The fire still burns for Pate.

Byline: Ron Bellamy The Register-Guard

O r e g o n C l a s s i c

JUNCTION CITY - He's been there, done that and, if he could, Steve Pate would do it all again.

The most accomplished golfer in the eight-tournament history of the Oregon Classic, the six-time PGA Tour winner with career earnings of more than $8 million brings a unique perspective to the $450,000 Nationwide Tour event that begins today at Shadow Hills Country Club.

At 45, feeling the effects of the two car accidents and other injuries that interrupted his long career - a shoulder that hurts sometimes, a lower back and left hip that hurt more than sometimes - Pate is happy to be playing in what amounts to the biggest golf tournament in Lane County this weekend.

Then again, it wasn't that long ago that he was playing in what's the biggest tournament in the world this weekend, the Ryder Cup.

He was a captain's pick by Ben Crenshaw for the U.S. Ryder Cup team in 1999, the only victory for the United States in the past five Ryder Cups. It was the victory remembered for the tremendous U.S. comeback on the final day, and the Justin Leonard birdie putt that set off a wild and controversial celebration by many of his teammates.

That was the second time Pate was on a winning U.S. Ryder Cup team; he was a member in 1991 as well, though an auto accident during the course of the event limited him to only one match.

One scouting report on Pate in 1999, the year he was named PGA Tour comeback player of the year, was this:

"Crenshaw's other pick for captain's choice - and a surprising one at that. He's ranked 28th in the world and has never won a major. He is known as a fierce competitor. ... His fiery nature could be an asset."

In retrospect, Pate was more than that, he was a difference-maker - considered one of the wisest captain's picks in recent memory - in what he terms now his greatest thrill in golf.

"The last day, the noise was like the inside of a football stadium," he said, "and it lasted for six hours."

Earlier in the tournament, Pate had teamed with Tiger Woods; they defeated Miguel Angel Jimenez and Padraig Harrington 1-up in foursomes, then lost to Paul Lawrie and Colin Montgomerie, 2 and 1, in four-ball. Though Woods has received criticism for his Ryder Cup play and been portrayed as a difficult partner, Pate said they got along "really well" and that, given Woods' prodigious length off the tee, "I loved playing his tee shots."

Going into the last day's singles competition, the U.S. deficit seemed insurmountable, but the team won eight of 12 matches that day, with Pate defeating Jimenez, 2 and 1. When Leonard halved his match with Jose Maria Olazabal, the Ryder Cup went to the United States, 14 1/2 to 13 1/2 .

Pate, who had just finished his round and was waiting to be interviewed by NBC, was standing near the European players when Leonard's uphill 45-foot birdie putt on No. 17 rolled in, giving him the temporary lead, and teammates rushed to celebrate with him, even though Olazabal still had a putt and his own shot at a birdie.

"I thought that was probably not the right place to be," he said of the celebration. "It don't think it was as big a deal as it was made out to be, but. ..."

Since then, the United States has lost twice, and is considered a heavy underdog with a relatively inexperienced team this weekend in Ireland, with four rookies, all of whom, by the way, played in the Oregon Classic while on the Nationwide Tour: Vaughn Taylor (2000, 11th); J.J. Henry (1999-2000, T31 and T30); Zach Johnson (2000, T36), and Brett Wetterich (2003-04, missed cut, T3).

But Pate believes that given the talent, the competition should be very close; the issue with the younger players, he said, isn't whether they're "seasoned" enough, but whether they love match play.

And he does.

"It's a different mind-set," he said. "I always loved it. When I played match play, I never expected to lose. ... I liked the fact that there was a result that day. I liked the whole environment."

Born in Southern California and still residing there, Pate led UCLA to the 1983 Pac-10 title and turned pro later that year. He won six tournaments between 1987 (the Southwest Golf Classic) and 1998 (the CVS Charity Classic), twice winning tournaments when he needed to make birdie on the final hole.

The last win capped a comeback from a January 1996 car crash in the California desert that left him with a broken right hand, wrist and cheekbone while returning home from the Phoenix Open. He also cracked a bone in his left wrist later that year when he tripped on a dock. His 1991 Ryder Cup was cut short when he suffered a bruised hip in a traffic accident en route to a team banquet.

With almost 70 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events, Pate has never won a major, but has come close - he tied for third in the 1988 U.S. Open, probably his best opportunity, and the 1991 Masters; he also tied for fourth in the 1999 Masters, when during a third-round 65 he tied the Augusta National record with seven consecutive birdies.

The past five years, Pate has finished out of the top 125 on the PGA Tour money list, but he continues to seek opportunities to play and will pursue the Champions Tour when he turns 50. He plans to compete in the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament again this year, and has played 10 Nationwide Tour events this year, making cuts in the last two, and will come to the Oregon Classic on a sponsor's exemption.

It's his second trip to Eugene; he played Eugene Country Club a decade ago with his longtime friend and caddie, former University of Oregon golfer Mike Hegarty.

Nicknamed "Volcano" when he was known for the shortest fuse on the PGA Tour, Pate said the fire still burns, admitting he has a fine pending from "saying something somebody didn't like" at the Northeast Pennsylvania Classic in Scranton last month.

"I never get mad at anyone else, just me," he said.

Yet with winnings of more than $8 million, to rank 85th in all-time earnings on the PGA Tour prior to this season, and a daughter just off to college, Pate admits he's in a different career place than the younger golfers starting out.

He enjoys the ambiance of the Nationwide Tour, where he knows many of the older players. He's also venturing into golf course design; he consulted with noted architect Damian Pascuzzo on a new course, Monarch Dunes, in San Luis Obispo, Calif., and they'll work together on a redesign of Black Butte Ranch's Glaze Meadow golf course and practice range, probably in two years.

And as he competes in the Oregon Classic this weekend, keep in mind that every other golfer in the field would gladly take the career that Steve Pate has had.

OREGON CLASSIC

Play begins at 7:30 a.m. today at Shadow Hills Country Club in Junction City.