Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The: Fergon tests nerves in second round

GREAT LAKES CLASSIC

Fergon tests nerves in second round

After getting U-turn ticket, she surges into the lead

By LORI NICKEL

of the Journal Sentinel staff

Sunday, August 20, 2000

Green Bay -- She was never a hothead, but there was certainly an edge to Vicki Fergon before she apparently started to mellow with age. Now, the 44-year-old is really trying to not sweat the small stuff.

On Saturday morning, however, a Green Bay cop really tested her.

Fergon was driving down Oneida Street and missed the turn to Highway 172, which she needed to take to the Green Bay Country Club for the Shopko Great Lakes Classic. She did a U-turn at a stoplight, and sure enough, was pulled over.

Even after explaining to the officer that she was an out-of- towner, he issued a $75 ticket.

"And he took his sweet time doing it, too," said Fergon.

Already very nervous about playing in the first-ever women's senior tournament event, in which she was in a four-way tie for the lead after the first round, she was now late, too, and trying not to blow a gasket over getting the ticket.

But Fergon cooly arrived at the course 40 minutes before her tee time and scorched holes six, eight, nine, 10, 11 and 12 for birdies to surge ahead with a six-under-par 66 on the second day of the tournament. Fergon holds a two-stroke lead with her 8-under-par 136 total.

"I've been to 30 states and I never heard of such a thing, no U- turn?" said Fergon.

Everything else, though, has gone Fergon's way -- and not just the blackjack table she visited in the nearby casino the other night. She sank a pair of 25-foot putts -- the first downhill, the other uphill - - on the ninth and 10th holes to distance herself from the 45-woman field. She hit another 20-footer on the par-5 11th hole.

"It was kind of fun to keep watching Vicki put numbers up there," said Marilyn Lovander. "She had to have a hot putter."

Dale Eggeling shot a 68 to fall into second place at 6-under par, and Lovander was third with a 69 and 5-under par total. Jane Crafter, one of the founders of this historical women's senior tournament along with Eggeling, is in fourth place at 4-under par.

The final round begins at 9 a.m. today. The leaders will tee off at 11:30 a.m.

A day of solid putting by the leaders was attributed to the favorable greens, which were smooth on Saturday after a fairly wet week of weather.

"As soon as you make a couple of those putts, it just flows," said Fergon. "They're a pleasure to putt."

Nerves got the best of her on the final hole when she bogeyed for the first time all day.

"It's just that I haven't been in this position in a while," said Fergon. "I had a six-shot lead in '96 (at the Michelob Light Heartland Classic, which she won), too. Anything can happen."

Galleries swelled with 10,000 fans for the second round, and players continued to marvel at the turnout. This is the first year of the women's senior tour for women 42 and older, which is for the time being independent from the Ladies Professional Golf Association tour.

"We all want to play well, to show everybody we can play," said Fergon. "I could not believe the crowds. We were really just in awe. This is just the beginning of something great. Wait 'til I go back to the big tour and tell them what a success this was."