Notes: Azinger recovering at home after motorcycle crash

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The Champions Tour returns to Prestonwood CC in Cary, N.C., for the SAS Championship. The tournament is the 21st of 26 Charles Schwab Cup events and carries a purse of $2.1 million with $315,000 and 315 Charles Schwab Cup points going to the winner. Last year, Tom Pernice Jr., holed a 36-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win in his debut, becoming the 15th player in Champions Tour history to do so. David Frost and Nick Price tied for second, one stroke behind.

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LAST WEEK

· Paul Azinger is recovering from injuries he sustained from a motorcycle accident near his Bradenton, Fla., home. Azinger, a Champions Tour rookie this year, was injured and transported to Blake Medical Center. According to his agent, he is being treated at home and won't be able to swing a club for about 10 weeks.

· Fuzzy Zoeller continues his involvement in the auto racing world. This year's Firestone Indy Lights race at Homestead-Miami Speedway will be "Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka 100." Zoeller's brand has sponsored IndyCar Series driver Ed Carpenter for the past several races. The Indy Lights series is development circuit of the IndyCar Series.

· It was announced that the 2010 Principal Charity Classic, which attracted a record crowd of 74,000, will donate a record $620,000 to local children's charities.

· Gary Wolstenholme completed a wire-to-wire victory at the casa Serena Open in just his second start on the European Senior Tour, securing his playing rights for the next two years.

COMING UP

· Defending champion Tom Pernice Jr. comes into this year's SAS Championship on a hot streak. He's finished among the top-10 in six straight Champions Tour events, including a second at the Home Care & Hospice First Tee Open at Pebble Beach and a third at the Posco E&C Songdo Championship.

· Bruce Lietzke is the only player to successfully defend a title at the SAS Championship, winning back-to-back in 2001 and 2002.

· If you've never been to the World Golf Hall of Fame, you'll probably want to visit after witnessing the SAS Championship. Eight Hall of Fame members -- Ben Crenshaw, Lee Trevino, Bernhard Langer, Hale Irwin, Nick Price, Curtis Strange, Tom Kite and Larry Nelson -- are in the field.

· U.S. Ryder Cup Team co-captain Tom Lehman is the only player of the current top ten Charles Schwab Cup points leaders not scheduled to compete in the SAS Championship.

· This year's SAS Championship will be played at the same venue for the 10th consecutive time with the same title sponsor. The only other events on the current Champions Tour schedule to share (or better) this distinction include the Toshiba Classic (15 years at Newport Beach CC) and the 3M Championship (10 years at TPC Twin Cities).

· Bernhard Langer is bidding to become the first international player to win the Charles Schwab Cup.

· Can the SAS Championship produce another first-time winner to make it three-in-a-row on the Champions Tour? The previous two first-time winners are Ted Schulz (Home Care & Hospice First Tee Open at Pebble Beach) and Russ Cochran (Posco E&C Songdo Championship). 2004 was the last time there were three consecutive first-time winners on the Champions Tour (Mark James/Ford Senior Players Championship, Pete Oakley/Senior British Open and Peter Jacobsen/U.S. Senior Open).

· Mark Wiebe, the 2007 SAS Championship winner, will make his 47th consecutive start on the Champions Tour, the longest current streak.

· There has never been a playoff at the SAS Championship.

· Proceeds from this year's SAS Championship will benefit Y Learning, the YMCA's standardized after-school tutorial program. Currently more than 600 children from area schools participate in Y Learning at little or no cost, thanks to the Y's WeBuildPeople Campaign.

· Saturday will be particularly busy at Prestonwood CC. In the morning, the tournament will host the inaugural Blue Points 5K race prior to the second round, which will take place on the cart paths of the back nine. At the conclusion of play, a grand prize winner from a joint promotion between the Durham Bulls and the SAS Championship will participate in a $1 million putting challenge.

· Golf Channel and Time Warner Cable's Connect a Million Minds initiative have combined to introduce "On the Greens and Behind the Scenes" at the SAS Championship on Thursday afternoon. About 25 Raleigh-area middle-school students will be invited to participate in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education program, an interactive tour where kids learn in a fun, golf-themed environment. They will meet with Champions Tour professionals on the range and visit the television production compound.

ON THIS DATE

· Sept. 20, 1992 -- One week after his Champions Tour debut, Raymond Floyd outguns Mike Hill for the GTE North Classic. The victory makes Floyd at the time the only player to win both a PGA TOUR and Champions Tour events in the same year. Floyd then donates his winnings to the Hurricane Andrew Relief Fund.

· Sept. 22, 2002 -- One year after winning the SAS Championship, Bruce Lietzke defends his crown, pulling away for a four-stroke margin over Gil Morgan, Sammy Rachels and Tom Watson near Raleigh. He helped his cause with a tournament-record 63 in the second round.

· Sept. 26, 1999 -- The United States team, led by captain Ben Crenshaw, rallies from four points down the final day to capture the 1999 Ryder Cup at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass.

· Sept. 26, 2004 -- Craig Stadler makes its three straight wins in three starts when he wins the SAS Championship by six strokes over Tom Jenkins near Raleigh, N.C.

QUOTES TO NOTE

· "It's hard to pick one. Winning the Grand Slam on the PGA TOUR and again on the Champions Tour were great accomplishments" -- Gary Player, asked to choose a favorite moment from his career.

· "It'll be a good fall. I'll get to watch lots of football" -- Craig Stadler, who'll be out of action until at least December, after hip replacement surgery last week.