New Methods Make News at Los Coyotes : LPGA: Morse and Anderson, who had their best years in 1982, have lead at 68. Lopez, dumping her old putter, is one shot behind.

It was a good day for veterans Thursday at the LPGA tournament at Los Coyotes Country Club, where two winners from the past and one perennial star successfully tried out some new tricks and tools in the first round.

Cathy Morse, armed with a new putting stroke, and Janet Anderson, using a new set-up, each shot a four-under-par 68 to share the lead.

Defending champion Nancy Lopez didn’t bother with a new putting stroke. Instead, during her recent month off she retired the mallet-head putter she had been using since she was 12, in favor of a modern-day Ping.

“I talked to (husband) Ray (Knight) about it and decided that my putter just didn’t have that large sweet spot it used to,” said Lopez, who has struggled with her putting all year. “The speed of the ball isn’t consistent off the putter--sometimes it’s hard, sometimes soft, sometimes dead. So, today I used the new putter and I did better.”

Lopez, who hasn’t won a tournament since she took this one last year, shot a 69 and is tied with Nancy Brown and Sarah McGuire.

Morse and Anderson had their best years in 1982.

Morse, on the LPGA Tour since 1978, finished 20th on the money list that year and also won the Chrysler-Plymouth Charity tournament, her only tour victory. Since then, she has often been in contention but has continued to struggle with her putting.

“This season, I have been hitting the ball the best, but my putting has been horrible,” said Morse, who has been averaging 35 putts a round.

Her putting became so bad that her boyfriend talked her into taking lessons from Herb Triplett of Palm Beach, Fla., who retired from IBM about five months ago and apparently is already earning a reputation on the professional circuit as a golf guru.

“I had my worst week after the lesson, but I knew I was still working on the new stroke,” Morse said. “I mean, last week I hit 16 greens two days in a row and didn’t break par, and that’s hard to do.

Morse, 35, said she was delighted to use only 32 putts Thursday--she hit 18 greens but three-putted twice.

“If my putting would improve just a little bit, I would be a top-10 player,” said Morse, whose round included six birdies and three bogeys.

Anderson, 34, won the U.S. Open in ’82 for her only victory. Since then, she too has struggled, off the course, as well as on.

“I thought that after my first win it would be easier,” Anderson said. “But then I got divorced, and I got lazy. (My ex-husband) basically drove me to play--making me practice when I didn’t feel like it. So when he was gone, if I didn’t want to practice, I didn’t.”

As a result, Anderson finished No. 114 on the money list in 1987, and 99th in ’89.

“I realized that I didn’t truly believe in myself,” she said. “If I played well, I would think it was because of something else, not because of me. I had no confidence in myself, and it showed.

“But now, I do believe in myself. I have gone through a lot and have stood up through tough times. And now this is fun again instead of being something I have to do.”

Anderson started slowly Thursday but finished the back side with two birdies and a hole in one on the 149-yard 16th hole. Through 21 events this season, with three official tournaments remaining, Anderson is 69th on the money list, her highest placing in four years.

Lopez hit the ball well Thursday, finishing up with a birdie on 18 from five feet. Her only putting trouble came on the sixth hole, where she missed a short par putt.

“It was a 2 1/2-footer,” Knight reminded Lopez when she was trying to recall exactly how short that missed putt really was.

“Normally, I would have been angry that I missed that putt,” Lopez said. “But I feel so rested after taking a month off, and it makes a big difference. I hit the ball real well and made some putts I haven’t made in a long while. I enjoyed being out there.”

LPGA Notes

Betsy King shot a five-over-par 77, but said she’s not worried. “I feel fine; I’m disappointed but I’m working on my game and intend to go out tomorrow and give it my best shot,” she said on the driving range after her round. . . . Nine players are tied at two-under-par 70, including Kim Shipman, who was four under par from No. 6 through No. 10.