He's a big cheese in Vermont

As Wachovia qualifier, Murphy pride of state

Going down slippery slopes at frightening speeds in bitter cold? No problem there, not so far as Trevor Murphy was concerned. But when it came to those lazy days of summer and the challenge to keep busy, well, that was an issue.

"When I was 13, I was just trying to occupy my time, so I asked my grandfather, 'Hey, what can I do? I want to work,' " said Murphy.

Now, if your jaw just dropped and your knees buckled, you're probably a parent of a teenager whose idea of work is turning on the Xbox. Yet there was the young man from St. Johnsbury, Vt., showing ambition 10 years ago. And fortunately for him, his grandfather, Bernard Murphy, is a wise man who had sterling advice.

"He said to go spend my days up at the golf course," said Murphy.

Now, if your wide-open mouth formed a smile and you felt a warm tingle throughout your body, you've probably learned long ago that golf courses have a magical allure. Murphy is the latest in a long line of shining examples, which is why his tale is one of delight. From those inquisitive teenage days at St. Johnsbury CC, Murphy today will tee it up alongside Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Adam Scott, and Sergio Garcia, a last-minute entry into the field at the $6.4 million Wachovia Championship at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C.

"It's a very cool situation, kind of unreal," said Murphy. "Actually, surreal, I guess."

A senior at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Murphy saw the chance to play in the Monday qualifier as one of convenience. His classes were just about done, his golf team wasn't in competition until the following weekend, and Firethorne CC was "right up the road." So, what the heck, he gave it a shot, and 69 swings later he was in a playoff with Paul Claxton for the fourth and final spot. Two holes later, the pride of St. Johnsbury was a winner and being handed a parking pass to the players' lot at Quail Hollow, where he can deposit the courtesy Mercedes entrants receive at this lavish affair.

And he thought things used to move quickly when he was a member of the US Junior Ski Team, competing against the likes of Bode Miller.

It has been a whirlwind few days for Murphy. The man who caddies for him during summers, St. Johnsbury CC superintendent Tom Rainville, "hopped in his truck" and drove down after getting word about the Monday qualifier. Meanwhile, the UNC-Charlotte golf team will head to Orlando, Fla., for the Atlantic 10 championships without him. No worries there, because the 49ers are ranked sixth nationally and are guaranteed a spot in the regional with a spot in the national tournament on the line.

But in the meantime, Murphy has a PGA Tour stage on which to walk, even if it's just for two days. Although he won't receive it at the 10th tee at 2 p.m. this afternoon, we'll provide a bit of a drum roll here, thank you, because up in the vintage New England town of St. Johnsbury, Murphy is a story of great achievement. Last summer, he not only won his third consecutive Vermont State Amateur, he also became the first state native to win the Vermont Open, a feat that was accomplished with a second-round 61 at the Lake Morey Resort. Oh, and for good measure he made it into the second round of match play at the US Amateur.

Not bad for a kid who strapped on the skis at the age of 2 and seemed headed for a career as a world-class ski racer. But what happened?

"I tore my ACL one day while training for a competition in France," he said. "I was out for the season. It was the end of my junior year in high school [the famed Burke Mountain Academy] and I had a lot of time to think."

He knew the rehab process would be "long and tedious," but he was blessed with good people to turn to. His father, Steve, had been captain of the Dartmouth College ski team and a member of the US Ski Team. An uncle also had been a competitive ski racer. And his grandfather? "He's 83 and still skis three or four days a week," said Murphy, so in other words, there were sounding boards at every turn for him during his rehab.

The advice was unanimous.

"My father and grandfather steered me toward golf. They pushed me in that direction," said Murphy, who put competitive ski racing behind him and focused on golf. He polished his game the next two summers, did a year at the International Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head, S.C., then settled on UNC-Charlotte. He was a walk-on, but no problem. He'd prove he belonged - and he has. Next up, he wants to take on the challenge of professional golf.

"In May I'll graduate. We've also got the NCAAs, but after that I'll play as a professional," said Murphy. "I'll figure it out where to go and what to do, I guess. But I want to go to Q School. We'll see where it takes me."

No matter where that is, Murphy insists he'll always be a kid from Vermont, in love with the New England outdoors, passionate about those two pursuits that are lifetime sports. Golf, yes. But never will he forsake skiing.

"I love skiing. I always will," he said. "When I go home for the December break [from college], I don't even bring the clubs. I love to hang up the clubs, to put on the skis. To be outdoors, to be on the mountain? I love that."

But on the flip side, he never minded when the snow melted and the green grass of St. Johnsbury CC was beneath his golf shoes, either. No, sir. Those were great, great summers, which leads him to offer this confession: When he followed his grandfather's direction and showed up at St. Johnsbury CC as a teenager, he didn't quite land a job. More accurately, he found a summer home.

Ryder Cup return for Clarke?

Given his heralded reputation, it wasn't a shock that Darren Clarke returned to the winner's circle. It may have surprised some folks, however, that the Irishman, after squandering a 54-hole lead, needed a 40-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole to beat Robert-Jan Derksen at the Asian Open in Shanghai. After all, Derksen was ranked 173d in the world.

But before you go wondering how Clarke could struggle with someone ranked that low, take note that Derksen came in ranked 63 spots higher than the Irishman. Shows you how much Clarke's game had slipped.

"This one is very special," said Clarke, 39. "This is the toughest one of all of them and it's nice to get back up to where I feel my golf should be."

Once a fixture within the game's top 25 and at its major championships, Clarke hadn't won a pure European PGA Tour event since 2002 or anywhere in the world since the 2003 NEC Invitational in Akron, Ohio. After having been top 10 on the Order of Merit in nine of 10 seasons, he slipped to 20th in 2005, then proceeded to fall to 43d and a shocking 138th. His wife, Heather, died of cancer shortly before the 2006 Ryder Cup and in the last two seasons Clarke missed the cut 16 times in 36 starts.

Does it signal a return to form? Certainly, European Ryder Cup enthusiasts would hope so, because Clarke has been a mainstay for five teams, four of which have won.

He jumped from nowhere to 22d and 28th in the two standings the European side uses to pick its team, and by heading directly to the Spanish Open for this week's tournament, it's an indication Clarke is serious about the golf.

Top money players are in the Bank

Player commitments for this year's Bank of America Championship? Not a problem. They've been coming in like springtime rain. So many, in fact, that tournament director Tracy West has a roster nearly two-thirds filled eight weeks before the first tee time.

As for a sponsor commitment beyond 2008, West is just as buoyant.

"We definitely have a lot of irons in the fire," said West, who has known since late last year that Bank of America would not renew its sponsorship beyond this year. "We're very positive we'll find somebody, because we have such a great property."

The tournament is the longest-running 54-hole event on the Champions Tour, dating to 1981. The first three editions were played at Marlborough CC, but since 1984 it has been a staple at Nashawtuc CC in Concord and the 24th renewal is scheduled for June 20-22. But West said no decision would be made regarding a golf course beyond 2008 until a sponsor comes on board.

Instead, West is focused on the upcoming tournament, which will get a publicity boost May 14 when defending champ Jay Haas comes to town. Naturally, he's signed on for this year's tournament, as has Loren Roberts, last year's Schwab Cup winner. Local favorites Dana Quigley and Allen Doyle were quick to send in their RSVPs, as did Denis Watson, Lonnie Nielsen, Mark Wiebe, John Cook, Nick Price, Curtis Strange, Craig Stadler, Tom Purtzer, Scott Simpson, Jim Thorpe, Keith Fergus, and Mark McNulty.

Other commitments have been received from rookies Jeff Sluman and Joey Sindelar.

PGA
Event: Wachovia Championship
Site: Quail Hollow Club (7,442 yards, par 72), Charlotte, N.C.
Schedule: Today-Sunday.
Purse: $6.4 million. Winner's share: $1,152,000.
FedEx Cup points: 25,000. Winner's share: 4,500.
Television: Golf Channel (today-tomorrow, 3-6 p.m., 8:30-11:30 p.m.) and Channel 4 (Saturday-Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).
Last year: Tiger Woods won the third of his seven titles, finishing with a tournament-record 13-under 275 total for a two-stroke victory over Steve Stricker.
Of note: Woods is sidelined by a knee injury . . . Nineteen of the top 25 in the world rankings are in the field . . . The 2005 (Vijay Singh) and 2006 (Jim Furyk) events went to playoffs . . . The Players Championship is next week at TPC Sawgrass.

LPGA
Event: SemGroup Championship
Site: Cedar Ridge Country Club (6,602 yards, par 71), Broken Arrow, Okla.
Schedule: Today-Sunday.
Purse: $1.8 million. Winner's share: $270,000.
Television: ESPN2 (tomorrow, 1-3 p.m.; Saturday, 3-5 p.m.; Sunday, 4-6 p.m.).
Last year: Mi Hyun Kim beat Juli Inkster with a par on the first hole of a playoff.
Last week: Annika Sorenstam won the Stanford International Pro-Am for her 71st LPGA Tour victory.
Of note: Lorena Ochoa is attempting to tie the tour record of five consecutive victories set by Nancy Lopez in 1978 and matched by Sorenstam in 2004-05. The top-ranked Mexican star took last week off. She has five victories in six starts this season.

CHAMPIONS
Event: FedEx Kinko's Classic
Site: The Hills Country Club (7,020 yards, par 72), Lakeway, Texas.
Schedule: Tomorrow-Sunday.
Purse: $1.6 million. Winner's share: $240,000.
Television: Golf Channel (tomorrow, 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Saturday, 6:30-9 p.m.; Sunday, 6:30-9 p.m.).

EUROPEAN
Event: Spanish Open
Site: Real Club de Golf de Sevilla (7,140 yards, par 72), Seville, Spain.
Schedule: Today-Sunday.
Purse: $3.13 million. Winner's share: $521,980.
Television: Golf Channel (today-tomorrow, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 8:30-11:30 a.m.).

Etc.

Spanish sighs
John Daly's golf life as an invited guest continues this week, only in Europe. The troubled one will tee it up in the Spanish Open because he was not extended a sponsor's exemption into the PGA Tour's Wachovia Championship in Charlotte, N.C. It's a longer commute, of course, but nothing about the demanding Quail Hollow Club had been handled very well by Daly. He shot 74-73 and missed the cut in 2003, went for a 74 before refusing to return Saturday morning for the resumption of Round 2 in 2006, and was 74-87 in missing the cut a year ago. Last week at the Byron Nelson Championship, Daly missed the cut for the seventh time in 10 starts, so obviously he's hoping a continental shift will change his luck. It will be his first appearance in Spain since playing in the Madrid Open in 1992 and one would assume he'll be dressed appropriately, which was not the case at a recent appearance at a course he designed in Branson, Mo. Daly agreed to be interviewed and to play a hole while shoeless and shirtless. The only thought that came to mind was that he seems fit enough for the sumo wrestling circuit. His PGA Tour media guide bio claims he weighs 220 pounds? Really? Which side of him didn't they weigh?

Public debate
When Trevor Immelman triumphed at the Masters, he became the first US Amateur Public Links champion to win a major, whereas 17 US Amateur champions have done so (including Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Arnold Palmer with 38 between them). A stark difference, for sure, but the landscape has shifted from the glory days of the national amateur. Going back to 1997, only four US Amateur winners (Matt Kuchar, Jeff Quinney, Nick Flanagan, Ryan Moore) currently hold playing status on the PGA Tour, while the USAPL has produced five names with card status (Immelman, Moore, D.J. Trahan, Tim Clark, and Brandt Snedeker).

Passport to success
Fairway news: The LPGA Tour agrees to visit China for a tournament in October.

Clubhouse view: It means 29 percent of the tour's 34 tournaments are outside the United States, with more events in Asia (four) than Florida. Gives new meaning to the expression, "You go, girl."

Silencing critics
After missing birdie attempts at the first and second playoff holes that would have sealed victory at the Byron Nelson Championship, Adam Scott seemed to be at a disadvantage to Moore on the third. Most likely, there were media members ready to recycle a silly notion that the Aussie "can't finish the job," so when he drained a birdie putt of nearly 50 feet to stun Moore, Scott probably forced many typists to shift their story lines. The fact is, at the age of 27, Scott has won a tournament in each of his six seasons on the PGA Tour, something that can't be said by the likes of Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, or Davis Love. With seven wins in 115 PGA Tour starts, he would seem to have established himself worthy of his No. 5 ranking in the world. But he knows the critics are out there and will remain at his doorstep until he breaks through at a major. It doesn't rattle Scott, mostly because he talks openly about playing better in the majors (he has just four top 10s in 28 starts).

Back in the hunt
Hunter Mahan confirmed the obvious - he'll be back to try to defend his title at the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., June 19-22. Mahan used that playoff win over Jay Williamson as a springboard to great things in 2007 - a spot on the Presidents Cup team and $2,858,995 in winnings. Stewart Cink, the 1997 winner, and David Toms also committed . . . Christina Kim won't soon forget the 18th hole at the Soffer Course at Turnberry Isle & Resort in Aventura, Fla., site of last week's LPGA Stanford International Pro-Am. She played it three times, going triple bogey, quadruple bogey, bogey - 8 over on one hole in a tournament in which she finished 10 over, tied for 61st.

Caddy for a caddie
For 30 years, Tony Navarro has quietly and proudly carved out a distinguished career as one of the PGA Tour's best caddies. He's worked for Raymond Floyd, Jeff Sluman, and most notably Greg Norman, but for the past four years he's gone step for step with Scott. No doubt there have been some nice payoffs in that time, but nothing to compare with what came his way Sunday when Scott won the Byron Nelson Championship. For Scott, it meant a $1,152,000 check; for Navarro, a $100,000 Cadillac XLR-V convertible. "[Tournament organizers] said they thought that it would be a nice gesture, and I tend to agree," said Navarro. Back in Moline, Ill., where Navarro's wife and children watched the dramatic playoff win, the news was greeted warmly. "Tony didn't need a Cadillac that bad," his wife, Sarah, told a reporter for the Quad-City Times. "But his wife sure will look good driving it."

Son rises again
You know you've settled into the golf world far from the PGA Tour spotlight when you get invited to a premier amateur event like the Coleman Invitational at famed Seminole GC in Juno Beach, Fla. But there was Gary Nicklaus, son of Jack, sharing fifth place after rounds of 75-71-73. A reinstated amateur, Nicklaus just eight years ago was in position to win a PGA Tour event, only he lost in a playoff at the BellSouth Classic to Mickelson. He played full schedules on the PGA Tour in 2001 and 2002, but eventually left that world and settled in with his father's golf design company . . . At the Coleman, Joe Keller of the Oyster Harbors Club finished joint seventh in the senior division.