2014 DSGO: A ‘Backwards Episode’ of Round One at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open!

This article is formatted like the 164th "Backwards Episode" of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. Most recent at the start! Note that there are 27 additional stories in the picture show at the bottom of this post. Evening: The Zac Brown Band concert. Afternoon: After watching some golf I came back into the media center and found John Fox, longtime sports columnist for the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin Newspaper. By longtime I mean 61 years. I saw him here in 2010 and reintroduced myself and congratulated him like countless others when he wrote his final column on June 27th which was entitled "After so long, it's 'So Long.'" The man was ingenious with his thoughts, perspectives and words. Sixty-one years before, on June 27th, 1949, his first assignment on his first day was to cover an exhibition by Dr. Cary Middlecoff a few weeks after he won the U.S. Open at Medinah CC. It was played at the old Vestal Hills CC which was a 9-holer on the opposite side of the Susquehanna River a few miles upstream from the En Joie Golf Course. That golf course was moved into the hills to more accurately reflect its name. John Fox has kept himself moving ever since and hopefully for a long time more. What a delight to see John Fox today and here old stories about Ely Park and golf in the Triple Cities! Olin Browne out at 10:53 am with Tom Pernice Jr. (74) and John Riegger (67) posted a 7-under 65 that was only tied later in the day by John Cook. Browne became the fifth player to win on the Web.com, PGA TOUR and Champions Tour when he won the 2011 U.S. Senior Open, his only age 50-plus win. 'OB' spoke of the cycles in golf: "Winning is hard, it's really hard... all you can do is show up, keep making some putts, hit some good shots, and when it is your turn, it's your turn (to win)." asked about his preparation for the Dick's Sporting Goods Open he responded, "I really worked on my preparation last week. I went fishing with my daughter for three days and hung out at the beach." Playing with Ed Stack, son of Dick's Sporting Goods founder and CEO since 1984, he didn't contribute on one hole, evidently saving all his birdies for Round One. Woody Austin, the 1995 Rookie of the Year on the PGA TOUR, shot 5-under on the front nine and even par coming home to post a 67 good for a T6 position after Round One. After giving details of his brilliant front nine he joked that he made the turn and "unfortunately I woke up." Austin, the 2007 President's Cup 'Aqua Man,' won the PGA TOUR's Sanderson Farms Championship last July and then turned 50 in January. In 22 tour events this year he has only one Top-25 finish. In his debut and only other Champions Tour competition he finished T3 at the U.S. Senior Open won by Colin Montgomerie. asked about his conflicting levels of performance he went into a rather logical explanation that centered on technology and skill. "I am no longer that guy that's 40 yards behind everyone... I hit more sand wedges today than I've hit all year long." Welcome to the Champions Tour Woody! Steve Lowery had nine birdies, five straight on holes five thru nine, and shot 66 in Round One to trail the leaders by one shot. David Frost and defending champion Bart Bryant also shot 66 and are tied for third place. A 15-footer for par on No. 11 kept the round going for Lowery who won three times on the PGA TOUR, all in playoffs, but is yet to win in 77 Champions Tour appearances. Steve admitted to fiddling too much with his swing: "I've been out there playing golf for a couple of years trying to work on my swing hoping it would work. It never does... I was trying to get better and I was getting worse." No more fiddling Steve Lowery! John Cook's round was more balanced that Olin or Woody's round as he shot 33-32=65 in the second to last pairing, with two birdies to finish, to tie Browne for the lead. It was a comfortable pairing with Jeff Sluman (67) and Jay Haas (71). It is amazing to me that 'Cookie,' with 11 regular tour wins and 9 on the Champions Tour has not won a major on either tour. He was sidelined for 10 weeks early in the season after slipping on carpet at home and literally cracking his back. The recovery did not require surgery only rest and he came back rusty. He is ready for the weekend at the Dick's Sporting Goods Open and the home stretch of 10 straight tournaments in a row with only one off week. Morning: I arrived at the course a little after 8 am but didn't make it to my spot the media center until well after 10 am. I wanted to see Jim Rutledge hit the first tee shot, the first of 81 golfers, off No. 1 in the 2014 Dick's Sporting Goods Open. But I missed that too. When I volunteer at the World Golf Hall of Fame they call me the "Wanderer" as I admittedly seem to meander from one exhibit to another when my next new friend in golf has yet to arrive at my post. Today I was drawn, actually given a ride in a golf cart, by Dave Baker the man who presented the key to Endicott to Fred Funk yesterday and has been volunteering at En Joie for the last 39 years. That means he is 1976 vintage, the year Bob Wynn won, five years after Butch Harmon won the 36-hole inaugural Broome County Open and two years after Johnson City's own Richie Karl became the last club professional to win a PGA TOUR event. I was 14 years old and remember being there on the 15th green and seeing Richie drain a 35-foot putt to beat Bruce Crampton in a playoff. Dave drove me to the front gate area where I visited with each exhibitor. The very first one was I met was Anne Williams of Wendy's Walk for Kids. A franchiser of 17 Wendy's Restaurants in the Central New York region with partner Jeff Coghlan, she wanted to do something for children during the National Children's Awareness Month of June. Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy's was born to a young unmarried woman he never knew. Adopted six weeks later, the philanthropist became a well-known advocate for adoption.  Five years ago, when the Dick's Sporting Goods Open was in June, Anne teamed up with Tournament Director John Karedes and Broome County Catholic Charities and simply started to walk for the kids on tournament Sunday morning, taking steps to a brighter future. In 2009 they raised $40,000, last year $245,000 and likely will cross the $1 million mark this year. I can see why the PGA TOUR awarded Wendy's Walk for Kids and Broome County Catholic Charities the Champions Tour 2012 Charity of the Year Award. The charitable donations from the generous people of the Central New York Region have funded an adoption recruiter. Somehow I think Dave Thomas is smiling down from above, just like Wendy, knowing his spirit is alive and well both in a tasty  Dave's Hot 'N Juicy 1/4 lb. Single and a young child finding a home. I missed Rutledge's tee shot but did manage to say hello to Bobby Clampett and watched him tee off at 10:09 with Hal Sutton and John Inman. Right now Bobby is 1-under through eleven holes. He mentioned to me that Endicott-Johnson Shoe Company sponsored him back in the day and he was one of the first to wear soft-spike shoes. Sure enough I googled him and EJ's and there was a pair of his size 11s for sale on EBAY. They went for $11.50 a couple of months ago. I liked the 'BC', what we would have called 'Whatchamacallit' back then or crocs jibbitz™ strap charms today. 'BC', Bobby Clampett or 'BC Open,' originally Broome County Open. then Johnny Hart's BC comic strip, now the Dick's Sporting Goods Open. Maybe a hunch that Bobby Clampett will win this week at En Joie?  Right now he is even par through seventeen with Sandy Lyle leading at 7-under through tweleve holes. The final threesome of Colin Montgomerie, Bernard Langer and Mark O'Mara have teed off. Morning is over. It is officially afternoon. Twenty-seven more stories from today in the picture show: