Champions Tour Insider: Sutton ready for full season

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Hal Sutton looks forward to reuniting with his pals on the Champions Tour but knows the competition will be fierce.

One after the other, the iron shots flew directly at the flagstick. OK, so maybe they weren't quite so majestic as that 6-iron from 179 yards on the 72nd hole at THE PLAYERS Championship in 2000. That one was elegant -- and heroic.

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These shots were just practice Tuesday but good enough to give Hal Sutton a sense that things are going in the right direction as he embarks on his first full season -- the emphasis on "full" -- on the Champions Tour.

"I hit it good today," Sutton said moments after leaving the practice range. "It's feeling good."

Sutton is targeting 15 to 20 events, at least, on the Champions Tour. "Might be more than that," he said.

And he can't wait. He'll start the campaign by playing four straight events -- the first two each in Florida and California. The stretch begins at the Allianz Championship in Boca Raton, Feb. 13-15, followed by The ACE Group Classic at the new TPC Treviso Bay in Naples, Feb. 20-22. That event has special significance because Sutton was a consultant on the design project with architect Arthur Hills.

The first two stops in California are the Toshiba Classic in Newport Beach and the AT&T Champions Classic in Valencia.

Sutton, 50, made his Champions Tour debut in October with two events. What he discovered is the source of his enthusiasm for the upcoming season.

"It was fun," he said. "I saw my peers. I wanted to see what it was like. I stuck my toe in the water."

Three things, in particular, made an impression.

One, the comfort level was high.

Two, the Champions Tour isn't a defining moment for any of the golfers.

"Their careers already have been defined," Sutton said.

Third, the relaxed approach is different than anything he experienced on the PGA TOUR. The caveat is that "relaxed" should never be mistaken for non-competitive.

"There's camaraderie," Sutton said. "In the pro-am events, toward the sponsors, everything about it. That's what I mean by relaxed. On the golf course, these guys are as competitive as ever."

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Hal Sutton tied for 23rd in his Champions Tour debut in 2008.

Nothing could be better for Sutton, whose competitive instincts are well-documented and were never more apparent than at THE PLAYERS Championship in 2000 when he went toe-to-toe with Tiger Woods and took down the world's best golfer. Sutton said before and during the tournament that he was dismayed at the defeatist attitude displayed by so many golfers who quite vociferously were throwing in the proverbial towel against Woods. Then Sutton went out and backed up his words with shots that were equal parts elegant and eloquent.

Sutton's emphasis in his preparations has been on the scoring game, from the 7-iron down through the wedges. Those were shots he focused on Tuesday.

"On the Champions Tour you have to hit it close and be good around the greens to score," he said.

There have never been any questions about Sutton's redoubtable driving skills. Davis Love III once was asked the significance of playing partners. Love's response was intriguing. He said it wasn't so much who he played with but who he played behind.

Love said he much preferred to play behind golfers who were particularly good drivers. And the first name Love mentioned was Sutton's, saying that playing behind him always prompted positive images because Sutton was always in control of his ball, always in the fairway and always long.

"Coming from someone like Davis, that's a very nice compliment," Sutton said.

Sutton describes the TPC Treviso Bay as a typical Tournament Players Club because there are plenty of risk-reward situations. The club, which opened to member play in December, is also typical of Florida.

"There is one foot of elevation," he said. "So you create very cleverly. There are shot values the guys are going to appreciate."

Champions Tour Insider notes:

• Gary Player is a marvel. He keeps defying the aging process in a couple of very significant ways.

Player, 73, bettered his age in all three rounds last week in Hawaii, shooting 70-71-71. It marked the first time in his career that he's done it in every round. Overall, he has accomplished the feat a dozen times.

Player isn't the first to go 3-for-3. Jerry Barber did it on the Champions Tour at the 1994 Kroger senior Classic. At age 78, Barber shot 74-75-69.

• And what's that about age fraying the nerves on the greens? Nonsense, that's what.

Player led the field in Hawaii with the fewest putts. He needed just 76 putts to complete 54 holes, including 24 in the first and third rounds. The correlation is obvious. To shoot your age, it's a mighty good idea to have a putter that is foolproof.

• Is this a case of a new broom always sweeping clean or has Andy Bean found something really special? Take the latter.

Since having his club's stolen at last year's Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn, Bean has gone on a tear with new sticks. He has finished T3, T11, T6, T20, 1st and 2nd last week, with 14 straight rounds of par or better.

P.S. My clubs are in the trunk and the trunk is unlocked. Please, do me a favor.

Vartan Kupelian is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily reflect the views of the PGA TOUR.