Nighttime Isn’t the Right Time for Golf

With a record field of 232 golfers, the 26th Mayor’s Cup on Oahu’s Ala Wai golf course dragged on long into a moonlit night, prompting Ann Miller of the Honolulu Advertiser to note, “It turned out to have something for everyone, including the bats.”

The tournament began at 6:15 a.m. and finished nearly 13 hours later with three of the golfers in the final group tying for a share of the championship after putting on an 18th green illuminated by the headlights of three cars and a golf cart.

“It’s better for me when I can’t see what I’m doing,” joked Norman Inouye, 60, one of the champions, after carding a 71.

A Monday playoff was not possible on the nation’s busiest golf course.

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Trivia time: On this date in 1992, Raymond Floyd became the first golfer to record victories on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour in the same year. What were the events he won?

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Slow to respond: Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle, remarking on the Raiders’ home loss Sunday to the Kansas City Chiefs: “It was a terrible night for Raider fans, who battled a monumental traffic snarl to get into the parking lot, the traffic flow possibly handled by FEMA.”

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Sprouting prospect: In an item beneath the headline, “Butter Him Up,” Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times suggests the ideal recruit for the Idaho Vandals:

“Who better to lead a football revival at Idaho than the quarterback at Lawrence (Ind.) Central High School -- Spud Dick?”

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Dressed for success? Cal quarterback Joseph Ayoob drew laughter from reporters before Saturday’s game against Illinois, saying that he looked silly in the Bears’ new blue home uniforms: “I don’t have a butt and my nose hangs out of my helmet.”

Despite his appearance, he was able to overcome a poor first half against Illinois, during which he missed on all nine of his passes, with a seven-for-eight performance in the second half to rally Cal to a 35-20 victory.

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Mealtime: Boxer Hasim Rahman, wearing a chef’s hat, served Vitali Klitschko a lunch platter at Monday’s Beverly Hills Hotel news conference to promote their heavyweight bout in Las Vegas on Nov. 12.

Klitschko’s response? “Right now that was dinner. I’ll bring you dessert after the fight.”

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Wanna bet? Rahman also wore a T-shirt that read “Down Goes” on the front. On the back was a picture of Klitschko.

Klitschko was a 4-1 favorite in the opening odds.

“Once again, I can prove these oddsmakers wrong,” Rahman said. “Once again, a lot of people will lose a lot of money.”

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Trivia answer: Floyd won the senior tour’s GTE North Classic after having won the Doral-Ryder Open in March on the regular tour.

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And finally: Sports Illustrated for Kids recently solicited Sergio Garcia to provide readers with putting tips. Noting that Garcia ranked 203rd on the PGA Tour in putting, Dan Daly of the Washington Times wrote: “Next month in SI for Kids: Fitness tips from John Daly.”

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Times correspondent Jonathan Abrams contributed to this report.