ORLANDO, Fla. -- When his playoff clinching putt fell early Sunday evening, Tim Herron thrust his meaty fist in the air a victory pose for couch potatoes everywhere.
In a two-hole playoff battle between two regular guys from Minnesota, Herron (nickname: Lumpy) bested the Dockers man, Tom Lehman, to capture the Bay Hill Invitational.It was, forgive the pun, a delicious turn of events for Herron. All week, as usual, he had answered more questions about his exercise habits (or lack thereof) than his golf ability. Reporters seemed more interested in whether he had a double-club sandwich for lunch, instead of what club he hit into hole 18.
Now look. Herron, the 5-10, 210-pounder (give or take 30 pounds) whose main endorsement companies are Target and Harmon Autoglass, qualified for the April 8-11 Masters by virtue of Sunday's victory.
"I told my girlfriend (on the way to the media tent), 'Yeah, some things are going to change,"' Herron said. "I was going to go up to Minnesota and see her. Now we're going to the Masters instead. That's not a bad deal."
Perhaps now, people will pay more attention to Herron's game than his appearance.
Perhaps now, people will realize that 29-year-old Lumpy, with three PGA Tour victories, should be mentioned among younger tour talents such as Steve Stricker (two victories) and Jim Furyk (three victories), a tier below David Duval, Tiger Woods, Justin Leonard, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson.
"I think I am not far behind," Herron said. "I have been trying to become a little more consistent golfer, instead of one that is kind of hot and cold."
This week, at least, Herron showed there is talent within that less than perfect physique. Using a new driver with a head the size of a Pecos cantaloupe, Herron outdueled two of the world's more respected players, Lehman and Davis Love III (who finished one shot back), to win at one of the PGA Tour's more respected venues, Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill Club at Lodge.
Herron missed an eight-foot birdie attempt on No. 18 that would have ended the tournament in regulation. But, after Herron and Lehman tied the first playoff hole, No. 18, Herron seized the advantage on the next playoff hole, the par-5 16th.
Although Lehman struggled, hitting into a right bunker, pulling his second shot, then overshooting the green on his third, Herron reached the green in two. His two-putt birdie from 15 feet was just the fifth combined birdie of the day by Herron, Lehman and Love over a combined 58 holes.
"It was a hard day to hang in there," said Lehman, whose bogey on the par 3 17th was his first in 35 holes, and dropped him out of the sole lead. "Tim hung in there a little bit better."
Imagine those dark-paneled hallways in the staid club, adorned with pictures of Palmer and Jack Nicklaus in their heyday. Now they'll have to make room for a photo of the '99 champ, who shot 14-under this week, with supportive gallery cries of "way to go, Lumpy," ringing in his ears.
The nickname, given to him by his boss when he worked at a golf course as a teenager, doesn't seem to bother Herron.
"No, because it is a harmless nickname," Herron said. "If they called me something bad, it may wear on me. But Lumpy is like the kid next door. I guess it isn't too bad."
Nor does Herron seem to tire of getting asked more questions about his weight, than his ability.
"Well, if I really got tired of it," he said, "I'd probably stop eating and start exercising, right?"