At 11 Under Par, Pavin is Only 2 Shots Behind : He Attributes His 64 to Animal Crackers, New Swing and Hometown Support

Corey Pavin, the former UCLA golfer who earned $260,536 as a tour rookie last year, shot a seven-under-par 64 in Saturday’s third round of the Los Angeles Open at Riviera Country Club.

Reared in Oxnard and now living in West Los Angeles, only 15 minutes from Riviera, the 25-year-old Pavin called it one of the three best rounds he has ever played and attributed it, in part, to hometown support, a December change in his swing and, yes children, Animal Crackers.

Now 11 under for the tournament and only two shots behind leader Lanny Wadkins, Pavin discussed these factors after a round that included 7 birdies, 1 eagle, 12 one-putt greens and 1 bogey on each nine.

--Animal Crackers:

Pavin said he came down with what he believed to be a touch of food poisoning after dining out Friday night. He wrestled with sleep, ultimately gave up and reported to Riviera devoid of energy.

“I’m never going to withdraw from a tournament unless I absolutely have to stay in bed,” he said, “but when you’re sitting there at 1 in the morning with your stomach aching and sweat on your forehead, you have to wonder if you’re going to be able to play.

“I was really weak this morning and afraid to eat anything. I’ve had only a few Animal Crackers that my wife (Shannon, a niece of broadcaster Jim Healy) kept slipping me. It seemed like every time she gave me one I got a birdie.”

--Swing Change:

Despite a remarkably successful rookie year in which he won the Houston Open, finished in the top 10 of 26 tournaments and was 18th on the money list, Pavin emerged dissatisfied with the way he had played amid wind.

He found the time to do something about it in December, returning to Las Posas Country Club in Camarillo for guidance from pro Bruce Hamilton, his initial tutor.

Pavin said he had developed a hip sway at the start of his swing, significantly affecting his wind play while also threatening his overall game.

The Camarillo corrections paid immediate dividends when Pavin, preparing for the 1985 tour, finished 19 under par in winning the New Zealand Open. He has since tied for fourth in the Phoenix Open and tied for 11th in the Bob Hope, initiating what promises to be another financially successful year with earnings of $28,662.

He has also now shot his first ever sub-par rounds at Riviera, a 68, 70 and the scintillating 64.

“The sway put a strain on my timing and now I’ve removed that variable,” Pavin said. “I’ve removed the curvature and am hitting the ball straighter. I feel very confident, very good about the way I’m playing. I could never expect to shoot a 64 here, but I feel like I’ve been on the verge of shooting a round like this for several weeks.”

--Hometown Support:

Friends, relatives and a large number of strangers attracted by the sub-par numbers on the electronic scoreboards accompanied Pavin Saturday. He ultimately made his way toward the 18th green amid a deafening ovation, the kind of thing usually accorded one of Pavin’s playing partners, Jack Nicklaus.

“People say there’s a lot of pressure playing at home,” Pavin said later, “but I love it. What could be better than sleeping in your own bed, getting the type of support I did today and playing with Jack Nicklaus and Andy Bean?

“The ovation the crowd gave me on 18 is something I’ll remember for a long time. It made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. It was a lot of fun hearing people call out my name. Now I know how (Phoenix resident) Tom Purtzer felt when he beat me last year in Phoenix.”

Pavin earned $43,000 by finishing second to Purtzer in his second tour event.

“I’d won three overseas tournaments the year before,” he said, alluding to a period between the autumn of ‘82, when he failed in his first try for a tour card, and the autumn of ‘83, when he tried again and succeeded. “I felt I was finally capable of competing at the PGA level but I didn’t expect to do as well as I did.

“I was hoping to keep my tour card, hoping I could win around $150,000. The good start gave me a lot of confidence, and the better I did, the more confident I became, the stronger my feeling that I belonged on the tour. My goal this year is to finish in the top 10 on the money list.”

Pavin will have Animal Crackers, a new swing and hometown support working for him in a bid for the winner’s purse of $72,000 today. This is his fourth Los Angeles Open, his second as a pro.”

“My familiarity with Riviera is a definite advantage,” he said, “but then Wadkins has won here before (the ’79 L.A. Open) and so has (Hal) Sutton (the ’83 PGA). They obviously like it, but I’m obviously getting to like it, too.”