GOLF : He Could Kill Two Birdies With One Stone

Raymond Floyd could be the answer to a future golf trivia question: Who is the only player who won two tournaments at the same time?

It’s a possibility for Floyd, who plays on both the regular tour and senior tours and has qualified in each field for the Tournament of Champions Jan. 7-10 at La Costa Resort.

Floyd, who turned 50 on Sept. 4, has already won two senior events, most recently the Ralphs Classic last Sunday at Rancho Park.

Last March, he won the Doral Ryder Open on the PGA Tour and went on to become the first player to win on both tours in the same year.

Floyd, who has won three of the four majors on the regular tour--the U.S. Open, PGA Championship (twice) and the Masters--has played in only six senior events, yet he has won twice.

He has been cleared by the senior tour to compete in both divisions simultaneously at Los Costa. Previously, over-50 players have been given a slight yardage advantage with shorter tees.

But that rule will be waived if the PGA Tour policy board agrees at next month’s meeting.

“The precedent was already set,” Floyd said. “They had already played from the same tees once before. Once I achieved winning on both tours, I was certain that I would be able to play in both events. It was just a matter of making it official.

“When you look at it, there’s a Tournament of Champions. I won an event in both divisions and I should be allowed to play.

“I think it’s healthy for the game. Everybody’s talking about it, everybody’s writing about it and people are interested.”

Floyd has won 24 tournaments, including the two senior events, in his career. He has said that he is playing better than at any time in his life.

“I think it would be the ultimate double dip,” senior tour player Dave Stockton told Mark Soltau of the San Francisco Examiner. “Why not? It’s fantastic.”

Greg Norman, host of the Franklin Funds Shark Shootout Nov. 20-22 at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, is relieved now that he’s back on his game.

After a 2 1/2-year drought in which his game turned sour at times and he had a minor knee operation, Norman got back on track by winning the Canadian Open last month.

“Right now, I’d say this one (Canadian Open) is bigger than the British Open,” he said, alluding to his only victory in a major tournament in 1986.

As for his comeback, Norman said: “I needed a break. I put a lot of hard work into (golf) for 10 or 11 years. I had a mental letdown, didn’t practice hard and, if you don’t, you pay the price. And I tried to improve my swing when I didn’t need to improve it and that cost me.

“What got me out of (the slump) was practice and hard work. I also had knee surgery and that threw me off.”

In a recent interview, Norman touched on several subjects, such as the possibility of golf in the next Olympic Games. The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) has announced that it will petition the International Olympic Committee to include men’s and women’s golf as full medal sports for the 1996 Atlanta Games.

“Golf is one of the oldest sports in the world,” Norman said. “It’s played on an international level, probably more so than any other sport in the Olympics. It’s a sport that deserves to be there. If I have an opportunity to play for Australia, I’ll definitely go.”

Golf was an Olympic sport in 1900 and 1904.

As for his favorite event, Norman didn’t hesitate, citing the Masters tournament.

“The Masters is just pure golf,” he said. “With other major championships you have a lot of distractions. When you get to Augusta National for the Masters, all you do is drive down Magnolia Lane, change shoes, go to the driving range, get on the course and play golf.

“There is not the corporate involvement to the level that you see in the U.S. Open, British Open and the PGA. That’s why the Masters is by far ahead of any tournament we play.”

Golf Notes

Two-man teams have been determined for the Shark Shootout, a competition that includes three different formats--best ball, alternate shot and scramble. The teams: defending champions Lanny Wadkins and Tom Purtzer; Greg Norman-Curtis Strange; Fred Couples-Raymond Floyd; Tom Kite-Davis Love III; John Daly-Payne Stewart; Nick Price-Steve Elkington; Arnold Palmer-Peter Jacobsen; Chip Beck-Ben Crenshaw; John Cook-Mark O’Meara, and Hale Irwin-Bruce Lietzke.

The Don Drysdale Hall of Fame and Seniors Invitational will be held Nov. 20-22 at Marriott’s Desert Springs Resort and Desert Falls Country Club. The field comprises former standouts in several sports and senior tour players.

Marty Tregnan, president of the Municipal Golf Assn., will receive the Bill Bryant Award on Nov. 22 for outstanding and distinguished service to the SCPGA Junior Golf Assn. . . . Tommy Jacobs, Jean Bryant and Jane Booth have been inducted into the Southern California PGA Golf Hall of Fame. . . .The Pepperdine University tournament is scheduled Nov. 23 at North Ranch CC.

An Amateur Golfers Assn. tournament is scheduled next Friday at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley. . . . The Beverly Hills Women’s Golf Club will hold a general membership meeting next Wednesday at 9:45 a.m. at Roxbury Park in Beverly Hills. . . . The purse for the 1993 AT&T; Pebble Beach National Pro-Am has been increased $150,000 to $1.25 million. . . . The inaugural LPGA Junior Golf Pro-Am, benefiting the LPGA Junior Golf Program, will be held Nov. 16 at Woodland Hills CC. . . . Doyle Williams was the winner of the championship flight of the Los Serrano Lakes Men’s Golf Club tournament held earlier last month. . . . Gary Chiurazzi is the new club champion at Valencia CC.