Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Two-time U.S. Open champion dies in plane
crash
By DOUG FERGUSON
AP Golf Writer
Payne Stewart, known as much for his trademark knickers as
his indomitable spirit in the Ryder Cup and in winning three major
golf championships, died today when the LearJet he was aboard
flew uncontrolled for hours and crashed in South Dakota.
Government officials said the plane, believed to have five
people on board, may have suffered a pressurization failure.
The 42-year-old Stewart won his second U.S. Open in June and
played in his first Ryder Cup since 1993. He was on his way to
Texas, where the Tour Championship is being played this week in
Houston.
Said Tiger Woods: “It is shocking. It's a tragedy. I can't
even comprehend the score of it. None of us can right now. There
is an enormous void and emptiness I feel right now.”
“It is if difficult to express our sense of shock and
sadness over the death of Payne Stewart,” PGA Tour commissioner
Tim Finchem said.
Stewart was one of the most recognizable players in golf because
of his knickers and tam o'shanter hat, along with a fiery spirit
that carried him to 18 victories around the world.
His last victory was his finest moment.
Stewart made a 15-foot par putt on the final hole at Pinehurst
No. 2 in North Carolina to win the U.S. Open by one stroke over
Phil Mickelson. It was the longest putt to ever decide a U.S.
Open on the 72nd hole in the event's 99-year history.
It was Stewart's third major championship in a career that
began in 1980, and put a stamp on what had been a revival late
in his career.
He missed the cut last week in the Disney Classic, but reflected
on his career the day before the tournament began.
“There were times when ... I played very poorly and I
wasn't having fun playing golf, and I didn't want to continue,”
he said. “I had a wakeup call to the fact that this is what
I'm good at, and I'm still good at it.”
Part of his turnaround was a newfound faith, drawn to church
through his children, 13-year-old Chelsea and 10-year-old Aaron.
“I'm proud of the fact that my faith in God is so much
stronger and I'm so much more at peace with myself than I've ever
been in my life,” Stewart said after winning the U.S. Open.
“Where I was with my faith last year and where I am now is
leaps and bounds.”
He won his first major championship in 1989, the PGA, at Kemper
Lakes outside Chicago, beating Mike Reid by a stroke. Two years
later, he won the U.S. Open at Hazeltine in Minnesota after an
18-hole playoff with Scott Simpson.
But Stewart then went into the worst slump of his career, going
eight years with only one victory and becoming surlier with galleries
and with the media the longer it went on.
He nearly won the U.S. Open last year, taking a four-stroke
lead into the final round at The Olympic Club in San Francisco
before losing by one stroke to Lee Janzen. But the transformation
of Stewart was already under way.
When he won at Pebble Beach in February, he talked about the
days when he would storm off the course, determined to keep golf
in perspective and spend more time with his family.
“I'm a lot older and I'm a lot wiser. I'm more mature,”
he said. “I'm not going to blink and miss my family growing
up. When I'm out at the golf course, I'm going to prepare myself
to be the best I can. And when I'm home, I'm going to be a father.”
On Father's Day came perhaps his greatest triumph.
In a thrilling duel with Mickelson, Stewart made crucial putts
on the final three holes at Pinehurst No. 2. When the final putt
fell, he thrust his arm into the air and let out a roar.
“All I wanted to do was give myself a chance,” Stewart
said, choking back tears. “I never gave up. I got the job
done.”
The U.S. Open also secured Stewart a spot on his first Ryder
Cup team in six years. He embodied the passion of the Ryder Cup,
and boldly suggested that one reason the United States had not
won since 1993 was that he was not on the team.
He won only a half-point at The Country Club in Boston last
month, but his presence was considered a motivating factor for
the Americans, who staged the greatest comeback in history to
win back the Cup.
Along with 11 career victories on the PGA Tour, Stewart also
won seven times around the world.
Ranked No. 6 in the world, he won $11.7 million in a career
that began in 1980.
Born in Springfield, Mo., Stewart went to SMU.
He is survived by his mother, Bee, of Springfield; wife Tracey,
whom he met while playing in Australia early in his career, and
his two children.
The PGA Tour said his spot in the Tour Championship, for the
top 30 on the money list this year, will not be filled.
A blue ribbon was tied to the name plate on his parking place
at Champions Golf Club in Houston.
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