So there was Mark Calcavecchia, sitting in the Royal & Ancient clubhouse last July at the past champions dinner a few days prior to the start of the British Open at the Old Course at St. Andrews, when he looked around the room and jet lag … er, make that jet set, kicked in.

Hmmm. Here are Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson and Gary Player and Ernie Els and Greg Norman and Nick Faldo and Nick Price and, etc., etc. and, well, it’s a nice fraternity. Next thing you know, an epiphany seizes him. “I was sitting there thinking, ‘You know, it’s true. I really was good once.’ ”

Once? Calcavecchia won the Bell Canadian Open later in the year, proving he is still good. And, the fact is, you have to be good merely to be a member of the PGA TOUR, let alone win one of the 48 official tournaments.

The top level of professional golf has no utility substitutes, benchwarmers, defensive specialists or one-tool players. You either have it or you don’t, and those who have it constitute a miniscule percentage of the world population. These guys not only are good, but they’re few and far between.

Nice fraternity, especially when you’re playing for $255 million, the available prize money in ‘06. Only 34 men qualified for an even better fraternity in ’05: PGA TOUR winners. We tend to think that the brotherhood might be a shade larger in ’06.

Let’s look at some probable additions. For starters, Els should win again. Davis Love III is due. Fred Couples has one more in the holster. How does Charles Howell III not add to his lone triumph from 2002? Joe Ogilvie and Hank Kuehne seem poised for breakthroughs. So is Aaron Baddeley, the best putter never to win on TOUR. Speaking of putting, aren’t Scott Verplank’s short-game skills good enough for more trophies? Isn’t Chris DiMarco’s star still rising, especially after his Presidents Cup performance?

Those are just some thoughts. Here are more as we look ahead to 2006:

Major championship predictions: Masters, Davis Love III; U.S. Open (at Winged Foot), Phil Mickelson; British Open (at Hoylake, England), Jim Furyk; PGA Championship (at Medinah C.C.), Tiger Woods.

Fifth major prediction: Singh, a Ponte Vedra Beach resident and biggest sod mover at the Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass, finally gets his PLAYERS Championship.

Projected top-10 money winners: Woods, Furyk, Singh, Mickelson, David Toms, Ernie Els, Adam Scott, Love, Chris DiMarco, Luke Donald.

Rookie most likely to make THE TOUR Championship : Ryan Moore.

Early Ryder Cup line: Europe minus-1½. Home team has to be favored, especially in light of the Oakland Hills massacre.

Vijay Singh looks to duplicate a 2005 that saw him win four times. (Greenwood/ WireImage)

Early Ryder Cup prediction: USA 14½, Europe 13½.

Injury watch: Els, Brad Faxon, John Daly. These men will be fascinating studies, especially Daly, whose broken hand might remain a mystery until deep into the season of his new reality show on The Golf Channel. But the real drama might be supplied by Bob May, runner-up to Woods at the 2000 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club. He missed out at Q-school, but has a 15-tournament medical exemption dating back two years. He’s been sidelined since the 2003 EDS Byron Nelson Championship, where he wrenched his back hitting a tee shot. He finally had surgery last year to correct a narrowing spine and two bulging discs.

Best potential feel-good story: Not Jason Gore, but former Clemson All-American John Engler, who tied for 13th at Q-school. Driving home to Augusta, Ga., after a Hooters Tour event two years ago, Engler was involved in a horrific accident that claimed two lives. He was trapped in a burning car with a badly broken leg and head injuries, and nearly lost his leg to a staph infection. His prognosis did not include walking, let alone playing professional golf. "Words can't describe what it feels like to get the opportunity to get it all back," Engler said after earning his TOUR card.

Record that might not be broken for a while: Chris DiMarco’s earnings mark without a victory. He pocketed $3,562,548, to beat Toms’ record from 2002. In poker terms, DiMarco kept finishing with the second-best hand. He’ll have at least one winning hand in ’06 as he rides the Presidents Cup bounce.

Record that will be broken soon: The number of millionaires in a season; the record is 77 in 2004. Look for 80 in ’06.

Out on a limb prediction: Woods shoots 57 somewhere this year. Best chance? At the Buick Open at Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club in Grand Blanc, Mich.