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| Players to Watch Compiled by Karl Hente and Mitch Rubin Rich Beem Age: 31. Mark Calcavecchia Age: 41. Mark Brooks Age: 41. Turned Pro: 1980. College: Houston. PGA Tour Victories: (14) 1983 Kemper Open, 1984 Tournament Players Championship, 1987 Byron Nelson Golf Classic, 1990 Los Angeles Open, 1991 St. Jude Classic, 1991 B.C. Open, 1992 Los Angeles Open, 1992 Nestle Invitational, 1992 Masters, 1993 Honda Classic, 1994 Buick Open, 1996 Players Championship, 1998 Bob Hope Classic, 1998 Memorial Tournament. Career Top 10s: 138. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for ninth in Nissan Open. Key Stat: 11th on the career money list with $12,992,673. Notable: Finished outside top 125 for first time in his career in 2001. Only Masters champion never to miss a cut at Augusta. PGA Tour player of the year for 1991 and 1992. Back problems first occurred prior to final round of 1994 Doral-Ryder Open and have plagued him since. Member of five Ryder Cup teams and three Presidents Cup teams. First PGA Tour victory came in five-man playoff at 1983 Kemper Open, when he birdied second playoff hole to defeat T.C. Chen, Barry Jaeckel, Gil Morgan and Scott Simpson. Personal: Has partnered with golf course architect Gene Bates to form Couples Bates Golf Design, which has developed 11 courses, including Westfields Golf Club in Clifton, Va. Chris DiMarco Age: 33. Turned Pro: 1990. College: Florida. PGA Tour Victories: (3) 2000 Pennsylvania Classic, 2001 Buick Challenge, 2002 Phoenix Open. Career Top 10s: 29. Best 2002 Finish: Won the Phoenix Open. Key Stat: Third in total birdies (230) this season. Notable: Has five top 10s in 15 events this season. Has missed one cut in last 31 events (the 2002 Sony Open), with 20 top-25 finishes during the same span. Set career high in earnings in 2001, topping $2.5 million. Held the lead in the first two rounds of the 2001 Masters. Personal: Has used the "claw" putting grip, where he grips a standard putter much like a long putter, for seven years. "It helps me stay a little smoother on the putts, and helps me stroke it, obviously, a lot better," he told the Detroit News. "I used to have a little shorter, quicker stroke, and this just lets me be more fluid." As a member of the Buy.com Tour, he traveled in a custom-made van decorated in the colors of Florida Gators. Bob Estes Age: 36. Turned Pro: 1988. College: Texas. PGA Tour Victories: (3) 1994 Texas Open, 2001 St. Jude Classic, 2001 Invensys Classic at Las Vegas. Career Top 10s: 61. Best 2002 Finish: Fifth in the World Golf Championships, Accenture Match Play Championship, tied for fifth in Buick Invitational. Key Stat: Streak of 29 consecutive rounds at par or better ended in the first round of the 2002 Phoenix Open. Notable: Opened this season with tie for 10th at the Mercedes Championships. It was his seventh consecutive top-10 finish dating from 2001. The string of top 10s along with two wins (one of nine players to win multiple tournaments in 2001) led to a ninth-place finish on the money list with a career-best $2,795,477. Personal: Once worked for current Senior Tour member Charles Coody in the bag room of Fairway Oaks Golf & Racquet Club in Abilene, Tex. He is one of few players to use a baseball grip. Carlos Franco Age: 37. Turned Pro: 1986. PGA Tour Victories: (3) 1999 Compaq Classic of New Orleans, 1999 Greater Milwaukee Open, 2000 Compaq Classic of New Orleans. Career Top 10s: 14. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for 11th in Honda Classic. Key Stat: Has gone 41 PGA Tour events without a top-10 finish (last was a 10th in 2000 National Car Rental Golf Classic). Notable: 1999 PGA Tour rookie of the year. First player in history to earn more than $1 million each of his first two years ($1,864,584 in 1999, $1,550,592 in 2000, in a total of 46 events). Has made $726,991 in 41 tournaments since the end of 2000. Has 25 international victories, 19 of those in South America. Member of two Presidents Cup teams (1998, 2000). When he won in New Orleans in 1999, he became the first South American to win on tour since Robert DeVicenzo in Houston in 1968. Personal: A native of Paraguay, he grew up in a family of nine that shared a one-room, dirt-floor home. His father was a greens superintendent and caddie at a course in Asuncion. All five of Franco's brothers are golf professionals. Was appointed Paraguay's Minister De Deportes (Minister of Sports) in 1999. Fred Funk Age: 45. Turned Pro: 1981. College: Maryland. PGA Tour Victories: (5) 1992 Houston Open, 1995 Ideon Classic at Pleasant Valley, 1995 Buick Challenge, 1996 B.C. Open, 1998 Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic. Career Top 10s: 63. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for fourth in Tucson Open. Key Stat: Has started at least 30 PGA Tour events every year since 1991. Notable: Leads the tour in driving accuracy this season (80.2 percent of fairways hit) and has led the tour in driving accuracy four seasons, including 1999 and 2000. Had a string of rounds of par or better stretch to 38—from the second round of the 2001 Walt Disney Classic through the first round of the 2002 Bay Hill Invitational—a span that covered 10 tournaments. Personal: Coached the University of Maryland's golf team from 1982 through 1988. Was one of the first players on tour to have laser eye surgery. The week after his surgery in 1998, Funk led the Kemper after each of the first three rounds. Scott Hoch Age: 46. Turned Pro: 1979. College: Wake Forest. PGA Tour Victories: (10) 1980 Quad Cities Open, 1982 USF&G Classic, 1984 Quad Cities Open, 1989 Las Vegas Invitational, 1994 Bob Hope Classic, 1995 Greater Milwaukee Open, 1996 Michelob Championship at Kingsmill, 1997 Greater Milwaukee Open, 2001 Greater Greensboro Classic, 2001 Western Open. Career Top 10s: 151. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for fourth in the Players Championship. Key Stat: Seventh on the career earnings list with $15,042,800. Notable: Had his best season in terms of earnings ($2,875,319) and wins (two) in 2001. Became the first 45-year-old to win twice in a season since Hale Irwin in 1990. Joined Julius Boros (at 47 and 48 in 1967 and 1968), Sam Snead (47 in 1960) and Irwin as the only players to win multiple times at 45 or older. Lost in 1989 Masters playoff to Nick Faldo. Since 1982, has finished among the top 40 on the money list every year except 1992, when he had surgery. Member of two Ryder Cup teams and three Presidents Cup teams. Personal: Known as much for his sometimes unpopular candor, particularly for his harsh criticism of St. Andrews, as for his golf. "If Tiger Woods is a 10, my career is an 8 or 8½," Hoch recently told Golf Digest. "To the media and public, I'm probably more like a 5 or 6." Son Cameron has overcome bone cancer, and Hoch and his wife are strong supporters of the Arnold Palmer Children's Hospital in Orlando. Brother Buddy was a professional bowler. Per-Ulrik Johansson Age: 35. Turned Pro: 1990. College: Arizona State. PGA Tour Victories: None. Career Top 10s: Five. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for sixth at Nissan Open. Key Stat: Had his largest paycheck of the season ($117,250) at last year's Kemper Open, finishing tied for sixth. Notable: Has five international victories. In his rookie year on PGA Tour, he was on the edge of the top 125 on the money list entering last fall's Buick Challenge. His seventh-place finish lifted him to No. 97 on the money list, securing his 2002 card. Personal: Engaged to golfer Jesper Parnevik's sister, Jill. Played on 1990 NCAA champion golf team at Arizona State alongside Phil Mickelson. Tom Lehman Age: 43. Turned Pro: 1982. College: Minnesota. PGA Tour Victories: (5) 1994 Memorial, 1996 Colonial, 1996 British Open, 1996 Tour Championship, 2000 Phoenix Open. Career Top 10s: 74. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for fifth in World Match Play Championship. Key Stat: Third on tour in greens in regulation (70.7 percent). Notable: Has switched to a long putter. Has made nearly $13 million in career. One of the game's bulldogs in team competition, playing in three Ryder Cups and three Presidents Cups. Lost his tour card in 1985 and played on mini-tours in Africa and Asia and on the Ben Hogan Tour before regaining it in '92. Has finished in the top 25 on the money list 10 times since. Personal: Met his wife, Melissa, in 1984 on a blind date set up by fellow PGA Tour player Loren Roberts. Will host the annual Dayton's Challenge for charity in Minneapolis next month. Took up golf after a childhood spent playing hockey, basketball and football. Justin Leonard Age: 29. Turned Pro: 1994. College: Texas. PGA Tour Victories: (7) 1996 Buick Open, 1997 Kemper Open, 1997 British Open, 1998 Players Championship, 2000 Texas Open, 2001 Texas Open, 2002 WorldCom Classic. Career Top 10s: 56. Best 2002 Finish: Won WorldCom Classic. Key Stat: Has finished in the top 25 in eight of 12 tour events this year. Notable: Won the WorldCom Classic last month despite shooting 73 in final round. First player since Vijay Singh in the '95 Buick Classic to play a birdie-less final round and win. Nearly won his second British Open in '99 at Carnoustie, qualifying for a playoff with Paul Lawrie and Jean van de Velde after the latter's infamous triple-bogey meltdown on the 72nd hole. Lawrie won the playoff, but Leonard had a more positive finish in September, making a 45-foot putt on the 17th hole at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass., to defeat Jose Maria Olazabal and reclaim the Ryder Cup for the United States. Personal: His fiancee, Amanda, whom Leonard met in a parking garage, ran last year's New York City Marathon. Leonard has joined her in the sport, finishing his first marathon, the White Rock Marathon in Dallas, last December. His favorite movie, naturally, is "Caddyshack." Greg Norman Age: 47. Turned Pro: 1976. College: None. PGA Tour Victories: (20) 1984 Kemper Open, 1984 Canadian Open, 1986 Las Vegas Invitational, 1986 Kemper Open, 1986 British Open, 1988 Heritage Golf Classic, 1989 International, 1989 Greater Milwaukee Open, 1990 Doral Open, 1990 Memorial Tournament, 1992 Canadian Open, 1993 Doral Open, 1993 British Open, 1994 Players Championship, 1995 Memorial Tournament, 1995 Greater Hartford Open, 1995 World Series of Golf, 1996 Doral Open, 1997 St. Jude Classic, 1997 World Series of Golf. Career Top 10s: 126. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for 23rd at Houston Open. Key Stat: Has played just six events on the PGA Tour this year, including a missed cut at the Players Championship and first-round withdrawal at Bay Hill. Notable: His first victory on tour was the 1984 Kemper at Congressional. Played in 11 tour events in 2001, needed to play in a minimum of 12 to retain his tour membership. Inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame in November. In 1996, became first player to surpass $10 million in career earnings. Owns 56 international titles. Personal: His business interests have far surpassed his exploits on the course. His Great White Shark Enterprises, a multinational corporation of which he is chairman, has interests in course design, residential development, apparel, equipment distribution, restaurants, wine and yachts. Esteban Toledo Age: 39. Turned Pro: 1994. College: None. PGA Tour Victories: None. Career Top 10s: Eight. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for eighth in the Colonial. Key Stat: Had a career-high 36 starts in 2001, tying Pete Jordan and Neal Lancaster for most on tour. Notable: Shared the second-round lead with eventual champion Nick Price at the Colonial, opening with a pair of 67s. Finished second in the 2000 B.C. Open behind Brad Faxon, a career-best finish. Personal: Was a professional boxer four years in home town of Mexicali, Mexico. His career (12-1 record) was cut short by appendicitis. His story is told in the book "Tin Cup Dreams" by Michael D'Antonio. Mark O'Meara Age: 45. Turned Pro: 1980. College: Long Beach State. PGA Tour Victories: (16) 1984 Greater Milwaukee Open, 1985 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am, 1985 Hawaiian Open, 1989 Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, 1990 Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, 1990 Texas Open, 1991 Walt Disney World/Oldsmobile Classic, 1992 Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, 1995 Honda Classic, 1995 Bell Canadian Open, 1996 Mercedes Championships, 1996 Greater Greensboro Classic, 1997 Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, 1997 Buick Invitational, 1998 Masters, 1998 British Open Championship. Career Top 10s: 116 Best 2002 Finish: Tied for second in Buick Invitational. Key Stat: Has not won an event since his 1998 British Open victory. Notable: Made cut at Memorial last week but had missed four straight before that and seven of 11 this season. Fell out of top 100 on money list in 2000 for first time since 1982. In 1998 won the Masters and the British Open to become, at age 41, the oldest player to win two major championships in the same year. Player of the year in 1998. Member of five Ryder Cup and two Presidents Cup teams. Personal: He has been very active in raising money on behalf of a longtime caddie, Donnie Wantsall, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1994. Known at Tiger Woods's best friend on tour. Jose Maria Olazabal Age: 36. Turned Pro: 1985. College: None. PGA Tour Victories: (6) 1990 World Series of Golf, 1991 International, 1994 Masters, 1994 World Series of Golf, 1999 Masters, 2002 Buick Invitational. Career Top 10s: 30. Best 2002 Finish: Won Buick Invitational. Key Stat: Second on the tour in scoring average (69.38). Notable: At the Buick Invitational, became the first player since 1989 to win a tour event "on the cut line" after two rounds (1-under-par 143). In 14 career Masters, has finished among the top 15 players 11 times. Personal: Born in Fuenterrabia, Spain, on the day after a golf course opened next door. His grandfather was the greenskeeper at the new course. When his grandfather died, Olazabal's father took over as greenskeeper, and Jose Maria began hitting balls with a cut club at age 2. Hal Sutton Age: 44. Turned Pro: 1981. College: Centenary. PGA Tour Victories: (14) 1982 Walt Disney World Golf Classic, 1983 Tournament Players Championship, 1983 PGA Championship, 1985 St. Jude Classic, 1985 Southwest Golf Classic, 1986 Phoenix Open, 1986 Memorial Tournament, 1995 B.C. Open, 1998 Texas Open, 1998 Tour Championship, 1999 Canadian Open, 2000 Players Championship, 2000 Greater Greensboro Classic, 2001 Houston Open. Career Top 10s: 120. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for 12th in the Colonial. Key Stat: Has played 14 events this year and missed the cut in eight of them. Notable: Six tour victories in his forties, tying him with Greg Norman. Seven victories in his first five seasons on tour, followed by an eight-year winless streak. Key member of 1999 Ryder Cup-winning U.S. team, finishing with 3-1-1 record. Considered a likely Ryder Cup captain in the coming years. Personal: As a business and a hobby, rides and sells cutting horses in home state of Louisiana. Nearly retired from the game during his slump a decade ago to ride cutting horses exclusively. Kirk Triplett Age: 40. Turned Pro: 1985. College: Nevada. PGA Tour Victories: 2000 Nissan Open. Career Top 10s: 52. Best 2002 Finish: Tied for sixth at Bob Hope Classic. Key Stat: Earned his first and only tournament victory (2000 Nissan Open) in his 266th Tour start. Notable: Since his first event this season, the Bob Hope Classic, has made the cut in five of 11 events, his highest finish in stroke-play was a tie for 23rd in the Compaq Classic. In 2001, he finished in the top 10 in three of the four majors (he didn't play the British). He had not finished better than a tie for 13th before last season. Personal: Known for his ever-present "bucket" golf hat. His wife, Cathi, is active in Tour Wives Association and has served as his caddie occasionally. Has a degree in civil engineering. Played the Australian, Asian and Canadian tours from 1987 to '89. On his foreign tour experience: "I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. I learned so much, not only about golf, but about myself. I'll be telling stories about Asia until the day I die." | | ||||||||
Kemper Open