WORLD GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS Bridgestone Invitational
Site: Akron, Ohio. Last year: Tiger Woods won the tournament for the fourth time in six years, closing with a 71 to hold off Chris DiMarco by a stroke. Last week: Woods won the PGA Championship at Medinah for his 12th professional major title, shooting 69-68-65-68 for an 18-under 270 total and five-stroke victory over Shaun Micheel. Woods, second behind Jack Nicklaus (18) in career major titles, won his third straight event and second major in a row. Also the 1999 and '00 PGA winner, the 30-year-old Woods has 51 American PGA TOUR victories in 197 starts as a pro. Notes: Woods swept the 1999-01 tournaments at Firestone. He won by 11 strokes in 2000, matching the course record with a 61 en route to a tournament-record 21-under 259 total. In 2001, he outlasted Jim Furyk with a birdie on the seventh extra hole. ... Woods has 10 victories, 18 top-10 finishes and earnings of $13,102,500 in 20 career World Golf Championships starts. He also teamed with David Duval to win the World Cup in 2000. ... Phil Mickelson won the 1996 World Series of Golf at Firestone. ... Jose Maria Olazabal also shot a 61 in his 12-stroke victory in the 1990 World Series of Golf. ... Tom Lehman completed the U.S. Ryder Cup team Monday, adding Stewart Cink and Scott Verplank as captain's picks. Woods topped the 10 automatic qualifiers, followed by Mickelson, Furyk, Chad Campbell, David Toms, DiMarco, Vaughn Taylor, J.J. Henry, Zach Johnson and Brett Wetterich. ... The Deutsche Bank Championship is next week in Norton, Massachusetts, followed by the Canadian Open in Hamilton, Ontario. PGA TOUR leaders: Victories, Woods, 5. Money, Woods, $6,351,563. Scoring, Woods, 68.78 per round. Putting, Brian Gay, 1.710 per green reached in regulation. Greens in regulation, Woods, 73.5 percent. Eagles, John Rollins, 78.0 holes per eagle. Birdies, Woods, 4.68 per round. Sand saves, Luke Donald, 65.0 percent. Driving distance, Bubba Watson, 319.3 yards. Driving accuracy, Fred Funk, 78.4 percent. Total driving, Chris Smith, 74 total placings in distance and accuracy categories. All-Around, Robert Allenby, 209 total placings in all categories. On the Net: http://www.worldgolfchampionships.com PGA Tour site: http://www.pgatour.com PGA European Tour site: http://www.europeantour.com PGA TOUR Reno-Tahoe Open
Site: Reno, Nevada. Last year: Vaughn Taylor successfully defended his title, finishing with a tournament-record 21-under total for a three-stroke victory. Last week: Woods won the PGA Championship at Medinah for his 12th professional major, shooting 69-68-65-68 for an 18-under 270 total and five-stroke victory over Shaun Micheel. Notes: Taylor is skipping his title defense to play in the Bridgestone Invitational. ... Former University of Nevada player Kirk Triplett won the 2003 event, closing with a 63 for a three-stroke victory. ... The Deutsche Bank Championship is next week in Norton, Massachusetts, followed by the Bell Canadian Open in Hamilton, Ontario. On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com CHAMPIONS TOUR JELD-WEN Tradition
Site: Aloha, Oregon. Last year: Loren Roberts won the major for his first Champions Tour title, topping Dana Quigley with a bogey on the first hole of a playoff. Last week: Tom Kite won the Boeing Greater Seattle Classic for his ninth Champions Tour victory, beating Keith Fergus with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff. Notes: The tournament -- in its fourth year in Oregon after 14 seasons in the Phoenix area -- is the fifth and final senior major of the year. ... Roberts won the Senior British Open last month at Turnberry for his fourth victory of the year. He has five wins in 21 career senior starts. ... Craig Stadler won the 2004 event, with birdies on the final four holes for a one-stroke victory. ... Three of last four holes are par 5s. ... The Wal-Mart First Tee Open is next week at Pebble Beach Tour leaders: Victories, Roberts, 4. Money, Roberts, $1,843,472. Scoring, Roberts, 68.96 per round. Putting, Roberts, 1.714 per green reached in regulation. Greens in regulation, Tom Watson, 75.5 percent. Eagles, Hajime Meshiai, 77.1 holes per eagle. Birdies, Watson, 4.39 per round. Sand saves, Morris Hatalsky, 66.1 percent. Driving distance, Dan Pohl, 293.8 yards. Driving accuracy, David Edwards, 83.8 percent. Total driving, Mark James, 16 total placings in distance and accuracy categories. All-Around, Watson, 82 total placings in all categories. Charles Schwab Cup standings, Roberts, 2,417 points. On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com LPGA TOUR Wendy's Championship for Children
Site: Dublin, Ohio. Last year: Cristie Kerr won the U.S. Solheim Cup points race, beating Annika Sorenstam and Paula Creamer by a stroke. Last week: Pat Hurst won the Safeway Classic in Portland, Oregon, for her fifth U.S. tour victory. She closed with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Jang Jeong. Notes: Kerr won the Canadian Women's Open two weeks ago for her second victory of the year and eighth overall. She overcame an eight-stroke deficit in the final round to beat Angela Stanford by a stroke. Kerr also tied for second in the Women's British Open. ... Sorenstam, the 1999 winner at New Albany Country Club, is taking the week off. ... Lorena Ochoa and Karrie Webb are in the field. Ochoa finished a stroke behind Sorenstam two weeks ago in the Scandinavian TPC. ... Natalie Gulbis, Morgan Pressel and Lorie Kane are playing for the fifth straight week. ... Americans have won three straight events and four of the last six after winning only two of the first 16. South Koreans have nine wins. ... The State Farm Classic is next week in Springfield, Illinois, followed by the John Q. Hammons Hotel Classic in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Tour leaders: Victories, Webb, 3. Money, Webb, $1,706,149. Scoring, Ochoa, 69.81 per round. Putting, Kerr, Webb and Seon Hwa Lee, 1.74 per green reached in regulation. Greens in regulation, Ochoa, 74.3 percent. Eagles, Ochoa, 10. Birdies, Lee, 256. Sand saves, Carri Wood, 65.0 percent. Driving distance, Karin Sjodin, 283.4 yards. Driving accuracy, Tina Barrett, 83.4 percent. Player of the Year, Webb, 179 points. On the Net: http://www.lpga.com U.S. GOLF ASSOCIATION U.S. Amateur
Site: Chaska, Minnesota. Last year: Edoardo Molinari became the first Italian winner, rallying to beat Dillon Dougherty 4 and 3 in the 36-hole final at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. Molinari turned pro last month after the British Open. Notes: The top 64 players after two rounds of stroke-play qualifying advance to match play. ... The winner will receive spots in the 2007 U.S. Open and British Open and a likely invitation to the 2007 Masters, all only if still an amateur. ... Jonathan Moore won the NCAA title in June as a freshman at Oklahoma State. ... Tony Jacklin (1970) and Payne Stewart (1991) won U.S. Opens at Hazeltine, also the site of Rich Beem's 2002 PGA victory. ... Tiger Woods swept the 1994-96 titles. ... The Chaska Town Course also was used for qualifying. ... The 2007 event will be played at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, and the 2008 tournament is set for Pinehurst in North Carolina. On the Net: http://www.usamateur.org/ OTHER TOURNAMENTS Men JAPAN GOLF TOUR: Under Armour KBC Augusta, Thursday-Sunday, Keya Golf Club, Fukuoka, Japan. On the Net: http://www.jgto.org ASIAN TOUR: Brunei Open, Thursday-Sunday, Empire Hotel and Country Club, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. On the Net: http://www.asiantour.com PGA EUROPEAN SENIORS TOUR: PGA Seniors Championship, Friday-Monday, The Stoke By Nayland Golf Club, Colchester, England. On the Net: http://www.europeantour.com PGA EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR: ECCO Tour Championship, Thursday-Sunday, Odense Golf Club, Odense, Denmark. On the Net: http://www.europeantour.com NATIONWIDE TOUR: National Mining Association Pete Dye Classic, Thursday-Sunday, Pete Dye Golf Club, Bridgeport, West Virginia. On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com NGA HOOTERS TOUR: Stonebridge-Michelob Ultra Classic, Thursday-Sunday, Stonebridge Golf and Country Club, Albany, Georgia. On the Net: http://www.ngahooterstour.com Women LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR: SAS Masters, Friday-Sunday, Oslo Golf Club, Oslo, Norway. On the Net: http://www.ladieseuropeantour.com JAPAN LPGA TOUR: Yonex Open, Friday-Sunday, Yonex Country Club, Niigata, Japan. On the Net: http://www.lpga.or.jp FUTURES TOUR: The Gettysburg Championship, Friday-Sunday, The Links At Gettysburg, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. On the Net: http://www.futurestour.com ©The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. |
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