The 2008 PGA Tour season wastes no time teeing off, beginning Thursday in Hawaii at the Mercedes-Benz Championship - but without golf’s two biggest stars.
Vijay Singh is the defending champion of this event, only open to winners on Tour from the previous season.
And with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson not playing, Singh is WagerWeb.com. second favorite at +350 (behind only Jim Furyk) to win at Kapalua.
Singh has reworked his swing (and his physique) after not winning on the PGA Tour last year in the final nine months, although he did finish third on the money list.
"Last year I was very disappointed in the way I played," Singh said.
"Although I had two wins, I was really very discouraged in the way I played in the midseason and during the majors. The two wins happened very early in the season, in the first three months, and the rest of the season was pretty cold for me.
"I did not perform like I thought I would. I had my chances but just never closed the deal. It was very disappointing."
The Fijian has finished in the top five at Kapalua seven times in the past nine years, while WagerWeb.com favorite Furyk (+300) also has won here (2001).Stuart Appleby has dominated this event in recent years, landing the title in 2004, 2005 and 2006, but a winless 2007 kept him out of the field.
Regining PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Brandt Snedeker (+2000 on WagerWeb.com) has played well in the Tour’s off-season, including nearly winning the Australian Open, and could be one to watch. But he got
the flu on Christmas Eve and was still trying to get this strength back.
Still, his outlook is far different from last year, when he was a rookie on the PGA Tour with low expectations.
"Last year, my main goal was to keep a job for this year," Snedeker said. "This year, I want to put myself in contention a lot, give myself a lot of chances to win and be there in the majors. I have a much more specific game plan this year."
If you are thinking of betting on one of the two Europeans in the field this week (Henrik Stenson and Daniel Chopra), know that in the 55-year history of the event only one European, Sergio Garcia in 2002, has emerged triumphant.
The Mercedes-Benz Championship will have only a 31-man field. Woods, a seven-time winner in 2007, is skipping for the third straight year. Mickelson hasn't been to Kapalua since 2001. British Open champion Padraig Harrington typically takes a long break in Ireland this time of the year, and Adam Scott is also not playing this week because of exhaustion.
Woods does not plan to start his 2008 season until Jan. 24 when he will defend his title at the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines near San Diego, the same course that will host the U.S. Open in June. That is also when Mickelson is expected to debut.
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