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'I will be nervous'

Watson a little excited, a little scared as Senior debut nears

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Posted: Thursday September 09, 1999 11:40 PM

Not quite elementary: Watching other aging golfers struggle to compete helped convince Tom Watson to make the change. AP

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Before Tom Watson could make his debut on the Senior PGA Tour, he had to accept that age had slowed his game.

"A year and a half ago, when I won the Colonial, it was, `Hey! I can still play with these guys,'" Watson said Wednesday.

But this year, he made the cut in just seven of the 13 PGA Tour starts, finishing no higher than 16th.

Watson, the eight-time major champion who turned 50 Saturday, will make his seniors debut in the Comfort Classic at the Brickyard. The 54-hole tournament begins Friday on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Watching other aging golfers such as Lee Trevino and Hale Irwin struggle to keep up with younger players helped convince Watson to change gears. His 1998 divorce from his wife of 25 years also affected his game.

"It was time to pass the baton, but it is hard to let go of it when you have to pass it," he said.

Watson remarried again last week, and believes his focus and his game are getting back on track.

"I'm here because this is the first tournament I'm eligible for," said Watson, who will play a minimal fall schedule before competing in earnest next year.

"My game is a little sporadic. My driver isn't going where I want it to go. But it isn't exactly out of control," he said. "If I can shoot between 12- and 16-under, I should have a chance to win."

Moving from the rigors of competing against younger players over longer courses doesn't guarantee success on the Senior Tour, said Watson, who had been the leading active winner on the PGA Tour with 34 victories.

Hugh Baiocchi won last year's Comfort Classic with a tournament-record 196, 20-under. Watson shot 68 during Wednesday's pro-am.

"You've got to be right on here to shoot the type of scores Hugh Baiocchi shot here last year," Watson said. "The greens are holding much better than the greens on the regular tour. And these guys can flat play. I've been watching their scores."

Watson said he's looking forward to playing against many of his old friends now competing on the Senior Tour. But he won't see them all just yet. The tour's top four money-winners, Irwin, Bruce Fleisher, Allen Doyle and Larry Nelson, are skipping the tournament.

Still, Watson expects the adrenaline to flow when he tees off Friday.

"All I know is I will be in competition and I will be nervous, anxious and nervous," he said. "I hope the first tee ball is a good one."

 

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