Golf Glance

Tuesday, June 17, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

PGA TOUR

Buick Classic

Site: Harrison, N.Y.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Westchester Country Club, West Course (6,779 yards, par 71).

Purse: $1.5 million.

Winner's Share: $270,000.

Television: USA (Thursday-Friday, 4-6 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday, 4-6 p.m.; Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).

Last year: South Africa's Ernie Els tied the tournament record with an eight-stroke victory, shooting 65-66-69-71 for a 13-under 271 total.

Last week: Els won the U.S. Open at Congressional in Bethesda, Md., closing with consecutive 1-under 69s for a one-stroke victory over Scotland's Colin Montgomerie. Els, also the 1994 winner, had a 4-under 276 total.

Notes: Tiger Woods topped the World Rankings on Monday, passing Greg Norman to become the youngest player to hold the top spot in the 11-year history of the rankings. Woods, 21, coming off a 19th-place tie in the U.S. Open, won the Masters and has four other PGA Tour victories since turning pro last summer. He played in the 1994 event as an amateur, missing the cut with rounds of 75 and 70. ... Fiji's Vijay Singh won the 1993 and 1995 tournaments. ... The St. Jude Classic is next week at Memphis, Tenn., followed by the Western Open at Lemont, Ill.

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LPGA TOUR

Rochester International

Site: Pittsford, N.Y.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: Locust Hill Country Club (6,162 yards, par 72).

Purse: $600,000.

Winner's Share: $90,000.

Television: None.

Last year: Dottie Pepper won the rain-shortened tournament for the first of four 1996 victories, finishing with a 1-under 71 for a two-stroke victory over Sweden's Annika Sorenstam. Pepper had a 10-under 206 total.

Last week: Danielle Ammaccapane won the Edina Realty Classic at Maple Grove, Minn., closing with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Hiromi Kobayashi, Jane Geddes, Catriona Matthew and Mayumi Hirase. Ammaccapane, who was winless since 1992, had an 8-under 208 total.

Notes: Patty Sheehan has a tournament-record four victories, winning in 1989, 1990, 1992 and 1995. She set the tournament-record of 19-under 269 in 1992. ... English star Laura Davies is skipping the tournament to defend her title in the Evian Masters in France. Sorenstam also is playing the European tour event. ... The ShopRite LPGA Classic is next week at Somers Point, N.J., followed by the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic at Sylvania, Ohio. ... Kelli Kuehne played in her first LPGA event as a pro last week in Minnesota. The two-time U.S. Amateur missed the cut with rounds of 73 and 75.

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SENIOR PGA TOUR

Nationwide Championship

Site: Alpharetta, Ga.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: Golf Club of Georgia, Lakeside Course (6,777 yards, par 72).

Purse: $1.3 million.

Winner's Share: $195,000.

Television: ESPN (Friday, 3-5 p.m.; Saturday, 5:30-7 p.m.; Sunday, 2-4 p.m.).

Last year: Jim Colbert won the third of five 1996 titles, closing with a 3-under 69 for a three-stroke victory over Japan's Isao Aoki. Colbert, winless this year, had a 10-under 206 total.

Last week: Jack Kiefer won the du Maurier Champions at Etobicoke, Ontario, finishing with a 4-under 68 for a two-stroke victory over Colbert. Kiefer had a 15-under 269 total.

Notes: Hale Irwin, coming off a 52nd-place tie in the U.S. Open, has a tour-high four victories and leads the money list with $961,431. Gil Morgan, a three-time winner this year, is second with $949,342. He took last week off after consecutive victories in the Ameritech Senior Open and BellSouth Senior Classic. ... The U.S. Senior Open is next week at Olympia Fields, Ill., followed by the Kroger Senior Classic at Mason, Ohio.

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PGA EUROPEAN TOUR

German Open

Site: Stuttgart, Germany.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Schloss Nippenburg ETC (6,850 yards, par 71).

Purse: $1.14 million.

Winner's Share: $189,000.

Television: The Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 8:30-11:30 a.m. and 8-10 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 8-11 a.m. and 9-11 p.m.).

Last year: Wales' Ian Woosnam won his fourth 1996 title, shooting 64-64-65 for a 20-under 193 total in the rain-shortened tournament. England's Ian Pyman, Germany's Thomas Gogele, Spain's Fernando Roca and Sweden's Robert Karlson tied for second, six strokes behind Woosnam.

Last event: Scotland's Colin Montgomerie won the European Grand Prix on June 8, closing with a 7-under 65 for a five-stroke victory. Montgomerie, second in the U.S. Open, had an 18-under 270 total.

Notes: German star Bernhard Langer has a tournament-record five victories, the last in 1993 at Hubbelrath. ... Montgomerie won in 1994 and 1995. ... Volvo is the title sponsor. ... The French Open is next week, followed by the Irish Open. The British Open is July 17-20 at Royal Troon.

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OTHER TOURNAMENTS

Nike Tour: Cleveland Open, Thursday-Sunday, Quail Hollow Resort, Devlin Course, Concord, Ohio (Television: The Golf Channel, Thursday-Saturday, 1-3:30 p.m.; Sunday, 12:30-3 p.m.).

NGA-Hooters Tour: Collins Pro Classic, Thursday-Sunday, Seneca Golf Club, Louisville, Ky.

Canadian Tour: Alberta Open, Thursday-Sunday, Wolf Creek Golf Resort, Ponoka, Alberta.

Japan PGA: Yomiuri Open, Thursday-Sunday, Yomiuri Country Club, Nishinomiya, Japan.

PGA European Seniors Tour: Ryder Collingtree Seniors Classic, Friday-Sunday, Collingtree Park Golf Club, Northampton, England.

Women Professional Golfers' European Tour: Evian Masters, Wednesday-Saturday, Royal Golf Club, Evian, France.

Japan LPGA: Dunlop Twin Lakes Ladies, Thursday-Sunday, Twin Lakes Country Club, Fujioka, Japan.

Futures Tour: Greater Lima Futures Open, Friday-Sunday, Lost Creek Country Club, Lima, Ohio.

Amateur Women: U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links, Wednesday-Sunday, Center Square Golf Club, Center Square, Pa.

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