Azinger recalls Payne Stewart first meeting.

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Azinger testifies in Stewart trial

BY REX HOGGARD
Senior Writer

ORLANDO, FLA. — More than 20 years has passed since his first encounter with Payne Stewart, but Paul Azinger recalls his initial brush with the late golfer in exacting detail.

A putting green at a 1982 tournament in Mississippi was the stage. Stewart was the colorful, one-man show.

"I thought, who's the dude with the earring?" Azinger told an Orange County (Fla.) jury. "When I asked him what they were, he said they were acupuncture needles to help him concentrate. . . . I thought, sure, whatever."

What followed from that less-than-engaging encounter was a relationship Azinger characterized as brotherly, with generous portions of teasing and quarreling. It was a connection Azinger cherished and the thing he's missed the most about his friend, who died in an airplane accident on Oct. 25, 1999.

Azinger was called to testify May 18 in the civil trial initiated by the families of Stewart and the golfer's agent, Robert Fraley, who also died in the accident.

The Stewart and Fraley family attorneys contend the crash was caused by a corroded valve adapter that failed and resulted in a valve breaking away from a chartered Learjet 35. They say a 3-inch hole the valve left caused rapid decompression in the cabin, incapacitating the crew and passengers. After hours of flying on autopilot across the United States, the plane crashed into a South Dakota field.

Attorneys for Learjet, however, say the accident was the byproduct of poor maintenance on the aircraft, which was operated by Florida-based Sunjet, which went out of business in July 2000, and a lack of pilot training, not a failed valve.

If the nine-woman jury agrees with the Stewart family, it could cost Learjet millions in damages. The Stewart estate has estimated the three-time major winner, who was 42, would have made $200 million over the rest of his playing career. On Wednesday, Azinger helped support that argument by remembering an amiable, energetic competitor who connected easily with fans and fellow players despite his often flamboyant appearance.

"If we are birds on the PGA Tour," said Azinger, "Payne was a peacock. He stood out in a crowd."

Azinger said Stewart was "almost forced on me" at first. But over the years, a friendship and mutual respect developed.

In 1993, Azinger edged Stewart to win the Memorial Tournament and remembered how badly he felt after beating his friend. "That's why I didn't want friends on the PGA Tour," Azinger said. In 1994, after Azinger had undergone his first round of chemotherapy treatments for shoulder cancer, Stewart was the first to call him.

"I think it affected his year in 1994," said Azinger, who also was represented by Fraley. "I just don't think his heart was in it. He was distracted by what was going on in my life."

The purpose of his testimony, Azinger said, was to paint a picture of a unique player whose personality and presence off the course was as marketable as his impressive play on it.

"The golf public loved Payne Stewart and trusted Payne Stewart," Azinger said. "Payne would have been marketable until he was 75 years old."

Later in the day, Chicago sports marketing consultant Brian Fitzgerald echoed Azinger's comments about Stewart's charisma and appeal as an endorser.

Fitzgerald told the jury golfers have become the spokespeople of choice because of the sport's wholesome image and integrity.

"Golfers, as a group, are far more attractive as endorsers than other athletes. The integrity the sport carries does a lot for a corporate image," Fitzgerald said. "When you go out and look for a spokesman, someone like Payne Stewart, you look for someone who can move the needle and has those attributes."

The trial is expected to last three more weeks and will include testimony from Stewart's widow, Tracey; Fraley's widow, Dixie; and Dallas Cowboys head coach Bill Parcells, who was represented by Fraley.

Great story...

 

Man I misread the post initially, I thought the title said 20 years since he died...I thought I had aged pretty quick!