Paw Prints Point Way to Woods’ First Pro Win

The Tiger trail: From amateur, to a tie for 60th place, to 11th, to a tie for fifth in his first four pro tournaments.

Do we detect a trend here?

Maybe, said Butch Harmon, who ought to know about Tiger Woods. The Houston teaching pro is the man behind the swing, the guy entrusted with the best pure talent to hit the pros since, well, some guy from Ohio joined the tour in 1962.

“The only guy I can compare Tiger to at comparable stages of their careers is Jack Nicklaus,” said Harmon, whose clients have included Greg Norman and Davis Love III.

Earl Woods decided Harmon was the teacher Tiger would need when the younger Woods was 17. Since then, Harmon has totally reworked Woods’ swing over a period of time.

Geography made the task more difficult, since Woods was in California and Harmon at Lochinvar in Houston.

Harmon cut back on Woods’ dependence on his hands, altered his stance, built up his shoulder turn and tried to help his star pupil find a swing that would hold up no matter what level he played.

“I’m not like some people who think Tiger is going to go out and win right away,” Harmon said. “That doesn’t mean he won’t, but I think it’s quite an adjustment he’s making.

“But he won’t have to be a part-time pro player any more. From now on, he’s going to have perfect equipment, perfect conditions, perfect courses and he’ll be able to totally concentrate on playing golf.”

Harmon said he knows Woods’ personality as well as his swing.

“His smile, how can you not like that?” Harmon said. “He kids me all the time. He calls me Old Man. He’ll phone me and say ‘How you doin’, Old Man?’

“And I say, ‘Tiger, just make sure you don’t hurt yourself falling off your wallet.’ ”

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Woods’ future may be bright, but no one knows just how bright, including Jay Brunza, the sports psychologist who works with Woods.

Said Brunza: “If I could predict the future, I’d be looking at the ocean from my villa in Maui and my biggest worry in the world would be where the Lear jet would be going next week to play golf.”

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It may be a busy off-season for Woods. In addition to the Skins Game, Woods also will play in the $1.1-million Franklin Templeton Shark Shootout Nov. 12-17 at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks.

Others committed to play are defending champions Mark Calcavecchia and Steve Elkington, plus Greg Norman, Raymond Floyd, Peter Jacobsen and Curtis Strange. There will be 10 two-player teams in the field.

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Now that he’s playing Senior PGA Tour events, can’t you just see success for Gil Morgan, the non-practicing optometrist?

It’s not going to be much of a surprise if Morgan does well now that he’s playing some senior events, including the Ralph’s Senior Classic, Oct. 4-6 at Wilshire.

But Jim Colbert was cautious.

“When guys first come out, they think they can run right through us,” Colbert said. “The one equalizing factor is the cup is the same size on our circuit as it is on the other circuit. You still have to put the ball in the hole or they’ll run over you out here.

“That’s why it’s so hard to come out and run through everybody. There are plenty of quality players. They don’t all have bad weeks.”

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John Bland, the defending champion at Wilshire who has won $992,750 this year on the Senior PGA Tour, was asked his reaction to closing in on the $1-million mark.

“God bless America,” Bland said.

Golf Notes

The seventh PacifiCare/S.A.F.E. tournament will be held Monday at the Cypress Golf Course. The event benefits the Southern Area Fostercare Effort, providing safe homes for abused and abandoned children and drug-addicted babies. Details: (714) 836-8000. . . . The Clippers hold their ninth annual charity tournament Oct. 3 at Sandpiper Golf Club in Santa Barbara. The event benefits the Special Olympics and the Clippers Foundation. Details: (213) 745-0413. . . . The “Tee Off On Child Abuse” tournament will be played Monday at Los Alamitos Golf Course. The event benefits the Child Abuse Prevention Center in Orange County. Details: (714) 252-9062. . . . The third Byron Scott “Challenge for Children” tournament raised more than $160,000 for children’s charities throughout Orange County. . . . The seventh Knights of Columbus tournament will be held Oct. 25 at Brookside No. 2 in Pasadena. The event benefits the Knights’ scholarship fund. Details: (818) 796-5049.