. He's currently 121st in Ryder Cup points so, realistically, he doesn't have much of a chance.
The Richmond native said the toughest part of the captain's job will come when he has to select two team members to join the Americans who finish in the top 10 in points. That selection will take place the Monday after the PGA Championship.
Wadkins said he has in mind several veteran players, currently ranking from 11th to 25th in the point standings. He expects to have his field narrowed to four by the first week of August.
``I've had probably three to five names in mind all along that have entered the picture as they've played well this year,'' Wadkins said. ``It has to be somebody who has at least played well this year.''
Curtis Strange, 21st in Ryder Cup points and 39th on the money list, has played OK this year. Strange and Wadkins are fellow Virginians and fellow Wake Forest alums. Although Wadkins is not revealing the identities of everyone he is thinking of, there's no secret that Strange - a veteran of four Ryder Cups - is one of them.
``Having won a U.S. Open on that golf course (Oak Hill, in Rochester, N.Y.), and finishing fifth in the PGA on that course, he's definitely in consideration,'' Wadkins said. ``I don't think there's any question any captain will have certain guys he'd be more comfortable with. He knows their personality and knows their track record.''
Strange said he doesn't have a chance unless he starts playing better. He would prefer to make the team on points, not as a pick.
``Lanny's been nice with his comments, and we go back a long way, but I don't want that to be a part of it,'' Strange said.
DOUBLE DUTY: Strange will attempt to talk a good game as well as play one at the British Open, beginning next year. He has signed a four-year contract with ABC to serve as a golf commentator on the British starting in 1996.
``I'll play and then when I'm finished, I'll go up in the booth and talk about the golf course and the guys I know,'' Strange said.
If he misses the cut, he will remain in the booth as the No. 1 analyst throughout the weekend.
He will also work the Greater Milwaukee and Houston opens, as he has the past couple years.
Strange said he was undecided on the deal until ABC Sports president Dennis Swanson called him and said, ``Hey, let's get this done.''
Strange sees TV duty as something to dabble in, not something that will ever supplant golf. The 40-year-old Norfolk native expects to play the Senior Tour when he becomes eligible in 10 years, not shift to a desk job behind a microphone.
``I don't plan on doing it full time, but I enjoy it and I enjoy the people at ABC,'' Strange said.
MARQUIS PAIRINGS: The Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic field often gets dissed, but check out these back-to-back pairings today and Friday: Jim Gallagher Jr., Payne Stewart and Mark McCumber, followed by Strange, Wadkins and Jay Haas.
Between them, those six players have won 71 tournaments and more than $34 million.
Gallagher, Stewart and McCumber tee off No. 10 at 12:32 p.m. today and off No. 1 at 7:48 a.m. Friday. Strange, Wadkins and Haas go off No. 10 at 12:40 p.m. today and off No. 1 at 7:56 a.m. Friday.
PRO-AM WINNERS: The teams of Neal Lancaster and Scott Simpson tied at 20-under 51 for first place in the Anheuser-Busch Classic Pro-Am at the River Course. Joining Lancaster were Rodney Rodman, John Saterbo, Paul Kastin and William Haug; with Simpson were Jack Dalrymple, Richard Bullock, Colby Brooks and Hugh Gallagher.
MY NAME IS FORREST . . . : Here's the final pairing we would like to see Sunday: Forrest Fezler and Scott Gump..
Then it could be said the final round is like a box of chocolates; you never know who's going to win. ILLUSTRATION: Lanny Wadkins, captain of this year's Ryder Cup squad, is
unlikely to earn a berth as a player.
by CNB