Forwarded article from Arkansas Online published Tues, August 16, 2005
Canadian captures toned down long drive title
BY: JEFFREY SLATTON ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
It was humid even by Arkansas standards on Monday. For a Canadian, it was just about unbearable. But Toronto 's Mike Wiebe wasn't complaining as he hit a 348-yard drive to win the Sean Fister Classic's long drive competition at Chenal Country Club. The event, which limited competitors to using United States Golf Association-approved equipment, didn't produce the 400-yard plus drives that normally accompany these events. But the 13 competitors who made the final seemed to enjoy the change of pace, using drivers about 3 inches shorter in length.
"I think the guys loved it. I mean 348 [yards] with a standard driver with no roll. That's pretty hot," said Fister, who goes by the nickname "Beast" and finished ninth with a drive of 327 yards. Trez Simmons of Zachary , La. , finished second at 341 yards. Fister was pleased with the way his first opportunity at hosting a tournament turned out. "I'm flabbergasted with how well everything turned out," said Fister, who is in the Long Drivers of America Hall of Fame and won the world championship in 1995 and 2001.
"We had a lot of great support from the community. People get to see the music going, see a little electricity out here and I think everyone had a ball. And we get to raise money for First Tee of Arkansas and these kids. It's a win-win all the way around."
Wiebe, whose claim to fame was a seventh-place finish at the 2000 Re/Max World Championship, wasn't the biggest competitor to take to the tee box, which was located on the back of a flatbed trailer. Competitors hit over Chenal's putting green and the 18th green on the Bear Den Mountain Course back into the fairway. Each competitor had six attempts to hit a ball into the fairway. With headphones blaring the music of the band Brand New Sin, the 6-2, 195-pound Wiebe stepped to the tee box as the day's third competitor. He dropped his CD player and headphones to the ground and took his stance on the one-inch thick Astroturf tee box. On his final attempt, he connected with his 348-yard drive to give him the early lead.
"I had to settle the butterflies on the first few, and it's not that easy a grid to look at. I just got a little pumped up on the last ball," said Wiebe, whose best drive in competition is 409 yards. He earned $17,500 for winning on Monday. " Canada is having a really warm summer, but nothing like this." Wiebe had a long wait, surviving 10 other competitors. Simmons was up next, taking to the tee as AC/DC's "Back In Black" played over the loudspeakers. When asked if he wanted his results announced after each shot, he said, "Don't announce anything less than 320." They didn't have to as his 341-yard drive put him in second place. Brian Pavlet of Lichfield Park , Ariz. , teeing the ball much lower than the other competitors, fell off the tee box through plywood positioned off the front of the flatbed as he stepped into one shot. Another he hit 360 yards, but it didn't stay in the fairway. He had to settle for third place at 340 yards. Fister was next, getting big cheers from the partisan crowd after hitting drives of 320 and 325 yards. Before hitting his final shot, he turned to the crowd and asked for more support, getting them to chant "Beast, Beast, Beast" as he teed up the ball. It didn't stay in the fairway.
"I'm a lot like John Daly. When the crowd starts going, it pumps me up," Fister said. Vince Howell of Brentwood , Calif. , screamed loudly as he let his sixth shot go. It took a high bounce in the fairway but measured only 339 yards for fourth place.The final challenger was 20-yearold Brooks Baldwin, who was the top qualifier after hitting a 369-yard drive in qualifying. But Baldwin 's best was only 332 yards in the final as Wiebe held on for the victory.
"Mike has been in long driving for eight or 10 years right now and is a great guy, has a great attitude," Fister said. "I'm just thrilled to death that he won."
