Whatever happened to Kenny Knox? First he lost the 1991 PGA to John Daly, then he lost his swing in a quest for distance. Today, he's a businessman who sticks to what he knows best--putting greens Ryan Herrington Golf World Driving his Ford pickup through North Carolina to another job, Kenny Knox reveals a secret. "What I miss more than anything," says the PGA Tour professional-turned-entrepreneur, "is the smell of fresh-cut grass."      One can only wonder if the 30-plus weeks Knox is on the road have gotten the best of him. When you own a company specializing in synthetic putting surfaces--Tour Greens by Kenny Knox--such an admission doesn't seem the most prudent business decision. Spend time with the soon-to-be 45-year-old, though, and you learn, despite his current vocation, there is nothing artificial about Knox.      In the late 1980s and early '90s there was nothing fake about the three-time tour winner's putting stroke either--a smooth pendulum motion that was the envy of fellow pros. Paul Azinger often marveled at how his friend could play so poorly from tee to green, yet make so many cuts. "I knew I was never out of [a tournament]," says Knox, who still holds the tour record for fewest putts in a tournament, 93, set at the 1989 MCI Classic. "I just kept thinking that."      Such guile helped Knox win $1.6 million on the PGA Tour once he finally got there. An All-American at Florida State, Knox patiently waded through Q school seven times before securing his card in 1981. With wife Karen as part-time caddie--among the first spouses to loop--Knox settled into tour life, winning the 1986 Honda Classic despite a third-round 80 (the last tour winner with such a score). He followed it the next year with a victory at the Hardee's Classic and later at the 1990 Southern Open in Columbus, Ga., his boyhood home.      In contention at the 1991 PGA Championship, Knox was paired with John Daly in the final round but shot 74 to finish six strokes behind the long-hitting phenom. Convinced he needed extra length, Knox tinkered with his swing. The move backfired when his new mechanics caused back problems. By winter 1992, he had lost his PGA Tour card and his confidence.      Still attempting to resuscitate his game four years later, Knox was approached about having a synthetic green built at his Tallahassee, Fla., home and agreed, only to be disappointed with the result. "I felt I could do better. It got me thinking," says Knox, whose family was in the construction business. "Meanwhile, my short-game prowess gave me a [marketing] edge."      Since then Knox has installed nearly 500,000 square feet of polypropylene, chiefly for apartment complexes or commercial groups, but occasionally for tour players such as Johnny Miller or Craig Stadler. His work also includes designing par-3 courses and short-game facilities, including one of the latter at Wake Forest.      Knox's approach is hands-on. He hauls his equipment in a 42-foot trailer and oversees work personally. "I've eaten at truck stops and changed my share of flat tires," says Knox. Karen stays active in the business, handling the bookkeeping and scheduling. Even daughter Michelle, a 20-year-old Georgia undergrad, has spent summers building.      Still, Knox can't rid his mind of that scent, explaining his intention to play the senior tour. "Golf taught me you only get out of anything what you put in," he says. "That's helped me in this business. It's a simple philosophy, but it hasn't failed."      Indeed, in a synthetic world, it has proved something quite real.