Everyone's Keeping Low Profile at Hope

By THOMAS BONK

Jan. 20, 2000 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

PALM DESERT —

The Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, a 90-hole, five-day birdie supermarket, threw open its doors Wednesday and welcomed its first-round leader, a Mr. David Toms, who obviously has figured out the big secret to playing this place.

“The golf courses aren’t very difficult,” Toms said.

This is less than a revelation, but he’s right, of course. In fact, what’s difficult is trying not to burst out laughing when you’re standing on the tee and looking at a hole that’s only slightly longer than Casey Martin’s golf cart.

That’s the way it went for Toms at Indian Wells Country Club, a purring 6,478-yard pussycat that he tormented with a nine-under-par 63. Four under through five holes, Toms finished with five birdies, two eagles and a clear appreciation for playing golf in just about perfect conditions in the desert.

“I think it was like playing golf in a dome,” Toms said. “The greens were perfect. No wind whatsoever. You didn’t even have to think about it. We all would like to play in this every day, if we could.”

Toms’ round was so overpowering, his lead is one shot. Bob Tway and Paul Goydos shot 64 at Indian Wells, a score matched by Neal Lancaster at Bermuda Dunes and Robert Damron at the Palmer Course at PGA West.

Six others are tied at 65--Steve Pate, Glen Day, Esteban Toledo, J.L. Lewis, Olin Browne and Greg Kraft. But with 72 holes still to go, it’s obviously a wide-open field, which is what happens when 114 of the 128 pros shoot par or better.

There were so many birdies--588--the scoreboard computer in the media room shorted out.

Day knows the score about the Hope, all right.

“You know, it’s a five-round tournament,” Day said. “You’ve got to shoot about 88 under and I’m only six under, so I’ve got a long way to go.”

Defending champion David Duval, who shot a 59 the last time he played the Palmer Course, finished with a 68 this time and finds himself in an intimate group of 19 that also includes Martin, making his debut at a PGA Tour pro.

Martin made history by becoming the first regular tour player to use a golf cart during a round. His four-under score at user-friendly Indian Wells could have been a lot better had he been able to sink some of about half a dozen short birdie putts that managed to stay out of the hole.

But at least Martin got through the round, trailed by a phalanx of reporters and ESPN, which followed his every shot.

“It’s a relief,” Martin said afterward. “The bulk of my nerves was because it was the first round. That should loosen me up now.”

Or maybe not. One of Martin’s amateur partners today at La Quinta is Richard J. Ferris, the chairman of the PGA Tour Policy Board, who testified against Martin in his landmark lawsuit against the PGA Tour that allowed him to use a cart during events.

Ferris, who was playing in the group ahead of Martin, patted him on the back after a brief chat. Martin said he harbors no grudge against Ferris.

“He’s a nice guy,” Martin said. “He went out of his way to testify against me, but that’s all right.

“I just won’t help him read his putts.”

Ferris said that as an individual, he roots for Martin.

“But we feel strongly that walking is an integral part of the game,” Ferris said.

Yeah, that’s probably why the PGA Tour used golf carts to shuttle players to some of the tees at the Mercedes Championships.

In the meantime, they’re probably going to have to use front-loaders to scoop up all the birdies lying around here. Davis Love III found his share with a six-under 66 at Indian Wells that was low-lighted by a double bogey on his closing hole when he knocked his drive out of bounds.

Love, who hasn’t played the Hope the last five years, is making his first start of the year. He said the scores the Hope gave up Wednesday aren’t all that unusual any more, no matter the venue.

“These days, the scores are going to be like that pretty much wherever you go,” Love said. “On the West Coast, there’s a lot of courses where they shoot low numbers, but I think with working on my swing for a couple of weeks, this is the place for me to start. . . . And you know, it’s not that hard to get something going.”

Not for Love, not for Toms, not for, well, just about everybody on opening day.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

The Leaders

BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

David Toms: 31-32--63

Neal Lancaster: 32-32--64

Robert Damron: 33-31--64

Bob Tway: 31-33--64

Paul Goydos: 35-29--64

Glen Day: 33-32--65

Steve Pate: 33-32--65

Esteban Toledo: 31-34--65