ESPN.com - Golf Online - British Open 2000 - Around St. Andrews: O'Meara shows signs

By Bob Harig
Special to ESPN Golf Online
Thursday, July 20

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- There's been little in his past performance to suggest that any great golf is on the horizon, but perhaps Mark O'Meara found something Thursday.

That old feeling

Ian Baker-Finch was back in the booth Thursday for ABC-TV, but during Wednesday's Past Champions Challenge he showed flashes of the brilliance that made him a British Open champion in 1991.

Baker-Finch all but lost his game in the mid-1990s and turned to television and away from competitive golf. But aside from a wayward tee shot at the first hole -- soon after a television commentator asked him about his snap-hook out of bounds during the 1995 Open at St. Andrews -- Baker-Finch looked silky smooth. He birdied both the 17th and 18th holes.

"I felt comfortable," he said. "I feel a lot more comfortable now than I did, in say, '96-'97 when I was struggling, and I really shouldn't have been out there. I just did not feel right. Each time I do something like this it makes me feel a little bit more like coming back and playing again."

Baker-Finch has visions of playing a little bit in the future.

"I am going to move back and play a few tournaments in the States next year, if I can," he said. "It is really not a comeback. I am an announcer now. I have just signed a five-year contract with ABC, so that's what I do, but coming and playing occasionally and getting my fix of tournament golf, I would like to go do that."

The 1998 British Open champion has experienced very little success since his playoff victory at Royal Birkdale. Last year, he shot 83 in the opening round at Carnoustie and missed the cut.

But for awhile during the opening round, O'Meara's name was on the leaderboard. He shot 33 on the front nine, added two more birdies on the back. Three late bogeys left him with a 2-under 70.

"I played better today," said O'Meara, 43, who acknowledged he has not fared well this year. "I didn't finish very well today, but I got off to a better start. I was hitting it very good in the practice rounds, but not as well today. I just made some putts."

O'Meara has just one top-10 finish this year, a tie for ninth at The Players Championship in March. Since then, he's failed to finish better than 25th.

That championship feeling
They all have their names on the Claret Jug, but it wasn't a particularly pleasant day for former Open champions Paul Lawrie, Jack Nicklaus and John Daly.

Lawrie, the defending champion, shot 78. Nicklaus, a three-time winner including twice at the Old Course, shot 77. And Daly, the winner the last time the Open was at St. Andrews, shot 76.

All three will have a difficult time making the 36-hole cut.

"It was an unbelievable day," Lawrie said. "I had one four-putt and three three-putts and none of them from very long distance, all about 30 to 35 feet away. I didn't play too badly and I hit the ball well, but I had 41 putts, the highest I've ever had in my career. You just can't have that many putts and shoot low."

For Nicklaus, it was more of what he has experienced this year. Playing in what could be his last British Open, Nicklaus had little consistency. He double-bogeyed the first, birdied the second, then bogeyed the third. He had five bogeys on the back nine and shot 40.

Asked if a rib injury flared up, he said: ""No, it's just me. I'm the only thing that is hurting me."

For a course that played about as easy as it could play, Daly didn't have much fun, either. He made just two birdies, one coming at the last hole.

Good, but...
The 17th hole grabbed Notah Begay III, who tumbled from the lead with a triple-bogey. It also got Paul Azinger, who made a double-bogey.

Azinger, 5-under at the time, hit his drive in the rough, then found a set of bunkers down the left side that he didn't know existed. From there, all he could do was chip out sideways. That led to the 6. He finished with a 69.

"But I hit it really great today," said Azinger, who hit 17 greens in regulation. "I had a bunch of opportunities that didn't go in. I'm disappointed. I felt I should have been 7- or 8-under. I missed three or four birdies putts inside 10 feet.

"It's hard to complain when you shoot 3-under. It could have been worse. I'm still in the top 10."

Missing in action
One player very much missed at Wednesday's Past Champions Challenge was Arnold Palmer, who won the 1961 and 1962 British Opens and made his farewell Open appearance at the '95 tournament at St. Andrews.

There has been some speculation that Palmer declined to attend because he wasn't invited to play in the tournament.

"Arnold Palmer is a great stalwart and we would love to have had him here, but past champions are no longer exempt after (age) 65," said Peter Dawson, the secretary of the R&A. "There are a lot of final qualifiers who are looking for places. We are very comfortable with our decision."

Dawson said he made several efforts to persuade Palmer to attend. Palmer is playing in a Senior Tour event this weekend.

"I think he considered 1995 to be his finale," said Palmer's publicist, Doc Giffin. "There has been no feeling from Arnold that he should have been given a special exemption this time."

Chip shots

Unlike the major championships in the United States, which are typically sold-out in advance, the British Open puts daily tickets on sale. They are available at the gate for 30 pounds (approximately $45-50).

Anchored off the coast of St. Andrews is perhaps the most famous cruise ship in the world, the QEII, named for Queen Elizabeth II. Some 1,000 golf fans paid up to 7,000 pounds each to stay on the ship for the week and get special passes to the Open Championship.

The cousin of Prince Charles, James Ogilvy, rented his Scottish mansion to International Management Group for the week for 10,000 pounds. By the way, Ogilvy is 32nd in line for the throne.

Stewart Cink got off to a good start with a 69, but don't be surprised if he's wearing the same clothes for the second round. Not because he's superstitious. Cink has been without his luggage, lost by an airline. In fact, it's been a common problem for visitors to Scotland this week. "Stewart Cink has not had his luggage, nothing, his whole group. Everything is gone," said friend Dennis Paulson, who opened with a 68.