Word: lema
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...merest formality, the coup de gráce, and then everyone could adjourn to the clubhouse for the popping of the corks. There stood "Champagne Tony" Lema at last week's Cleveland Open, 15 under par, with just a one-foot putt between him and $20,000-and everybody knows that golf pros do not miss one-foot putts. But there was a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip. Ever so casually, Tony stepped up to the ball. Ever so casually, he pushed it right around the hole...
Nine holes later, everybody was. Washington weather is never much to brag about, but for the 36-hole final round, it was atrocious. The temperature reached 97, and the humidity could drown a man. Nicklaus shot a 77, Palmer and Lema blew to 75s. But Venturi, in some astonishing way, suddenly became that sculpture again...
...undulating turf. The 9th hole is all of 599 yds. long, and its green is separated from the fairway by a deep, grass-choked ravine. "That," said one pro, "is where elephants go to die." In short, the Congressional is a brutal course, even for Palmer, Nicklaus, or Tony Lema, who had just won two tournaments in a row. But when Palmer fired the only sub-par round of the first day, a two-under 68, one sportswriter boldly announced that "Arnold Palmer has 198 holes to go on the Grand Slam of golf...
...still raining by the time the players reached the 18th green. Huddled under an umbrella, Lema watched Souchak line up a 25-ft. birdie putt-and push it 4 ft. past the hole. Tony's approach was 8 ft. from the pin. For nearly a minute he stood motionlessly over the ball, putter poised-and abruptly walked away. "I couldn't bring the club back," he said. "I stood there, looking at that thing, thinking, My God, this is a $20,000 putt-and I just couldn't hit it." Finally, Tony addressed the ball again...
Bring on the Bubbly. The Thunderbird victory was Lema's first since January, and tripled his year's official winnings to $31,684-not quite the $49,006 he had last year at this time, but still worth a bubble or two. Within min utes, waiters were wheeling case after case of MoÖt et Chandon champagne into the press headquarters. At week's end, once again at the top of his game, Lema knocked in six straight birdies in Michigan's Buick Open, had a two-stroke lead at the end of 54 holes...