It’s Not Tough to Separate Skins Haves and Have-Nots

One day, nine holes and $300,000 deep into the Skins Game at Rancho La Quinta, Tom Lehman and Mark O’Meara have the money while Fred Couples and Greg Norman have nothing.

And you know what that means, right?

“Basically, you’re gonna get some or you’re not gonna get some,” Couples said. “If you’re not gonna get some, today’s a good day not to.”

So Saturday was a good day not to get some for Couples, who had two birdies and deserved better. Norman had one birdie, but he did manage to put two balls in the water.

The second one Norman air-mailed directly into a watery landing area was at No. 9, but Norman said it was the wind’s fault, not his.

“I don’t lay the sod over two-irons too often,” Norman said. “I leave that to 27-handicappers.”

Luckily for these four players, there is still $700,000 up for grabs today when the back nine is played. Now, that’s what amounts to a tidy sum, said Norman, who referred to Saturday’s $300,000 prize money in an unflattering fashion.

“That’s chump change for me,” he said.

Meanwhile, Lehman prepared himself for his upcoming shoulder surgery by making five birdies, one $75,000 skin, one for $50,000 and one for $25,000. O’Meara made two birdies, but the second of them was a three-hole carry-over on No. 8 worth $150,000.

Besides that money-making 25-foot putt that O’Meara wiggled into the hole and a 50-footer that halved No. 2 with Lehman, O’Meara also managed to make a little bit of news when he picked up Couples’ coin at No. 6 to concede a short putt when Norman was sizing up his chip.

For Skins Games, this is nearly as huge an issue as how soon the players think they will be able to get out of town today as soon as ABC finishes taping the show.

O’Meara was contrite afterward.

“Maybe I fell asleep,” he said. “I messed up. It’s not the first time I’ve messed up.”

After a rules official was summoned, peace was restored, Couples replaced his coin, all four players made par and the money wagon moved steadily along.

Lehman looks pretty comfortable in the driver’s seat right now. He won $300,000 last year, which means he has now earned exactly $450,000 while making 15 birdies in 27 holes. No matter how well he has played, Lehman is still going to have shoulder surgery Monday to correct an injury that occurred when he fell while playing with his children in Southport, England, during the British Open.

“I can’t throw a baseball, I can’t lift anything, but I can swing a golf club,” Lehman said. “I can play good rounds, but I can’t play good tournaments.”

O’Meara also padded his Skins Game bank account, adding to the $240,000 he won last year. In a semi-bold move, he decided to break out a new putter Saturday, deciding to stow the putter he used to win at the Masters and the British Open.

O’Meara had a good reason for timing his change.

“It’s not like a life-or-death situation out there,” he said.

For Norman, he is at ground zero in his third Skins Game, but his first in six years. In his other Skins Game trips, Norman won a total of $200,000 and after getting shut out Saturday, money was on his mind.

“I’m disappointed I didn’t win any money,” he said. “Between these guys, I’m about $5 million behind them this year.”

He has a chance to close the gap a little more today with a nine-hole payday of $700,000, chump change or not.