Although the Accenture WGC Matchplay Championship garners much of the media attention this week, there is another PGA Tour event with some recognizable names teeing it up this week in Tucson, Arizona. The Chrysler Classic of Tucson was born out of necessity seven years ago so players who fail to qualify for the Matchplay have a chance to compete and improve their world ranking. After the first round, Billy Mayfair and Mario Tiziani are tied for the lead at -9. Veteran Mark Calcavecchia, Michael Allen, Lucas Glover, and Darron Stiles are one back at -8. The event is played at the Omni Tuscon National Resort and the event is known for very low scoring. In 2004, Heath Slocum won the event with a final score of -22, 2003’s champion Frank Lickliter won with a total of -19.
One very notable score is David Duval who shot a season-low round of 69 to finish T-39. Duval’s struggles throughout the early season have been well documented. Although this round alone does not mean Duval is back to his former glory, it is definitely a good sign for fans of the former world number 1. In a very light hearted moment before his round, Duval teed off with a persimmon driver to commemorate the first PGA Tour charity donation on their Drive to a Billion Campaign. As Duval was introduced, the announcer said, “After David hits with the persimmon, he will take his first shot with a real driver.” Duval took a lash at his ball with the replica wood and to the amazement of everyone, it went long and straight down the middle of the fairway. After seeing the results, Duval exclaimed, “Oh … I’ll take that one.”
Duval isn’t the only slumping star hoping to gain some momentum from this tournament. Masters winner Jose Maria Olazabal and U.S. Open champion Steve Jones are also in the field and looking to go low. According to Calcavecchia, they’ve got their chance: “The course is in great shape, fairways are perfect. There is no rough; zero. No wind,” so fans can expect some very low scoring throughout the weekend.
Pos Name Tot R1 T1 Billy Mayfair -9 63 T1 Mario Tiziani -9 63 T3 Mark Calcavecchia -8 64 T3 Michael Allen -8 64 T3 Lucas Glover -8 64 T3 Darron Stiles -8 64 T3 Steve Stricker -8 64 T8 Carlos Franco -7 65 T8 Geoff Ogilvy -7 65 T8 Esteban Toledo -7 65
Photo Credit: © TSN.ca.
This tournament was here long before the Accenture Match Play.It just happens to be scheduled at the same time,there is talk that they might move the date of this tournament so it will not conflict.It’s a great tourney but lacks the star power to generate the crowds because of the conflicting dates.