Proceeds made for Premer

Bryce Alderton

Toshiba Senior Classic Tournament Director Jeff Purser announced that

$5,000 of proceeds raised from this year’s tournament will go toward

the Chris Premer Memorial Fund at Hoag Hospital.

The announcement was made at a private gathering of family

members, friends and colleagues Wednesday evening at Newport Beach

Country Club, site of this weekend’s tournament.

Premer, the former media director of the event, was killed in a

plane crash three miles from Ontario Airport Oct. 1, just 11 days

before his 31st birthday.

*

Morning fog caused about a half-hour delay of the first groups to

tee off in the morning pro-am, scheduled for 7:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Several groups were unable to complete the final two or three

holes as course marshals blew horns to notify players to return to

the clubhouse.

The afternoon pro-am didn’t begin until about 1:20, some 35

minutes later than its original start time.

*

Graham Marsh, a six-time winner on the Champions Tour who will be

making his sixth appearance at the Toshiba Senior Classic, has

started the year strong.

The 60-year-old from Dalkeith, Australia, has two top five

finishes in six events heading into Friday’s first round. Marsh

finished second to Ed Fiori after three playoff holes in the

MasterCard Classic two weeks ago.

Marsh said he has played better since the middle of last year,

when he began working with Shane Wilkins, a swing instructor, who had

an influence on Marsh’s mental approach.

“You have to change your mind and accept new ideas and I did

that,” said Marsh, winner of the PGA Tour’s Heritage Classic in 1977.

“You have to break the pattern to make the quantum leap. I’m probably

half a club longer with the irons. It’s more important being close to

the hole. I’m making more birdies because I’ve got more opportunities

to make them.”

Marsh ranks fifth on the Champions Tour with five birdies while

hitting 70% of greens in regulation, good for 20th.

Now in his 10th Champions Tour season, Marsh said play has

steadily improved and inciting an added commitment in his game.

“At 60 years of age, things don’t get any easier,” Marsh said.

“The measure of play goes up immeasurably out here. You can’t play

part time on the Champions Tour.”

*

Defending champion Rodger Davis has started stretching more in

response to a sore back and is about 80-90% of where he would like

his health to be after last weekend’s bout with chest pains and

fatigue that caused him to withdraw during the first round of the SBC

Classic.

“[My back] may not get any better, but it certainly won’t get any

worse,” Davis said Wednesday.

The Australian native is scheduled to tee off in the 12:45 p.m.

pro-am today and remains upbeat entering the first round.

“I’m quietly confident this week,” Davis said. “But, I’m way

behind from where I want to be. I’ll probably change my schedule to

cut back on things. I’m playing good at the moment.”

*

Among the other notables seen on the range Wednesday were Tom

Kite, Jerry Pate, Craig Stadler, Lanny Wadkins and Sam Torrance.

Torrance, winner of 21 European Tour events, has bleached blond

hair, making him easy to spot. Torrance and Pate will be making their

Toshiba Senior Classic debuts.

Torrance’s best finish in five Champions Tour events this season

was a tie for seventh in the MasterCard Classic, when he shot a

2-under-par 214. Pate, who had surgery on his left shoulder in July,

finished 17th at the event, his best finish of 2004.

Newport Beach Country Club head professional Paul Hahn will be

paired with Torrance and Japan’s Hajime Meshiai when the threesome

tees off at 12:34 p.m. Friday.

Wadkins and Pate each signed autographs for fans near the putting

green Wednesday as the galleries swelled from the previous two days.

Today’s pro-ams will begin at 7:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m.