Tuesday, April 21, 1998 | 12:41 p.m.
If tradition holds true to form, look for another close finish in this year's Las Vegas Senior Classic by TruGreen-ChemLawn.
The Las Vegas Senior Classic has been decided by a playoff twice in the previous 12 tournaments and four have been decided by only one stroke -- including Hale Irwin's one-shot victory over Isao Aoki last year.
In 1989, Charles Coody picked up his first Senior PGA Tour win by defeating Chi Chi Rodriguez and Bob Charles with a birdie on the second playoff hole.
In 1996, Las Vegas resident Jim Colbert successfully defended his LVSC title by defeating Dave Stockton and Charles in a playoff. The year before, Colbert posted a two-shot victory over Jim Dent, Raymond Floyd and Rocky Thompson to capture his first Las Vegas Senior Classic title.
In the 12-year history of the tournament, only one Las Vegas Senior Classic has been decided by more than three shots. In 1987, Al Geiberger posted a four-shot victory over Chi Chi Rodriguez in the second LVSC. Geiberger had to come from a five-shot deficit to win that year, establishing a LVSC record.
* ACES: There have been four holes in one in the 12-year history of the LVSC. Al Geiberger was the first to do it, in 1993. Larry Ziegler accomplished the feat in 1993, Tom Wargo did it in 1995 and Ed Sneed turned the trick in 1996. Geiberger and Ziegler recorded their aces at the Desert Inn Golf Club while Wargo and Sneed got their at the Tournament Players Club at Summerlin. There were no aces recorded last year at the TPC at The Canyons.
* QUICK START: Hale Irwin's victory in last year's Las Vegas Senior Classic earned him the distinction of being the fastest to four wins in a season (seven starts). Both Lee Trevino (1990) and Peter Thompson (1985) claimed their fourth victories in their eighth starts of the season.
* BACK-TO-BACK: In 1996, Jim Cobert joined Chi Chi Rodriguez as the only multiple winner of the LVSC and the only player to win back-to-back titles. Neither Colbert nor Rodriguez has ever finished out of the top 20 in Las Vegas as a senior.
* EXPERIENCE PAYS OFF: If you're trying to pick this year's winner of the Las Vegas Senior Classic, you might choose a player who already has won this year. In six of the last seven years, the LVSC champion already had at least one victory that same year before winning here. The lone exception was Gibby Gilbert in 1993.
* DUE FOR A WIN: Bob Charles never has won the Las Vegas Senior Classic, but he has come close on several occasions. Charles has finished in the top five eight times in 11 appearances here. Charles has two playoff losses among his three second-place finishes and three third-place showings in Las Vegas. Even though the LVSC has been held at three different course in its 12-year run, Charles' scoring average for 33 official rounds in Las Vegas is 69.72.
* MASTERCARD CHAMPIONS: The Las Vegas Senior Classic again will feature the MasterCard Champions competition this year. The 36-hole "tournament within a tournament" for players 60 and older is held during Friday's and Saturday's rounds and features a $120,000 purse with $18,000 going to the winner. Participating in this year's event are two-time defending champion Bob Charles, Charles Coody, Jimmy Powell, Miller Barber, Dale Douglass, Dave Hill, Tommy Aaron, Don Bies, Walt Zembriski, Bobby Nichols, Butch Baird and Bruce Devlin.
* GOOD START IMPORTANT: Since the tournament's inception in 1986, only one player who has led or shared the lead after the first round has failed to finish in the top 10 in Las Vegas. Gene Littler, who held the lead following an opening-round 66 in 1989, didn't miss by much, finishing tied for 11th.
* AROUND THE GREEN: The top three money winners in Las Vegas Senior Classic history are Jim Colbert ($436,401), Chi Chi Rodriguez ($304,449) and Bob Charles ($298,687). ... Kermit Zarley's 62 in the first round of the 1993 LVSC was the lowest 18-hole score of his career. It also is the tournament record for the lowest first-round score. ... No tournament on the Senior PGA Tour made as big a jump with its purse as did the LVSC. After offering $1 million from 1995-97, the event increased its purse by 40 percent and now offers $1.4 million, with $210,000 going to the winner. When the tournament started in 1986, it offered a total purse of $250,000 and Bruce Crampton earned $37,500 for the win.
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