THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 9, 1995 TAG: 9507090021
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
The biggest winner in the 1995 Eastern Amateur, which gets under way on Thursday at Elizabeth Manor, will not even play.
For the first time, the Eastern will award a $1,000 college scholarship to a deserving area high school senior. The award, to be an annual presentation, will be a memorial in the name of past contributors to the long success of the 39-year-old tournament.
The first award will be a memorial to Tom Strange, father of touring pro Curtis Strange, and the recipient will be Charles Padrick of Churchland High School.
Tom was the first Eastern Amateur champion in 1957. He later became the club pro at Elizabeth Manor. Curtis also was an Eastern champion, winning in 1975.
``Each year we will change the name of this scholarship award to recognize those who helped build the Eastern into one of the country's top amateur tournaments,'' said chairman Dave Whitener.
Tom Strange posted a 72-hole score of 284 when he won the Eastern, shooting a round of 64 that stood as a tournament record for nearly 30 years.
It was his last amateur tournament. The next year he became pro at Elizabeth Manor for a three-year stint and assisted in the early development of the Eastern Amateur.
The Strange family went to White Sulphur Springs, when Tom accepted a golf position there as an assistant to the legendary Sam Snead, and then to Virginia Beach in 1963 when he became the pro at the new Bow Creek course. In 1969 Tom Strange died from cancer.
In addition to golf, Padrick played on Churchland's tennis team. As a junior he played baseball.
The 17-year-old Padrick, who graduated 127th in a class of 270, plans to attend Radford. He has been accepted.
``Charles works two jobs, at Elizabeth Manor and at Food Lion,'' said Gene Luke, chairman of the Eastern's scholastic awards committee. ``He also plays recreational baseball. He has been on the Churchland High School golf team for three years. We feel he is a very deserving youngster for this award.''
The annual Eastern preliminary, the 36-hole First Flight tournament, commences Monday at Elizabeth Manor. It has drawn a 192-player field.
The First Flight lost its defending champion when cancer claimed the life of 39-year-old Dan Ward on March 3. Each group in the qualifier will observe a moment of silence before teeing off.
Chesapeake's Gary Johnson, who won the First Flight the two previous years, is competing again.
The low 12 gross scorers will gain berths in the Eastern. Otherwise, the Eastern field is completed. The tournament nearly had Alberto Valenzuela, a two-time French Amateur champion who now lives in New York. He had been accepted as an entry but called to withdraw when he had a business conflict.
Two-time winner and Portsmouth native Steve Liebler will defend his championship. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Charles Padrick, a Churchland High golfer, will attend Radford with
a $1,000 Tom Strange scholarship.
by CNB