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06/28/00

Trevino still enjoys being a pro

By Jerry Potter, USA TODAY

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Not long ago, Lee Trevino destroyed most of the trophies from his Hall of Fame career in golf because he didn't have room for them, and he didn't want anyone else to have them.

''I know I won all those tournaments,'' said Trevino, who won 27 times on the PGA Tour and 29 times on the Senior PGA Tour. ''I thank God; I thank the game, and I thank the people who put on those tournaments because I made a lot of money from them.''

To Trevino, life is today and tomorrow. The past, no matter how glittering, is just crushed crystal and scrap iron. The Merry Mex is six months past 60 and six months before 61, and having the time of his life.

''The past is water under the bridge,'' said Trevino. ''It ain't comin' back unless you're pumpin' it in a circle. I love life. I've got a great wife and two great kids. I'm having a wonderful time.''

Trevino begins play Wednesday in the U.S. Senior Open at Saucon Valley Country Club, one of those old Eastern courses that helped make this Hispanic from Dallas a world-class golfer.

When the Senior Open was played here in '92, Trevino was at the peak of his Senior Tour prowess, but he had a ruptured ligament in his thumb, spent most mornings at a doctor's office getting cortisone shots, and was never in contention.

He comes into this Senior Open fresh from a victory Sunday at the NFL Classic in Clifton, N.J. It was his first win in two years, but when asked about his chances, this week, he laughed.

''Me?'' he said. ''I'm goin' fishin.' ''

Trevino has his youngest son Daniel, 7, with him this week, and Daniel has a new fishing pole, so Trevino's interests are divided between fishing and playing golf. Daniel almost hooked a lamp the other night in their hotel room, so Lee knows he has to get his son near a pond soon.

Trevino's personal picks are J.C. Snead, because he's giving Snead lessons in putting; Tom Watson and Tom Kite, but he cautions that putting will determine the winner.

If Trevino wins the Senior Open or misses the cut, it wouldn't have much affect on his career or his life. He notes that two of his main sponsors, Cadillac and Motorola, have already gone, and the one remaining, Top-Flite golf equipment, may not come back after October.

''I'll play 14 tournaments next year,'' he said. ''Winning last week won't make me use Grecian Formula to turn my hair black again, or force me play 27 tournaments. This is it for me.''

Trevino has had an improbable career in golf. His life story is well documented, but it's still interesting for its example to the less fortunate, and its testimony to dedication.

He was born into poverty in Texas. He was raised by his grandfather and mother in a shack near a public golf course in Dallas. He left school early, joined the Marines, and drifted into the club pro ranks after he was discharged.

His swing is pretty much self-taught, and is characterized by a big loop that no pro would teach. Still, in 1968, he won the U.S. Open and became the first golfer to record four scores in the 60s in an Open.

Within four years, he had won the '71 Open, and the '71 and '72 British Opens. In three of those wins, he beat Jack Nicklaus, then at the peak of his career.

His final win in a major came at the '84 PGA Championship when he was 44. He never won The Masters, but he won the U.S. Open, the British Open and the PGA Championship twice.

One could make an argument that no player has ever come so far in golf, but Watson cautioned that one must consider the accomplishments of Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Sam Snead. All lived during the Great Depression; all overcame great hardships to forge careers in professional golf.

''Lee is one of the game's best players,'' said Watson, a close friend of Trevino. ''He was a tremendous driver of the ball, and a great shotmaker. He will be remembered for his wit.''

But the thing Watson admires most is Trevino's ability to play golf in the wind, a skill he learned while a club pro in El Paso.

''He is one of the great wind players in the history of the game,'' said Watson.

Trevino used to joke that he could hit a golf ball ''lower than a snake's belly,'' showing off both his skill and his humor. In his early years, he made jokes about his ancestry, saying, ''A Spaniard ain't nothin' but a Mexican with money.''

Ironically, Trevino has not made a big deal about his Hispanic heritage, nor the hurdles he had to jump to make a living. When asked Wednesday why he hasn't been more vocal in the current attempt to get more minorities in golf, he said, ''Ain't I example enough?''

Then he added, ''It wouldn't do any good for me to go into a poor neighborhood, hand out money and talk about success because I don't live there.''

Trevino believes hard work and dedication bring opportunities. His two favorite players on the PGA Tour are Notah Begay, a native American who won in Memphis last Sunday, and Tiger Woods, a man of multiracial background who may become the greatest golfer of all time.

''When Notah was young he went to a pro friend of mine in Albuquerque, and said, 'I'll sweep the floor; I'll wash the carts. You don't have to pay me a dime. I just want the right to hit balls on your range,' '' said Trevino. ''That's desire.''

In Woods, he sees a rare combination of natural talent, training and desire.

''You take a guy who is stronger than you, has more talent than you, and works three times harder than you,'' said Trevino, ''and you have no shot at beating him.''

Trevino has never played golf with Woods, but he has known him since he was a junior golfer.

''We had a tournament in Los Angeles that was sponsored by Toyota,'' Trevino said, ''and I handed him a trophy every year.''

Trevino said Woods had command of golf shots as a teenager that most adults don't have.

''In competition most pros hit the shot they feel most comfortable with,'' Trevino said. ''Tiger hits the shot that's needed to win the tournament. It doesn't matter where the pin is - front, back, right or left. He shoots for the pin.''

Trevino stops short of saying Woods is the best in the game's history.

''Nicklaus is the best I've seen,'' he said, ''but Tiger could be better when he finishes. Time will tell.''

Trevino is going to Scotland next month for the British Open at St. Andrews. He's not sure that he'll play, but he has already paid for seven nights at the Old Course Hotel, and he and his son want to do some fishing.

When told that New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania have been home for some of his biggest victories, Trevino went back to poking fun at himself.

''I'm thinkin' about movin' up here,'' he said. ''But I don't know if they want any Mexicans up here now.''