Old Coins Give Mallon the Edge

Meg Mallon admits it’s silly.

It probably doesn’t even help her game.

But just in case, she continued the little habit she has of spotting her golf ball with an old coin. She did it at last weekend’s Nabisco Dinah Shore tournament and tied for ninth. And she will do it at the Red Robin Kyocera Inamori tournament, which begins today at the StoneRidge Country Club in Poway.

The thing is that Mallon does not want to look at the date of a new coin staring up at her from the green.

Weird?

Hey, try putting on the 18th green at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage with the cheers of the gallery ringing in your ears. Or try playing in front of what seems like the entire citizenry of Ramona, where Mallon’s parents have retired, as she will today through Sunday at StoneRidge.

Mallon, 26, is playing the best golf in her four years on the LPGA tour. So why change?

“I don’t want to see ‘1980’ on a coin,” she said. “Eighty is a high golf score. I’d rather see something like ‘1966.’ ”

A 66 is what she shot on the final day of the Inamori last year. But by then she was so far behind that she never challenged the leaders.

“I was mad about the way I played on the third day,” she said.

So she did something about it.

“I passed about 30 people,” she said.

This year, she arrives at StoneRidge ranked 29th on the LPGA money list with $42,772, more than the $42,574 she earned in all of 1989. Her third-place finish in the Phar-Mor Inverrary tournament in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., in mid-February qualified her for last weekend’s Dinah Shore, one of the LPGA’s majors. Her ninth-place tie with Pat Bradley was worth $12,699.

“You probably could say I didn’t know any better,” she said. “It was pretty exciting to finish in the top 10. I felt like my concentration was very good. I putted really well. I got on those greens and loved them.”

Mallon joined the tour in 1987 after playing at Ohio State University. She said her first-year earnings--$1,572--were both embarrassing and motivating.

She won $25,002 in 1988 before reaching the $40,000 level last year.

“When I turned professional, I put myself on a five-year plan,” she said. “I said if I wasn’t making a living and doing well, I’d retire. Fortunately, I had the support of my family and friends starting out. They knew it would take time to get to the level where I could compete.

“I still have a long way to go. I feel like I’m taking the blue-collar route, starting slowly and working my way up.”

Mallon is accustomed to working her way up. She walked onto the Ohio State golf team her freshman year and earned a full scholarship by her senior year. She likens the tour to her college experience.

“It’s been a progression for me,” she said. “I knew it was going to take some time to get better, and it seems to be happening. I always felt I could play here competitively. It was just a matter of time and getting the right instruction.”

Mike McGetrick of Austin, Tex., has been her coach for the past two years. McGetrick’s wife, Sara Anne, is also on the tour but will not be playing this weekend because she is due to give birth to the couple’s first child in about three weeks. The problem with that is that Mike has been staying home as well. Mallon hasn’t seen him since early December.

“There have been a lot of phone lessons, and those don’t seem to cut it,” Mallon said. “But he took me up to another level and gave me confidence.”

Her recent results have boosted that confidence.

“The more I get myself into situations like I have lately, the more confidence I’ll feel,” she said. “I still have a long way to go, and a lot more to achieve.”

The Dinah Shore is something she replays in her head. Dinah, the crowd, finishing in the top 10 . . .

“The hair on my arms was standing straight up,” she said. “I was walking down to the 18th green with Pat Bradley, and the crowd was just chanting, ‘Pat! Pat!’ They don’t know me, but all those cheers . . . “

This weekend, in front of her parents and several friends, Mallon will have the home-green advantage. The most difficult part of the week might be the scramble for tickets. Mallon only gets four, but she spent time scrounging extras from other players.

“I’m throwing my tickets at my parents,” she said, “and I’ll let them decide who gets them.”

Meanwhile, she has no predictions.

“You can’t control what happens with anybody else,” she said. “You try to be as prepared as you can. I hope my putter stays hot. I feel like I’m hitting the ball well.”

Regardless, she is looking forward to a bit of a break because the tour takes a three-week break after this weekend. With all the home-cooked meals and family reunions, this week starts her vacation.

All Mallon will have to worry about is making sure she has enough old coins in her pocket when she reaches the greens. If she doesn’t, she will follow her usual routine and ask her caddy for a coin.

“But I won’t look at it the whole time,” she said.

Mallon paused, then smiled.

“I know,” she said. “It’s silly.”

LPGA TOURNAMENT FACTS What: Red Robin Kyocera Inamori tournament.

Where: StoneRidge Country Club, Poway

When: Today through Sunday. Play begins at 7:30 a.m. today and Friday and 6:30 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. The final two rounds start earlier to allow Prime Ticket to telecast the tournament. The TV schedule is 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Sunday. These times were set so there will be no conflict with The Masters, which is also this weekend.

Who: Eight of the top 10 LPGA money winners this year are scheduled to play. The two missing are Pat Bradley, who is first on the money list at $206,438, and Beth Daniel, second at $202,884. The remaining 10 who will play: Betsy King ($161,048), Patty Sheehan ($144,519), Ayako Okamoto ($94,447), Colleen Walker ($89,518), Rosie Jones ($85,695), Jane Crafter ($79,195), Maggie Will ($76,161) and Patti Rizzo ($73,015). Nancy Lopez, who missed the cut at the Dinah Shore tournament last weekend, will not play.

How much: The winner gets $45,000.

Tickets: Can be purchased at the gate for $10 Thursday and Friday and $15 Saturday and Sunday.

History: In the nine years of the Red Robin Kyocera Inamori Classic, just six players have won--Rizzo last year, Sheehan (1982, 1983, 1986), Okamoto (1987, 1988), Daniel (1985), Amy Alcott (1980) and Hollis Stacy (1981).