USA: Doctors remove tumor from 71-year old Merle Haggard's lung

. BAKERSFIELD, California (USA Today / AP), November 5, 2008 Merle Haggard is recovering after having a malignant tumor removed from his lung. Friends said Monday's surgery at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital was a success and that the 71-year-old country crooner was in stable condition. Doctors informed Haggard, who's from a Bakersfield suburb, about a spot on his lung in May. He told The Bakersfield Californian in August that he wasn't going to seek treatment, but friends and family members convinced him otherwise. Haggard became a household name after the anthem Okie From Muskogee hit No. 1 in 1969. He has had 38 No. 1 hits stretching back to 1966. Copyright 2008 USA TODAY