GOLF / MAL FLORENCE : When Bradley Looks Back, It’s With Smile

Pat Bradley says that she doesn’t intend to play on the LPGA tour past the age of 45--and there will be no regrets.

Bradley, 41, has fulfilled virtually every career ambition. That was underscored last September when she won the MBS LPGA tournament at Los Coyotes Country Club in Buena Park.

It was her 30th victory, admitting her to the LPGA Hall of Fame.

“If I do look back, it will be with a lot of satisfaction and rewards because I fulfilled the crown jewel of my sport,” Bradley said. “That makes me very, very proud.”

Bradley will defend her Los Coyotes title Sept. 24-27. The tournament has lost its sponsor, but the field will still include many of the prominent women on the tour.

Bradley is one of the established players, along with Nancy Lopez, Patty Sheehan, Amy Alcott, Betsy King, Beth Daniel and Juli Inkster.

But there are some younger players becoming prominent--Dottie Mochrie, Meg Mallon, Danielle Ammaccapane, Brandie Burton, and Michelle McGann. It’s a gradual changing of the guard.

“When I joined the tour in 1975, I was the little pesky pest to the Judy Rankins, Carole Manns, and Kathy Whitworths,” Bradley said. “It’s the cycle of competitive life.

“I’ve had very successful and satisfying years, both personally and professionally. Hopefully, it will go on for my five more years.”

As for the relative newcomers, Bradley said:

“You have the four-, five- and six-year players who are not backing down, who are comfortable with their situation and beginning to mature, learning from their mistakes, getting tournament experience and gaining from it.

“These young players are the strength and the future of the LPGA tour. All I can do is smile and say I’m very happy and proud of what I see.”

Bradley said that the younger players are better prepared than when she joined the tour. “The transition is not the same,” she said. “Not only are the junior programs better than in years past, but also the college programs are stronger.

“(Young players) travel like we do on tour. The only difference is that we’re playing for money. There are also mini-tours. They’re joining our tour with both guns fully loaded and they know how to shoot.”

Bradley is not satisfied with her season so far. She said she has earned $600,000 unofficially and won an LPGA Skins Game, but she hasn’t won a regular tour event.

That’s in contrast to 1991, when she won four tournaments, including three in her last five domestic appearances. She was named player of the year and moved into the Hall of Fame, which has stringent requirements:

A player must win at least 30 official events, including two different major championships, or win 35 official events with one major title, or win 40 tour events exclusive of any major championship.

Even though Bradley is not entirely satisfied with her season, she added: “I’m extremely thankful I’m not in the slump that I went through in 1988 when I dealt with my illness.”

She was referring to Graves’ disease.

“I take medication every day,” Bradley said. “It keeps every thing in check. I have a radioactive iodine treatment that basically turns my thyroid off.”

Sprinter Gail Devers suffers from the same disease, but endured to win the women’s 100 meters at the Olympic Games in Barcelona.

“I was thrilled to see Gail Devers win the 100,” Bradley said. “I was beaming. It brought back a lot of nice memories in my quest for a comeback. Someday I’d like to meet and say hello to her. It’s important to make the public aware of (the disease).”

The LPGA lost some event sponsors this year, but the tour is seemingly healthier now--with increased purses--than it was in the 1980s when it had organizational problems.

“We were going through a difficult time in administration,” Bradley said. “Since then, we’ve learned from our mistakes. We’ve made a major change in hiring (LPGA Commissioner) Charles Mechem. He’s a person who understands us as players but is also exceptionally good at dealing with the sponsors and media.

“I can see us as an organization much more relaxed and outgoing, not only to the media. There was a time when we were afraid to say anything. Now it’s much more open and comfortable. “We have lost sponsors, but from other situations not associated with the LPGA tour. The economy has been very, very difficult.”

Golf Notes

Singer Bobby Hatfield of the Righteous Brothers will hold a celebrity tournament Sept. 14 at Los Coyotes Country Club. The tournament will benefit the Southern California Lupus Foundation. . . . The third annual St. John’s Regional Medical Center tournament also will be held Sept. 14 at Sherwood CC in Thousand Oaks. . . . The 20th annual Billy Barty Foundation tournament is scheduled Sept. 18-20 at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort in Indian Wells.

The Amy Alcott Pro-Am will be played Sept. 21 at Riviera CC. The tournament benefits the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. . . . The Inland Empire Amateur tournament is scheduled Monday at the Jurupa Hills CC in Riverside. . . . Valencia CC has been selected as the California site for final sectional qualifying rounds for the 1993 U.S. Open. . . . The Chris Silva scholarship tournament will be held Sept. 14 at Brookside Golf Course. . . . The 20th annual Santa Barbara County tournament is scheduled Oct. 3-4 at the Sandpiper and La Purisima courses.