DATE: Wednesday, October 8, 1997            TAG: 9710080674

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JAY LIDINGTON STAFF, WRITER 

DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG                      LENGTH:   75 lines

GOLFERS, MATES IN A BIT OF ROLE REVERSAL WOMEN HAVE TO PLAY WHILE ``CADDIES'' FRET OVER SHOTS AT PGA TOUR WIVES CLASSIC.

PGA golfers teed it up Tuesday at Kingsmill. They selected clubs, read the undulating greens and carefully lined up putts.

They also wore white nylon caddie aprons and lugged golf bags for their wives and girlfriends, the competitors in the PGA Tour Wives Golf Classic.

Significant others in tow, 12 women's teams competed for assorted prizes in the captain's choice best-ball affair held every two years during a PGA Tour stop.

The team of Kathy Perry, Jennifer Bradley, Lori Royer and Cindy Aubrey won the tournament with a 3-under-par 33 on a nine-hole layout at the Kingsmill Plantation Course. They also won the A-Division cumulative long-drive competition with a 659-yard total.

``It was unbelievable,'' said Nicole Standly, wife of pro Mike Standly, whose team finished with a 1-over-par 37. ``It lets the wives get out and have some fun.''

The tournament is also a prime opportunity for some quality bossing around. Several wives delighted in having their ``caddies'' tee balls up for them, clean off their dirty clubs, and rake over footprints left in bunkers.

Beyond that, the women said it's a good chance to bond with their golfers.

``It's a good time for them to see how we feel,'' Nicole Standly said. ``We have to know how to gauge emotions on the other side of the ropes. They're our relationships and the loves of our lives. It's a good role reversal . . . a therapist's dream.''

If hacking away with the pros looking on put pressure on the women, things were just as difficult for the men carrying their bags. The men were feeling the heat, too.

They had to cheer on good shots, counsel on the not-so-good ones and keep the round moving - all while keeping the peace at home.

Golfer Phil Tataurangi broke into a celebratory dance on No. 3 when his wife, Melanie, made a par putt for her team. He also captured the moment on a disposable camera he carried.

Two holes later, teammate Sarah Strange, wife of pro Curtis Strange, shot her husband a mock dirty look when he told her to adjust her stance in the fairway.

``You just broke the first rule,'' she said with a smile, referring to a guideline her team made up prohibiting excessive advice.

``You definitely have to feel for the caddies,'' said pro Eric Johnson, who carried clubs for his wife, Suzy. His shirt sweat-soaked in the blazing mid-day sun, Johnson said the toughest thing for him to overcome was the heavy nylon aprons worn by the men who ordinarily carry his clubs.

``I think from a caddie's standpoint, you've got to enjoy the frustration,'' he said. ``When you're caddying, you think, `God, just hit it straight.' I enjoyed watching them not being able to hit it where they wanted.''

Suzy Johnson said the tournament helped her understand the stress Eric feels when he plays in a pro tournament, if only on a smaller scale.

``It helped us realize how tough it is on them,'' she said. ``It was hard. We felt pressure like they feel and we weren't playing for anything.''

While husbands and wives debated over how much was gained from the pros' tips, the clear beneficiaries of the tournament were Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters in Norfolk, St. Joseph's Villa in Richmond and Avalon, a Peninsula-based center for women and children.

Each received a $10,000 check from the PGA Tour Wives Association from tournament sponsor proceeds - only a part of the $80,000 the wives raised from event sponsors at Kingsmill and $1.1 million overall this year, said Cathi Triplett, wife of golfer Kirk Triplett.

Another $10,000 likely will go to to area charities and the rest will be put toward other charitable functions held by the wives.

``It's a chance to unwind with your friends and your husbands,'' she said. ``In the environment we work in, you don't get a chance to do that when you're trying to make a living.'' ILLUSTRATION: LAWRENCE JACKSON/The Virginian-Pilot

Holly Finchem chips to a green under the watchful eye of her

caddie/husband, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem.

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