Floyd Wins Senior Skins Title
Golf
“Any more questions?” Raymond Floyd asked.
“Yeah,” came a voice from the back of the press tent. “When you gonna retire?”
First, Floyd may just retire the Senior Skins Game Trophy.
He took his fourth consecutive title in the event Sunday at Kohala Coast, Hawaii, winning eight skins and $210,000, including one hole worth $140,000.
Senior Skins rookie Hale Irwin, who posed the retirement question to Floyd, and other over-50 players may hope Floyd will retire before long so they can might have a shot at a title in the two-day tournament.
Floyd, who has played in five Senior Skins, has earned $1.17 million for the equivalent of 10 days’ “work” - five rounds of golf in a tropical paradise.
“The money I’ve won in the Senior Skins is a lifetime of earnings,” said Floyd, himself a bit amazed at his domination of the event. “It’s fabulous. It’s an incredible thing to be fortunate enough to win this four times.”
Jack Nicklaus at least provided some drama to what seems to have become “The Raymond Floyd Show.” Nicklaus won $150,000 on No. 15 to build his earnings to $170,000 and put himself within striking distance of Floyd’s $210,000.
Neither of them, however, won any more money.
“The last couple of years, I’ve never really challenged Raymond,” Nicklaus said. “Finally, I at least challenged him. It became an issue of Raymond and myself for who was going to win the Skins.”
Irwin fared well in his first appearance, winning five skins and $160,000.
Lee Trevino, a late replacement for Arnold Palmer and playing for Palmer’s favorite charity, won no money.
The title was decided when Floyd and Nicklaus both were eliminated on the second hole of a playoff, leaving Trevino and Irwin to scrap for the remaining $80,000. Irwin won it with a routine par on the third extra hole.
Floyd, who picked up $40,000 over the first nine holes on Saturday, earned $140,000 with a birdie on No. 10, $110,000 of that a carryover from the opening day. Floyd wound up his day, earnings-wise, by curling in an 18-foot birdie putt on No. 11 for $30,000 more.
Phoenix Open
Three days of pressure, one to relax.
The formula worked for Steve Jones, who won the Phoenix Open at Scottsdale, Ariz., by 11 shots after setting tournament scoring records for 18, 36, 54 and 72 holes.
The defending U.S. Open champion won his first title since Oakland Hills and the sixth of an injury-interrupted career with a 4-under-par 67, nearly lapping the field at 26-under 258.
Jesper Parnevik shot a 67 during a round on a course slowed by intermittent rain, and was second at 269.
Jones finished with an approach shot that stopped 3 feet from the pin on No. 18 and made it for his sixth birdie of the round and second straight. On the 17th hole, he drove the green from 332 yards away and then two-putted to reach 25-under.
His final score was one shot off the PGA Tour record of 257 set by Mike Souchak in the 1955 Texas Open, and tied him with Donnie Hammond (1989) and John Cook (1996) for second-lowest. And the victory margin was the widest on tour since Jose Maria Olazabal won the 1990 World Series of Golf by 12 strokes.
Nick Price finished third at 270, with Rick Fehr, Mark Calcavecchia and Kenny Perry fourth two shots back.
Johnnie Walker Classic
Ernie Els of South Africa shot a closing 69 at Gold Coast, Australia, to win the Johnnie Walker Classic by a single stroke over Australian Peter Lonard and New Zealander Michael Long.
Els started the day two shots behind Long, Lonard and Australian Anthony Painter, but his 10-under-par 278 over the par-72 Links course at Hope Island gave him his 20th career win.