More Annika Wouldn’t Hurt

The LPGA Tour season gets underway next week and the big question at the Daytona Beach, Fla. headquarters is: How do we top 2003?

Last year was the year of the woman in golf, more specifically, the year of Annika Sorenstam. The LPGA generated unprecedented interest from fans, the media and sponsors because of Sorenstam’s foray onto the PGA Tour and her two LPGA major championships.

The long off-season has quieted some of the enthusiasm, but Commissioner Ty Votaw said he hoped the start of the season would rekindle the interest.

“We’re very excited about the enormous amount of momentum we have going into this season,� Votaw said. “If last year wasn’t the best in LPGA history, it was certainly among the top two or three.�

There is, however, a potential stumbling block. Sorenstam, the biggest star on the tour, has said she planned on playing only 15 tournaments this year.

Without her as a draw week in and week out, fans, sponsors and the media might lose interest. Votaw, however, said he wasn’t concerned. Sorenstam, who played 26 events in 2001 and 23 in 2002, played 17 events last year and the tour still had a huge year.

Television ratings in 2003 were up 26% from 2001 and every tournament sponsor from 2003 is back -- something not even the PGA Tour can say.

“We had record attendance at the Corning Classic and at the Chick-Fil-A and those were events that she didn’t play,� Votaw said. “I don’t believe everything I read, so I don’t know if it’s true [that she will play only 15 events] but even so, the story lines on our tour are a lot stronger that just Annika. The interest will still be there.�

Se Ri Pak’s quest to emerge from Sorenstam’s shadow and the rookie season of teen star Aree Song are among the subplots for this season, as is the plight of veteran Dottie Pepper, who will resume playing full time after sitting out nearly two years because of injuries.

But the best way for the LPGA to remain in the spotlight is if Sorenstam makes a run at her stated goal: to win all four major championships. Last year, she won two, finished second in one and was one stroke out of a three-way playoff at the U.S. Open.

The pursuit of the “Sorenslam� would generate significant interest, but the bubble could burst early. The first major -- the Kraft Nabisco -- is the third tournament of the season March 25-28. Last year, Sorenstam finished second there.

“It wouldn’t be the end of the year if she didn’t win,� Votaw said. “She is very goal oriented, so I’m sure she would come up with other goals and they would be just as intriguing.�

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Peter Jacobsen will make his Champions Tour debut at the SBC Classic beginning next Thursday at Valencia Country Club.

Jacobsen turns 50 today and is a seven-time PGA Tour winner, including last August at Hartford, Conn.

Noted for his sense of humor and interaction with the galleries during tournaments, Jacobsen will be a welcome addition to a tour that has made a point of promoting fan friendliness during the last two years.

“I think it’s going to go hand in hand with how I feel golf should be played,� he said.

Jacobsen said he will split time on the two tours, but one PGA Tour event he will not play is the one where he is defending champion. Instead of playing at Hartford, he will play that week at the Jeld-Wen Tradition, a Champions Tour major in his hometown of Portland, Ore.

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Davis Love III has taken a beating in the media for the way he handled a heckler during the Accenture Match Play Championship finals against Tiger Woods, but during a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Love stood by his decision to confront the fan and ask that he be ejected from the tournament.

“Why should I play with somebody trying to distract me from playing?� Love said. “I should be allowed to play my shots without someone trying to distract me. A guy is saying something 10 seconds before I go to hit it, trying to distract me. That’s not part of golf.�

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem conceded Wednesday that Love should have spoken to an official about the situation instead of confronting the fan. After a lengthy discussion involving the two, Finchem said that Love changed his tune.

“Davis made it quite clear that if he had to do this over again, he would have gone to somebody,� Finchem said. “If he had to do it over again, he wouldn’t do it again. And I appreciate his attitude on that.�

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Mianne Bagger, who underwent a sex-change operation in 1995, became the first transsexual to play in a pro golf tournament today when she shot a 12-over-par 84 in the first round of the Women’s Australian Open at Sydney.

Bagger said she wants to play top-level golf, but a career on the LPGA or Ladies European tour is unlikely because both tours have a stipulation that members must be female at birth.

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Rustic Canyon Golf Course in Moorpark sustained significant damage to its seventh fairway during the recent heavy rains and the hole temporarily will play as a par three. Assistant pro Dave Tucker said it would take about six weeks to repair.

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The purse for the LPGA’s Office Depot Championship has increased to $1.75 million, fourth largest on tour. The tournament is April 2-4 at El Caballero Country Club in Tarzana.... Fuzzy Zoeller, Chi Chi Rodriguez and defending champion Rodger Davis will be honored March 16 in Newport Beach at the champions breakfast preceding the Toshiba Senior Classic. Tickets are $100, and proceeds go to the event’s scholarship fund. Details: (949) 660-1001.

Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Thomas Bonk is on vacation.