It may not prove quite as momentous as Tiger Woods’ debut in the same event 17 years ago, but 17-year-old Japanese sensation Ryo Ishikawa makes his maiden American appearance this week at the Northern Trust Open, tackling Riviera on a sponsor exemption. Already a two-time winner in Japan (the first coming as a 15-year-old amateur at the 2007 Munsingwear Open), the much-touted Ishikawa is listed at 173 cm and 68 kg (or a rather slight 5’6” and 150 pounds), yet he managed to average a shade over 290 yards off the tee in 2008, good enough for seventh place among full-time J Tour players. Though rated 62nd in driving accuracy (point of reference: Tiger was 169th last year, and 152nd in 2007), Ishikawa also finished 3rd in the J Tour’s average number of putts statistic – a nice skills combination that goes a long way towards explaining both his ranking 2nd in average number of birdies and, more generally, why people are so excited about his long-term prospects.

Ishikawa has also received a special exemption at The Masters (they apparently come cheaper these days) which is particularly relevant because in today’s golfing world, his ultimate status will be determined far more by what he can do against European and PGA Tour competition than any record of (potential) domination in Japan. And here’s an interesting point of reference: Despite only taking the game up seriously after World War II, Japan has produced its fair share of quality players, including Isao Aoki (a one-time PGA Tour winner, and the nation’s only male Hall-of-Famer) the Ozaki brothers, “Tommy” Nakajima and, most recently, Shigeki Maruyama, whose three PGA Tour victories is (easily) the most by a Japanese player. But Maruyama has struggled a bit of late (he’s winless worldwide since 2003), leaving the door wide open for Ishikawa to quickly establish himself as Japan’s first truly great international star. Of course, it’s a little early to be judging him, regardless of what he does at Riviera...

And for the record, a then-16-year-old Tiger shot 72-75 and missed the cut by six.

Also notable is the relatively lean field in Los Angeles. With the WGC Match play scheduled for next week in Arizona, and Anthony Kim being the only world top-20 to render himself geographically removed by playing in Malaysia last week, the table appeared to be set for a Northern Trust field at least on par with last year’s – a knockout gathering which featured 17 of the world top 20. Instead, only 10 of the elite will be on hand, with stalwarts like Sergio Garcia (#2), Henrik Stenson (6), Robert Karlsson (7) and Camilio Villegas (9) – all of whom figure to be present in Arizona – being conspicuous only in their absence. Of these four, Villegas has actually made the journey Down Under to compete in the Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth, an event skipped by Geoff Ogilvy (8), Adam Scott (18), Robert Allenby (30), Aaron Baddeley (42) and Stuart Appleby (46) – Australia’s top five players, all of whom (with the exception of Scott) are entered in Los Angeles.

I wonder how OneAsia might factor into all of this...

PGA Tour: Northern Trust Open

Site: Riviera Country Club - Pacific Palisades, CA
Yards: 7,298   Par: 71
Defending: Phil Mickelson 272   (beat J. Quinney by 2)
Field: World Top 20: Padraig Harrington (3), Vijay Singh (4), Phil Mickelson (5), Geoff Ogilvy (8), Kenny Perry (10), Ernie Els (13), Jim Furyk (14), Justin Rose (15), Steve Stricker (19) & K.J. Choi (20)   Other Notables: Paul Azinger, Fred Couples, Steve Elkington, Ryo Ishikawa, Tom Lehman & Corey Pavin.

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European PGA Tour, etc.: Johnnie Walker Classic

Site: The Vines Resort & Country Club - Perth, Australia
Yards: 7,104   Par: 72
Defending: Mark Brown 270   (beat three players by 3)
Field: World Top 20: Camilo Villegas (9), Anthony Kim (11) & Lee Westwood (12)   Other Notables: Paul Casey, Colin Montgomerie, Greg Norman, Craig Parry & Ian Poulter.

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Sunshine Tour: Telkom PGA Championship

Site: Country Club of Johannesburg (Woodmead course) - Johannesburg, South Africa
Meters: 6,837   Par: 72
Defending: Louis Oosthuizen 260   (beat H. Otto by 14)
Field: World Top 20: None   Other Notables: Desvonde Botes, Darren Fichardt, Anders Hansen, James Kingston, Hennie Otto & Charl Schwartzel.

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Champions Tour: Ace Group Classic

Site: TPC Treviso Bay - Naples, FL
Yards: 7,005   Par: 72
Defending: Scott Hoch 202   (beat three players in a playoff)
Field: Ranked: The entire Charles Schwab Cup top 20 except Fulton Allem (5), Mark James (6), Russ Cochran (14) & David Edwards (14)   Other Notables: Ben Crenshaw, Hubert Green, Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Larry Nelson, Jerry Pate, Gary Player, Nick Price & Lee Trevino.

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PGA Tour: AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

Winner: Dustin Johnson   65-69-67 201   (beat M. Weir by 4)

Site: Pebble Beach Golf Links - Pebble Beach, CA, etc.

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


European & Asian PGA Tours: Maybank Malaysian Open

Winner: Anthony Kang   74-66-64-67 271   (beat four players by 1)
Site: Saujana Golf & Country Club - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Sunshine Tour: Vodacom Championship

Winner: Anders Hansen   69-70-66-65 270   (beat G. DeLaet & C. Schwartzel by 4)
Site: Pretoria Country Club - Pretoria, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


LPGA Tour: SBS Open at Turtle Bay

Winner: Angela Stanford   65-71-70 206   (beat M. Wie by 3)
Site: Turtle Bay Resort (Palmer course) - Kahuku, HI

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Champions Tour: Allianz Championship

Winner: Mike Goodes   67-68-66 201   (beat F. Allem by 1)
Site: Broken Sound Country Club (Old course) - Boca Raton, FL

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Elsewhere...
LET – Women’s Australian Open – Laura Davies (Story)

PGA Tour: AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

Site: Pebble Beach Golf Links - Pebble Beach, CA, etc.
Yards: 6,816   Par: 72
Defending: Steve Lowery 278   (beat V. Singh in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: Padraig Harrington (3), Phil Mickelson (4), Vijay Singh (5), Kenny Perry (9), Jim Furyk (14), K.J. Choi (20) & Mike Weir (24)   Other Notables: Mark Calcavecchia, Fred Couples, David Duval, Steve Elkington, Tom Lehman, Davis Love III & Corey Pavin.

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European & Asian PGA Tours: Maybank Malaysian Open

Site: Saujana Golf & Country Club - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Yards: 7,024   Par: 72
Defending: Arjun Atwal 270   (beat P.Hedblom in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: Anthony Kim (11)   Other Notables: Thongchai Jaidee, Shingo Katayama, Wen Chong Liang, Prayad Marksaeng, Frankie Minoza & Seung-Yul Noh.

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Sunshine Tour: Vodacom Championship

Site: Pretoria Country Club - Pretoria, South Africa
Meters: 6,324   Par: 72
Defending: James Kingston 271   (beat A. da Silva by 2)
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Desvonde Botes, Darren Fichardt, James Kingston, Hennie Otto & Charl Schwartzel.

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LPGA Tour: SBS Open at Turtle Bay

Site: Turtle Bay Resort (Palmer course) - Kahuku, HI
Yards: 6,582   Par: 72
Defending: Annika Sorenstam 206   (beat 3 players by 2)
Field: World Top 20: The entire Rolex top 20 except Lorena Ochoa (1), Helen Alfredsson (6), Karrie Webb (9), Seon-Hwa Lee (10), Yuri Fudoh (11), Maria Hjorth (14), Karen Stupples (18) & Inbee Park (20)   Other Notables: Rachel Hetherington, Vicky Hurst, Juli Inkster, Liselotte Neumann, Se Ri Pak, Grace Park & Michelle Wie.

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Champions Tour: Allianz Championship

Site: Broken Sound Country Club (Old course) - Boca Raton, FL
Yards: 6,807   Par: 72
Defending: Scott Hoch 202   (beat B. Bryant and B. Lietzke by 1)
Field: Ranked: The entire 2008 Charles Schwab Cup top 20 except Fred Funk (2), Tom Watson (13) & Scott Simpson (16)   Other Notables: Ben Crenshaw, Hubert Green, Hale Irwin, Sandy Lyle, Larry Nelson, Mark O’Meara, Jerry Pate, Gary Player, ave Stockton, Curtis Strange, Hal Sutton, Lee Trevino & Fuzzy Zoeller.

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Elsewhere...
LET – Women’s Australian Open – Melbourne, Australia

PGA Tour: Buick Invitational

Winner: Nick Watney 69-69-71-68   277   (beat J. Rollins by 1)
Site: Torrey Pines Golf Course (South course) - San Diego, CA

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Asian Tour: Asian Tour International

Winner: James Kamte 71-63-68-66   268   (beat T. Hiratsuka by 2)
Site: Suwan Golf & Country Club – Srisathong, Thailand

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Australasian Tour: Cellarbrations Victoria PGA Championship

Winner: Andre Stolz 68-67-69-67   271   (beat S.Bouvier by 2)
Site: Sanctuary Lakes Resort – Sanctuary Lakes, Australia

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Elsewhere...
LET – ANZ Ladies Masters – Katherine Hull 272 (Story)
Nationwide – Panama Championship – Vance Veazey 273 (Story)

PGA Tour: Buick Invitational

Site: Torrey Pines Golf Course (South course) - San Diego, CA
Yards: 7,569   Par: 72
Defending: Tiger Woods 269   (beat R. Imada by 8)
Field: World Top 25: Padraig Harrington (3), Phil Mickelson (4) & Camilo Villegas (10)   Other Notables: Fred Couples, Brad Faxon, Lee Janzen, Tom Lehman, Davis Love III & Corey Pavin.

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Asian Tour: Asian Tour International

Site: Suwan Golf & Country Club – Srisathong, Thailand
Yards: 7,125   Par: 72
Defending: Wen-Tang Lin 265   (beat S.Y. Noh by 5)
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Wen-Tang Lin, Prayad Marksaeng, Frankie Minoza & Seung-Yul Noh.

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Australasian Tour: Cellarbrations Victoria PGA Championship

Site: Sanctuary Lakes Resort – Sanctuary Lakes, Australia
Meters: 6,489   Par: 72
Defending: Unofficial event
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Mike Clayton, Peter Fowler, Mike Harwood & Peter Senior.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL


Elsewhere...
LET – ANZ Ladies Masters – Gold Coast, Australia
Nationwide – Panama Championship – Panama City, Panama

PGA Tour: FBR Open

Winner: Kenny Perry 72-63-66-69   270   (beat C. Hoffman in a playoff)
Site: TPC Scottsdale – Scottsdale, AZ

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


European PGA Tour: Dubai Desert Classic

Winner: Rory McIlroy 64-68-67-70   269   (beat J. Rose by 1)
Site: Emirates Golf Club – Dubai, U.A.E.

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Sunshine Tour: Nashua Masters

Winner: Darren Fichardt 66-67-65-65   263   (beat M. Cayeux by 1)
Site: Wild Coast Sun Country Club – Banners Rest, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Australasian Tour: Subaru Victorian Open

Winner: Ashley Hall 68-65-72-69   274   (beat S. Laycock & C. Scott by 2)
Site: Spring Valley Golf Club – Clayton South, Australia

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

PGA Tour: FBR Open

Site: TPC Scottsdale – Scottsdale, AZ
Yards: 7,216   Par: 71
Defending: J.B. Holmes 270   (beat P. Mickelson in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: Phil Mickelson (4), Geoff Ogilvy (6), Anthony Kim (10), Camilo Villegas (11), Kenny Perry (15), Stewart Cink (16), Steve Stricker (17), Justin Leonard (24) & Mike Weir (25)   Other Notables: Paul Azinger, Fred Couples, David Duval, Steve Elkington & Tom Lehman.

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European PGA Tour: Dubai Desert Classic

Site: Emirates Golf Club – Dubai, U.A.E.
Yards: 7,301   Par: 72
Defending: Tiger Woods 274   (beat M. Kaymer by 1)
Field: World Top 25: Sergio Garcia (2), Henrik Stenson (7), Robert Karlsson (8), Lee Westwood (11), Ernie Els (12), Martin Kaymer (19), Miguel Angel Jimenez (20), Justin Rose (21) & Paul Casey (22)   Other Notables: Darren Clarke, Anders Hansen, Colin Montgomerie, Jose Maria Olazabal, Mark O’Meara & Jeev Milkha Singh.

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Sunshine Tour: Nashua Masters

Site: Wild Coast Sun Country Club – Banners Rest, South Africa
Meters: 5,807   Par: 70
Defending: Mark Cayeux 268   (beat B. Vaughan by 2)
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Desvonde Botes & Darren Fichardt.

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Australasian PGA Tour: Subaru Victorian Open

Site: Spring Valley Golf Club – Clayton South, Australia
Meters: 6,161   Par: 71
Defending: Unofficial Event
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Michael Clayton, Michael Harwood, Jarrod Moseley & Peter Senior.

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PGA Tour: Bob Hope Chrysler Classic

Winner: Pat Perez 61-63-67-67-69   327 (beat J. Merrick by 3)
Site: PGA West (Palmer Private course), etc. – La Quinta, CA

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS           INTERVIEWS


European PGA Tour: Commercialbank Qatar Masters

Winner: Alvaro Quiros 69-67-64-69   269 (beat L. Oosthuizen & H. Stenson by 3)
Site: Doha Golf Club – Doha, Qatar

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Sunshine Tour: Dimension Data Pro-Am

Winner: Deane Pappas 65-66-69-68   268 (beat J. Kamte by 8)
Site: Gary Player Country Club – Sun City, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric Championship

Winner: Bernhard Langer 64-66-68   198 (beat A. Bean by 1)
Site: Hualalai Resort Golf Club – Kaupulehu-Kona, HI

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

PGA Tour: Bob Hope Chrysler Classic

Site: PGA West (Palmer Private course), etc. – La Quinta, CA
Yards: 6,950   Par: 72
Defending: D.J. Trahan 334   (beat J. Leonard by 3)
Field: World Top 25: Anthony Kim (8)   Other Notables: Paul Azinger, Fred Couples, David Duval, Steve Elkington, Brad Faxon & David Toms.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL


European PGA Tour: Commercialbank Qatar Masters

Site: Doha Golf Club – Doha, Qatar
Yards: 7,388   Par: 72
Defending: Adam Scott 268   (beat H. Stenson by 3)
Field: World Top 25: Sergio Garcia (2), Robert Karlsson (6), Henrik Stenson (8), Ernie Els (9), Lee Westwood (10), Adam Scott (15), Justin Rose (19), Miguel Angel Jimenez (22) & Martin Kaymer (25)   Other Notables: Paul Casey, Retief Goosen, Colin Montgomerie, Jeev Milkha Singh & Boo Weekley.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL


Sunshine Tour: Dimension Data Pro-Am

Site: Gary Player Country Club – Sun City, South Africa
Meters: 7,000   Par: 72
Defending: James Kamte 277   (beat J. Kingston by 3)
Field: World Top 25: None    Other Notables: Desvonde Botes, Darren Fichardt, David Frost & James Kamte.

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Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric Championship

Site: Hualalai Resort Golf Club – Kaupulehu-Kona, HI
Yards: 7,053   Par:72
Defending: Fred Funk 195   (beat A. Doyle by 2)
Field: Ranked: The entire 2008 Charles Schwab Cup top 20 except Fred Funk (2), Scott Hoch (9), Nick Price (10), Gene Jones (12) & Scott Simpson (16)   Other Notables: Ben Crenshaw, Hale Irwin, Gil Morgan, Jerry Pate, Gary Player & Craig Stadler.

                    ENTRANTS          WEBSITE          GOLF COURSE          AERIAL