This weekend marks the 60th anniversary of the Bank of America Colonial, arguably one of the most prestigious tournaments on the PGA Tour. This tournament is currently the longest running event the PGA Tour has played at the same course, starting in 1946 as the Colonial Invitational with Ben Hogan as the inaugural winner.

Ben Hogan won four more times at this event after his first in '46, and the clubhouse features a Ben Hogan Trophy Room to honor his legacy as well as a statue of him on the 18th green. Ben Hogan is also the only back-to-back winner of the event and at one point in time owned nearly every record in this tournament.

Defending champion Kenny Perry currently owns or is tied for the 18-, 36-, 54- and 72-hole scoring records. Ever since Bank of America took over as sponsor of the event in 2002, Kenny Perry

has some how taken a real liking to the event. Finishing tied for second in 2002, he then went on to win in 2003 and 2005 with a winning score of 261 both times. Coming back from an eight-week break and recovering from a knee surgery he played in last week's EDS Byron Nelson to finish a respectable T-34. Perry is excited to be healthy again and back into competition and hopes to become the only man other than Ben Hogan to win this event back to back.

As far as other contenders this week let's first take a look at who won't be there. Tiger Woods is still absent, of course, and Phil Mickelson is still preparing for the U.S. Open. 2001 champion Sergio Garcia is a no-show and so is 2002 champion Nick Price, but he's been out of it ever since Annika played in 2003. David Toms has done fairly well here in the past but still hasn't won here and hasn't been playing too well lately. He does have four top-10s in his last seven starts here and wants another win to go with his Sony Open title.

That leaves Jim Furyk, on one heck of a hot streak with three top-3 finishes in his last five starts. Plus with his playoff win two weeks ago at the Wachovia he's moved up to second on the money list a small $300,000 behind Phil Mickelson. Since Phil isn't playing this weekend, Jim could take the top spot with a good finish this week. In 11 tries at this event, he's had four top-10s and his best finish was runner-up to Tom Watson in 1998. On a side note, Tom Watson is the oldest winner of this tournament and in 2001 Sergio became the youngest winner.

Challengers will all face the time-tested Colonial Country Club, which is a difficult and very well kept course that features many water hazards. The 7,054 yard par-70 is long enough to challenge the big hitters but requires concentration and smart play, specifically the hardest hole on the course, the 472-yard par-4 fifth hole. The fifth hole features ditch on the left side of the fairway and a river to the right and makes up one of the three holes in the "Horrible Horseshoe." The second hardest hole and also part of the horseshoe is the 467-yard par-4 third hole has a dogleg left that leaves even a good tee shot with a long iron into the green. Finally the third hole of the horseshoe is the 252-yard par-3 fourth, on which no player has ever made a hole-in-one due to the length and the elevated green. Birdie is a great score here. This course is the only one in PGA Tour history to host a U.S Open (1991), Players Championship (1975), and a regular PGA Tour event.

The Bank of America Colonial has a purse of $6,000,000 with $1,080,000 to the winner. It will be held at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, TX from May 18 - 21, 2006 and can be heard on XM Radio and seen on USA and CBS at the following times:

Thu, 5/18     12-8pm ET     XM146

Fri, 5/19     12-8pm ET     XM146

Sat, 5/20     12-8pm ET     XM146

Sun, 5/21     12-8pm ET     XM146

Thu, 5/18     4-6pm ET      USA

Fri, 5/19     4-6pm ET      USA

Sat, 5/20     3-6pm ET      CBS

Sun, 5/21     3-6pm ET      CBS

Photo Credit: © Bank of America Colonial

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The players had a chance to honor Byron Nelson in last week's tournament, and this week they will be honoring another golf legend. When golf fans hear the name Colonial, most think of the great Ben Hogan. The Fort Worth native won at Colonial five times in his legendary career, helping to elevate the tournament to great heights. Last week at the Byron Nelson Championship, all of the members of the "Big Five" were present. That is not the case this week, but there are still plenty of big-time names that will be teeing it up when Thursday rolls around.

Phil Mickelson, the fourth-ranked golfer in the world, will be headlining the strong field in Fort Worth this week. The lefty had originally acted as if he wouldn't be playing this week. But after thinking it over, he has decided to play afterall. And he will surely be the favorite. Phil won this event in 2000 and has made it to the victory circle three times already in 2005. Mickelson's wins this year include the FBR Open, Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and the BellSouth Classic. Phil had it going last week at the Byron Nelson before having a shaky Saturday. He finished strong in the final round, however, and ended in a tie for 14th. He is currently sitting in second on the PGA Tour money list and will be looking to put some pressure on Vijay Singh, who is currently leading that category by more than a million dollars.

Phil Mickelson won't be the only good golfer at Colonial this week. Other guys in the top 10 who are playing include Sergio Garcia, Chris DiMarco, and David Toms. Garcia was the winner at this event back in 2001 after making an awesome final-round comeback. He has played very well the last two weeks, including a tie for second at the Wachovia Championship and a tie for 35th last week. DiMarco, who had to withdraw from the field last week with neck problems, has also been very hot on the golf course the last month or so. He has finished in the top four in each of his last three tournaments, including a fourth place finish at the Wachovia two weeks ago. Toms has struggled badly with his golf game as of late and will be looking to get things on track in Texas.

There are several Texans who come to Colonial with a solid chance to win and will certainly be the fan favorites. They include Scott Verplank, Justin Leonard, and Chad Campbell. Verplank was my "sleeper" pick last week and finished in a tie for ninth. He has finished in the top 20 in every tournament since The Players Championship. Leonard, a winner earlier in the year at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, has struggled for the most part with his consistency. He has a great history at Colonial, however, finishing in the top 20 the last four years. Campbell has also struggled this year, but he fired a 61 in this event last year and will be ready to breakout.

A couple defending champions should also be mentioned. Steve Flesch will be defending in Fort Worth this week. He posted four rounds in the 60's last year en route to his victory. He finished the tournament at -11 and edged out Chad Campbell by one shot. Stephen Ames shot a final-round 64 but came up two strokes short of Flesch. Also, keep an eye out for last week's winner Ted Purdy. He visited the winner's circle for the first time in his PGA career and the pressure could now be lifted for him to do even greater things. A few others to keep an eye on include Jim Furyk, Kenny Perry, and Stewart Cink.

Colonial Country Club is a tough test of golf that requires accuracy and shot-making ability. Low rounds like Sergio's final-round 63 in 2001 can be found on this course, but they are few and far between. Four solid rounds in the upper-60s will go a long way in finishing well in this tournament. Colonial Country Club is 7,054 yards and the par is 70. The par-3 13th hole will be one of the key holes this week. Players will face a 171-yard tee shot completely over water to a two-tiered green. The golfers will be able to use a short iron, but if the wind is in the 20s and 30s, the hole will be very dicey.

The finishing hole at Colonial is 433 yards. Although it's not very long, it does require a very accurate tee shot. It doglegs left, so a draw off the tee will definitely help things get started. There is water on the left side that will affect the approach shot as well as a green surrounded by bunkers. The 18th may not look very intimidating, but it will test the players who are atop the leaderboard when the final round comes calling.

I picked Ernie Els last week to win the Byron Nelson Championship, and he ended up finishing in a tie for 10th. This week, I am going with my "sleeper" pick from last week Scott Verplank. He has played so great since The Players Championship, and this course really fits his game well. He is accurate off the tee and a decent putter. I think his hometown knowledge will also help him feel more comfortable. For my "sleeper" pick this week, I'm going with Justin Leonard. He hasn't played well lately, but he loves this tournament and his game also fits the course very well. He is coming off two rounds in the 60s last week, and his confidence could be coming back. I am definitely looking for the Texans to dominate this week.

The weather this week should be fine for the players. There is a very small chance for thunderstorms on Thursday, but other than that, it should be warm with highs in the 80s. The forecast shows that the wind won't be a factor, but that can easily change when it comes to Texas weather. The players will be playing for another large purse this week at the Bank of America Colonial. The total purse is $5.6 million, with a little over a million going to the champion. The action at Colonial can be seen once again on USA and CBS at the following times:

Thu    4-6pm ET    USA
Fri    4-6pm ET    USA
Sat    3-6pm ET    CBS
Sun    3-6pm ET    CBS

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