Funk wants to stay on PGA Tour, despite lopsided Champions Tour win

KAHUKU, Hawaii (AP) _ Aloha means hello or goodbye in Hawaiian. <br/><br/>The players on the Champions Tour were glad to say a farewell aloha to Fred Funk as he goes back to the PGA Tour. <br/><br/>Funk

Monday, January 29th 2007, 6:59 am

By: News On 6

KAHUKU, Hawaii (AP) _ Aloha means hello or goodbye in Hawaiian.

The players on the Champions Tour were glad to say a farewell aloha to Fred Funk as he goes back to the PGA Tour.

Funk cruised to the most-lopsided victory in a 54-hole Champions Tour event, shooting his second straight 8-under 64 on Sunday for an 11-stroke win in the Turtle Bay Championship.

He ended the suspense early with six birdies in a front-nine 30 and was the only player in the 78-player field without a bogey in three days.

Hale Irwin, a six-time winner in the event, knew of only one way Funk could be stopped.

``Go hire a hit man,'' said Irwin, who finished 17 strokes behind Funk's tournament record 23-under 193 total in the tour's first full-field event of the year.

Tom Kite, who tied for second last week in the MasterCard, went double bogey-bogey on the last two holes to close with a 71, dropping him into a five-way tie at 12 under with 2006 winner Loren Roberts (66), Tom Purtzer (66), Denis Watson (68) and Kiyoshi Murota (72), who was playing on a sponsor's exemption.

Funk, who became eligible for the 50-and-over tour in June, earned $240,000 for his second Champions Tour victory in five career starts. He also went wire-to-wire to win the AT&T Championship, the last full-field event in the 2006 season and finished 11th at the U.S. Senior Open and the Ford Seniors Player Championship.

Being on the Champions Tour puts Funk in sort of an uncomfortable position _ as the man to beat.

``For the first time, when I debuted at the Champions Tour, I was a favorite. I've never been a favorite ever in golf,'' he said. ``I've always been an underdog. I've always been a journeyman. Maybe overachieved a little bit on the regular tour, but that just drives me.

``I want to stay driven. I just see how long I can last.''

Funk, who missed the cut at the Sony Open, plans to play three more Champions Tour events this year and 26 more on the regular tour. His next tournament will be the PGA Tour's FBR Open. He had had three top-10 finishes on the regular tour last year and won The Players Championship in 2005, earning him a five-year exemption.

His success on the Champions Tour and struggles at the Sony haven't changed his decision to spend more time against younger golfers such as Tiger Woods, 19 years Funk's junior.

``I really got to stay focused on the regular tour because that's where I want to stay right now for a while,'' Funk said.

To keep competitive, Funk spent the off season lifting weights and conditioning.

Irwin, who won his record 45th Champions Tour victory last week at Hualalai, said the way Funk is playing he could succeed on any tour _ but he could do real well on the Champions Tour.

``Personally, I think it's a mistake because he's playing so well here and his effectiveness is going to be here moreso than over there,'' Irwin said. ``As soon as you say that, Fred Funk is the kind of player that can go over there and play very, very well.''

Funk, a seven-time PGA Tour winner, broke the previous 54-hole record of 195 set by Jim Colbert in 1991 and Bob Murphy in 1994 when the event was played on Maui on a par-70 course.

With a three-stroke lead over Murota to start the day, Funk never got himself into trouble. He had a two-putt birdie from 40 feet on the final hole for the 11-stroke rout. The previous record was nine held by three players: Rod Funseth (1983), Gibby Gilbert (1992) and Dave Stockton (1993).

Funk said when the time is right, he'll be more than happy to graduate to the Champions Tour full time.

``The guys are great. I love the Champions Tour. Everything that I've experienced on the Champions Tour has been tremendous,'' he said. ``I like everything about it, but I still want to go out there and push myself.''