The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

., Page 12 McHENRY PLAINDEALER Section A Friday, August 16,198S Rick Bell PGA professional 'Hey, I'm not cheating here' No doubt, the rule covering the provisional ball is one of the least understood rules. Here are a few answers to commonly-asked provision­ al ball questions. The rules provide for the play of a provisional ball only in instances where your original ball may be either lost or out of bounds. Stroke and sitance is the penalty. Use a different number ball just in case both the original and provisional ones are in bounds. You must announce that you are playing a provisional ball. If you do not, you are not playing a provisional ball and this other ball becomes your ball in play. It is not legal procedure to hit a provisional ball if you think your original ball may be in a hazard. The type of hazard your original ball lands in determines what your options are. Hitting a second ball from where you played your last shot is always an option, but in this case the other ball would not be a provisional. Instead, it would automatically become the ball in play. Provisional ball and second ball (rule 3-3) should not be confused. In stroke play only, if you are unsure of your rights or procedure, you may play a second ball and keep track of the scores using both balls. The legally-played ball's score will be used. Connors sees good days Past heroes recall MVP glory days By Jerry Green The Detroit News DETROIT -- He was instant death when he came into ballgames to torture hitters. He would stand on the hill and glower down at them. They could see his arm and then his face and the glistening, waxed mus­ tache flexing to the tips with their perfect circles. He looked like the old-time villain in the movies. You could picture him twisting the mustache as the train sped toward the bound maid­ en. You could hear him: "Heh, heh, heh." That's how batters imagined Rol- lie Fingers. For years, he would go "Heh, heh, heh" and terminate their rallies. Rollie Fingers won six games and saved 28 for the Brewers in 1981. The electors voted him the Ameri­ can League's Most Valuable Player. The next year, Fingers was roll­ ing along in an even finer season for a championship ballclub. Suddenly, his forearm went poof. Then, his elbow popped. It exploded. He couldn't pitch. The Brewers lost the World Series. Fingers missed the next season and much of the year after that. Last year, his back went out. He never again has been the villain he used to be to the hitters. The year the Brewers won the pennant, the shortstop dissected the American League. When the ball- club needed a double to right to score a guy from first, he would double to right. When it had to have a late-inning home run, he would slam the ball into the leftfield seats. Robin Yount thrilled a city not accustomed to thrills. He was the perfect player. He hit .331 with 29 homers and 114 RBI. On the off-day in the World Series, as the town celebrated prematurely, Robin Yount rode his motorcycle to the ballpark, took it inside and per­ formed wheelies. Y o u n t w a s M V P w i t h o u t challenge. The next year, the pennant ball- club heaped over in collapse. The MVP shortstop had a faltering sea­ son. He could not match the cham­ pionship season, and the next year it was worse. Now he struggles, hustling best he can. But his shoul­ der is too sore and too weak for him to play his own position. He is a foreigner in the outfield. Soon, he will have an operation. The trade was made late in spring training. The day it was made the manager was sure his club had clinched the pennant, right then. "In September, I'll be able to go to the Bahamas," he said. Sparky Anderson could have, too. Willie Hernandez won the pennant for his ballclub. He was there when the Tigers clinched first place, won the playoffs, won the World Series. Willie Hernandez won nine ball- games and saved 32 for the champs. The vote was never in doubt. Her­ nandez was MVP. In another year, he has pitched well, but there have been spots of trouble. Sometimes there are home runs that beat him. Sometimes it is ground balls hit just where they cannot be fielded. His back has ached ... and his neck and his leg and his ribs. He fell down the stairs giving his son a piggyback ride. A popped elbow, a battered shoul­ der, ground balls slipping through a once-tight infield, falling down the stairs, busted backs and damaged arms -- these are the curse of the MVP. The MVP carries this curse with it, along with all the benefits. In the American League, only Cal Ripken of the recent four MVPs has been immune. • ; "You're trying to scare me now," said Willie Hernandez. "I thought I was doing good so far." By Randy Holtz Scripps Howard News Service There he was -- superstar, con­ glomerate, idol, husband, father, legend -- scrambling for shots in a tournament he could, purchase with one week's interest money. There was Jimmy Connors in the flesh, dashing about the court at the homespun, decidedly un-Wimble- donlike event, playing as if kisses from the queen were on the line. He was signing autographs, pos­ ing for pictures with rotund middle- aged ladies, entertaining his fans, accommodating the press. And a thought kept coming to mind -- Why? Why does this man practice tennis every single day? Why, after 15 years of this stuff, does he punish his body and pres­ sure his mind every week at some tournament in some far-flung town? He's a millionaire. He's a happy family man with a beautiful wife and two lovely children. He's ac­ complished everything of conse­ quence in one of the most brilliant careers in tennis history. So what is it that keeps Jimmy Connors rolling along? The answer is almost too simple, too elemen­ tary, too obvious. He loves it. Evi­ dence is overwhelming. Connors smiles a lot. He competes. Hard. He entertains. Magnificently. Connors clings fiercely to those pleasures. He enjoys them too much to retire. "There are things about tennis that aren't fun," he said. "The trav­ el is no fun. The politics is no fun. But tennis is still fun. People ask me how I maintain my intensity, and I don't know. The only explana­ tion is I still enjoy it. "I'm not really worried about re­ tirement and I don't think anybody else should be, either. When it feels time to quit, it'll be time to quit. Until then, it'd probably be a good idea if everybody else would stop worrying about it, too." There was a time when Connors might have walked off in such a situation, leaving a trail of epithets and empty notebooks. But at 32 Con­ nors is a bit different than he was at 20. Mellowed? He's not the preco­ cious beast who burst into world tennis as a 1973 smart-aleck. Oh, Connors still has his mo­ ments. He dressed down an umpire in Washington in a way that would make John McEnroe green with envy. And when he feels strongly about a subject, he'll speak out boldly. -He still peppers conversation with crisp overheads aimed squarely at the tennis establishment: "I don't know if I'd want my son (Brett, age $ & 7ft *7*4*4mi4446H4, Inc. "Shifting Gears Toward The Future" SPECIALIZING IN CUSTOM TRANSMISSION REBUILDING OF ALL TYPES FULL REPAIRS AVAILABLE ALL REPAIRS FULLY WARRANTEED 4207 WILMOT RD SUNNYSIDE, IL 60050 815/385-9133 815/385-9134 Join the Fun....Join one of our many Leagues! Candlelight Bowl August 17 : Win. ;: : Free games prinks Money (still openings) Jewelry Show : August 19th 7-10 pm 14 carat gold • "just above cost" I Dark Crystal Lounge Presents: I Sweetwater August 16 & 17 Horse Shoe Tournament (Double Elimination) 1st Prize *100 1st & 2nd place trophies August 24th 12 noon-sharp *7" per person, inch food (1st 32 people) • DRINK SPECteLS . • Monday • 6:15pm • women's • meetingAug. 19th, 6:15pm • Monday • 8:30pm • mixed • meeting Aug. 26th, 8:30pm • Monday Afternoons • 1pm • women's non smoking, call for info. •Iiwday-8:00pm-men's-ieilî A* 20th, 8:00pm NURSERY PROVIDED FREE • Thursday * 15pm • men's • meeting Aug. 29th, 8:00pm • Friday • 6:30pm • men's • meeting Aug. 23rd, 6:30pm •Sunday 10am- men's wakeup • Monday • Friday morning & afternoons ladies I seniors leagues 6) to play pro tennis under these conditions. It's just too much of a hassle. There are too many rules, too many stipulations, too many thumbs put on you to hold you back. "There's just too many tourna­ ments supporting too many guys. I object to the scheduling. There's always two or even three tourna­ ments going on at the same time, so you never get all the best players In one spot except in the majors. Tne game's in chaos, but I don't thixtyc you'll see a change in my time. "The USTA Pro Council is up of a bunch of guys who they knew how to play tennis a long time ago. Players get the end of every stick. Whatever we do, they do the opposite." Connors and his antics, critic at the time, are largely for the American tennis boom different today. "Tennis is sort of like automatic pilot. I probably don't get to a few balls now I used to get to, or I might not get to them as quickly, but I ade tho ght ng ahead responsible He is\ have a little more experience now. That's the trouble with being young. You don't have experience, and by the time you've got experience, you're too old to hassle with it." Is Connors fading? Are the glory days gone for good? "If I fight my way out of this slump, I could be twice as good as I ever was before." Connors smiled and. looked into the admiring eyes of his fans. "And that would be pretty much trouble, wouldn't it?" UPI photo Despite constant questions concerning Ms**** tirement, Jimmy Connors has no immediate plans for hanging up his tennis racket. The 32- year-old Belleville native has battled out of recent slumps and believes there are still some good days ahead of him. ;//, « < j ' ' j l ! Available At McHENRY Plaindealer The Following Locations: •AMACO The Following Locations: •WHITE HEN •NORTHWEST •J & L GAS PANTRY TRAIN DEPOT •ACE HARDWARE •BELL LIQUORS •ISLAND FOODS •LAKEVIEW •BELL LIQUORS FOODS •BOLGERS •CONVENIENT FOODS •BOLGERS FOOD s. •SUNNYSIDE DRUGSTORE •COUNTRY FOODS •JEWEL/OSCO CUPBOARD •LITTLE STORE •KAREN &GINNY'S •SULLIVAN FOODS •SUNRISE GROCERY •LIQUOR MART •UNION '76 •DEBBIE'S GENERAL •LIQUOR MART •UNION '76 STORE •LIQUOR MART •COLE PHARMACY STORE •NORTHERN IL •COAST TO COAST •VILLAGE MARKET MEDICAL CNTR •SUNNYSIDE GAS •McHENRY DRUG •FOOD MART & QUICK MART •J &R FOOD MART 1 -;#c)-The PORTS of Sull ivan Lake A PRIVATE YEAR-ROUND RV OWNERSHIP RESORT COMMUNITY * SWIMMING * BOATING * FISHING # AD|OI NI NG 18-HOLF GOLF COURSF This is not a timesharr plan, not a membership campground, rvot a condominium, hut land you own with 24-hour security P" 365 days a year! Lots range in si/e from 4000 to 6000 sq feet | ^ -V with financ ing up to 10 years. RV pure hase plans also available with up to 1 5 year f inancing The Ports is st i l l in the develop- per month mental stage, so this is your opportunity to get in on the ground Based on a se l l ing pruc of $9 ,000 with a dov f loor1 Located in the beauti ful "( hain () I akes" area, there's payment of 2S\ 10 year f inancing on a balance easy access to major shopping and rec reation areas ThePorts S 0 M ̂ A M R w l , h m a* , m u m yearly adj ir wi l l also offer a sc^on to-be bui l t pr ivate entertainment c enter "" % w"h r r M 'Km d n r t a < dP n f s* ,• 1 1 / 1 and Muc h, Much More! Come visi t The Ports today' ' \ \ 1 *^h"1 1 ' '1 P p , f p n , aRp Rate Pricn ^ per month ' Rased on a se l l ing p r i < e of $9 ,000 wi th a down payment of 2 S10 year f inancing on a ba lance of St i SO. 1 1 V«% AMR wi th maximum year ly ad just ment of 1 V j \ wi th x h'U margin and a c ap of !>*> . 1 ' / j \ serv ice fee 12 17 \ Annual Percentage Rate Pr ic ing and avai lab i l i t ies subjec t to i hange wi thout not ic e West on Sullivan Lake Road Take Rle . 12 nor th jus t pas! Rte . 120 & le f t on Sul l ivan lake Rd. 1-800-248- PORT SAL[ HOURS. / >0 am to an hour before Sundown, 7 Davs a Week CALL FOR INFORMA TION 815-455-6633 J; Sports I > V