Scouting the rookies

CORNING, N.Y. -- Last week at the LPGA Corning Classic, a bunch of rookies finally made some headlines. Both Beth Bauer and Jung Yeon Lee battled the leaders to get their first taste of the top of the leaderboard. Meanwhile, Jeanne-Marie Busuttil found herself on the other end of the spectrum; she packed her bags following the first round after learning she had used an illegal driver.

THE SHAG BAG Laura Diaz became the first native New Yorker to win the LPGA Corning Classic. During her second win of the season, we also discovered how she stays fit and trim. On almost every attempted putt, Diaz performs a deep-knee bend to urge the ball into the hole. The Golf Channel's Grant Boone appropriately deemed this maneuver the Scotia Squat. ... Pam Kerrigan recorded her first career top-10 finish, thanks in part to a course-record-tying 30 on the front nine Sunday. ... Karen Stupples was scheduled to tee off Thursday at 12:10 p.m. She arrived five minutes, 32 seconds late. According to a note under Rule 6-3a in the Rules of Golf, if a player arrives after her starting time but within five minutes, she will be assessed a two-stroke penalty. Anything after that five-minute period is a disqualification. Stupples thought her tee time was 12:30 and was on the putting green, on the opposite side of the clubhouse, when she learned that she was supposed to be on the tee. ... Adam Woodward -- Shani Waugh's regular looper -- is another LASIK surgery success story. Woodward, who had the procedure done two months ago, captured the annual caddie closest-to-the-pin contest last Tuesday. Woodward knocked a 9-iron to 15 inches on the 131-yard, par-3 15th hole. For his efforts, the Aussie gets to play in the Corning pro-am next year. ... Cindy Rarick and Maggie Will knew that it was going to be unseasonably chilly in Corning last week so after missing the cut at the Asahi Ryokuken International Championship in North Augusta, S.C., the two went shopping for warm clothes and accessories. They stumbled across the clearance sale of all clearance sales: gloves, hats, ear muffs and hand warmers were marked down as much as 80 percent off. On the charter flight to Corning, the two sold items at a profit. "I think they made a dollar or two," said one player. By the way, on Monday afternoon it actually snowed at the golf course -- a first for me.

Until now, this year's rookie class basically had gone unnoticed, but that's not because of lack of talent. Ten years from now, I wouldn't be surprised if this crop of first-year players is considered the best ever. Only time will tell, but in the meantime here's a scouting report on the rookies I have seen play:

Beth Bauer: The former Dukie left Durham early and failed to earn her card her first time through Q school. But this may have been a blessing in disguise; she went on to win four times and finish as the leading money winner on the Futures Tour last season. What Bauer lacks in distance off the tee, she makes up for with an immaculate short game.

Jung Yeon Lee: Thought by some insiders to be the least talented of the up-and-coming Korean corps, she finished third on the Futures Tour money list in 2001. At Corning she continued to prove the critics wrong with a fifth-place finish.

Natalie Gulbis: Despite a very unorthodox swing, this 19-year-old It Girl is very powerful and explosive. Although she's a solid ballstriker, Gulbis, who left the University of Arizona after just one year, needs to take a class on course management.

Stephanie Keever: This 23-year-old has earned her reputation as the tour's newest grinder, winning four out six Monday qualifiers. The former Stanford standout is very straight off the tee and hits a ton of greens. She also possesses a tenacity on the golf course that reminds me of Laura Diaz.

Hilary Homeyer: Keever's college teammate at Stanford could stand to gain a few yards off the tee, but she has a strong wedge game. Homeyer, who has a master's degree in psychology, also has a good head on her shoulders.

Nicole Dalkas: The former USC Trojan is nasty-long but needs to learn to dial it down if she is going to be successful. Dalkas grabbed the final tour card, which has limited her appearances. She also has been hampered by a sore shoulder that may require offseason surgery.

Catherine Cartwright: The youngest player on the tour, this 19-year-old skipped college altogether and had a successful campaign last year on the Futures Tour, finishing 10th on the money list. While she has struggled this year and has yet to make a cut, the 6-foot blonde has the potential to be the best player in the class.

Elizabeth Bowman: At 31, she may be a little too old to shoot for the Hall of Fame, but she has the game to make an immediate impact. By playing eight long years on the Futures Tour, the San Diego native has shown that she has a never-give-up attitude.

Angela Buzminski: The only left-hander on the tour, this Canadian is another 31-year-old who finally escaped the Futures Tour. And though she has made only two cuts in seven tournaments, she has a powerful and picturesque swing.

Candie Kung: The word on this former USC Trojan is that she can really get the flat stick going. But I think the key to her success may be her brother, the smartest caddie on tour. I have been trying to get the MIT graduate to share the scientific formula he uses to read breaks on the green.

Jeanne-Marie Busuttil: While I haven't seen this Frenchwomen play in person, she no doubt has the most interesting rookie story. At Corning she was disqualified for using a nonconforming driver. While this sounds like a rookie mistake, she wasn't totally to blame. The driver in question was the new Honma 9.5, which Busuttil saw at the PGA Merchandise Show. The company was supposed to ship her a few to try. Unfortunately, Honma makes two versions of the driver -- a U.S. model which is legal and a Japanese model which is not. The factory shipped Busuttil the Japanese model, which has JV engraved on the bottom. After she had shot a first-round 72, Busuttil received a phone call Friday morning from a Honma representative who wanted to make sure she had received the right model. After noticing that she had the wrong one, Busuttil approached LPGA officials, who confirmed through USGA listings that she had used an illegal model. Even though the driver head seemed bigger than normal, Busuttil said that her shots didn't go any farther or straighter. "I didn't notice a difference," Busuttil said. "It was just a good fit for me."

Tom Hanson, a regular contributor to Sports Illustrated's Golf Plus section, is a longtime caddie on the LPGA Tour. Click here to send him a question or comment.

 

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