Toshiba Senior Classic: One tough customer

Richard Dunn

NEWPORT BEACH - Lanny Wadkins earned a reputation for being a

gunslinger and fierce competitor on the PGA Tour, and he apparently has

no intention to change that in his first year on the Senior PGA Tour.

One of three marquee “rookies” on this year’s senior tour, Wadkins, aside

from having to learn about new cities and golf courses, feels he’s

anything but a rookie.

“Most rookies have something to prove, and I don’t think I have anything

to prove,” Wadkins said Monday after arriving in town for the Toshiba

Senior Classic at Newport Beach Country Club.

Wadkins, Tom Kite and Tom Watson, the latter of whom is not playing in

this week’s senior tour event at Newport Beach, are the tour’s three new

kids on the block. And Wadkins, who won 21 titles on the PGA Tour in his

illustrious, including the 1977 PGA Championship at Pebble Beach, is

ready for the senior tour’s new challenges.

“I think the reception has been outstanding for all three of us,” Wadkins

said. “The other players have been very helpful and accommodating,

helping us with getting to know the hotels, restaurants and the golf

courses. I’ve enjoyed the reception, and, hopefully, I’ll do my part to

help the senior tour.”

Wadkins has already been pulling his weight on the 50-and-over circuit,

becoming the ninth player in senior tour history to win in his first

start Feb. 13 at the ACE Group Classic in Naples, Fla., when he prevailed

in a three-hole playoff that began with four players (Jose Maria

Canizares, Walter Hall and Watson were also in the field).

“In the third round, I lit it up, and then played real well in the

playoff,” said Wadkins, who started the final round three shots back,

then tied a course record with a bogey-free eight-under-par 64 at the

Pelican Marsh Golf Club to force a playoff.

“I was as confident in that playoff as I’ve been in any playoff in my

career. I just felt like I wasn’t going to lose, and I was very proud of

that.”

Wadkins, who collected $180,000 for his title at the ACE Group Classic,

is sixth on the senior tour’s money list in only three events ($190,070)

heading into the sixth annual Toshiba Classic.

“It was great to get that first (win),” Wadkins said. “I was smoking on

the first day, and I felt good the whole tournament (at Naples). I was a

little nervous, but also excited. I’d played in the Bob Hope (Chrysler

Classic), but before that I didn’t play much. So maybe my adrenaline and

senses were up in (the ACE Group Classic).”

In 28 years on the PGA Tour, Wadkins was known to take pleasure in facing

tough opponents, a precarious pin or a particularly challenging golf

course -- traits that led to him becoming one of the best players on

tour.

“I just like playing golf. I have fun playing, but I don’t think anything

about (my reputation),” said Wadkins, the 1995 U.S. Ryder Cup captain and

eight-time member of the team. “I’ve played the same way since I was a

kid. Everybody plays their own style out here. I’m not trying to do

anything different (on the senior tour). (Being aggressive) is just the

way I play.”

Wadkins, who turned 50 on Dec. 5 and became eligible for the senior tour,

hadn’t won a title on the PGA Tour since the 1992 Greater Hartford Open,

so it was extra sweet to get back into the winner’s circle at Naples,

where Wadkins won in three extra holes.

“These guys can really play out here. I didn’t really know what to

expect,” Wadkins said after the title, in which Hall was eliminated on

the first playoff hole, and Watson on the second, before Canizares

bogeyed the third to open the door for Wadkins’ win.

Wadkins, who won three times on the PGA Tour in both 1982 and 1985,

placing second on the money list in ‘85, said that lately his putter has

been failing him. That’s why he came out Monday for some extra work on

the putting green. He will probably not play a practice round today,

which is a designated practice day for the professionals.

“If I play (today), I’ll be too lethargic by the end of the tournament,”

said Wadkins, who will play in the Toshiba Senior Classic Pro-Am rounds

Wednesday and Thursday, before teeing it up Friday in the first round.

Wadkins, who plans to play about 25 events on the senior tour this year,

said one of the most difficult aspects has been scheduling his time and

learning the ropes of the 50-and-over circuit.

“I’m used to playing three or four tournaments in a row, then taking two

weeks off, and I’ve had a hard time with that routine,” he said.

Wadkins also said he isn’t concerned about the high expectations people

have for him in his first season on the senior tour.

“I can’t worry about anybody else’s expectations, or anybody else’s

perception (of me),” Wadkins said.