ALREADY A MEMORABLE '96 : BROOKS' PGA WIN JUST ONE STORY FROM FIRST 7-1/2 MONTHS.

Byline: Gary Reinmuth Chicago Tribune 

Headline: If the PGA is over, can the Shark Shootout be far behind?

Mr. Stone Face, Mark Brooks, won the PGA Sunday, obliterating local hero Kenny Perry. Perry foolishly spent 40 minutes yakking with CBS following his round, rather than retiring to the practice range in case of extra innings. Give Brooks his due, though. With his superb showing this year in major championships, it was probably about time the PGA Tour's new leading money winner won a big one.

Brooks is the last big winner on the PGA Tour this year, as the PGA marks the unofficial end to big-time golf this season.

On the one hand, there's still a lot of golf to be played before the Diners Club Matches Dec. 12-15. On the other, it's mostly downhill on the thrillmeter from here on. With apologies to Tiger Woods and his bid for his third straight U.S. Amateur title, to Freddie (Mr. November and December) Couples, to the sure-to-be-a-hoot Presidents Cup Matches, to the Greater Milwaukee Open and to the Shark's next trauma, the calendar says it's time to clear away the dishes from this buffet and make room for football. Herewith a look back at some of the eagles, birdies and bogeys that made news in the first 7-1/2 months of 1996:

AT&T Pebble Beach canceled: For the first time in 47 years a PGA Tour event is washed out completely. The ruling: too much casual water in the 16th fairway at Spyglass Hill. Bill Murray's exploding ball trick in the celebrity shootout lightens the mood, but Tour players might have enjoyed seeing the old exploding PGA Tour official (David Eger) trick more.

Romper room: Tim Herron (Honda Classic), Paul Goydos (Bay Hill), Scott McCarron (Freeport-McMoRan) and Paul Stankowski (BellSouth) give the PGA Tour an injection of new blood - four first-time winners in a five-week span from March 10 through April 7. In the 19 weeks since, there have been only two first-timers (Steve Stricker, Willie Wood).

Shark sightings: Greg Norman amazingly blows a six-shot lead to Nick Faldo on Sunday in the Masters, disqualifies himself for using an illegal ball at Hartford, arrives at the Motorola Western Open with a chip on his shoulder, storms off after missing the cut, is openly critical of Presidents Cup captain David Graham's leadership skills, then hangs on to win the International division of the Andersen Consulting World Championship of Golf. And to think: It's only August.

Blind justice: Australian Graham threatens a lawsuit for ``defamation of character'' after being ousted by a unanimous players vote as captain of the International squad for the Presidents Cup. In true kangaroo-court style, Graham is not allowed to testify in his own defense.

Kleenex moments: Which made you tear up more? Norman losing the Masters, Tom Watson emerging from nine years in the wilderness to win The Memorial, Steve Jones coming back from the dirt-bike accident to claim the U.S. Open, John (``I almost gave up golf'') Cook romping at Memphis, Bell's palsy victim D.A. Weibring celebrating his Hartford win with his son, nice guy Tom Lehman holding off Faldo in the British or learning that Nick Price's good-guy caddie, Squeeky Medlen, has leukemia? How about all of the above.

The Lost . . .: Asked by a reporter for a few minutes of his time at the Motorola Western Open, Curtis Strange has this friendly reply: ``Yeah, right. Get lost.'' Until tying for 26th Sunday in the PGA to raise his '96 winnings to a meager $165,000, it was the two-time U.S. Open champion's game that had appeared lost.

. . . And Found Dept.: The comeback player of the year? Watson (58th to 20th on the money list), Couples (63rd to fifth), Jones (from 79th to 19th), Cook (97th to 21st) and Rocco Mediate (155th to 29th) are all making bids. Steve Stricker of Edgerton, Wis., with two wins (Kemper, Western) and nearly a million dollars, is making another kind of bid - for superstardom. And Lumpy, alias Tim Herron, has won a lump of dough already - $381,416 - in his rookie season.

No respect: Before skipping the British Open at Royal Lytham and St. Annes to play the prestigious Deposit Guaranty Classic, Scott Hoch describes the sacred ``birthplace'' of golf, The Old Course at St. Andrews, as ``the worst piece of mess I've ever seen. I think they had some sheeps and goats there that died and they just covered them over.'' And the Mona Lisa ain't no prize either.

Walking-around money: After receiving $100,000 in appearance fees to play in last week's Dutch Open, John Daly shoots a 51 on the front nine, takes an 89 for his round and misses the cut by 23 shots.

Speaking of Boom-Boom: Finally, a Fremont, Calif., inventor has just received a patent for a driver that enables golfers to propel the ball up to 200 yards - without swinging the club. A trigger in the handle sets off an explosive charge - equal to a .22-caliber rifle - in the face and the ball goes on its way. The inventor says it's for people who have neither the time nor the interest in learning how to swing a club properly.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: PGA champion Mark Brooks is the last big winner on t he tour this year.

Daily News File Photo