The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee • Page 17

hit, wwwwawroi WORLD CUP Champion U.S. women visit White House Page 3C SPORT Running 2C Baseball 4-5C Scoreboard 7C TUESDAY, JULY 20, 1999 Gaylord out, project still on trac David Climer Racing on 6C Butlrey not fan of inverted starts at Speedway. Leaders and schedules. sumed we would work on it when the time came." Gaylord Entertainment spokesman Tom Adkinson said, "We're not backing away" from the superspeedway. "From the start, we were involved in a very small way," Adkinson said.

"Since then, Dover has got in position to be full owner. They've done a good job with their groundwork. "This is a circumstance reached by mutual agreement. We're still friends and we think the two companies can complement each other. WTien the track begins operating we can offer I Turn to PAGE 6C, Column 6 Gaylord Entertainment was identified as a "minority partner" when the superspeedway plan was announced two years ago.

McGlynn said that since then, Dover Downs Entertainment has "strengthened its full-equity position" and is capable of handling the project by itself. McGlynn said Dover Downs "has a good relationship with Gaylord and we expect to work with them closely when the track is completed." McGlynn said the exact percentage of Gaylord's partnership or its role in the project was never finalized. "We never got that far," he said. "We as- Dover Downs: Raceway will come to Wilson Co. Bv LARRY WOODY Sfxts Writer Gaylord Entertainment has discontinued its partnership with Dover (Del.) Downs Entertainment in a $125 million area super-speedway, but Dover Downs President Denis McGlynn said the split was amicable and will not adversely affect the project "It changes nothing at all," McGlynn said yesterday.

The giant raceway has been plagued by de- lays that have pushed the originally scheduled 2000 opening date back to the 2001 season. McGlynn said the departure of Gaylord Entertainment "in no way" jeopardizes the Wilson County track. "I don't see how anyone could believe that," he said. "We're going to start breaking ground in six to eight weeks." it mil Big East rt. a 11 i y- Commentary Senior Tour isn't aging very nicely Liver spots under the golf glove.

Varicose veins beneath the Sansabelts. Bifocals required to read the score-card. Yes, the Senior PGA Tour is show- ing its age. What was once a sublime nostalgic ride down the cart path has taken a wrong turn and gone over the hill, bumping along on a fiat tire, the tank on empty. The Senior Tour's charm has evaporated.

The thrill is gone. Enter Tom Watson. He hits the big five-oh in September and is being trumpeted as the savior of Geezer Golf. And maybe he is. Given the choice of watching Bruce Fleisher and David Lundstrom duke it out on the back nine or witnessing Tom Watson over a 5-footer, I'm going with Mr.

Yips. This, at least is what the PGA is hoping. With the decline of recognizable names on the tour, we've been left to watch some very talented but very unknown golfers divvy up millions. Tom Watson returns some star power to the pairings. In its current incarnation, this is a tour only the committed golf junkie can love.

To the unwashed who think the word golf and its derivatives can be used as verbs Ralph, ya wanna go golfing tomorrow?" "Nah, Jim, I golfed a Senior Tour event without Arnold Palmer or Jack Nicklaus is just another momentary detour on the afternoon channel-surf. If your interest in this grand old game doesnt predate the Titanium Period, you're probably not in tune with the fiftysomething field. Palmer played in the BellSouth Senior Classic once, lured to town more to visit a dying friend Bronson Ingram than to view the atrium at Opryland Hotel. Nicklaus, despite the test recruiting efforts of Mason Rudolph, always manages to be previously occupied with golf course design, family matters, total joint replacement or the search for the perfect air conditioner. No Arnie and no Jack is no good.

Some will argue that the Senior Tour stands on its own merit The purists will say that the very essence of golf the lowest score wins is exemplified by the Senior Tour. If you've got enough game and a birth certificate that carbon-dates back a half-century, there's a pairings sheet with your name on it But the Senior Tour was built on memories. It's not a current-events quiz. That's the only way any sporting competition with an overunder age limit can succeed. You dont see Senior Boxing on cable, do you? Senior Basketball would make it only if Michael Jordan were grandfathered in.

But golf is different largely because if you've mastered the overlap grip and have a pulse, you can play until they read your last rites. Satchel Paige should've been a pro golfer. He'd fit right in. Senior Tour defenders, while acknowledging the lull, encourage us to be patient. Watson hits 50 in September.

Lanny Wadkins and Tom Kite make the turn in December. Fuzzy Zoeller's odometer clicks over to 50 in 2001. Yes, Watson will provide a lift And since his divorce, he seems commit 7 I A. Ufawriftnn hMKMhuii fi III I ifl'r-fll1IHM will fill one spot Music City changes at-large bid to tie-in Bv JOE BIDDLE Sx)Hs Writer The Music City Bowl has agreed to fill its at-large slot with the Big East Conference's No. 4 team.

That gives the second-year college football bowl game its second tie-in with a major conference. In its inaugural year, the Music City Bowl had a tie-in with the Southeastern Conference and held a second spot open for an at-large team. But with the proliferation of conferences securing an increasing number of bowl-game tie-ins, Music City Bowl officials have decided to forgo the at-large berth. There is a scenario through the tie-in where the Music City Bowl could land Notre Dame. Notre Dame would have to be left out of the Bowl Championship Series, but still be bowl eligible.

If it is bowl eligible and not in the BCS, Notre Dame would have to fill one of the Big East's three bowl commitments. Last year's game featured Alabama from the SEC against Virginia Tech of the Big East. Music City Bowl Executive 'Director Scott Ramsey was pleased "with the ticket sales and fan support provided by Virginia Tech. "Repeated overtures from Big East Commissioner Mike Tranghese led lo the two parties agreeing to a con-Jract The agreement is scheduled to be announced tomorrow at a news conference, at which SEC associate commissioner Mark Womack is ex- pected to join Tranghese. This year's Music City Bowl will 2e played at 3 p.m.

Dec. 29. It moves from Vanderbilt Stadium, where it rwas a sellout a year ago, to the I 'Adelphia Coliseum. Participating teams will be al- to use the Tennessee Titans practice facilities, a departure from Llast year when one team had to trav- el to Murfreesboro to practice at JVliddle Tennessee State. The Big East has eight members 3br football.

Syracuse, Miami, West i 'Virginia and Virginia Tech participated in bowls last year, with i Syracuse representing the league in the BCS in the Orange Bowl. 1 it DAVID HARDING STAFF Jacob Rosiello waters new grass around the 16th green as construction crews work on a new course at Hermitage Golf Course. In scramble to satisfy surge in demand, golf courses springing up across Midstate lie and private) have opened or significantly revamped. Another three are under construction and several more are on the drawing board. Public courses still fill up fast, but players now have more options.

"I've never had to wait more than 15 minutes, something like that," said Todd Milsaps, a regular at 27-hole Bv WENDY SMfTH Sports Writer Golfers in Middle Tennessee have experienced shock waves from the golf boom that hit the nation in the last decade. More people have taken up the game. More players and more inexperienced players on area courses led to longer, slower rounds. McCabe Golf Course. "I usually make Getting a tee time became more dif- my tee time the day I am coming.

It's ticult, with most snapped up quickly always been easy out here. and days in advance. Courses that pre "I play Ted Rhodes sometimes, but it's a lot more difficult to get on out there. That's why I come to McCabe." At Metro public courses like McCabe and Ted Rhodes, the number of rounds played annually has leveled I Turn to PAGE 6C, Column 1 viously didnt bother with tee times began to require them. The days when you could just show up and play were over.

Yet several new courses in the area appear to have eased things somewhat. Since 1993, 11 new courses (pub- DAVID HARDING STAFF While Mike Kommeyer, left, tees off on the first hole at Percy Warner Golf Course, 9-year-old Adam Vacek awaits his turn. WNBA player Black to do double-duty as new assistant ted to playing as many Senior Tour events as possible in order to replenish some of what the lawyers and his ex have secured. But do you really think Tom Kite, Lanny Wadkins and Fuzzy Zoeller are going to grind away in 30 tournaments a year? They've already made their fortunes and have other lucrative interests. No, we'll be left with Bob Gilder, Bruce Lietzke and Don Pooley.

Wake me when it's over. David CSmer is a Tennessean senior writer. He can be reached at 259020 or e-mai dcfcTiertennessean.oom. a unit that saw the Commodores go 13-14, the program's first finish since 1983. O'Brien did not have recruiting responsibilities last season, but has been elevated into a recruiting position.

"There wont be the adjustment period you might expect" Foster said. "Pete a VU men's assistant during the 1997-98 season already has a great knowledge of Vanderbilt and what the school is about and he's obviously a proven coach. Erin has recruited before, and she hasnt missed a beat" I funct ABL and earned that league's 1997 defensive player of the year honor. This year, she is third in the WNBA in steals (2.54 per game) and seventh in assists (5.1). Black and Gaudet fill the openings on the Commodores staff created by the recent departures of associate head coach Julie Plank who left to join Nell Former's staff with the U.S.

National Team and Brad Smith, who returned to the Oregon prep coaching ranks after spending just one season at Vandy. Erin O'Brien will be the only assistant returning from last year's staff ergy, enthusiasm and the love of the game she obviously has I'd be remiss if I didnt want that in my gym. "She's worked our position camp the last couple of years and I know how she interacts with her teammates professionally. I think energy is half the battle with today's athlete." Following her St Joe's career, during which she set school records in assists and steals, Black played eight pro seasons in Australia before coming back to the States to play in the American Basketball League. She was a two-time all-star with the Colorado Xplosion of the now-de Bv MAURICE PATTON Sxrts Writer Vanderbilt women's basketball coach Jim Foster has completed his staff with a second one-of-a- kind appointment On the heels of naming longtime Duke men's assistant Pete Gaudet, Foster has dipped into the ranks of the WNBA and grabbed Utah Starzz point guard Debbie Black.

5: "This is a unique situation," said Black, who played for Foster at St Joseph's (Pa.) from 198a "I'm still fresh in the game and I will bring a different perspective to this team be cause I still know how it feels to be a player. "I cant wait to play against this team. I can teach someone better when I play against them, rather than watching them from the sidelines." Black, 32, will assume her coaching duties when the WNBA season ends. Due to the league's summer schedule, she will be able to continue playing. "The four years I spent with Debbie in the gym as a player were some of the most pleasurable I've had as a coach," Foster said.

"With the en 1 T.f AA ii TI3 Five Cubans defect to US. Five Cubans carried out a planned defection Puerto To report sports news: 259-8010 Sports fax: 259-8826 E-mail tips: tnsportstennessean.com Sports Editor: John Gibson, 259-8022 Assistant Sports Editors: Michael H. Jones, 259-8013 Kevin Procter, 259-8014 Senior Writer. David Climer, 259-8020 Armstrong tired of drug rumors American Lance Armstrong is the current leader, and the favorite to win the Tour de France. Unsubstantiated accusations of drug use are taking some of the joy out of his success.

On 3C. Batista's homer sinks Braves Tony Batista homered in the 10th as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Atlanta Braves 8-7. At right, Toronto's Shawn Green is congratulated after hitting a grand slam off of Bruce Chen. On 5C. Detroit rallies to edge CfacEinati Jeff Weaver was the first Detroit pitcher to double in 27 years during a 7-6 win over Cincinnati.

On 4C Rico during the Otympic Qualifying Tournament Four members of the team and its masseur win seek asylum in the United States. On 2C. Visit our web site at: www.tennessean.com AP i www.tehneeaiLcorn 1.