PREDICTING RAIN OR SHINE ON THE GREEN.Byline: Sue Doyle Staff Writer VALENCIA - During pro golf tours, most people hang out on the greens, hobnobbing with famous players and hamming it up in photos with celebrities. Everyone that is, except the weather guy. As resident meteorologist, Willis Young sits alone inside a tiny trailer all day monitoring weather reports from two laptop computers, rain or shine. It would seem the loneliest place to be during this week's AT&T Classic at the Valencia Country Club - isolated and inside the quiet room where curtains with a golf-ball print are stapled over windows as 40,000 spectators gather outside. But once outside, Young is actually one of the most popular guys around, because he knows the forecast and knows before anyone else if it'll affect play. ``Hey, what's the weather look like?'' shouts one caddy A plastic container that holds a CD or DVD disc for added protection. The bare disc is placed in the caddy, and the caddy is inserted into the drive. A caddy is not a jewel case. A jewel case protects the disc for transportation. A caddy protects the disc while reading and writing. cruising by Young on a golf cart Tuesday as he steps outside for lunch. They all stop him and ask, fondly using nicknames he's earned while on tours. Weather Willy willy Noun pl -lies Brit, Austral & NZ informal a childish or jocular word for penis . Willard Scott Willard Herman Scott, Jr. (born March 7, 1934) is an American media personality and author best known for his work on NBC's Today show and as the original creator of Ronald McDonald. Born in Alexandria, Virginia, Scott attended American University in Washington, D.C. . And Sparky spark·y adj. spark·i·er, spark·i·est Animated; lively. spark  i·ly adv. , for the
lightning detection system he drags around to each event.
``I watch the radar all day long,'' Young said. So what does Mother Nature have in store this week? After Tuesday, the skies should be dry until Friday, when this leg of the Champions Tour begins. After that, you better have plenty of warm coats and rain gear as this tournament for pro golfers 50 and over continues through Sunday, Young said. Three inches of rain have already poured down since last week, making for one soaking wet course. If more comes down, Young said they might have to suspend the games, depending on how the course holds up. Still, Southern California's usually mild weather has nothing over what Young has seen from other states that he's traveled to over the past 10 years with the PGA Tour The PGA Tour is an organization that operates the USA's main professional golf tours. It is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA. Its name is officially rendered in all caps as “PGA TOUR". . Tornadoes in Iowa. Freezing temperatures in Canada. Frost that'll ruin a course if stepped on. They all affect the game. Lightning stays on his mind most, because it's his job to alert others if it's on the way so the course can be evacuated e·vac·u·ate v. e·vac·u·at·ed, e·vac·u·at·ing, e·vac·u·ates v.tr. 1. a. To empty or remove the contents of. b. To create a vacuum in. 2. in time. With the equipment in the trailer, Young can detect lighting from 50 miles away and can monitor it as it closes in. But under Tuesday's warm, sunny skies, Young could only look up and smile. As far as this weekend's rainy weather prediction, PGA (1) (Professional Graphics Adapter) An early IBM PC display standard for 3D processing with 640x480x256 resolution. It was not widely used. (2) (Programmable Gate Array) See gate array and FPGA. Tournament Director Ben Nelson said they'll just have to wait and see how much rain comes down before they'll know if they can play. ``It's a forecast,'' he said. ``You don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. really until it comes.'' Sue Doyle,(661) 257-5254 sue.doyle(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Willis Young is the official meteorologist for the AT&T Classic at the Valencia Country Club. Young says golfers may be in for a cold and maybe wet weekend of golf. (2 -- color) Last year's senior tour winner Des Smyth Des Smyth (born 12 February, 1953) is an Irish golfer. Smyth was born in Drogheda, County Louth. He turned professional in 1974 and was a member of the European Tour for over a quarter of a century. His best finish on the European Tour Order of Merit was seventh in 1988. on target at Magic Mountain. (3 -- color) Weather guy Willis Young keeps up with the forecast from two laptop computers. David Crane/Staff Photographer |
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