 Vijay
Singh stood on the 18th green
with the crystal in his hands, a trophy
he has wanted to hold ever since he
first set foot on Pebble Beach.
It might not be long before he has
the prize he really wants -- becoming
the No. 1 player in the world.
Singh proved a tough act to chase
Sunday in the AT&T Pebble Beach
National Pro-Am, making birdies on
the first three holes, hitting a spectacular
4-iron into the most daunting green
on the course and spending the rest
of the day soaking up the sunshine
on the Monterey Peninsula.
It was his third victory in his last
nine PGA TOUR events, and his 12 consecutive
finish in the top 10, the best record
of anyone over the last six months.
Does it make him the best player?
"My ranking doesn't say that,"
Singh said. "I'm No. 2. I'm playing
the best I can. I want to be No. 1
before I finish. But it's a hard feat
to take Tiger off the top because
he's playing well.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• 1937 Bing Crosby hosts the
first National Pro-Amateur Golf Championship
in Rancho Sante Fe, California. Sam
Snead wins first tournament - First
place check is $500
• 1942 Tournament suspended
during WWII
• 1946 Ted Durein and Dan Searle
approach Crosby re reviving the tournament
in Pebble Beach
• 1947 First Bing Crosby National
Pro-Amateur Golf Championship on Pebble
Beach, Cypress Point and Monterey
Peninsula Country Club. Ed Furgol
ties with George Fazio. Sam Snead
and Roger Kelly win the pro-am portion.
• 1968 Spyglass Hill replaces
MPCC
• 1977 Bing Crosby dies on a
golf course in Spain
• 1986 AT&T becomes title
sponsor. Fuzzy Zoeller wins the pro
portion as well as the pro-am with
partner Mike Evans
• 1991 Poppy Hills replaces
Cypress Point
• 2003 Davis Love III wins the
AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am
- First place check is $900,000
Event Highlights:
New England Patriots quarterback,
Tom Brady, having just wrapped up
his second Super Bowl title, returned
to the AT&T for a second straight
year. Despite not having touched a
golf club in an estimated seven months,
Brady showed signs that given the
adequate time to practice he can be
an excellent player. He signed autographs,
smiled constantly for three days and
entertained his legion of fans down
from the Bay Area, where he grew up.
Country singer, Clay Walker, got the
fans around the 18th green at Poppy
Hills to sing "Happy Birthday"
to 24-year old playing partner Kevin
Stadler. Playing in the same foursome
with his 50-year old father, Craig,
young Stadler followed up the serenade
by sinking a downhill eagle putt.
Both father and son made the 54-hole
cut.
Phil Mickelson, who won the '98 AT&T,
continued his amazing turnaround.
For the third straight week, he finished
in the top-10 - a feat he hasn't accomplished
in over a year. Mickelson told tournament
director, Ollie Nutt, that he's already
looking forward to returning in '05.
In addition to Brady, the other local
story was 29-year old Arron Olberholser.
Like the MVP quarterback, Arron grew
up in San Mateo (a Bay Area suburb)
and played lots of amateur golf in
the Pebble Beach area. He celebrated
his birthday on Monday, hosted an
episode of "Inside The PGA Tour"
on Tuesday and co-led the tournament
after 54 holes. Olberholser eventually
finished tied for fourth.
As Vijay Singh warmed up before the
final round, he clearly wasn't confident
with his swing. Several balls were
straying off-target and he constantly
turned to caddie, Dave Renwick, for
input. During the first three holes
of the final round, Singh continued
to hit poor shots, and yet, he somehow
registered birdie on the first three
holes. The great players find a way
to get it done. Singh eventually held
off Jeff Maggert to win by three and
continues on his quest to surpass
Tiger Woods as the best player in
the game.
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