Golf Roundup : Hawaii Leader Mac O’Grady Saves His Biggest Shot for PGA Tour Boss

Mac O’Grady shot a three-under-par 69 Friday to take the lead halfway through the $500,000 Hawaii Open golf tournament at Honolulu, but it was his off-the-course comments that people were talking about.

O’Grady, whose two-round total gave him a 133 total and a one-stroke edge over Corey Pavin and Jeff Grygiel, declined the leader’s usual post-round interview, but managed to level a blast at PGA Tour Commissioner Deane Beman.

O’Grady said Beman “intimidates and toilet-trains” the PGA Tour players with “childish ticky-tack fines” and is a “thief with a capital T.”

“This little man, Mr. Thief, feels he’s the one responsible for the tour shaking hands with corporate America; that he’s responsible for all the money the golfers play for today. That’s a big fabrication,” O’Grady told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

O’Grady, 34, said he is unsure what he can and can’t say at tournaments. “So, at tournament sites, I won’t comment to the press. I want to embarrass Beman. I won’t go to a press room, but I’ll talk off the course grounds if I’m approached in the right way. And every time I do talk, I’ll blast Deane Beman.”

O’Grady indicated that his reluctance to talk to the media and his dislike for Beman stemmed from an incident that allegedly occurred at the New Orleans tournament two years ago.

O’Grady allegedly made uncomplimentary comments about a tournament worker and described the event as “the worst-run on the tour.”

For that, O’Grady said, he was fined $1,000, which was later lowered to $500.

He said, “As a private citizen, I emphatically disagree with the injustice and totalitarian perspective in which Deane Beman is handling this affair.”

O’Grady said he has learned the fine has been taken out of his PGA account. “I am planning to go to court over the fine,” he said.

Meanwhile, on the course, O’Grady threatened to run away with the tournament. He started at eight under par and picked up four strokes by the 27-hole mark.

A couple of bogeys brought him back to the field, but he stayed ahead with a birdie on the final hole.

Pavin, who finished sixth on the money list last year, shot his second 67, while Grygiel, a 1985 rookie, had a 66 to go with an opening 68.

After the wind picked up in mid-morning at the 6,975-yard Waialae Country Club Course, the scores began inflating. O’Grady, Pavin and Grygiel played early in the day.

First-round leader George Burns salvaged a 72 and shared fourth place with Ed Fiori, Dan Pohl, Tom Purtzer and Paul Azinger at 135.

Gary Player, three months past his 50th birthday, vaulted into a seven-shot lead in the PGA Seniors Championship with his second four-under-par 68 for a 136 total at Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

The South African had four birdies and no bogeys. His closest pursuer was Lee Elder, who had a 73 and a 143 total for two rounds on the PGA National Champion Course that was set up at 6,520 yards for the over-50 professionals.