By Rich Copley
Staff Writer

Augusta Chronicle

Though she's a Fred Couples fan, Valerie Spratlin wanted him to hook his second shot on the 18th hole.

``Oh, he'd be OK,'' she says. ``He'd hit it up over the bunkers and onto the green - he'd be fine.''

A hook, you see, would have brought the 1992 Masters Tournament champion a little bit closer to Spratlin. Maybe she could even get a glance or perchance a comment from Couples.

Maybe.

Spratlin, who works part time for radio station WKXC (FM 99.7), and her friend Lynda Tesney, a homemaker, were just two of hundreds of women at Tuesday's practice rounds wanting to get a glimpse of the handsome Texan. And Couples was just one of several golfers being trailed by throngs of adoring women.

With plenty of money in their bank accounts and looks sharpened by years outdoors in practice, a golfer can prove very attractive. If his nice-guy credentials are in tact, all the better.

``Attitude is very important,'' Tesney says.

For the most part, golfer chasing is just casual gazing from the sidelines - a chance to check out some good-looking men.

``Oh! Seve!'' one woman exclaimed as tall, dark Spaniard Seve Ballesteros strolled down the 17th fairway Monday afternoon.

When Couples, Greg Norman, Tiger Woods and Raymond Floyd made the turn Tuesday afternoon, the camera-wielding fans along the ropes were mostly women. Judging by the fans' reaction, the players' names could have been John, Paul, George and Ringo.

While players are aware of the attention from female fans, they don't try to encourage it, says Brian Henninger, who tied for 10th at last year's Masters.

``If you make any kind of contact, like if your eyes meet, they might be following you for several holes,'' Henninger says. ``Some of the caddies have fun with it. Sometimes they'll be saying, `Hey, did you see that broad at the tee,' and I'll be like, `Yeah, yeah. How far are we from the hole?'''

Sometimes, the caddies benefit - sort of like the guy who hangs out with the best-looking man on campus.

Henninger, who's married with two children, points out that most players are in some way attached. But he says he's heard of caddies developing a rapport with their player's admirers and getting together with them.

And just what do player's wives and girlfriends think of all this attention?

``You know it's out there, but you don't let it bother you,'' says Julie Crenshaw, wife of defending Masters champion Ben Crenshaw.

Amy McBride, Phil Michelson's fiancee, says, ``He can't help it that he's good-looking. It's just like any other sport, or being an actor, or a rock star - there are groupies. It comes with the territory. You just have to trust your husband.''

Her intended is a favorite of the ladies, though not all are just checking out his boyish face and taste in clothing.

``His golf swing is just amazing,'' says Jennifer Krupa, who plays golf for the University of South Alabama. ``He's a good-looking man, but the way he plays golf is incredible.''

Traveling to different tournaments, Krupa has seen the groupies and says, ``A lot of them don't know what they're talking about.''

Players and fans say the Masters doesn't attract as many groupies as other tournaments. ``I haven't seen as many here, probably because it's harder to get tickets,'' says Alissa Lauder, who plays golf on the Golden Bear Tour.

People who just want to ogle players aren't likely to go to the trouble it takes to get badges.

Spratlin and Tesney, who can easily recount Couples' career highlights, got their practice-round tickets through the Augusta National Golf Club's lottery this year.

But he didn't hook his shot.

Not a big problem as Spratlin aimed her zoom lens at Couples across the fairway, promised Tesney a reprint, and snapped her photo.

``It was my last picture,'' she says. ``My last picture was of Freddy Couples. We can go home now.''

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