TRADITION MARCHES FORWARD AT CAPE C.C.

One of local golf's most tradition-rich -- and by far most unique -- tournaments is ready for its 23rd edition.

The annual Lassies Classic -- a Scottish-themed tournament patterned after the "Old Course" in St. Andrews, Scotland -- will be played today and Thursday at the Cape Girardeau Country Club.

A full field of 200 players -- from five states -- will once again participate.

"We've got a full house again and we're looking forward to another very good tournament," said tourney creator and organizer Marion Miles. "We started out with 30 teams but now we have 100 teams every year and we always fill up very, very quick. People seem to think it's a very good tournament."

So good, in fact, that the event could easily field well over 100 teams.

"We tried it with 106 one year, but we didn't like it," Miles said. "We like it right at 100."

Miles said the idea for the tournament originated from a trip she and her husband took to Scotland more than 20 years ago.

"My husband and I played the Old Course at St. Andrews, where the first women's golf association was formed in 1868," she said. "We came back and decided to have a tournament."

Tartan plaid flags will line the entrance to the Cape Girardeau Country Club when play in the two-woman, 36-hole scramble event begins at 8 a.m. today.

Golfers will play around Loch Lomond and across Loch Ness, where the Monster of Loch Ness resides. The 25-foot, multi-colored monster has been a fixture of the tournament since it began.

"We stick to the same pattern all the time. We pattern the course after the Old Course at St. Andrews and stick to the Scottish theme," said Miles. "We've got bagpipes, tartan flags on the greens and even a gathering of the clan dinner at the clubhouse (tonight)."

Once again, the team to beat figures to be Harriett Myers and Diane Fowler of New Madrid, who have won the past three titles.

"I wonder if everybody is getting tired of the same team winning all the time," joked Miles.

While Myers and Fowler rank as the favorites again, Miles said the duo should receive stiff competition from several teams, including perennial contenders Vicki Long of Cape Girardeau and Janice Hoffman of Dexter.

"It's always a very competitive tournament," Miles said. "But the main thing is everybody has a lot of fun and really enjoys themselves."