Mahaffey Has Last Laugh After a 66

Winning the Bob Hope Classic brings wealth ($90,000), exemptions (U.S. Open and Tournament of Champions) and headlines to the winner, but it also has its pitfalls.

When the champion returns to defend his title, he must play the first round with wisecracking Bob Hope himself and former President Gerald Ford, a 17 handicapper with a reputation for errant shots into the gallery. It’s an honor, but it’s also a difficult way to go about shooting a low round of golf.

John Mahaffey won in 1979 and the following year opened with a 70--not a good score on the flat desert courses that annually give up some of the year’s lowest scores. Mahaffey ended up tying for 40th.

Last year, it was Keith Fergus. He struggled to a 71 and ended up missing the cut by three strokes.

This year it was Mahaffey again. The defending champion responded with a brilliant six-under-par 66 Wednesday at Bermuda Dunes while playing with Hope, Ford and John Curci, one of the owners of Indian Wells Country Club, subbing for House Speaker Tip O’Neill, who was ill.

“It helps to have done it before,” Mahaffey said. “The first time it’s kind of overwhelming to play with celebrities of that stature. There’s so much going on around you, people taking pictures, rushing here and there, that it can shake you. The second time, though, you know what to expect and can go out with the idea of enjoying yourself. Today was an enjoyable day.”

Mahaffey’s 33-33--66, which is what he shot in the opening round a year ago, left him in a four-way tie for the first- round lead in the 90-hole marathon with Craig Stadler, 31-35 at La Quinta; Doug Tewell, 32-34 at La Quinta, and Gil Morgan, 32-34 at Tamarisk. The low round at Indian Wells, the host course where the tournament ends Sunday, was 67, shot by both Chip Beck and Robert Wrenn, a rookie from Richmond, Va., who earned his playing card last month. Wrenn, 25, was the last player to get in the tournament as an alternate. He didn’t get the word he was playing until Wednesday morning when Jim Thorpe withdrew.

A sunny, winter day and perfectly manicured courses contributed to a par-busting spree that saw 83 of the 128 professionals better par 72. Another 14 matched par, leaving only 31 players above par.

Today, the players shift courses, with the celebrities going to Tamarisk, where veteran Miller Barber gets the Ford foursome--but without Hope, who will not play again until Saturday at Indian Wells with Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus shot a 71 at Bermuda Dunes, as did Bernhard Langer, the European champion from West Germany who is making his debut as a full-fledged member of the U.S. tour.

Five-time Hope winner Arnold Palmer, still the darling of the desert at age 55, shot a 70 at Bermuda Dunes. As always with Arnie, his legion of loyal followers sent a roar rolling across the dunes for each of his four birdies.

“They (Hope, Ford, et al) are like anyone else who plays golf; they like to encourage you and they like to see good golf,” Mahaffey said. “Every time I made a birdie, one of them would say, ‘Make another one.”’

Mahaffey’s pro-am team ended up 11 under par, six shots off the lead.

“President Ford helped four or five shots,” Mahaffey said. “He is a good putter and he hit five or six really good shots. He hit a few off line, but we didn’t need any ambulance runs today.”

Stadler, a former winner here, said he was surprised to find himself sharing the lead with a 66.

“I didn’t play that well,, but I scraped it around pretty good and made some putts,” he said. “The course (La Quinta) was in great condition, and that helped considerably.”

Tewell, who left home in Edmond, Okla., on Christmas night to prepare for the Hope because it was too cold to practice at home, echoed Stadler’s comment.

“La Quinta will yield low scores because it is in such immaculate condition,” he said. Tewell has been playing and practicing daily at the nearby La Quinta Hotel course.

If the pros needed any more incentive here than the $90,000 first prize, they got one when officials of the Panasonic Las Vegas Invitational Pro-Am in March announced a $1-million bonus that could involve Sunday’s winner. If the same player can also win the Bing Crosby Pro-Am and at Las Vegas, he will collect $1 million. A win here, plus Las Vegas, would net him an extra $250,000.

“That’s nice,” Mahaffey said when informed of the longshot payoff.

Lanny Wadkins, who opened with a 67, was not so charitable.

“If I win the first two (Hope and Crosby), I still won’t go to Las Vegas,” Wadkins said. “It’s not in my plans. I don’t like the concept.”

Said Jim Cook, director of the Las Vegas tournament: “Let’s wait and see. If Lanny is eligible for the million, I’ll bet he’ll change his mind.”