THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, July 15, 1996 TAG: 9607150119
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: 75 lines
After a week of moderate temperatures, fittingly the roaster was turned up several degrees Sunday to make the final July day at the Michelob Championship at Kingsmill a sultry one.
The tournament will return in 1997 the week of Oct. 9-12.
``This tournament I feel has kind of got dumped on over the years in terms of the dates,'' 1996 champion Scott Hoch said. ``I'm glad that they've got a better date next year, that should be good for them.
``I'm hoping they'll get a good field. That late in the year you'll get a lot of guys trying to make the top 30 on the money list and a lot of guys trying to stay in the top 30.''
A better field should translate into bigger galleries, which appeared to be down throughout the week. Tournament officials declined to release attendance figures on Sunday.
``It will be great,'' said second-place finisher Tom Purtzer of next year's Michelob prospectus. ``You'll get a better field. A lot of players don't play here because of the weather. Everything should be working for you. The golf course will be in its best shape.''
But how will an October date - possibly with chilly air - effect Curtis' Strange Navy, the revelers who occupy boats and jet skis in the James River off the 17th tee?
``They'll be out there,'' Purtzer said. ``You kidding me? Get some of that Bud Light and Michelob in you and it insulates you.''
SAD PILGRIMS: Virginia Beach second-year Tour player Carl Paulson got on the leaderboard for a while Sunday when he almost holed his approach shot at No. 10. The 6-inch tap in for birdie put him at 10-under.
He was tied for sixth at the time, much to the delight of a gallery numbering a couple hundred, a pack of which wore pink ``Paulson's Pilgrims'' T-shirts. But it would be the Pilgrims' last reason for thanksgiving.
Paulson gave up four strokes to par in his final seven holes - including a bogey binge at 12, 13 and 14. He finished in a nine-way tie for 23rd place - his highest finish of the season - at 6-under par 278. Paulson's $10,042 payday totaled more than half his previous season winnings.
But the four strokes he lost at the end were costly. Had he been able to remain at 10-under, Paulson would have tied for seventh and cashed a check worth $38,958.
``I hit a couple of bad shots and it caught up with me,'' said Paulson, who began the day at 8-under. ``I didn't hit it well at all today. I made a couple of putts early to save par.
``I'm disappointed about today, but what can you do?''
PRIDE DAY: Dicky Pride, playing in the final group on Sunday for the first time, said he concentrated on his game all day and was not paying much attention to Hoch.
``We were walking up the 18th fairway and he asked me what my birdie on 17 did for me in terms of my finish and I said, `Hell if I know,' '' said Pride, who finished alone in sixth place. ``He said he had a four-shot lead and I said, `Oh really?'
``The guy played some really good golf for four straight days.''
WEATHER WATCH: This tournament could not have had more fortuitous timing in regards to the weather. First the remnants of Hurricane Bertha moved through late enough Friday that second-round play could be completed, and the storm had passed in time for Saturday's play to go on undeterred. Then a hot and humid Sunday afternoon produced a violent thunderstorm and deluge just over an hour after play had been completed.
CHIP-INS: With the victory, Hoch becomes the leading career money winner in this tournament with $451,848. . . . Hoch led the tournament in greens in regulation (77.8 percent), was sixth in driving accuracy (78.6 percent of fairways hit. . . . Paulson's 277.6 yards average driving distance on the two holes on which the statistic is measured by the PGA Tour was tops in the tournament. . . . Rex Caldwell's 7-under total of 277 was good for a six-way tie for 17th place, good for a $16,917 payday - which surpasses his total winnings on Tour in the past six years. by CNB