The champ is ready

Richard Dunn

The challenges might be a little tougher for Hale Irwin this year,

but the 57-year-old international golf star is ready to conquer the

PGA Champions Tour again.

And especially the Toshiba Senior Classic at Newport Beach Country

Club.

“[Toshiba Senior Classic Tournament Director] Jeff [Purser] has

told me that the excitement is building, and, certainly from my

perspective, Newport Beach and the Toshiba tournament have been very

kind to me,” Irwin said. “I’ve had great success there. I wouldn’t

expect that necessarily on that golf course, but for whatever reason,

I have had good success.

“It was a kickoff to a great year for me last year and hopefully

it will be the same this year. I’m looking forward to it very much

because it’s a great place to come and bring my family and all have a

great week.”

Realizing he isn’t getting any younger on a tour where most

winners are between 50 and 54, Irwin is the rock of the Champions

Tour. He’s not only the defending money leader for the third time in

his distinguished senior career, but Irwin’s the tour’s greatest

all-time money winner.

Irwin, who has made Newport Beach his personal stage with Toshiba

titles in 1998 and last year, captured the 2002 Toshiba Classic with

a tournament scoring record (17-under 196), a victory that elevated

him to the top of the money list on the tour and he never moved from

his perch on his way to a career-first $3-million season.

With the advancement in today’s golf technology, along with the

tour’s annual crop of 50-year-old rookies to push the veterans, Irwin

simply finds a way to continually improve his game.

“The players that have come on (tour) recently, and those yet to

come on, are going to be bringing great credentials,” Irwin said. “I

think it encourages me and along with others to have to step up and

play a little bit better. The challenges are more numerous and I

think it’s adding great depth and great excitement to the Champions

Tour.”

Last year, Irwin changed almost every club in his bag before

winning the Toshiba Classic for a second time. Before teeing off in

the first round, he switched to forged blade irons, changed from

graphite to steel shafts, added a couple of new fairway woods and a

new sand wedge, then went out and shot 67-64-65 for the finest round

of 54 in Toshiba history. He dominated the field.

Irwin, who was helped to the ’98 Toshiba title and course record

by the famous bunker rake at 17, needed no such assistance in winning

last year, his 34th career senior title three months before his 57th

birthday.

“When someone tells me I can’t, it tends to motivate me,” Irwin

said. “I’m not one that looks back but looks forward, try to create

opportunities for success.”

Irwin and Bob Gilder each won four official events in 2002, the

fewest number of victories to lead the Champions Tour since Jim

Colbert and Bob Murphy each had four wins in ’95.

Irwin, a three-time U.S. Open champion, entered the final round at

Newport Beach last year with a three-stroke lead and won by five

shots, a larger margin of victory than the past six Toshiba champions

combined. It was the 12th time in his career that Irwin won the same

tournament at least twice.

Never one to shy away from equipment change (including balls),

Irwin was at it again earlier this year.

“The impact technology has had in my game alone over the last,

let’s say, two weeks, I’m hitting the ball farther now than I ever

have,” Irwin said Feb. 11. “I think for all the players, I can’t

think of any exceptions, that are not hitting the ball farther now

than they ever have due in large part to technology. We are seeing

the rebound in the club head, the titanium heads and the graphite

shafts. Really, the ball does not stay on the club very long; hence,

you don’t have quite as much spin, you get a little bit of control on

the ball. And I know some people may disagree with this, but the ball

doesn’t curve as much ... you just take dead aim and fire at it ...

it’s taking many of our golf courses and making them very, very

short.”

Once Irwin gets past January, he’s usually set for the season on

equipment -- with a little tinkering here and there.

But the former University of Colorado football defensive back and

two-time All-Big Eight selection is approaching 2003 sort of like a

gridiron classic.

“The hardest part probably for me initially is to get settled with

the equipment,” Irwin said. “While I’m happy with it (now), there are

still some adjustments that I’m going to make and I don’t expect it

to be too much longer before I get that dialed in.

“Secondly, I think to try to continue forward with the momentum

that I had last year. You can almost look at it from another sort of

perspective. You can have a great first half, go in for halftime and

then come out flat as a board. That’s what I’m going to try to avoid.

I had a great year and finished well and we had a bit of a respite

from the tour, just long enough to rest a little bit, but not long

enough to really get away from it. At least I’ve spent a lot of

mental effort to try to keep myself going and keep the competitive

juices flowing.

“So I think for me, it’s going to be again to make sure I pace

myself and play when I’m ready to play and not play those weeks when

I might not be ready to play. There is a little difference there. I

played 27 Champions Tour events last year and I anticipate probably

something about the same this year. Although we have lost a few

tournaments, I think it’s not going to bother my schedule any. In

fact, it probably comes right into my schedule. So indications are at

least I’m hitting the ball this year. I’d like to get this tendinitis

or whatever it is in my elbow taken care of and out of the way so

it’s not such a constant reminder.

“But like any successful season, it comes right down to how are

you getting the ball in the hole? Are you hitting it close enough and

often enough and putting well enough to get yourself to the top of

the leader board? And thus far, I don’t have any reason to suspect

that things are going to change dramatically, no forecasts or

predictions. I feel good about the way things have started this

year.”