Oct. 14, 2002

Davis Love III wasn't in Chapel Hill on Monday, but he was awfully close. He came to Chatham County, near Jordan Lake, to formally open his latest design at The Preserve. It's the tenth course his company has done with four or five more on the drawing board.

The former UNC All-America is on the cusp of another outstanding career, but at 38 he still has a lot of competitive golf left in him. In fact, he'll wind down the current season with three straight events in Orlando, Florida, Pine Mountain, Georgia, and Atlanta. He has no wins this year, but with five finishes in the top ten he has pocketed almost $1.8 million.

"I would like to have gotten at least one victory this year," he told me as he walked from green to tee during his exhibition round, "but I just haven't putted that well."

Overall, with 14 wins and 111 other finishes in the top ten during his career, Love is third in earnings, behind Tiger Woods and Phil Mickleson, with nearly $20 million.

"Some of those stats come because you've been out there a long time," he laughed, "but I've been very lucky and very fortunate. I certainly learned a lot at Chapel Hill, and I always love getting credit when they call me a Carolina graduate, but I left after three years to turn pro. My grand theory was that if I qualified for the tour I would come back and so some summer school and some correspondence. Well, I've been to some football and basketball games, but I have been around a campus building in a long, long time."

A three-time All-ACC choice and a three-time All-America at Carolina, Love played good golf when he came to Chapel Hill, and he has played even better since he left. He's been in five World Cups, a part of the President's Cup four times and was recently on his fifth Ryder Cup team.

Now he's excited about his golf course design business, and the latest layout at The Preserve. "I was thrilled to play it, but I wish the wind had not been blowing quite so hard. It was a tough day to play this course because with elevation changes and some hidden pin placements you have to get to know it. It's not easy, but I think it's a fun golf course."

Love played his exhibition round with various property owners and club members joining him on different holes. His eight-year-old son, Drew, was also part of the round, and displayed some of his dad's form. "He's been out of golf for six weeks," Love told me. "He won a little tournament at home, and then two days later broke his ankle playing soccer. So he was glad to be out of school today and playing golf again."

With sides of 36-35, the design consultant shot one-under 71 in front of about 150 spectators. He carded three birdies and three bogeys on the front, and then made two more birdies on the back with his lone bogey coming at the par-three 17th hole.

Afterwards, before flying back to Sea Island, Georgia, Love spoke briefly to the members and guests before taking some questions. Naturally the first questions dealt with the recent Ryder Cup defeat at the Belfry.

"Everywhere I've gone I've felt as though I have to defend Curtis Strange. Much like I had to defend Tom Kite and Lanny Wadkins. Yet the most senible thing I've heard since the competition is that Curtis Strange didn't hit one shot, and neither did the other captains. We can't fault him because we didn't play well on Sunday.

"I called Curtis the day after we got home, and I pointed out that if my putt on 17 during Sunday's singles play goes in, which it had every chance to do, and Paul McGinley's putt lips out at 18, then we bring the Cup back home. That's how close the Ryder Cup has become."

After playing just terrible the previous week, the Europeans putted great and played great during the competition. "I don't know how a team like that gets motivated," Love pointed out, "but momentum is a great thing and so is home field advantage.

"I'm sure Curtis will share with the next captain, and I would bet a lot of money it will be Hal Sutton, and he will do some stuff to the next golf course, which is Oakland Hills in Michigan, that will make it more to our advantage.

"We have tended to set the golf course up like we normally do for any of our major competitions. Over there they pinch in the fairways very tight, to be very narrow and for the greens to be real slow. That gives them a huge home course advantage, and we didn't handle it very well. Tee to green we did fairly well, but we just did not putt very well."

Love had interesting answers to other questions...

"A good free swing and having fun is hard to beat at eight or ten years old. When they get 12, 13, 14 and 15 years old that's when the serious mechanical work can start.

"The biggest fault I see among amateurs is a half-interested practice swing. The teacher can build a golf swing, but then somebody has to take it out to the course. If you can work on the mental side you'll get a lot better faster than hitting more balls.

"Now you will see more focus on drivers and golf balls. The golf ball is where the money is made, and marketing focus is going to be heavy in golf balls. After that it'll be heavy in drivers.

"Why is Tiger Woods so good? Every time he goes out he has a game plan, and he sticks with it."

After the Q&A session, Davis Love III spent more time doing individual media interviews and signing autographs. It was time for me to go, and before leaving I wished him well in his final three tournaments of the year. "Thanks for coming today," he smiled. "I hope to get up to a basketball game sometime this winter.

"Be sure and tell John and Matt that I'm pulling hard for them."