Another week which figures to be quiet - unless one has been waiting eagerly for Sandy Lyle's debut on the Champions Tour.  The PGA Tour's PODS Championship at least includes a revived Ernie Els in its field, while far, far away, the Japan LPGA - whose translated website is too garbled for me to provide their events with major coverage - kick off their 2008 campaign in Okinawa.  

PGA Tour:  PODS Championship – Palm Harbor, FL

Week two of the Florida swing takes the PGA Tour northwest to Tampa’s Innisbrook Resort, where Mark Calcavecchia defends his 2007 title at the PODS Championship.  Many of the world’s elite remain on post-WGC-Match Play hiatus but there will still be a bit of star power here, chiefly in the form of world number three Ernie Els (fresh of his confidence-boosting victory at the Honda Classic) as well as fellow top-25s Steve Stricker (4), Justin Rose (7), Stewart Cink (16), Geoff Ogilvy (17), Trevor Immelman (21) and Scott Verplank (23).  Near misses Paul Casey (26), Stuart Appleby (27) and Stephen Ames (28) are also set to start, supplemented by notables like Retief Goosen (36) and the aforementioned Calcavecchia (40), now 47 but still in fine form, as his sturdy challenge at last week’s Honda Classic clearly demonstrates.   Play will be contested for the eighth straight year  over Innisbrook’s Copperhead course, 7,340-yard Larry Packard design which actually did time in Golf Digest’s Top 100 during the 1980s, and remains a well thought-of resort test.  The Copperhead utilizes water considerably less than most of Florida’s more ambitious courses (it only seriously affects play on six holes), instead relying on its many tree-lined doglegs and some distinctly un-Florida-like elevation changes for much of its challenge.  As Sunshine State venues go, the Tour could (and has) done much worse.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL

European & Asian Tours:  Maybank Malaysian Open – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The European Tour nears the end of its Asian swing with a visit to Kuala Lumpur for the 47th playing of the Malaysian Open, an Asian Tour standard for nearly five decades but an E Tour co-sanctioned event only since 1999.  With many international stars awaiting the WGC-CA event in Florida (March20-23), the E Tour’s spring schedule on the Continent, and April’s Masters, the field will be predictably light, with nary a world top 50 member to be seen.  There are, however, a cadre of solid young players from India (including Jeev Milkha Singh and Jyoti Randhawa) and South Africa (Charl Schwartzel and Anton Haig) in attendance, in addition to established names like 2005 U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell, England’s David Howell, Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn and Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke.  The host course, the Kota Permai Golf & Country Club, measures 6,979 yards (par 72) and previously hosted Randhawa’s sudden death victory (over Terry Pilkidaris) at the 2004 Volvo Masters of Asia, thus making it familiar to (and providing an advantage for?) the Asian half of the field.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL

Champions Tour:  Toshiba Classic – Newport Beach, CA

The Champions Tour returns to Southern California for the 14th playing of the Toshiba Classic, a traditionally low scoring event hosted by the Newport Beach Country Club.  Leading the field is Scott Hoch, winner of back-to-back Champions events during February’s Florida swing, and a participant in last week’s Honda Classic on the PGA Tour (where he tied for 65th).  Beyond the usual senior suspects, this week’s field boasts rare appearances by both Lee Trevino and Gary Player, as well as Isao Aoki.  It also marks the Champions debut of former Masters and British Open champion Sandy Lyle, a formidable competitor on the world stage during the 1980s, but only a quiet presence since  The Newport Beach layout dates to 1953 and, being relegated to a fairly compact property, measures only 6,584 yards.  Despite multiple renovations (most recently by Ted Robinson in 1998), it remains susceptible to low numbers, hence Tom Purtzer’s course-record 60 in 2004.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL

Elsewhere

The Japan Ladies Tour opens its 37-event schedule this week on the island of Okinawa, where Midori Yoneyama defends her championship at the 16th Daikin Orchid Ladies.  The European Senior Tour strides far afield to start its campaign with the DGM Barbados Open at the Royal Westmoreland Golf Club (with Ian Woosnam making his senior debut), while the Euro Challenge Tour heads south to begin its 2008 season at the Tusker Kenya Open.