Lionel Green
The Cullman Times
Published on: 04-26-2004
"The sun came out," said Jo Hanes-Withey of Corr Wireless. "What more could we ask for?"
The rains stayed away, giving the celebrity field in the ninth annual CorrClassic golf tournament a windy but sunny Monday to try out the links at Terri Pines in Cullman.
Hanes-Withey said proceeds from the tournament go to Relay For Life, adding that the tournament usually makes more than $2,000 for the charity.
Several big names were participating in the event. Among them were former Alabama quarterback Jay Barker, and former National Football League greats Dan Pastorini, Roman Gabriel and Bill Bergey. Others included Sean "The Beast" Fister, a long drive specialist, and race car driver Tina Gordon.
Fister is 6-5, 225 pounds, and has hit a 475-yard wind-aided drive before. His average drive is 360 yards. He was belting them about 380 yards at the 18th hole of Terri Pines.
The former decathlete from Florida didn't start playing golf until the age of 25 after breaking his back while training for the Olympics. He says his ability to hit the long drive is a natural gift. He comes from an athletic family that's produced five pro baseball players.
"I think it's all about hand speed," he said. "After I started, I fell in love with it. I have a knack for it."
He got his nickname, "The Beast," while playing softball for Dillard's corporate team. He was a buyer for the company at the time.
"Mike Dillard gave me the name and it just stuck," he said.
Fister has played with many of the greats, including John Daly, Lee Trevino and Arnold Palmer. While Fister's low round is 64, he said he's an even-par golfer. Why doesn't he join the pro tour?
"Every time I think about it, I shoot 80," he said.
Fister, who lives in Little Rock, Ark., will throw out the first pitch at a St. Louis Cardinals game next month.
Barker is finding out there's life after football. The former Alabama quarterback, who was 35-2-1 as a starter, is working in radio, restaurants and real estate. He spent three seasons in the pros before leaving the game for good.
"I miss the camaraderie but not the practices," he said. "I think I got more excited for the fans. This is great. People want to play golf with me. It can't get better than that. But all this stuff is a pedestal to share my faith and talk about my relationship with the Lord."
Barker said the situation at Alabama over the past few years with the coaches is "tough to watch. The people I really feel for are the players. I had stability with Coach (Gene) Stallings. I worry more about the kids because they only get one shot in four or five years."
Barker thinks current coach Mike Shula "is doing great. He'll do fine with his perspective on life and family. That's what's important. Coach Stallings wasn't just a football coach to me. He was a life coach. He taught us how to be good fathers and men."
Another football great, Pastorini, was the number one pick by the Houston Oilers in the NFL draft -- third overall -- in 1971. Before retiring from football in 1984, he led the Oilers to two conference championship games in 1978 and 1979. He's also a top racer and was the third man to break the 270-mile per hour barrier in a top fuel dragster.
Today, he works for a company that sells digital photo management systems for law enforcement agencies and races a Porsche 993. He plans on racing in the Grand Am series next year.
"I don't think much about (my football career)," he said. "It's just one of those things ... you go on with your life."
Pastorini does talk about football, though. He and his good friend (and former NFL quarterback) Gifford Nielson do a TV show in Houston called "The Quarterbacks."
"I enjoy working with my friend, Giff," Pastorini said. "It's fun. The ratings are great, and I hope to do it as long people like to listen to our B.S."
How did he feel about the Oilers leaving town and heading to Tennessee?
"It was a pretty tough situation for the city," he said. "For us Oilers ... we have no obligation to the (Houston) Texans or the (Tennessee) Titans. We're kind of caught in the middle. We're like cult heroes or something. It's like we don't exist."
