In a golf world often knocked for its overpaid players squeezed out of cookie cutter molds, Allen Doyle shatters the mold. He was the oldest PGA Tour rookie in history more than a decade ago and probably tees off as the least-likely Champions Tour star in today's first round of the Turtle Bay Championship.

He grew up in New England and graduated from Norwich (Vermont) University as the top-scoring defenseman in school hockey history and the ECAC golf champion with a slap-shot swing.

He and wife Kate settled in Georgia and had daughters Erin, now 28, and Michelle, 27. Both Doyles worked fulltime, Allen at a textile company before starting his own driving range. He moonlighted as one of the country's finest amateur golfers, earning a place in the Georgia Sports and Golf Hall of Fames.

As Erin and Michelle approached college, their lofty academic aspirations left the family in a quandary. "They wanted to go to a real good college that was going to cost me 30 or 40 grand a year," recalled Doyle, now 59. "I had half of that."

He came up with an interesting solution. Doyle turned pro at age 46, won enough money on the Nationwide Tour to earn PGA Tour playing privileges for two years, then clawed his way onto the Champions Tour at 50 by winning the 1998 Qualifying Tournament. He has won almost $13 million since, in a bucket-of-balls to buy-the-golf-course saga that still leaves his family somewhat in shock.

"At every level people have kind of looked like 'Hey, this guy doesn't belong here,' with his swing and background," said daughter Michelle Griffith. "At every single level he's proven them wrong. It's been amazing.

"The thing about it is, he hasn't changed. Maybe some, but he's still grounded. The money hasn't changed him at all. The money is definitely nice. I can't lie and say its not, coming (to) places like Hawai'i for two weeks."

Michelle's husband Chad will caddie for Doyle this week. Older daughter Erin Packer was on the bag last week at the MasterCard Championship, when Doyle came in second to Fred Funk, who will defend his Turtle Bay title this weekend. Both girls have caddied for their father since they were little, with Erin going fulltime for a couple years after college.

"For me, it's always in the back my mind — 'Don't screw up, don't screw up, don't screw up,' " Erin said. "I caddied for him at the 1991 U.S. Amateur. I was 11. How in the world could he have me as a caddie at a major, major tournament at age 11? It blows my mind. But to caddie for him as a professional was a great, great experience. I took away a lot of course management. I don't know if I helped him much, but I got a lot out of it."

Ironically, both girls got enough out of growing up around their dad's golf to earn college scholarships (to South Alabama and Southern Mississippi). The tuition that inspired his professional career never had to be paid.

"Turned out I didn't need it," Doyle laughed. "But we've endowed scholarships at both places so it costs me anyway. But I'm glad to help."

When Doyle turned pro, he was earning less than $30,000 a year. When he was the seniors' 2001 Player of the Year, with two wins and 25 top-10 finishes, he won the inaugural Charles Schwab Cup and a $1 million annuity. He donated it to six charities, telling GolfWorld "It just seemed like the right thing to do. I actually didn't have to think too long and hard about it."

It's what a guy does when he is making $30,000 one year, driving his pickup and running errands at Wal-Mart, and $1.3 million a decade later, still driving his pickup to Wal-Mart. He understands what it takes, to survive and to help others survive.

Always has, according to his kids, who know exactly what they will tell their kids about their grandfather.

"I'll say he worked hard when he owned a driving range and wasn't making much money," Erin said. "He was a great golfer and kept practicing and kept practicing. He had a dream of going out to make up for the lost time he didn't play when he was younger. It shows with hard work and perseverance you can accomplish things. It was never about the money for him, it's about winning the tournaments."

"I'll tell my kids that he was darn good," Michelle adds. "His drive and determination ... he has an extremely hard work ethic. He started a First Tee (junior) program at home. I'm executive director. He's chairman of our board of directors. When he's home, he's at First Tee every morning, cutting the grass, pulling weeds. It's just stuff he loves doing."

And it beats paying tuition.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.