COE WILL TAKE DETOUR ON WAY TO OPEN.

Byline: JILL PAINTER Staff Writer

Alex Coe just qualified for the U.S. Open. So where will he celebrate?

Not Disneyland.

Coe leaves today for Ireland with his Pepperdine teammates. Research on Winged Foot must wait.

The Waves and boosters will play nine or 10 courses there and Coe, a senior, didn't want to miss the event that happens every four years. He'll have just enough time to play a couple of courses and arrive in New York ready to play practice rounds on Monday. The U.S. Open is June 15-18.

``The thing is, this trip has been planned for four years,'' Coe said. ``It's a fun trip. We go with our boosters and it's our thank you to them for supporting our team and our program. I told my coach (John Geiberger), not only does he deserve it, but so do they. I'm going to give back and cut my U.S. Open trip a little short.''

Coe, a Pepperdine senior, qualified for the U.S. Open on Monday. He played 36 holes at Lake Merced Golf Club in a sectional qualifier and shot 69-71--140 to tie for third. He played two playoff holes, parring both, and advanced.

``It's an honor,'' Coe said. ``It will be a lot of fun. It hasn't really sunk in yet. I look forward to playing in front of a thousand people. It's a thrill.''

Coe played 38 holes Monday from 7:10 a.m. until about 8 p.m. He missed the last flight to Los Angeles and stayed in San Jose. That gave Coe and his caddie, teammate Colin Wilcox, a chance to return congratulatory phone calls.

``I heard from people I hadn't heard from in five years,'' Coe said.

Wilcox, a Camarillo High product, caddied for Coe in the local qualifier and section qualifier. Coe plans to keep him on his bag for the U.S. Open, too. He'll be in Ireland as well.

``If it's not broken, don't fix it,'' Coe said. ``We work well together. He's a great reader.''

Coe spent a bit of his day Tuesday shopping. He bought a bigger suitcase, one that could hold 12 days worth of clothes. Enough for the Ireland trip and potentially four days of the U.S. Open.

``We're making the cut,'' Coe said. ``We're going to do this right.''

Even though Coe is a senior and has already graduated from Pepperdine with a degree in business administration, he'll play as an amateur. Coe will play in the U.S. vs. Japan Collegiate Golf Championships in Japan in July and must be an amateur to do so.

He said he might play in a couple more amateur events afterward and then turn professional.

Coe also purchased a cell phone plan that will give him better rates while he's in Europe and Japan.

When he was in the playoff in Daly City, he couldn't help but think about what a good plan was in store for him.

``The whole time I was thinking that it was a win-win situation,'' Coe said. ``I was either going to be going to the U.S. Open or Ireland.''

Now, he's doing a little of both.

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