October 9, 2002

ROCKY MOUNT, NC — What should be a victory lap for Chris Lashley has turned into a sprint to the finish. The Carolinan wants to win this On Tour Championship to show the field that winning by 5 NOOG points is not impossible.

"I wouldn't have thought he could win this one," said Don Cook, a member of the Carl Spackler Open field.  "I'm surprised, with the quality of players within the Carl Spackler group, that anyone can be this dominant.  And he absolutely has been.  It's astounding." The numbers speak for themselves.

Greg Garrett has another idea.  "It's not dominant.  It's those damn golf lessons."  There has been reports that Chris has been taking golf lessons this summer.  "We need to put a salary cap on this thing.  He's a freek'n lawyer."

Take away the official Carl Spackler Open, the only bad golf he has played this year, and Lashley hasn't scored less than 40 NOOG points since June 8th.  That is 21 straight rounds of golf since then above a 39 NOOG points.  All in all, he has removed 10 strokes per round from his scorecard.

"I'm very happy with my season so far," Lashley said. "But I have the chance to make it spectacular."  Chris has one month before he can claim the 2002 Championship.  "When you say, 'Breaking 90,' then you might start to believe it," said Lashley.

Lashley does not have the classic swing of Nicklaus, but it is sweet and simple, and deadly accurate. He turns his head toward the fairway before making contact and is rarely surprised by the flight of the ball.   "I think he has become the most precise golfer we've ever known in Carl golf," Don Cook said. "When you couple that with strength and length, he's a little different than anyone we've had."

If Lashley keeps going, he will find himself in rare company.  Or maybe in a league of his own.