O’Meara in a Good Spot Following Round of 65

The longest hole on the La Costa golf course symbolizes just how far Mark O’Meara has come as a golfer.

As a junior at Mission Viejo High School, O’Meara earned $15 a day as a spotter for ABC Sports on the par-five, 560-yard 17th hole at La Costa.

“I used to watch Nicklaus and Watson play that hole,” O’Meara said. “If someone had said I’d have an opportunity to play with them and beat them, I would have said, ‘Wait a minute. That’s too much.’ ”

Those were the days when O’Meara was leading his high school golf team to the state championship and washing cars to pick up extra cash.

Years later, the 28-year-old Escondido resident is the one being spotted at the 17th hole at La Costa.

“When I spotted here, I only played the course once in a while,” O’Meara said. “Now, I have a lot of family and friends watching me and pulling for me here.”

O’Meara birdied No. 17 for the second day in row Thursday en route to a seven-under-par 65 and two-round total of nine-under 135. He is tied with Tom Kite and Calvin Peete for the lead of the MONY Tournament of Champions.

In addition to his nostalgic feeling for the 17th hole at La Costa, this is a special tournament for O’Meara because the course is approximately 25 minutes from his house.

“I can make it in 20 minutes if I drive the BMW, don’t hit traffic and take the back roads,” O’Meara said.

O’Meara said he decided to leave Mission Viejo and buy a house in Escondido a year and a half ago because the Orange County area was getting too crowded. He and his wife Alicia moved into their hillside home that overlooks Lake Hodges about a year ago.

“I like to bass fish and I can do a lot of that in Lake Hodges,” O’Meara said.

O’Meara has particularly fond memories of the day he decided to buy his home in Escondido.

“It was the first day of the Greater Milwaukee Open in 1984,” O’Meara said. “I won that tournament for my first tour victory. I’ve played better ever since.”

He sure has.

The former Cal State Long Beach All-American hadn’t won on the tour and had earned a total of $177,128 in his first three years as a professional.

In the past two years, he has won three tour events and earned $465,873 (1984) and $340,840 (1985) for a total of $806,713. O’Meara’s increase in earnings of $396,519 from the 1983 season ($69,354) to 1984 ($465,873) is the largest gain ever in one season.

At $806,713, O’Meara is just $16,159 short of reaching the $1 million mark. If O’Meara finishes seventh or higher in this tournament, he will pass that milestone. Only Hal Sutton, who earned $1 million in three years and three months, will have reached that mark earlier in his career.

O’Meara said he has already won considerably more than $1 million when his earnings from European tournaments are included.

O’Meara was only too happy to discuss his seven-birdie performance Thursday, but he continually ended his statements by saying “there are two days left to play in the tournament and a lot can happen.”

If it wasn’t for his strong iron play early in Thursday’s round, O’Meara might have been in trouble.

“I didn’t hit it in the fairway until No. 6, and I can’t do that too often and continue to make pars,” O’Meara said. “On the back side, I started to drive the ball better, and most of my putts were downhill. The greens were holding pretty well and I was very pleased with my round.”

By the 17th hole, O’Meara was in full swing. He hit a drive, one-iron, pitching wedge and sank a seven-foot putt for a birdie. Wonder who was spotting for NBC on the 17th hole?