PEPPERDINE'S WRIGHT IS A BIT OF ALL RIGHT, MATE.

Byline: JILL PAINTER Golf

Lindsey Wright believes Karrie Webb made her transition a little easier.

Wright, a standout golfer at Pepperdine, has aspirations of turning professional after her senior season. Webb, 27, already has won five LPGA majors and is second on the career money list with $7.7 million.

They're part of a recent trend of talented Australian women golfers.

``I think Karrie Webb kind of opened the door for Australian golfers,'' Wright said. ``I remember playing golf with her when I was 12 and she was 18. Wendy Doolan was over here before she was, but Karrie opened the door like Tiger opened doors.''

Wright, 20, won the individual championship and the Waves won the team title at the West Coast Conference Championships at Riverbend Golf Club in Madera on Tuesday. Wright, named the Golfer of the Year, is one of three Australian golfers on Pepperdine's team.

Crystal Fanning and Katherine Hull are the other Aussies beefing up their games in Malibu. USC sophomore Anna Rawson is from Australia, too.

Hull and Fanning finished second and third, respectively, in the conference championships. ``I've played with Katherine in tournaments since I was 14,'' said Fanning, who was named the WCC's Freshman of the Year.

Hull's game already is ready for the LPGA Tour. She shot a school-record and NCAA course-record 64 at Menifee Lakes Country Club in Temecula earlier this season.

``It was awesome,'' Hull said. ``It was one of those days I was in the zone. I trust my swing. It's hard to explain how it all happened.''

It's not hard to explain the recent surge of talented Australian golfers who migrate to the U.S. to play college golf and to play on the LPGA Tour. Australia has a top-notch junior program.

Many Australians are using that base and taking their games to the U.S. Tamie Durdin, who also played at Pepperdine, is in her second season on the LPGA Tour.

``A lot of Australian athletes are coming here,'' Wright said. ``They're seeing the opportunity of being able to get an education and playing a sport. That's the main reason I came here. You're not guaranteed success as a golfer.

``I've never heard of any college golf program at all. The focus is more on getting a degree. Over here, you can incorporate the two - the education aspect and the sport.''

Pepperdine golf coach Laurie Gibbs says her recruiting is paying off.

``What I find with international players is that they don't have the opportunity to compete in college, so they come here and are very determined to do well,'' Gibbs said. ``It's not that Americans don't work hard, but Americans have a lot of opportunities growing up knowing they can go to college and play.''

Jan Stephenson became the first popular Australian woman golfer on tour in the 1970s. Webb, Durdin, Doolan, Mardi Lunn, Carmen Hajjar and others are putting Australia on the golf map.

``We play a lot of sports in Australia when we grow up,'' seven-year LPGA Tour veteran Doolan said at the Office Depot Championships earlier this month at El Caballero. ``We have a great program where young kids come in and we get taught by the top coaches in the country both at state and national level, and I went through that program.

``Actually, most of the girls that are on the tour from Australia all went through that program, so I think it's simply that we have a very good base and foundation for technique. Other than that, we are away from home a lot and we are here to play golf. And really, that's all that we are interested in doing, trying to do our best.''

ON THE GREEN

PGA TOUR 

WorldCom Classic

at Hilton Head, S.C.

Course: Harbour Town Golf Links (6,976 yards, par 71)

Schedule: Today through Sunday

Purse: $4 million, $720,000 to winner

TV: The Golf Channel (Today, 12:30-3 p.m., 5-8:30 p.m.; Friday, 11:30 p.m.-3 a.m., 12:30-3 p.m., 5-8:30 p.m.; Saturday, 11:30 p.m.-3 a.m.), Fox Sports Net (Today-Friday, 12:30-3 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday-Sunday, 12-3 p.m.).

LPGA TOUR

Longs Drugs Challenge

at Lincoln, Calif.

Course: Twelve Bridges Golf Club (6,388 yards, par 72)

Schedule: Today through Sunday

Purse: $900,000, $135,000 to winner

TV: The Golf Channel (Today-Friday, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., 8-10 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1:30-4:30 p.m.).

SENIOR PGA TOUR

Next event: The Tradition, April 25-28

Course: Superstition Mountain (Ariz.) Golf and Country Club, Prospector Course.

DRIVING AVERAGE

PGA 

1. John Daly 307.8

2. Tiger Woods 296.4

3. Tim Herron 294.1

4. Harrison Frazar 293.4

LPGA

1. Maria Hjorth 273.2

2. Michelle Ellis 272.6

3. Wendy Doolan 270.3

4. Sophie Gustafson 269.1

SENIOR PGA

1. John Jacobs 285.0

2. Tom Kite 282.8

3. Tom Purtzer 281.3

4. Bobby Wadkins 277.9

SPOTLIGHT

Juli Inkster won the tournament Longs Drug Challenge in 1999 and 2000. Annika Sorenstam won last year but won't play this time around. Inkster, who went to San Jose State, has won 26 tournaments, including six majors. Her last victory was at the Electrolux USA Championship last year. Inkster is fifth on the LPGA career money list with $6.6 million.

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

no caption (Juli Inkster)

Box:

ON THE GREEN (see text)