Bruce Fleisher, winner of the 1999 Lightpath Long Island Classic, held at the Meadowbrook Club in Jericho, recently had a one minute flashback of a potentially disastrous eighteenth hole.

After Fleisher made his second shot on the eighteenth hole during last year's Lightpath Long Island Classic tournament, he retrieved his ball leaving a marker in its place. Buzz Thomas, the golfer putting after Fleisher, asked Fleisher to move his marker as it was in his line of play. Fleisher never moved the mark back to its original position and made his final putt from the wrong spot.

Fleisher still had not realized his mistake as he walked to the scorer's tent. Before he could sign his scorecard, a once unknown spectator noticed the mistake and yelled to Fleisher that he did not putt from the correct location. If Fleisher had submitted his scorecard without giving himself a two-stroke penalty, he would have been disqualified, and second place finisher Allen Doyle would have been declared the winner.

Instead, Fleisher remained the winner with a score of -10 instead of the -12 that he thought he had.

At the Lightpath Long Island Classic's official kickoff, held on June 13, Fleisher spoke to the crowd, including many members of the media, about, among other things, his blunder on the 18th hole. "Some guy named Ralph helped me out and I wish I knew who he was - I'd give him a hundred bucks," he said.

Mysterious Ralph appeared from the crowd. "It was me, Bruce. I am Ralph Lettieri," he said.

Lettieri presented Fleisher with a gold coin - "a reminder to always replace your ball marker after moving it out of a fellow competitors line." The back side of the coin reads: "Move me back Bruce!".

Fleisher then presented Lettieri with his promised reward - a crisp, $100 bill. Fleisher won the championship because of Lettieri's keen eyes and sharp attention to detail.

Also at the kickoff celebration, Fleisher, defending champion of the Lightpath Long Island Classic and 1999 Senior PGA Tour, Rookie of the Year and top money winner, announced his return to this year's tournament. This year's week-long tournament, featuring 78 top Senior PGA Tour professionals, is scheduled for July 24 - 30 at Jericho's Meadow Brook Club.

Fleisher won seven times on the Senior Tour in 1999 and had one of the greatest years for either a rookie or a veteran. He was the first rookie to win his first two starts. He went on to win five more events in a record-setting year in which he captured all the top post-season awards, including Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and the Byron Nelson Trophy for best scoring average. Fleisher was the first rookie since Lee Trevino in 1990 to win the Arnold Palmer Award as the leading money winner with over $2.5 million in prize money, the second largest single season total in history.

This annual event is now in its 14th year and will be held again at the Meadowbrook Club in Jericho. "We look forward to welcoming back our defending champion Bruce Fleisher, past champions Lee Trevino, Raymond Foyd, Dana Quigley, Butch Baird, Don Bies, crowd favorites Gary McCrod, Larry Nelson, Gil Morgan and Chi Chi Rodriguez, rookies Tom Kite and Lanny Wadkins, Long Island favorites Jim Albus and Larry Laoretti and many other notable players," said Jack Russell, Tournament Director. "The Classic purse has been increased $300,000 to $1.5 million, giving this year's winner a $225,000 paycheck."

For the 12th year, Schneider Children's Hospital of North Shore - Long Island Jewish Health System, the 1999 Senior PGA Tour Charity of the Year, will be the beneficiary of the Classic. To date, the Classic has donated over $1,757,500 to the hospital in support of its programs.

"The science of pediatrics is rapidly expanding in its ability to heal and save lives of so many sick and injured children," said Dr. Philip Lanzkowsky, chief of staff at Schneider Children's Hospital, and vice president of the Children's Health Network. "SCH is in the forefront of these ongoing advances and we are deeply grateful to the Classic for its ongoing support of our work."

Tickets for the Lightpath Long Island Classic can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster 1-877-803-7065. To volunteer or for sponsorship opportunities contact the tournament office at 631-753-4357 or email golf@lightpathclassic.com.