Monday, September 03, 2001
Kroger Senior Notebook
Pooley has 'blast' in Senior debut
By Michael Perry
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MASON — Don Pooley could not wait for his 50th birthday — which was a week ago today — so he could play on the Senior PGA Tour.
When he was set to start Friday for his first event, the Kroger Senior Classic, he said he felt like he was teeing off at the U.S. Open.
“That's the last time I can remember having nerves like that on the first tee,” he said.
Pooley finished at 6-under-par 134 and in a four-way tie for fourth place, earning $69,000.
“I had a blast,” Pooley said Sunday. “It was a lot of fun. I was excited the whole week. I played pretty well. It was fun to be in contention and have a shot at it.”
Pooley has fond memories of The Grizzly course. At the 1976 Ohio Kings Island Open, he was a first-round co-leader after shooting a 66 and recalls Jack Nicklaus saying, “A lot of no-names lead after the first round.”
“He was right,” said Pooley, who finished that weekend tied for 68th place, earning $116.34.
HELLO, DELTA?: John Schroeder had changed his flight from Cincinnati to San Diego from the 9 p.m. departure to 4:45 p.m. Sunday. But after shooting the best round of his Senior PGA Tour career, he had to change it back to 9 p.m. — just in case he was needed for a playoff or to accept the championship trophy. Schroeder finished at 6-under 134, after shooting 7-under for the day, and had to wait until somebody finished with a lower score before he could leave. Only three people did.
Schroeder's bogey-free 63 was his best round since 1973.
ATTENDANCE: For the week (Monday-Sunday), attendance was 103,417; last year, it was 101,688.
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Pooley has 'blast' in Senior debut