Ready or Not, the LPGA Tour Begins

Anything but golf. That’s what some players on the Ladies Professional Golfers Assn. tour, which opens the 1985 season today with the Mazda tournament, concentrated on since last year’s competition wrapped up.

Now the $200,000, four-round event over the Deer Creek course here has some lady pros wondering if they’re ready to deal with tees, a course lined with trees and remnants of a Florida freeze.

“I’m not,” said Patty Sheehan, who during her time off went skiing in Colorado and redecorated her home.

“You don’t know what to expect in the first tournament of the year. you don’t know where the ball’s going yet. I’m going into it with a funny feeling,” Sheehan said.

Ayako Okamoto, last year’s No. 3 money winner behind Betsy King and Sheehan, visited Hawaii and admits she needs “more vacation.”

“I spent all last week filming shows for a Japanese TV station on golf. I’m not ready,” Okamoto said.

JoAnne Carner, whose career earnings are approaching $2 million, opted for fishing lures.

“At the end of the year, all the action starts and you’re totally drained,” said Carner, who won at Deer Creek in 1980. “You have to get away from golf. And then you don’t play enough to get in tip-top shape for the opener.”

One of the newcomers on the LPGA circuit is Lynn Connelly, a 24-year-old from Palm Beach who earned her tour card last October.

“I think most (pros) would agree that the big pressure point for a golfer is getting your card,” said Connelly, who began playing at 15.

“Sure, there’s always a little bit of nervousness (before an event). If I didn’t feel a little nervous the first day there would be something wrong,” Connelly said.

Nancy Lopez, whose daughter is now 4 months old, finished 20th last year in the Deer Creek tournament. She and her husband, Ray Knight of the New York Mets, went jogging earlier this week at Deer Creek.

Lopez claims she is about 15 pounds out of shape.

“I’ve noticed top players don’t play so well the first week,” Lopez said. “If you don’t do well, you don’t worry about it . . . But I’ve practiced quite a bit this winter and I’m more confident about this first week than ever.”

Silvia Bertolaccini, who flew home to Argentina, visited a Massachusetts sports psychologist in hopes positive thinking would help her to defend her title here.

“In a way, I feel unprepared,” Bertolaccini said. “I didn’t do a lot of practicing. But I hope in the week I’ll regain that tempo.”

The Deer Creek title was the third of Bertolaccini’s career, but her first in five years. As the women’s tour wound its way across the country and back in 1984, there were 11 new champions.

“When someone like Silvia or myself breaks through, it gives a lot of other players the feeling that ‘I can do it too,’ ” said King, the 1984 Player of the Year.

“People might have felt some of the top players are so much better, like 10 or 15 top players can’t be beat. I know I was happy to see someone else win.”

Another reason there have been 47 different winners in the last four years is Congress. The Title IX legislation of 1972 increased financing of women’s sports in college and high school, and golf was one of the biggest beneficiaries.

That gave the women a valuable place to learn their business. In the past, some golfers would come on the tour before learning how to play the game.

“The collegiate backgrounds are so strong now that girls are coming onto the tour with the ability to win,” said Donna White. “Before, even (Judy) Rankin and (Sally) Little had to play on the tour to gain experience.”

Another reason is the increased purse structure has made the LPGA more attractive every year. The total purse this year is $9 million, up $1 million from last year. The winner at Deer Creek will take home $30,000 of a $200,000 purse.

Winning the top prize a year ago was a big thrill for Bertolaccini.

“I realize in my career I’m not going to be the No. 1 player on tour,” she said. “But when you think you’re never going to win a tournament and then you do, it’s a terrific feeling.”