U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

May 28, 1996

Peggy Kirk Bell

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, to host the United States Golf Association event is very, very special, and I'm just so excited I can hardly sleep. I'm so tired at night, I do sleep. But I just think it's here, I can't believe it, and the people coming out and the people supporting it and the whole committees. I said, well, we worked several years putting this together and we're so happy the USGA is here, it's all theirs. So we don't worry now, it's on its way.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, we had hosted the Girls' Junior Championship in 1989, and then in 1991 we hosted the Women's USGA Senior Championship, the Amateur Championship, and it was great fun. And at the dinner that night they asked me to say a few words, and so I said, you know, my dream in golf was to make the United States Curtis Cup team. And there was no professional golf in those days at all. And I said then we host the Junior Championship, and then we host the Seniors. Now if we just had the Open, we'd have it covered. And it wasn't too long after that we got the Open. So I think it was about another six months or so and they said, well, the 1996 Open, and I said, gee, I'll be dead by then. It seemed like forever for the Open. But here, it's here and it's exciting, believe me.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, we run golf schools here at Pine Needles, and I could see just through the schools we turn people away coming to our schools. We first started with two schools, and then we got three schools, now we have eight schools and we still turn them away. We could have had one more the week before the Open if we had wanted to. But, anyway, it's just the fact that women's golf is booming, believe me. And I see it in the fact that maybe we'll have 30 women that have never played golf arrive for a golf school out of 140 that come. And it used to be maybe one person would come. But the demand for women learning to play golf is great, and I said the way women's golf is growing we're going to have a big Open. And we are.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Oh, that's a fun story. We're sitting in a meeting, and "The Babe" said we've got to do something -- and Babe was a great promoter of Babe and of golf, and she loved the press. She used to say in this one particular meeting, she said we've got to do something to get this thing rolling. She said we don't have a Women's Open, so we're going to put one on. And we're going to put up $10,000 -- I think it was ten. And we were playing for about 2,000 or 2,500. And we'll let the press know there's a $10,000 Women's Open and none of you are going to get paid. But that's what we're going to tell them. And that's sort of one of the fun things that she did. We didn't really have the Open, but it was her idea, that that's how you get attention is to put up a lot of money. USGA is putting up $1,200,000 today, and it blows my mind that they'd ever be playing for that kind of money. But I can remember you talking about "The Babe", we'd go out and play a round of golf, and the press would be there and they'd say, well, how did you do today? And Babe would say I shot a 70. Well, I mean, I played with her and she shot about a 76 and wasn't really trying. And after they left I said, Babe, you didn't have any 70. She said, well, I should have had a 70. And they don't want to hear I had a 76. I'm going to tell them what they want to hear. So the next day the headlines says Babe warms up with a 70 for the Women's Western Open, and that was Babe's -- that was Babe.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I don't lie about my scores.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: This has been an exciting time for me. Gee, I'm in my -- what do you call it, last years? And they brought me back to life this week. I've never autographed so much. I was done. But this is -- as I say again, the press has been very good to me through my life. And I haven't won these great championships like Patty Berg and Louise Suggs, but golf has been my life and been my family's life. All three of my youngsters played on college golf teams, and they -- all three of them married golfers. As you know, my oldest daughter played at Carolina and married Pat McGowan, a tour player. And my second daughter played at Alabama and married Kelly Miller, he won the Butler National and won the Azalea Tournament, he's a great amateur player, he runs both Mid Pines and Pine Needles. And my son, Kirk, played on the second string at Alabama, because he said he was chasing the sorority row down there. And then he married a young girl from -- well, not real young, she's two years younger than he is. They're both young. She went to Yale and played on the Yale golf team. So she's the head of sales at Pine Needles. And Kelly runs both properties. My Bonnie works in management at Pine Needles. She's assisting over there and Pat McGowan is now off the PGA Tour for the time being and runs our learning centers. So they're all in here pitching and we love it.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I've had a great year. We've been going around. The great thing is that this championship just didn't happen. And we know that the State of North Carolina is a golfing state. And the Pinehurst area is a great -- well, to me, I think it's the golf capital of the world. And it used to be called that. But what happened was the North Carolina State -- the governor is going to be down here, he's gotten behind it, he's calling it the "Week of the Women." We have a wonderful advisory committee of women which is a first for any championship. And Jan Dempster of Sprint has gotten together the women all across the state. Now, we ran a tournament in Wilmington and made a lot of money for breast cancer and ran one in Raleigh and sold tickets to the Open, and one was run in Raleigh, and one in Greensboro, and one was run in Charlotte, and all of these were getting people aware of this championship. So it's just been great fun. And of course I went to a lot of ladies days and took my tickets and sold as many as we could sell. And maybe some of you weren't aware of the fact that we're so anxious for this to be the greatest Women's Open ever that Pine Needles gives anyone that buys a season badge a free round of golf at Pine Needles within a year and a half. So we're paying them to come. Well, they're paying, but we think that we want this to be special.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, I've seen quite a few of them. But Brandie is certainly a favorite here this week because she's played this course a lot. And Vicki Goetze played it well. And a lot of young players were here in '89 that are now professionals and they're back and ready to challenge it once more. But it's tougher, believe me. This golf course is in perfect shape, greens are much faster and the rough is much longer, and it's going to be a challenge. They better hit it straight and they better be able to putt.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, a friend of mine, maybe some of you know, Edean Ihlanfeldt, who won the USGA Seniors a few years ago, was helping her get around when she was -- she was fond of this young girl. And she called me and said there's a little gal from -- she went to Arizona, and she said she's coming for the North/South and can you put her up at your house? And I said, sure. I'm used to that. They just pile in and sleep anywhere. So she came, and I had an awful time with this name, Annika. I said you need a name like Jane or Ann. I just can't remember -- and I kept calling her Heineken. And anyway, she called -- whenever she sees me and writes me she calls herself Heineken, so it's sort of a standing joke. But she played very well in some of these championships and should have won them. But to have her first win on the PGA, LPGA Tour be the Women's United States Open is terrific. And so when she came off that green last year at Colorado Springs, I was standing there, I watched her play in the last five holes, and I said, Heineken, now you won a big one, go win some more, you're our champion. So what did she do? She ended up winning the leading money winner, Player of the Year. And then she won I don't know how many more tournaments, two or three more tournaments before the year ended and won the European Tour, so we've got a real champion this week defending.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: It's very embarrassing. Believe me, I keep saying these are the greatest players in the world, let's talk about them. And I just said what's going on here? I'm just shocked at this attention they're giving me. And again, we are thrilled to host this championship. It's indeed an honor. I'm overwhelmed by the whole -- all this attention. I said I can't believe this is happening. But thanks to the USGA we're here.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I don't think you can ever compare players, first of all. I think that there are more great players today. I would say in our day there were maybe ten that could win, and it was like "The Babe", and Patty and Louise and Betsy Rawls and so forth. But the schooling and all of the work, and the tour, itself -- I mean, we used to play a tournament or maybe two and then go home for a month. And at that time I worked for Spalding, and I'd go give clinics and exhibitions, and Patty would go work for Wilson and Louise would work for MacGregor, and we had that to go by. And so if you didn't have a contract with a sporting goods company, you could not make a living on the golf tour. I mean, it -- the money wasn't there. So comparing, I made the remark the other day, if Babe was living she'd be 85 and she'd probably be here saying I believe I can beat these kids. But she was a great competitor. And she made the remark many times, "I wish these girls would play better so I'd have to practice." Now, that's being funny. Some people would take that as being very egotistical, but she would be saying that in jest, but still saying it. I think one of the great stories was when Babe won athlete of the year, and she was in New York and received this award. So the press said, well, Babe what are your plans? And so right off the top of her head she said, I believe I'll play in the Men's Open this year. Well, of course the men flew out of there, ran to the telephone, tickered that in and it went all over the wire, "Babe is going to play in the Men's Open." The next day Joe Dye called a special meeting of the Men's Committee to banned all women from men's tournaments. Now, they couldn't do that today, the women would have a riot. What would they do?

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Anyway, Babe had no intentions of playing in the Men's Open, but that was good ink she used to say. They liked that.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: You mean they didn't think it would be tough enough?

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, it may not be. These girls are great, but they're going to have to play some good golf. As far as any demands on the United States Golf Association, the only thing that they had us do different was to extend the 14th lady's tee back about 30 yards. And they then made that five par into a four. But they did not ask us to do anything more. We needed a -- I love telling this, that when I was out there they didn't give the players a private dining room or a beauty parlor. I could have used it. And that they had a place to massage and all that. Those are things that this tour has today. And it was just great to have a golf course and get a free dinner one night and everything. It was just -- what was that question again?

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I don't want to know what we spent, believe me. Every once in a while I'll ask my son-in-law how much is that? And he says, you don't want to hear. But what we've done to improve the facility, we needed to do it anyway. And we're going to have a better resort because of hosting this Open. But, you know, those tents cost a lot of money to put out there. But we've been able to promote the support from many companies to help us, and we're just happy to have it. And we put in some pretty flowers and dressed it up a little bit for you folks to come and see the beauty of it. About two or three years ago we closed -- just went out and redid all the fairways with a better Bermuda. We had old common Bermuda out there. USGA did not ask us to do that, we did that. And we let people play free because they were playing on dirt, we springed it. So that might have cost us a little money to give up those green fees. And then we did the front 9 one year, the greens, redid all the greens; not that we didn't have good bent greens, but the poa annua was getting in there. And so we closed the front 9, planted seed out there and let them play just the back 9 twice free. Wasn't that nice of us? And then the next year we did the back 9 and let them play the front 9 free. Or we got them starting times at other golf courses in the area. But that was in preparation for the Open, but not demanded by the United States Golf Association.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: It happened. We're getting -- we're happy with the ticket sales. And I think they said yesterday that Monday was the biggest crowd that's ever come to a Women's Open on Monday. I wish I could tell you. They told me, but I forgot how many was here.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: The only thing I heard today -- because every day I say how many have we sold? This is presold. We've sold over ten thousand season badges. I think prior to that it was 3,500 presold. So we're happy. And I think it's the state and the area and the great publicity that we've gotten through you and through our advisory committee. We are the first to have a Women's Advisory Committee across the state; some of the most influential women. And that means they've got money and power, okay? Position. They have gone all out. I go to these meetings every two weeks for the last year or two, and no matter what was mentioned, a volunteer would do it. I've never seen a committee that wanted to work. Usually they're sitting on their hands saying I don't want to do that. But these women wanted to work, and they worked. That's the other reason our sales are so beautifully -- have sold well. And in many of the speeches I say I've got a hundred badges and I don't want to take any home with me, let's go, buy. So it was -- it's an easy sell, this Women's Championship, it really was.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: She's the longest hitting thing I've ever seen. No, Laura is great. I really think she's a wonderful lady and a great champion, and I think those of you that I spoke with know how pleasant she is. But she just hits it too far, don't you think? But I think "The Babe" hit it longer -- as long as some of the men, but I wouldn't -- I don't know, I think that she hits it long and, I don't know, Laura may be a little longer.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I think Mickey and Babe hit it about the same distance. Mickey was long and straight. Babe was long and a little bit wild, but a great wedge player that I don't think anyone could beat it out of the rough like Babe did. You remember, Barb, how well Babe hit it out of that rough, or are you too young to remember?

BARBARA ROMACK: Well, I remember a little bit about that.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Are you asleep?

BARBARA ROMACK: I just woke up for that.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: No, but Babe could put it in places that I would have to take a wedge to get it out. She could just take a 5-iron and rip it out of there. She's very strong, a lot of club head speed and a lot of confidence, but probably the greatest wedge player that I ever knew because she hit so many wedges to the pin and a wonderful putter, had a real light touch. And I'm sure -- none of you are old enough to remember watching her play, but she had a great putting stroke. There's Richard Taylor, he knows. She'd oftentimes say to the gallery, "Come on fellows, I'll show you how to play this game," and she'd take the whole crowd right with her. She was colorful and had a lot of fun playing golf.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: She's the first to tell you that Babe put the hit into the swing and made everybody swing a little harder -- or not harder, but go after it a little bit more. And I think it made everybody conscious that distance was a big factor.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: To accomplish that goal is getting the people out here. That's what makes it the greatest championship. I think we're going to crown a great champion, no matter who. But the people here and having those fairways lined from that Blimp down here, that will make the difference between a great tournament and just -- well, U.S. Open tournament is a great tournament, if nobody was here. But it's like having a Super Bowl and not having anybody in the gallery. This is the super tournament of golf and it needs to be supported by people.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Would I like it that way?

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I'd love it. The closer the better. I'd love to see it come right down to the wire, that's what's fun.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Boy, make those putts, and I think she's got to -- I mean Laura has the power and the distance. And I think she's playing -- she'll play it smart. There's some holes where she might have to hit an iron off the tee and you've got to play the hills, there's a lot of roll, everything rolls with the hill, down. If you play the right side you're going to be in the rough or you play the left side. So positioning that tee ball will be a big factor. I've talk to some of the girls in the locker room and one of the gals said she got on No. 1 with a 2-iron. That's a par 5 hole. So as you know a Donald Ross golf course gives you an opportunity to hit the ball and run it into the green. It isn't like a lot of the modern courses where everything is a carryover bunker. It's a fair golf course and I think -- I just think it's playing long right now and it's because we've been watering a lot and trying to make this the most beautiful golf course we could give them. And I think as the week goes on we won't be watering as much and it will probably get faster and the greens will get harder and the greens will get faster and good luck to them.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: Well, they hit it pretty long, but I think the second hole is a hole that the green falls away. And they probably all pretty much know that by now. But they could knock it right over the green into the bunker, if it lands on, sometimes it falls back. That's a sneaky, tough hole. That green, itself. What I think is going to be great, my exciting feeling is that the last four holes coming in the last day are tough golf holes and hopefully they can play them. And I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on -- I know there's a lot of pressure to one the United States Open, but the 14th hole is a -- it's going to be a tough par 4 the way they set it up. It used to be a par 5, it's a dogleg right, it's well trapped. The green is slippery and I know which way it slides, if they want me to tell them. But anyway, then the 15th hole is a great par 4, it's long and everything kicks down into the mounds on the left. If you get too far into the right you're out-of-bounds. So -- and then it's a little deceiving because there's a gully in front of that green. But these girls, they've got these pro caddies and they march it off and measure it off. Their knowledge of this course is very good before they tee it off. And I can say many caddies have been here a week or so ago, marking the course and walking the course and figuring the breaks on the green, throwing the balls down. They're pros, they've got pro caddies and they walk in here, their caddies will be able to help them. And then of course I think 16 is a tough little par 4 -- 3, and it can slide into those bunkers. And as you know Donald Ross courses they're a little bit mounded and slide off into the bunkers. Of course they can play bunkers great, too. And then 17 is a dogleg left. The long hitters might carry over the trees on the left and have a short shot in, if they go right they're going in the rough or they're going to have to hit an iron off there and play down the middle. But still there's a lot of deep rough out there. Then 18 is -- that won't be any problem, but the green will tease them a little bit.

PEGGY KIRK BELL: I said three under would probably do it. Who knows, when I hear them knocking it on the first hole in two with an iron, they might just tear it up. But they better stay in the fairway, because our rough is nice and long.