Mercedes
helped some

Getting a head-start at last week's Mercedes Championships worked well for the 18 golfers who decided to stick around to play the inaugural Sony Open in Hawaii.

Led by Mark O'Meara's, Fred Funk's and Joe Durant's 4-under rounds of 66, a dozen of those Mercedes holdovers broke par.

"I think it helps to have a week on most of the other guys in the field," said O'Meara, who finished tied for second with Billy Mayfair in last Sunday's opening event of the PGA Tour. "I was pleased with the way I played."

Despite tying for second last week, the 42-year-old couldn't get comfortable over the ball. But he made some equipment changes that allowed him to hit more controlled drives off the tee and have a better feel on the greens.

"Going 4-under is a good start, I'll try to build on that," said O'Meara, who was the 1998 PGA Tour Player of the Year. He won two majors last year, the first player to accomplish that feat since Nick Price did it in 1994.

"I saw what Michael Jordan did going out on top," he said. "I thought maybe I should have done that after last year. You can't take anything for granted out here because it's not that easy of a game."

Durant discovered that last week. He was one of the first-day leaders at the Mercedes Championships, but dropped back the next three days and wound up finishing in a tie for 18th.

Funk started the final round of last week's event in second as well, before shooting a final-round 74 to fall to fifth. He said yesterday his game was still with him.

"This golf course isn't as long and is more suited for me," Funk said when comparing it to Kapalua's sprawling Plantation Course.

"Being long off the tee only helps on certain holes," he said. "Having a good short game and being able to work the ball in these tough tradewinds are the keys to success here at Waialae."

There were originally 20 scheduled to come over from the Mercedes Championships field of 30. But earlier this week, Michael Bradley and Steve Elkington withdrew from the Oahu event.

IMPROVED FIELD: Despite not having two of the top three players in Tiger Woods and David Duval, the 1999 Sony Open field is a marked improvement over last year's final Hawaiian Open.

According to Golf Digest magazine, the 1998 Hawaiian Open field ranked 37th of 44 PGA Tour events. Moving the Mercedes to Maui was supposed to help this field and it did, according to PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem.

"Hawaii used to suffer by being right in the middle of the West Coast schedule," he said. "We've taken care of that problem."

LOCAL FLAVOR: David Ishii may have won the Johnny Bellinger Shoot-Out for the second consecutive year, but it didn't help much during yesterday's opening round. He fired a 2-over 72, putting him on the cusp entering today's second round of the $2.6 million event.

Peter Jacobson, who represents Waikoloa Beach Resort on the Big Island, fired a solid 66 by posting birdies on the last two holes. Local amateur Brandan Kop wasn't as fortunate after shooting an 81, the worst round of the day.

Greg Meyer came in with a good afternoon round of 69, and Kevin Hayashi fired a 75 and Clark Miyazaki finished with a 78.

YOUNG CADDY: He won't be 13 until next October, but that didn't deter Sean Simpson from toting his father's bag around the Waialae Golf Course.

In the past, former Kailua resident Scott Simpson let his daughter, Brea, caddy for him at the Hawaiian Open. But he's been waiting patiently for his son to make the trip.

Simpson, who now calls San Diego home, shot an opening round of 71. If he shoots a similar score today, he could miss the cut.

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By Paul Arnett