Preview: 2008 Merrill Lynch Shootout at Tiburon GC

text size

Franklin/Getty Images

At No. 7 in the world, Camilo Villegas is the highest ranked player in the field this week.

NAPLES, Fla. - An impressive field of individuals will meet as partners in Naples this week for the 20th annual Merrill Lynch Shootout. Read on for news and notes regarding the group that will compete at Tiburón Golf Club for the eighth consecutive year.

First-Time Shootout Participants
Four Shootout competitors will play in the Shootout for the first time: Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter, Steve Stricker and Boo Weekley.

2008 Ryder Cup
Victorious U.S. Captain Paul Azinger will be joined by five of his team members at this week's Shootout: Stewart Cink, J.B. Holmes, Kenny Perry, Steve Stricker and Boo Weekley. The European team is also represented by Graeme McDowell and Ian Poulter, who combined for a 6-2-1 record at Valhalla. That is a total of nine individuals who participated in this year's Ryder Cup.

2008 Champions
Six players in the field recorded a total of nine victories during the 2008 season -- J.B. Holmes, Boo Weekley, three-time winner Kenny Perry, Stewart Cink, two-time winner Camilo Villegas and Zach Johnson.

Hall of Fame
Nine members of the World Golf Hall of Fame competed in the inaugural Merrill Lynch Shootout in 1989 -- Raymond Floyd, Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Bernhard Langer, Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer, Curtis Strange and Lee Trevino.

Multiple winners
There were a total of seven multiple winners on the PGA TOUR schedule in 2008. Tiger Woods led the pack with four victories. Kenny Perry and Vijay Singh are next with three wins each. Perry, who will be playing in his fifth consecutive Shootout, won three times during a seven-week stretch. Partner of tournament host Greg Norman, Camilo Villegas won twice. He won back-to-back events in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup to end his season.

Giving Back
Greg Norman, host of the Merrill Lynch Shootout, is one of many in the field who offers assistance to charitable causes. This week is all about continuing the fight against childhood cancer through CureSearch National Childhood Cancer Foundation. Other competitors have specific charities they work with year round.

• Kenny Perry donates five percent of his winnings to Lipscomb University to provide scholarships.

• Fred Couples hosts an event in Seattle to raise money for the Millie Medlin Violet Sobich Couples Fund he started in his mother's honor.

• Brad Faxon has the Billy Andrade-Brad Faxon Charities for Children.

• Fred Funk is heavily involved in local sports and recreation fundraising in his hometown.

• Scott Hoch has a floor named after him at the Arnold Palmer Children's Hospital in Orlando.

• Mark O'Meara is constantly raising awareness and funds for Multiple Sclerosis in honor former caddie Donnie Wanstall.

• Jeff Sluman teamed with Office Max to create "Drive for Hope" to raise money for City of Hope and other charities.

World Golf Rankings
There are 12 players in the field ranked among the top 70 in the Official World Golf Rankings --Camilo Villegas leads that group, ranked No. 7 in the world on the strength of his victories at the BMW Championship and THE TOUR Championship.

Funk's Great Stats Year
Fred Funk had an impressive year on the Champions Tour. Finishing second in the year-long points race to Jay Haas was just part of it. He was also third on the money list, third in Driving Accuracy and third in Greens hit in Regulation.

Scramblers
Jeff Sluman has always been known as one of the top players around the greens. This year, on the Champions Tour, he led all players in the Scrambling category getting the ball up and down from around the green over 68 percent of the time.

Top-10 Talent
On the PGA TOUR this year, Stewart Cink, Kenny Perry and Camilo Villegas were tied for eighth among the players who recorded top-10 finishes. The threesome had seven during the year. Nick Price had 12 top-10 finishes in 18 starts on the Champions Tour.

Gators, 'Noles, Mocs and 'Canes
The field is full of players from Florida colleges and universities: Florida Gators Mark Calcavecchia, Chris DiMarco and Camilo Villegas; Florida State Seminoles Paul Azinger and Jeff Sluman; Florida Southern Moccasin Rocco Mediate and Miami Hurricane Woody Austin.

Driving Distance
J.B. Holmes is -- not surprisingly -- the longest driver in the field this week. Holmes was ranked third on the PGA TOUR with an average drive of 310.3 yards. His longest during the season was a whopping 391 yards.

U.S. Amateur Champion
One player in the field holds the honor of being a former U.S. Amateur Champion -- Scott Verplank.