GOLF: SENIORS AT RANCHO PARK : However He Did It, Schlee Proves He Is Back With a 66

Gary Player and John Schlee each shot a 66, five under par, Friday despite swirling winds at Rancho Park and share a one-stroke lead after the first round of the the $500,000 Security Pacific Senior Classic.

Schlee, in retirement after suffering a back injury during the Masters in 1978, joined the tour for 50-and-older golfers in June of 1989. He has had almost no success.

Schlee, who won almost half a million on the regular tour when purses were low, is 96th on the money list. In 22 tournaments, he has won $13,125. He has not finished better than 44th and has not shot better than 71. So, it wasn’t surprising that he couldn’t remember how he scored his seven birdies, except that he got one on an 80-foot putt.

“It’s hell to get old,” he said. “Actually, I have had to concentrate so much on each shot, trying to become competitive again, that I just forget what I did.

“I never doubted that I would make it back to the interview room. It is really exciting for me. But I am most happy that I’ll be playing with guys I used to play with, such as Gary Player. I went from earning $350,000 a year to $500 a week running golf schools.”

Schlee won only once on the regular tour, but he was leading the Masters in 1978 when he suffered a ruptured disk in his back. He finished the tournament, but did not play again on the tour. The back no longer bothers him and he gives credit to the Centinela Player Fitness Center.

“About half of us old guys wouldn’t be out here without it,” he said. “Just ask Mike Hill or Homero Blancas. They can tell you how important the center is.”

For the last six years Schlee has been running his golf school, catering mostly to seniors, at Carlsbad, Calif.

Asked if he had played any golf after 1978 before joining the seniors, he said, “Well, there was the Dooley McCluskey Invitational at Carlsbad. My team won and I got free lunch and dinner at his restaurant for a year. That’s not to be sneezed at.”

Not to be sneezed at, either, was the performance of Arnold Palmer, who sank a 40-foot putt on the 18th hole for a birdie and a three-under 68, two strokes off the pace.

Although Palmer wasn’t really happy with his play, especially off the tee, it was only the third time in 18 tournaments that he has been in contention after the first round. He has yet to finish better than 13th this year and has not won a tournament for more than two years. There have been hints that he might be nearing the end of his playing career, but he denies it and Friday went out to prove he still can play.

Although he once hit four consecutive shots out of bounds on the ninth hole in 1961 in the Los Angeles Open, Palmer has usually played well at Rancho. He won three L.A. Opens here, broke the course record when it was a par 72 and almost won the tournament in 1983, leading until the last nine holes.

“I played fairly well,” he said. “I can do better. I just made some poor shots, especially off the tee. If I can play a little better, I’ll be happy.

“I really enjoyed the roar when the putt dropped on the last hole, but I really was disappointed in the crowd. I thought it would be bigger.”

Tournament favorite and money champion Lee Trevino missed a short putt for a bogey on No. 1 and never got his game going. Trevino, who has won seven senior tournaments, finished with a 72.

Contention, however, runs deep. Trailing the leaders by a shot are Joe Jimenez, the 64-year-old super-seniors champion, Dave Hill and left-hander George Lanning.

Joining Palmer at 68 were Don January, Bob Charles, Dale Douglass and Larry Mowry.

Mowry had a memorable round. After six holes he was three over and headed for oblivion. But from the seventh through the 14th he was seven under par with five birdies and an eagle.

“Wasn’t that amazing?” he said. “There was no warning. My game just turned around. The eagle on 11 came on a 10-foot putt after two great shots.”

Another unusual round was turned in by Mike Hill. Hill, No. 5 on the money list, rallied from a 40 on the front side and shot a 30 on the back nine.

Player, who hasn’t won since the Senior PGA in April, gained his tie for the lead by sinking a chip on the 18th hole.

“I have wonderful memories of this course,” Player said. “It’s the kind of a course I’m building all over the world. The average golfer can enjoy this course. The greens are fair, not impossible. I love playing it.”