Tuesday, April 21, 1998 | 12:36 p.m.
Winds wreaked havoc on the 1997 Las Vegas Senior Classic, blowing down hospitality tents at the Tournament Players Club at Summerlin, forcing tournament organizers to cancel Thursday's pro-am round and making life miserable on Sunday for the professionals.
But not all the professionals.
Las Vegas resident Jim Colbert, perhaps accustomed to the strong winds that whip the Valley on a regular basis during the spring, actually welcomed the adverse conditions.
"It was windy, but I actually thought the big wind was was fun," Colbert said last week, reflecting on last year's tournament. "We play so many tournaments where you just hit it, you've got as perfect lie if you're in the fairway, you put it on the green and you try to make the putt.
"It almost sounds ridiculous but even though you're playing for a million dollars a week, sometimes it's almost a little boring because everything's the same."
Colbert recalled hitting a drive on the par-5 15th hole that traveled -- downwind -- 405 yards. But he also remembered hitting middle and long irons -- into the wind -- from 130 yards out.
"Playing in that wind and you're 130 yards from the green and you say, 'I think I'll hit a 5-iron' instead of a wedge or a 9-iron," Colbert said. "I kind of like that. It brings a lot of imagination into the game, a lot of fortitude.
"I think it's kind of fun -- and I haven't always been on the right side of the fun, either, because sometimes you don't figure correctly or you don't hit it correctly. The wind just multiplies everything you do.
"It's more of a challenge. I made it exciting last year so I don't really mind the wind."
With this year's tournament incorporating the TPC at Summerlin in the two-course rotation, Colbert said he didn't think the wind would be as much of a factor if it starts blowing this weekend. The final two rounds will be played exclusively at the TPC at Summerlin.
"The TPC at The Canyons is a little bit like Spanish Trail in the fact that it's kind of in that windy belt," he said. "Even though (the TPC at) Summerlin is only a mile, mile and a half away, it doesn't seem to get the same velocity of wind that it gets the The Canyons.
"Since we're playing at both courses, it should even out for everybody. You won't have everybody playing in the wind all the time."
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