SPORTS
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday August 31. 1992
9
Kansas golfer realizes childhood dream
Gogel relives experience of playing at U.S. Open
By Brady Prauser Special to the Kansan
When Kansas' Matt Gogel, 1991 Big Eight champion, began golfing at age 13, like many young golfers, he dreamed about one day playing in the U.S. Open Championship, the premier U.S. golf tournament
Last June he lived that dream.
One of only five amateurs who qualified, Gogel played against a field of top professionals from around the at the Pebble Beach, Calif. Golf links.
"I was in awe," Gogel said. "These are the best golfers in the world. To be there and just play with them is an honor. Of any tournament I want
to play in, it's the Open."
Gogel, a junior from Tusa, qualified for the Open by first placing in the top ten at the local U.S. Open qualifying tournament held in Kansas City, Kan. After placing fifth among 125 golfers, the next stop was a sectional qualifier in Memphis, Tenn.
It wasn't easv.
Among a field of top professionals, Gogel carded a 69-71 and found himself tied with nine other golfers, all lying for the last two remaining spots to determine who would go to the Open.
After a playoff, Gogel earned one of those spots.
G o g e l returned home and practiced for a few days before departing for Pebble Beach. When he got there, he found himself in good company.
"That was a pretty exciting little experience there," he said.
Matt Gogel
Gogel asked his hero,Tom Watson,
if he could play with him during Monday's practice round. Watson, a Kansas City native, consented, and Gogel got an added bonus when Fred Couples joined their group.
Watson won the Open in 1982, the last year the tournament was held in Pebble Beach. Couples won this year's Masters Tournament.
On Wednesday, the final day of practice rounds, the excitement continued. Gogel played his round with Spanish professional Seve Ballesteros, a three-time winner of the
British Open.
Gogel said that the other pros he met were courteous and friendly to him because they knew he was one of the few amateurs, but they were also very business-like when play started Thursday.
"They weren't out there to horse around," he said. "That's what they do for a living and they take it serious."
Only those golfers who shoot well enough to make the cut during Thursday and Friday's rounds qualify to complete the tournament during the weekend. Unfortunately, Gogel wasn't one of them.
After parring the first hole, Gogel found himself 4-over-par after the first four holes. He finished the day with an 83.
Gogel said that he rebounded the second day, improving his score to 79.
"I knew I wasn't going to make the cut on the first hole of the second day," he said. "It was just a day for me to go out and enjoy Pebble Beach for
the last time."
"The pros call eight, nine and 10 the toughest in the world," he said. "Believe me, I can attest to that."
The huge crowds at the Open were an eye opener for Gogel and something he hadn't dealt with before. He estimated there were well over 10,000 spectators following his group when he played the practice round with Watson and Couples.
Gogel said the traditionally hard fast greens of the Open made it difficult to get the ball to stick from long distances. Also, Pebble Beach's notoriously difficult middle holes got him into trouble.
Gogel said it was difficult adjusting to the crowds.
"You'll be playing your hole and hear roars from other fairways," he said. "It's kind of an eerie feeling."
Kansas golf coach Ross Randall, who played on the PGA tour for eight years, said he gave Gogel some advice on how to approach the Open.
"I told him to try not to get hung up in the surroundings and all the hoopla," he said. "I told him that it's just another tournament, even though it happens to be the biggest in the world."
Randall said Gogel often rose to the occasion in important tournaments. Gogel won the Kansas Amateur and the Kansas Open, a pro tournament, this summer.
Jeff Moeller, Gogel's teammate, caddied for him at the sectional qualifier in Memphis.
"Matt has the particular knack to really play well in big tournaments," he said. "It took a lot to get there, and he beat a lot of pros along the way to get there."
"I learned a lot just from the pros," Moeller said. "Matt got a lot of experience, and now we know what it's like. It was neat caddying for him and watching him with all the big boys."
Gogel and Moeller both said they planned to attempt qualifying next year's Open.
Pole vault record set by Bubka
The Associated Press
PADUA, Italy — Sergei Bubka, who missed all his attempts at the Olympics earlier this month, set his 31st world pole vault record at the Industry Trophy track and field meet yesterday.
The Ukrainian's vault of 20 feet, 1 inch improved by a half-inch his own outdoor world mark set in Dijon, France, on June 13. Bubka also holds the world indoor record of 20-11/2.
Bubka, an Olympic champion in Seoul and world champion in Tokyo last year, cleared 20-1 on his first attempt after missing once at 19-21/22.
He raised his arms in triumph after the record jump and walked toward the stands to receive the ovation of a sold-out crowd at the Arcella stadium in Padua.
"I am very happy. I have a special feeling when I jump in Italy. This track, that I know very well, also helped," said Bubka, who set three of his previous world records in Italy.
Bubka failed to win an Olympic medal in Barcelona when he missed three consecutive times.
"I was a bit tense following the Olympics and some unimpressive performances in recent meets." Bubka said. He missed twice at 18-81/2 and once at 18-10 at Barcelona.
In setting yet another world record, Bubka continued his trend of increasing the world standard in small steps of a half-inch.
The world champion said he was also happy for his family, which was upset following his failure in Barcelona.
"I can't predict when the next record may come," Bubka said. "People think it is easy. But I am human, not a machine. I will train more and more to improve. I always try my best, in every meet."
"I am going to call my son Vitay. He will have his first day of school Tuesday and this will be a great gift for him," said Bubka. He and his family live in Berlin.
Bubka's next appearance will be in Turin Friday night at the IAAF Grand Prix final.
He will also compete in Rieti, near Rome, Sunday and in Tokyo later next month.
Bubka's outstanding performance stole the spotlight from other athletes, including four Olympic champions.
Olympic gold medalist Mark McKoy of Canada dominated the 110-meter hurdles, beating Florian Schwartoff of Germany in 13.44 seconds.
U. S. spinner Dennis Mitchell won the 100 meters in 10.43 seconds, edging veteran teammate Calvin Smith.
Smith also finished second in the 200 meters, won by American Mikes Bates in 20.87 seconds.
Spivey was timed in 3:36.28, ahead of Kenyans Wifried Kircoch and Jonah Birir, who were clocked in 3:37.24 and 3:37.61, respectively.
Other U.S. wins were scored by Jim Spivey in the 1,500 meters and by Jim Doering in the shot put.
German Heike Drechsler, leaping more than 23 feet for the 20th time this year, won the women's long jump in 23-012.
Russian sprinter Irina Privalova dominated the women's 100 meters in 11.36 seconds, beating teammate Marina Trandenkova and American Dyan Webber.
Doug Hesse / KANSAN
During a practice match, Coung Nguyen, Overland Park junior, returns a serve. Nguyen, a member of the Kansas men's tennis team, was practicing Saturday on the courts near Allen Field House.
Whack!
Women's tennis team reloads with freshmen and transfers
Despite loss of Hamers, squad looks to improve from last season
By David Bartkoski
Kansan sportswriter
The Kansas women's tennis team had its share of success last year, winning the Big Eight and regional titles before falling to San Diego State in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Eveline Hamers, the Jayhawks' four-time All-American from Holland, played a big role in the team's success in the No.1 singles position she had acquired as a freshman.
Though Hammers wouldn't be back for this year's campaign, members of the current team believed this year's team could be as good or better than last year’s squad, which ended the season ranked No. 20 in the nation.
"We have more depth this year," sophomore Ana Gonzales said. "The new people coming in are really good. I think we'll do better than last year."
Of the four new players on the team, two are transfers and two are incoming freshmen.
Mindy Weiner, a junior transfer from Clemson, was the latest to join the Kansas netts. Weiner, who has qualified individually for the NCAA tournament in her first two years of college play, decided this summer to come to Kansas.
Weiner, who had arthroscopic surgery on her shoulder on June 23, said making the decision to come to Kansas from Clemson was a difficult one.
"About three weeks before the school year ended at Clemson, my coach asked me to leave," she said. "We weren't getting along and my frustration level was high.
"A lot of coaches heard about my situation at the NCAA tournament, and they showed some interest. My parents felt it was best for me to transfer. It was between going to William & Mary and Kansas, and I chose Kansas because it was closer to my hometown, Chicago."
Weiner said that her shoulder injury was bothering her some and that serving was still painful. Her doctor at Kansas told her not to serve overhand for the time being, she said.
The other transfer is Kim Rogers, a junior from Tulsa. She had a 21-6 record in singles play last year.
Rogers, who is from Adelaide, Australia, said that she was looking forward to playing on a competitive tennis team.
"I think we won one match the whole year last year," she said. "At Tulsa, I didn't have a chance to play in the national tournaments. I wanted to get ranked in the top 50 in the nation, but I didn't have a chance there."
WOMEN'S TENNIS
"We have more depth this year.The new people coming in are really good.I think we'll do better than last year." Ana Gonzales
Ana Gonzales Sophomore tennis player
One of Kansas freshmen is a hometown product, Chessa Bieri, who played at Lawrence High School. The other freshman is Jenny Atkerson, from San Antonio.
This summer, Rogers played in six tournaments in St. Louis, winning five and placing second in another. She wanted to go on the national circuit, but could not because of financial difficulties, she said.
One Jayhawk who played some of the circuit this summer was sophomore Rebbeca Jensen, who played both No. 2 and No. 3 singles for Kansas last year.
Jensen said she played in Virginia, Indiana and Pennsylvania and spent two and a half weeks in Canada.
"Montreal was fun because about ten of us went to watch a few games between the Braves and the Expos," she said. "We were going nuts. It was awesome."
Jensen said she learned a lot from her experience this summer.
"I could use it to compare my level to a professional level," she said. "You find out who can grind it out week to week. Some players were hurting financially and had to ask for rides to the city where the next tournament would be."
Jensen, who finished third in the Big Eight singles championship last year, said that she wanted to be ranked nationally in the top 15 for singles and the top 10 for doubles.
Both Jensen and Rogers said they believed that the Jayhawks had the potential to be a top 10 team in the nation this year.
The team should win the Big Eight and regional titles again this year, Jensen said.
Krieg, Chiefs look for winning merger
The Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Hot one game, not so hot the next.
That's Dave Krieg's history.
A steady, unbroken chain of continuing improvement, however, has been the history of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Now that their destinies are interwoven and largely interdependent, one cannot help but wonder which history is about to undergo an abrupt change.
Or will it be the Chiefs? Since Carl Peterson became general manager, and hired Marty Schottenheimer as coach, the one-time NFL sad sacks have become possible Super Bowl contenders, featuring a rough-and-tumble defense, a battering-running game and a penchant for not making mistakes.
Will it be krieg, who had 12 up-and-down years with the Seattle Seahawks in which he became the 10th-rated quarterback in NFL history but never seemed to reach his full potential?
In the last two seasons before Peterson and Schottenheimer arrived, the Chiefs won a total of eight games.
But in the first year of the new era, they went 8-7-1 for their second winning season in nine years. The next season they were 11-5 and made their second playoff appearance since 1971.
Then last year, they were 10-6 and posted their first playoff victory since Len Dawson, Buck Buchanan and company crushed Minnesota in the 1970 Super Bowl.
Given his talented supporting cast, and the
momentum of two straight playoff appearances,
the smart money might bet that 1992 will mark Dave
Krieg's finest season.
"If you get to the Super Bowl, it's because your team performed well in all phases of the game—offense, defense and special teams," said Al Saunders, assistant coach. "We're no different. We are predominantly a very strong run-oriented team. The nature of our offense really takes a lot of the pressure off the quarterback."
Krieg's scrambling ability and down-field passing arm are a sharp contrast to Steve DeBerg, the grity veteran who quarterbacked the Chiefs the past two years.
But the Chiefs are not asking Krieg to do everything himself. Indeed, the fate of his new team will probably be less dependent on him than was the fate of the Seahawks.
"The whole outcome of the Chiefs season will not rest on Dave Kriek's shoulders." Samedi said.
If the Chiefs have nothing else, they have over abundance of backings. Between Christian Okoye and Barry Word, they've had three straight 1,000-yard rushers. Throw in talented second-year man Harvey Williams and his game-breaking speed, and versatile Kimble Anders and you have one of the deepest backfields in the league.
It's no wonder trade rumors have swirled all summer.
"You can't have too many good running backs," said Schottenheimer on the subject. Okoye, the 1989 NFL rushing champ, was a training camp hold-out and did not play in the first three preseason games. Word has been hobbled the past couple of weeks with an injured ankle.
Linebacker and All-Pro Derrick Thomas is one of the greatest pass rushers in the game today and another strength for the Chucks. It was Krieg that Thomas sacked seven times in one game in 1990, setting an NFL-record.
One huge loss was the retirement of ProBowlfree safety Deron Cherry, Cherry Mincy, a second-year man from Washington, will probably step in. How much of a problem Cherry's loss will pose remains one of the Chiefs' most nagging questions.
With Bill Maas and All-Pro Neil Smith as the ends, the Chefs offer one of the most imposing defensive fronts any opponent is likely to see. The secondary contains two Pro Bowl cornerbacks in Kevin Ross and Albert Lewis. Lewis seems fully recovered from an injury-hampered 1990 season.
"We'll just have to wait until game situations to find out," said Lewis, who went to four straight Pro Bowls before last season's injuries. "It would usually take all of training camp and the preseason for our secondary, even with Deron, to fully come together.
“This year is no different, except for the fact you can't expect guys who don't have the same experience to put up the same numbers. They may do it. But you just can't expect it.”
In addition, there were so many talented young receivers in camp this summer, the Chefs could afford to to let veteran Stephone Paige stew back home in a contract dispute.
With Nick Lowery back in uniform after a contract holdout, the Chiefs are of continued excellence in the kicking game. One of the NFL's most prolific kickers, Lowery remains almost automatic from about 40 yards in.
Top 25 teams
The 20 top teams in the Associated Press 1992 preseason college football poll, with first place votes in parentheses, total points based on 25 points for a first place vote through one point for a 25th place vote and ranking in the preseason poll;
| | Record | Pts | Pts |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 1. Miami (43) | 0.0 | 1,516 | 1 |
| 2. Washington (9) | 0.0 | 1,458 | 1 |
| 2. Notre Dame (5) | 0.0 | 1,404 | 3 |
| 4. Florida St (1) | 0.0 | 1,274 | 5 |
| 5. Michigan (1) | 0.0 | 1,260 | 6 |
| 6. Florida | 0.0 | 1,241 | 4 |
| 7. Texas A&M (1) | 0.0 | 1,163 | 7 |
| 8. Penn St (1) | 0.0 | 1,125 | 8 |
| 9. Alabama (1) | 0.0 | 1,096 | 9 |
| 10. Syracuse | 0.0 | 957 | 10 |
| 11. Nebraska | 0.0 | 857 | 11 |
| 12. Colorado | 0.0 | 798 | 12 |
| 13. Clemson | 0.0 | 751 | 13 |
| 14. Georgia | 0.0 | 727 | 14 |
| 15. Oklahoma | 0.0 | 678 | 15 |
| 16. UCLA | 0.0 | 563 | 18 |
| 17. Ohio St. | 0.0 | 485 | 19 |
| 18. N. Carolina St. | 0.0 | 434 | — |
| 19. California | 0.0 | 379 | 20 |
| 20. Stanford | 0.0 | 354 | 17 |
| 21. Mississippi St. | 0.0 | 315 | 22 |
| 22. Tennessee | 0.0 | 260 | 21 |
| 23. Iowa | 0.0 | 155 | 16 |
| 24. Georgia Tech | 0.0 | 143 | 23 |
| 24. Virginia | 0.0 | 129 | — |
Source: The Associated Press