Golf : Oklahoma State’s Watts to Defend Title in NCAA Tournament

The National Collegiate Athletic Assn. Division I golf tournament will be played Wednesday though Saturday at North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, and Brian Watts of Oklahoma State has a chance to repeat as individual champion.

Last year, Watts helped make the Cowboys the first team to win both the team and individual competition since the University of Houston in 1982. Watts could be the first NCAA titlist to repeat since USC’s Scott Simpson in 1976 and 1977.

Watts is going to have a lot of competition, though. Among the top players in the field are Billy Mayfair, the 1987 U.S. Amateur champion from Arizona State; his teammate, Michael Bradley, a 1987 All-American who finished fourth in the NCAA meet last year; Bob Estes of Texas, who has finished in the top 20 in 27 consecutive tournaments and has won 4 of them, and Larry Silvera of Arizona, the 1988 Pacific 10 player of the year and a 1987 All-American.

The tournament is a 72-hole event with 32 five-man teams plus 23 at-large players. For the first time in NCAA history, after 36 holes the field will be cut to 20 teams plus ties and 20 at-large players plus ties. There will be another cut after 54 holes, to 15 teams plus ties and 15 at-large players plus ties.

The tournament will be making its second appearance in Southern California. In 1974, the event was played at Carlton Oaks in Santee, a suburb of San Diego. Curtis Strange won it when he eagled the 72nd hole.

Who says golfers aren’t in shape? Well, just about everyone. But not too many in Stillwater, Okla., where the Oklahoma State team, including Coach Mike Holder, does aerobics three times a week at 6:30 a.m.

Commissioner Deane Beman of the PGA Tour has decided to abandon his slightly controversial role as a competitive player. Beman played in foreign tournaments in 1986 and ‘87, then played in the Legends of Golf in Austin, Tex., two weeks ago.

Beman and Al Geiberger finished 14th in a field of 20 two-man teams in the Legends, a better-ball tournament for senior players.

“I simply do not have the time necessary to prepare for competition if I am to continue as commissioner--and I intend to do that,” Beman said.

Beman, 50, the 1959 British Amateur champion, said he won’t compete in Europe this summer, won’t attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open and won’t enter the Seniors Open.

His participation in the Legends event prompted some mild criticism from some other players, and even gave rise to speculation that Beman would resign to play the Senior tour full time.

“It isn’t going to happen,” Beman said.

Jack Nicklaus is getting his name on another award, but this one is just borrowing his name. Calling it the “Heisman Trophy of golf,” the Golf Coaches Assn. of America said it will present the Nicklaus Trophy yearly to the top collegiate golfer in the nation.

The winner, based on statistical performances through the NCAA tournament each year, will be selected by a committee of coaches.

“We felt there was only one guy to name it after--Jack Nicklaus,” said Jim Brown, the coach at Ohio State and a vice president of the GCAA. Nicklaus, who played golf at Ohio State, has won 71 professional events, 20 of them major championships.

The winner will receive a bronze statue of Nicklaus.

The Panasonic Las Vegas Invitational is certainly going to be remembered, and not just because Gary Koch ended a 4-year winless streak with a victory.

On the first day, a series of explosions at a nearby space shuttle fuel plant caused a toxic cloud to form and tournament officials considered evacuating the three golf courses. The next day, wind gusts postponed the uncompleted round, which shortened the event from 90 to 72 holes.

But before play was called, there were some memorable shots. Greg Norman drove the ball over the green on the 414-yard first hole at Las Vegas Country Club, a par 4. Davis Love III put his tee shot only 20 yards short of the green on a 431-yard hole at Spanish Trail.

A top field of amateur golfers will tee it up in the 65th annual Los Angeles City Women’s Golf Championship at Sepulveda Golf Complex, Wednesday through Sunday.

Last year, Jericho Gonzales, a member of the Sepulveda Women’s Club, won the title with a 72-75-76--223 at the Sepulveda courses. Peggy Hogan of Santa Barbara finished three shots behind.

A field of 144 golfers will play in the event, which has produced such past winners as Amy Alcott, Laura Baugh and Carolyn Hill. The tournament is sponsored by the Recreation and Parks Dept. and conducted by the Municipal Golf Assn.

Golf Notes

The NutraSweet tournament, which was held earlier this month at Riviera Country Club, raised $100,000 for diabetes research funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. . . . The 14th annual Billy Casper tournament, a charity affair for Brigham Young University and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will be played Aug. 30 at Los Coyotes Country Club in Buena Park. . . . The Second Monty Hall tournament, benefiting the U.S. Maccabiah Games team, will be held June 27 at El Caballero Country Club in Tarzana. Last year’s tournament brought in $64,000, which will be enough to sponsor 18 athletes to the 13th Maccabiah Games next year in Israel. . . . Linda Chen-Olsen defended her Porter Valley club championship recently, shooting 319 for the 4-day tournament. Jeanne Diehl was runner-up.

Golf University in North San Diego County is going to hold four special summer courses in two formats for junior golfers in July and August. In the first, a junior golfer will participate with a parent. In the second, the course will be open only to juniors in a summer camp setting. . . . Sectional qualifying for the 63rd U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship will be held June 13 at Shandlin Hills Golf Course in San Bernardino. The national tournament is scheduled July 11-16 at Jackson Hole Golf and Tennis Club in Jackson, Wyo. Entries are open to amateur golfers who have been bona fide public course players since Jan. 1 and have not held privileges at any course which does not extend playing privileges to the general public since that time. For more information, call (714) 987-4284. . . . The Beverly Hills Women’s Golf Club is holding its Lions and Lambs competition June 9 at the 9-hole Little Rancho golf course. Members are asked to wear pink, the official club color.