Don Pohl Has Swinging Time at La Costa : He Connects on a Hole in One, and Edges Nine Statistical Leaders

Dan Pohl wasn’t among the Top 10 longest or most accurate hitters on the PGA tour last year. He wasn’t among the Top 25 putting leaders.

Pohl didn’t have the lowest scoring average, didn’t break par the most times, and didn’t have the most birdies or eagles. And he wasn’t the leader in making sand saves or hitting the greens in regulation.

He was not among the statistical leaders in any of Epson Stats’ nine categories. Pohl didn’t even win a tournament last year.

All he did in 1987 was earn $465,269 and play consistent enough to be the all-round Epson Stats leader, which is determined by adding the place values in all nine shot-making categories.

On Monday at La Costa Country Club, Pohl shot a nine-hole, five-under par 31, including a hole in one on the 182-yard, par-3 third hole, to become the 1988 Epson Stats Match champion.

Pohl earned $86,250 for the victory in the second annual Epson Stats Match.

He received $75,000 for winning, and added bonuses of $10,000 for his hole-in-one and $1,250 for tying Ben Crenshaw, John McComish and Calvin Peete for hitting the most greens with eight.

The four-hour competition, watched by 3,000, came down to the final hole with Pohl and Crenshaw tied at four-under.

Pohl hit a solid 9-iron shot that set up his seven-foot birdie putt. Crenshaw had a bogey to finish in a second-place tie with Paul Azinger and John McComish at three-under 33. They earned $10,000 each for finishing second.

Pohl was still smarting Monday from his runner-up finish in the $250,000 Spalding Invitational Sunday at Carmel Valley Ranch.

Pohl led the tournament at 14-under after 15 holes Sunday, but had a double-bogey on the par-3 16th hole and lost a four-player playoff when Lennie Clements made a 35-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole.

“Yesterday I gave away the Spalding,” said Pohl, who still earned $22,333. “It gave me a sour taste in my mouth.”

He was a lot happier after the third hole Monday.

Pohl used a 5-iron to hit the ball about two feet in front of the hole. It then took a little hop and dropped in.

“On the tee, I wasn’t thinking of anything but putting a decent swing on it,” said Pohl, who was already a couple of shots back. “I was just trying to make a birdie and get back into it. The ball took one hop and disappeared.”

Pohl remembered making either five or six other hole in ones in his career, but none earned him anywhere near $10,000.

“I got a Refrigerator freezer for a hole in one I made during a pro-am in Grand Rapids, (Michigan),” said Pohl, who plans to return to his home near Phoenix today.

Though Pohl qualified for the Epson Stats Match, he didn’t win a tournament last year to qualify for the Tournament of Champions, which starts Thursday at La Costa.

Instead, Pohl plans to play in the two-day Bob Simons Pro-Scratch beginning today in Phoenix. The winner earns $20,000.

With earnings of $108,583 from the Spalding Invitational and the Epson Stats Match, Pohl has no regrets about taking some time off from golf during November and December.

“I got some hunting out of my blood, did some fishing and yelled at the kids enough so they don’t mind me leaving,” he said.

Notes

John McComish, who led the PGA in driving distance with a 283.9-yard average last year, but lost his PGA playing card after the season, earned $21,250 Monday. He earned $10,000 for finishing in a tie for second, $5,000 for winning the special driving accuracy competition (5 feet, 4 inches on the second hole), $5,000 for winning the closest-to-the-pin competition (10 feet, 6 inches on the seventh hole), and $1,250 for tying for most greens in regulation (eight). . . . Paul Azinger, who birdied the first four holes, finished with $17,500. He received $10,000 for tying for second, $5,000 for most birdies (five) and $2,500 for tying for fewest average putts (1.33 per green reached in regulation). . . . Ben Crenshaw, who birdied the first three holes, made $11,250, earning $10,000 for tying for second and $1,250 for tying for most greens in regulation. . . . Dan Forsman finished with $10,000, earning $5,000 for winning the sand saves competition (1 foot on the sixth hole) and $5,000 for winning the driving distance competition (267 yards on the ninth hole). . . . Mark Calcavecchia made $2,500 for tying Azinger for fewest average putts. Calvin Peete (last year’s winner of the Epson Stats Match) earned $1,250 for tying Crenshaw, Pohl and McComish for hitting the most greens in regulation. Phil Blackmar, Gil Morgan and David Frost did not earn any money Monday. . . . Each of Monday’s 10 contestants received $25,000 for winning an Epson category. . . . Azinger, Crenshaw and Calcavecchia are the only players who competed Monday who will be in the Tournament of Champions this week. . . . Unusual Sight of the Day: Azinger’s shot on the fifth hole got stuck in the branches of an olive tree.