Murray Thrills Libraries With Golf Hand-Out

Funnyman Bill Murray has thrilled bookworms in Salinas, California, by handing over his winnings from last week's (09FEB05) AT+T PEBBLE BEACH NATIONAL PRO-AM golf tournament to the seaside town's libraries.

Murray was horrified when he read a local newspaper story about three Salinas public libraries closing for lack of funds, and decided to do what he could to keep them open - as the town is the birthplace of one of his favourite authors, JOHN STEINBECK.

The LOST IN TRANSLATION star designated the libraries as his charity in Wednesday's (09FEB05) Celebrity Challenge, which he won, and handed over a $14,000 (GBP7,370) cheque.

Murray says, "You look in the newspaper and you see that a library is closing and it sounds kind of pathetic and stupid. I figure a talented golfer like myself is gonna win some money here, and it gave me a reason to compete and to dominate."

Other stars who turned up for the celebrity tournament included KEVIN COSTNER, Samuel L Jackson and Donald Trump.