Storylines: March 17, 2008

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Four events into the 2008 season, next week (March 24-30) the Nationwide Tour plays its first domestic event of the year, the Chitimacha Louisiana Open presented by Dynamic Industries in Lafayette, La.

NATIONWIDE TOUR TO BEGIN DOMESTIC SCHEDULE NEXT WEEK IN LOUISIANA -- After playing events in Panama, Mexico, New Zealand and Australia, next week the Nationwide Tour launches the domestic portion of its 30-event schedule. Between the Chitimacha Louisiana Open presented by Dynamic Industries (March 24-30) and the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship at TPC Craig Ranch in Texas (Nov. 3-9), the Tour will play 25 events on U.S. soil, plus one more on international turf, the new Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic in Ontario, Canada in late June. In 2009 the Nationwide Tour is playing for a record of nearly $19 million in prize money. For the first time, the Tour will play events offering $1 million purses, the Nationwide Tour Players Cup in West Virginia in July and the finale, the Nationwide Tour Championship at TPC Craig Ranch. As the official proving ground of the PGA TOUR, 25 PGA TOUR cards will be awarded to the Tour's leading money winners at season's end.

HOT PGA TOUR PLAYER SEAN O'HAIR HAS GOOD CHITIMACHA MEMORIES -- March 2008 has been a good month for former Nationwide Tour player Sean O'Hair. Two weeks ago he was 162nd in FedExCup points. A win at the PODS Championship win and a T2 on Sunday in the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard vaulted him to fifth spot on the points list. March of 2005 was also a good month for O'Hair. While already a PGA TOUR regular, he played in one Nationwide Tour event that year, the Chitimacha Louisiana Open, and finished runner-up to Ryan Hietala, making a number of fans in the Bayou state who, no doubt, continue to follow him on the PGA TOUR where he is doing very nicely.

100th DIFFERENT WINNER WATCH IS STILL ON -- The PGA TOUR moves to Doral this week for the World Golf Championship -- CA Championship. The next first-time PGA TOUR winner with Nationwide Tour roots will be the 100th different alumni to win on TOUR. Last month Brian Gay became the 99th player to do so when he won the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya. Collectively, former Nationwide Tour players account for 223 PGA TOUR wins, with six coming in 2008.

BANK OF AMERICA OPEN ANNOUNCES "AMATEUR INVITATIONAL" -- The Nationwide Tour's Bank of America Open (formerly LaSalle Bank Open) in Chicago will host its first-ever Amateur Invitational. On Monday, April 21 at Oak Park Country Club in River Grove, Ill., approximately 60 amateur golfers will compete for an automatic exemption into the Open, with a $5,000 donation going to the winner's charity of choice. The Bank of America Open will also donate $5,000 to the Sunshine Through Golf Foundation. Organized in conjunction with the Chicago District Golf Association (CDGA), the Bank of America Open Amateur Invitational will invite the top golfers in Illinois to participate. The contestant entry fee is $100 with all proceeds benefiting the Foundation. The Amateur Invitational exemption will go to the player with the low 18-hole score on April 21st. The 2008 Bank of America Open will take place May 29 -- June 1 at The Glen Club in Glenview, Ill.

MATT EVERY TEES UP TIM TEBOW -- New Nationwide Tour member Matt Every was happy to come to the aid of a fellow University of Florida Gator Tim Tebow recently. Every, a three-time UF All-American golfer, was in Gainesville, Fla., for the Urban Meyer Scramble for Kids Pro-Am at Mark Bostick Golf Course earlier this month when he and current Gator golf star Manuel Villegas gave the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner a few pointers. According to the Gainesville Sun, once they got him lined up and relaxed and hitting the ball on the upswing, the bruising Gator quarterback started sending balls "literally out of sight". "The power display was pretty remarkable and left a handful of spectators in awe," the Sun story said. "And when he kept it in play, his shots were ending up near the green on the 376-yard par 4 first hole where the lesson took place".