Perry soaking up memories as he makes them in Atlanta

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Sep. 26, 2009
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents

ATLANTA -- Kenny Perry calls it "scrapbooking."

For those not familiar with the word -- and it is in the dictionary -- that's the hobby of compiling photographs and other mementos to store in special keepsake albums.

And actually, the 49-year-old Perry is living those memories right now -- not cataloging them just yet.

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Remember last year's Ryder Cup at Valhalla where the native Kentuckian went 2-1-1 to the delight of a rowdy and rambunctious home crowd as the United States beat the Europeans to snap a three-match losing streak?

And what about that "humbling" Payne Stewart Award Perry received on Tuesday in recognition of his philanthropic efforts, character and sportsmanship?

Perry is looking to make even more memories at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola. He takes a two-stroke lead into Sunday's final round at East Lake, where he will play with none other than Tiger Woods.

"I love playing with him," said Perry, who fired a 64 on Saturday that included birdies on his first four holes. "He's a great guy, great competitor, and we all learn from him. He's made us all better. He's made me better. Here I am at 49, I'm still trying to beat him.

"He'd better bring his 'A' game is all I've got to say."

Perry was joking, of course. But he would like nothing better than to beat the world's No. 1 on Sunday and have a chance to win the FedExCup should Woods finish in a three-way tie for third or worse. He doesn't plan on dwelling on the possibilities, though.

"I probably won't pay a lot of attention to the boards," said Perry, who is seeking his third win of the season. "If I can just kind of maintain what I'm doing right now and keep playing, I think we'll just see. ...

"Everybody will kind of be figuring the numbers and percentages. It might be exciting tomorrow."

But it's not the $10 million bonus Perry covets or even the $1.35 million first prize -- although the man who donates 5 percent of his earnings to Lipscomb University could certainly do wonders with the cash.

No, the satisfaction would be in the challenge met -- and another memory made for his growing scrapbook.

"Ronnie Ferguson, he got me going; he got me the money I needed to get through the qualifying school," Perry recalled. "He taught me a lot of things, taught me about giving, benevolence. To me that's what it's all about.

"That's why I talked about the 11 million is not going to change my life any. I won't do anything with it. I'll probably end up giving it away more than I'll keep it. To me that's more important. ... I've got everything I need."

Indeed. No matter what happens in the final round, Perry hopes to lift the spirits of his mother, who is at home in Kentucky, gravely ill with cancer. And with his wife and two daughters in attendance and son on the bag, Sunday has all the makings of a magical afternoon.

"To have Justin caddying for me and be able to see me in my element under the heat, under the utmost pressure you could probably have on yourself, I'll draw a lot on The Masters tomorrow," Perry said. "I was feeling a lot of heat that day."

Perry was bitterly disappointed when he lost in that playoff to Angel Cabrera at Augusta National. But the gracious way he handled the defeat led to a tremendous outpouring of support from fans worldwide that overwhelmed the humble country boy from Franklin, Ky.

In 23 years on the PGA TOUR, Perry has won 15 times, and all but four have come since he turned 40. It's hardly Vijay Singh-like numbers -- the highly driven Fijian has 34 and 22 since hitting the big 4-0 -- but significant in his own Bruce Lietzke-like way, nonetheless.

"Vijay has won many more tournaments than KP has, not just here in the United States but all over the world," Woods said. "I think that's a tribute to his work ethic. He's really worked hard.

"And KP, golf is not his No. 1 priority, his family is. He has other interests off the course such as racing, which he loves to do, and certainly that takes time away from his practicing. KP, I think he's made a resurgence over the last few years because he's seen that 50 is coming up."

Perry has won five times over the last 15 months -- second only to Woods, who has seven in the same time frame and 10 in the last two years. He plans to scale back his schedule to spend more time with his parents in 2010, though, playing the tournaments he really enjoys while making a few forays onto the Champions Tour when his signature birthday comes on Aug. 10.

"I'll kind of have the best of both worlds going," he said.

And just in case Fred Couples is listening, Perry has another request. He wants to make another memory for his scrapbook and play with Woods at The Presidents Cup.

"I'm kind of putting a plug in early," Perry said with a grin. "Y'all get that in the papers so he can read it.'

Consider it done.