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Watson, Norman and Jacobsen to play in ADT Skills Challenge
 
Nov. 1, 2007
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Four of the world's most prominent pro golfers will partner with current and former star athletes in the 2007 ADT Golf Skills Challenge to take place Monday, Nov. 5, at The Fairmont Turnberry Isle Resort & Club in Miami, Fla.

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Bubba Watson led the TOUR in Driving Distance in 2007. (WireImage)

A total of $820,000 in prize money is at stake in the event's team competition with the following pairings set:

  • Greg Norman, golf icon and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame - affectionately known by fans as the "Great White Shark", and New York Yankees standout Roger Clemens, one of the best pitchers in baseball history.

  • Peter Jacobsen, winner of the 2004 U.S. Senior Open and the 2005 Senior Players Championship, plus ADT Skills Champion in 1992, 1993 and 2005, and future NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, the consensus greatest wide receiver in NFL history.

  • Bubba Watson, arguably the tour's longest player and the fifth place finisher in the 2007 U.S. Open, and Dan Marino, NFL Hall of Famer and former Miami Dolphins' great who holds the NFL records for single season and career passing yards.

  • Natalie Gulbis, top LPGA pro, winner of the 2007 Evian Masters and member of both the 2005 and 2007 victorious U.S. Solheim Cup teams, and John Elway, the NFL Hall of Famer and two-time Super Bowl Champion quarterback of the Denver Broncos.

    • The competition challenges players through a series of eight skills: Long Drive, Mid Iron Shot, Greenside Bunker, Pitch Over Hazard, Trouble Shot, Chip Shot, Putting and the culminating skill, Short Iron.

    The 2007 format places maximum emphasis on the final skill -- the Short Iron. A $250,000 first prize will be at stake on that skill alone with the teams earning an extra Short Iron shot for every skill that they win from among the first seven. The team that wins each skill will also split $20,000.

    In some cases, competitors are donating prize money to designated charities to be determined.

    The total prize money follows:

    • First Place Team splits - $250,000

    • Second Place Team splits - $150,000

    • Third Place Team splits - $135,000

    • Fourth Place Team splits - $125,000

    With each skill also awarding $20,000, total prize money is $820,000.

    Marino returns this year as the defending champion after capturing the title last year with his partner, Jason Gore.

    Over the years, the competition has featured the biggest names in golf, including Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Norman, Phil Mickelson, Nick Faldo, Vijay Singh and Mike Weir.

    In 2003, a format change allowed for the inclusion of former record-setting Major League Baseball slugger Mark McGwire, who went on to win the competition, outperforming a field of Norman, Nick Faldo, Peter Jacobsen, Padraig Harrington, Colin Montgomerie, Dudley Hart, Paul Azinger and Rich Beem. Since that time, the event has continued to expand its pool of participants to athletes from various professional sports.

    The PGA TOUR-sanctioned competition will be staged at The Fairmont Turnberry Isles' par-5, 18th, where players will have to play the trouble shot through the waterfall mist onto a heavily-undulating island green. It is the finishing hole of the new South golf course, designed by World Golf Hall of Fame inductee Raymond Floyd, part of the resort's $100 million renovation.

    Now in its 16th year, the ADT Skills Challenge is among the longest running events from golf's so-called "Challenge Season." It is etched on the calendar as the only golf on network television (NBC) in late December, when the sport is in its off season.

    All eight players will wear microphones as part of an elaborate production that showcases great shot-making and player personalities for the televised event scheduled to air on Saturday and Sunday, December 29th and 30th on NBC.

    Boca Raton-based ADT Security Services returns as the title sponsor of the event for its sixth consecutive year.