POIPU, Kauai >> Rich Beem made a big splash yesterday, brightly bouncing into his first PGA Grand Slam of Golf. Beem’s attire lightens the mood
By Nick Abramo
nabramo@starbulletin.comBut it wasn't his even-par 72 that had heads turning at the Poipu Bay Resort Golf Course on the Garden Isle's South shore.
No, it was Beem's wardrobe that had the crowd buzzing with delight.
This year's PGA Championship winner wore an aloha shirt, and his shoes were Hawaiian-style with a hula dancer painted on the right shoe and palm trees on the left. To top it off, the head of his driver had a Hawaiian print on it.
"He got dressed in the dark," joked first-round leader Tiger Woods.
Beem shot right back with "red is not my favorite color," referring to Woods' preference of shirt color on the last day of tournaments.
"It fits my personality. I'm outgoing so I had some fun with it and got in the spirit of coming to Hawaii," Beem said. "I talked to TaylorMade and they made about four different driver heads for me and that one worked the best. The shoes? I kind of thought that up a couple of months ago and thought, 'Hey, that might be fun to do. And the Hawaiian shirts? Everybody around here wears a Hawaiian shirt. Except for the shoes and the driver head, I think I fit right in."
Tiger roaring off the course: Woods is busy away from his day job, too.
"We have some great things going with my foundation," he said. "We have the Start Something program, which is a mentoring program for kids in school. And we're building a new learning center back where I used to play my high school golf.
"We're trying to make a difference, trying to give these kids hopes and dreams and give them a basis to try to accomplish these things."
Keeping options open: Woods said, "We'll see," when asked if he would compete in the Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Country Club in mid-January. The tournament follows the PGA Tour's season-opening Mercedes Championships at Kapalua.
Club-throwing incidents: Both Justin Leonard and Woods threw their clubs in disgust after shots they didn't like. Leonard launched his driver into the ground after his tee shot on the 15th hole landed in a sand trap. Woods hit his golf bag after sailing his pitch on the 18th hole over the green and into a bunker. He was able to save par on the hole he eagled twice in a row -- once in regulation and once in a playoff -- to beat Vijay Singh in 2000.
Love happy to be here, sort of: Davis Love III makes a point of commenting on how much fun he has on and off the course when he plays in the Kauai event. He did it in 1997 and 1999 and again yesterday, with a twist.
"It's an honor to be here, to play in the golf tournament, plus the hospitality of everybody here," Love said. "We're happy to be here, unless we're making bogeys on the back nine."
11th-hole sweepstakes: All four golfers had excellent birdie chances on the par-3, 193-yard 11th hole. At 13 feet, Beem putted the longest distance, but only Leonard walked away with a birdie after draining his 9-footer. Love missed from 4 feet.
