MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Among his 15 PGA Tour victories are the 1992 Masters, the 1996 Players Championship, the 1998 Memorial and the 1990 and '92 Los Angeles opens. He began the final round of the Masters trailing Craig Parry by one stroke but a closing 70 gave him a two-stroke victory, completing a six-tournament streak during which he won three tournaments and finished second twice.
THIS YEAR: Won the Houston Open, first player from the University of Houston and the sixth player over 40 to win the event. It was his first win in 87 events dating to the 1998 Memorial.
ERNIE ELS
AGE: 34. RESIDES: Paradise Island, The Bahamas.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Among 12 PGA Tour titles are the 1994 and '97 U.S. Opens (the second foreign-born player since 1910 to win it twice), and the 2002 British Open in the first four-man playoff to decide a major.
THIS YEAR: Won the Mercedes Championship and Sony Open, the first player since Steve Jones in 1989 to win the first two events of the season; tied for fifth at the U.S. Open and PGA Championship and for sixth at the Masters.
RETIEF GOOSEN
AGE: 34. RESIDES: Pietersburg, South Africa; South Ascot, England; Orlando.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: He won the 2001 U.S. Open as a rookie on the PGA Tour making his 38th start, defeating Mark Brooks by two strokes in an 18-hole playoff. Goosen was the eighth player in 50 years to make the U.S. Open his first tour title. He also won the 2002 BellSouth Classic, and has won 16 international tournaments.
THIS YEAR: Tied for third at the Phoenix Open and, as defending champion, the BellSouth Classic. Won the Lancome Trophy, continuing a string of nine consecutive years with at least one international victory.
JOHN HUSTON
AGE: 42. )
RESIDES: Palm Harbor.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Among his seven PGA victories are the Disney in 1992 and '98, and the 2000 Tampa Bay Open at Innisbrook, where he birdied three of the last four holes in the final round for 65 on Copperhead, his home course. Teamed with 1979 Dunedin High teammate Amy Benz to win the 1988 JCPenney Classic at Bardmoor.
THIS YEAR: Won the Southern Farm Bureau Classic where he birdied Nos. 15, 16 and 17 to beat Brendan Pappas by one stroke. Finished second, three strokes behind Vijay Singh at the Phoenix Open.
JUSTIN LEONARD
AGE: 31. RESIDES: Dallas.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Among his eight career wins is the 1997 British Open, when he stormed back from five strokes behind Jesper Parnevik after three rounds to win by two. At 25 was the youngest British Open champion since Seve Ballesteros, 22, in 1979.
THIS YEAR: Was tied for fourth after two rounds at the John Deere Classic, then withdrew, flew home and was with his wife, Amanda, when she gave birth to a baby daughter, Reese, on Sunday, Sept. 14. Won the Honda Classic with a final-round 5-under 67, breaking the tournament record with 24-under 264.
DAVIS LOVE
AGE: 39. RESIDES: Sea Island, Ga.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Has 18 tour victories, including four Heritage Classics, two Internationals, two Players Championships, two Internationals, two Pebble Beach National Pro-Ams and the 1997 PGA Championship, beating Justin Leonard by five strokes with three rounds of 66 and one at 71.
THIS YEAR: Tied for fifth at last weekend's Funai Classic. His Players victory put him in the company of Jack Nicklaus, Fred Couples, Steve Elkington and Hal Sutton as multiple Players winners; also won his second Heritage, Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and International and is third on money list behind Singh and Tiger Woods.
PHIL MICKELSON
AGE: 33. RESIDES: Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Has 21 PGA Tour victories; generally considered the best player on the tour never to win a major. Has finished third the past three Masters tournaments as well as in 1996, and third in the 1994 PGA Championship; also second in the 1999 and 2002 U.S. Opens and 2001 PGA Championship. Finished second to Woods in winnings the past three years.
THIS YEAR: Five other top 10 finishes besides Masters. After Mickelson poked fun at Woods for using "inferior" equipment, Woods, in his first tournament since Dec. 12 knee surgery, won the Buick; Mickelson was six strokes back.
KENNY PERRY
AGE: 43. RESIDES: Franklin, Ky.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Has won seven PGA tournaments, including the Memorial in 1991 and this year. Finished 27th in winnings in 2002 ($1,928,598), his fifth consecutive top-30 finish. Tied for second at the 2002 Colonial and Phoenix Open.
THIS YEAR: Won the Colonial, setting 54- and 72-hole tournament records and tying the course record with a third-round, 9-under 61. Won the Greater Milwaukee Open, tied for second at Bay Hill and for third at the U.S. Open.
VIJAY SINGH
AGE: 40. RESIDES: Ponte Vedra Beach.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Has won 15 PGA tournaments, including the 1998 PGA Championship, becoming the 10th player in 11 years to make it his first major title. Made the 2000 Masters his second. Finished in top five in winnings from 1999 to 2002.
THIS YEAR: Won last weekend's Funai Classic at Walt Disney World, earning $720,000 to move to No. 1 in the money list with $6,827,507 to $6,577,413 for Tiger Woods, who tied for second at Disney. Also won the Phoenix Open and John Deere Classic, each for the second time, and the Byron Nelson Championship.
MIKE WEIR
AGE: 33. RESIDES: Draper, Utah.
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS: Among his six PGA Tour titles are this year's Masters, preventing Tiger Woods from wearing an unprecedented third straight green jacket.
THIS YEAR: Nailed a 6-footer for par on No. 18 to force a playoff, then beat Len Mattiace on the first extra hole at the Masters for his first major title. His was the first bogey-free final-round by a winner since Doug Ford in 1957. He's the first Canadian ever and first lefthander since Bob Charles (British Open, 1963) to win a major.
Keep an eye on
Aaron Baddeley
AGE: 22. RESIDES: Lebanon, N.H.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: In 1999 became youngest winner of the Australian Open and first amateur winner since Bruce Devlin in 1959.
Chad Campbell
AGE: 29. RESIDES: Dallas.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: Has seven top-10 finishes this year, including seconds at the PGA Championship and the Chrysler Classic of Tucson, two strokes back each time, and tied for second at the Honda Classic.
K.J. Choi
AGE: 33. RESIDES: The Woodlands, Texas.
VICTORIES: 2.
DID YOU KNOW?: Won last year's Tampa Bay Classic, taking the lead with a first-round course- and tournament-record 63; seven-shot victory margin over Glen Day was the year's largest.
Stewart Cink
AGE: 30. RESIDES: Duluth, Ga.
VICTORIES: 2.
DID YOU KNOW:? He finished in a four-way tie for second at this year's Bay Hill Invitational, 11 strokes behind Tiger Woods, and tied with Woods and Scott Verplank for second at last weekend's Funai.
Ben Curtis
AGE: 26. RESIDES: Kent, Ohio.
VICTORIES 1.
DID YOU KNOW?: In his first career start in a major he won this year's British Open, the first player since Francis Ouimet did it at the 1913 U.S. Open.
Brad Faxon
AGE: 442. RESIDES: Barrington, R.I.
VICTORIES: 7.
DID YOU KNOW?: Finished second this year at the Canadian Open and Chrysler Classic of Greensboro and tied for second at the Bay Hill Invitational.
Bernhard Langer
AGE: 46. RESIDES: Anhausen, Germany.
VICTORIES: 3.
DID YOU KNOW?: Two of his wins were at the Masters in 1985 and '93; he hasn't won on the tour since.
Shigeki Maruyama
AGE: 34. RESIDES: Chiba, Japan, and Los Angeles.
VICTORIES: 3.
DID YOU KNOW?: First shot even-par at age 11. Won this year's Chrysler Classic of Greensboro, the third player to finish the tournament at 20-under or better (22-under 266).
Shaun Micheel
AGE: 34. RESIDES: Memphis, Tenn.
VICTORIES: 1.
DID YOU KNOW?: Won this year's PGA Championship in his third career major start, the first player since John Daly in 1991 to make the tournament his first tour win.
Jesper Parnevik
AGE: 38. RESIDES: Jupiter.
VICTORIES: 5.
DID YOU KNOW?: The upturned bill of his cap is his signature; he first did it to get a tan on his face while playing. His father, Bo, is Sweden's most famous comedian.
Area favorites
Woody Austin
AGE: 39. RESIDES: Derby, Kan. (Hometown is Tampa.)
VICTORIES: 1.
DID YOU KNOW?: He was the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year in 1995, when he won the Buick Open in a playoff. He worked for years as credit-union teller during the off-season.
Paul Azinger
AGE: 43. RESIDES: Bradenton.
VICTORIES: 12.
DID YOU KNOW?: Won the 1993 PGA Championship. Was host in 1994 and '95 for the Zinger Stinger Pro-Am to raise money for lymphoma research; wrote Zinger, about his fight against cancer.
Marco Dawson
AGE: 39. RESIDES: Lakeland.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: He took up golf at age 9 after his family moved to Coral Springs and lived next to a course. Was a teammate of Lee Janzen and Rocco Mediate at Florida Southern College in Lakeland.
Glen Hnatiuk
AGE: 38. RESIDES: Homosassa.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: He once played center on Western Canada's Junior B championship hockey team and was featured prominently in Nike's 1996 ads.
Lee Janzen
AGE: 39. RESIDES: Orlando.
VICTORIES: 8.
DID YOU KNOW?: He won the 1993 and '98 U.S. Opens; in the latter he rallied from seven strokes back, the biggest U.S. Open final-round comeback in 25 years.
Skip Kendall
AGE: 39. RESIDES: Windermere.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: Won the Nationwide Tour's 1994 Inland Empire Open and Carolina Classic and that year became that tour's host of Inside the PGA TOUR.
Greg Kraft
AGE: 39.
RESIDES: Clearwater.
VICTORIES: 1.
DID YOU KNOW?: He says he's interested in race cars of any kind, but adds: "I'm not so interested that I would attempt to drive one any time soon."
DID YOU KNOW?: Tied for ninth at last weekend's Funai. Started using a long putter to save his back; became the first player to win on the PGA Tour, using it at the 1991 Doral-Ryder Open.
Mark O'Meara
AGE: 46. RESIDES: Windermere.
VICTORIES: 16.
DID YOU KNOW?: Won The 1998 Masters and British Open; has been on five Ryder Cup and seven Dunhill Cup teams; first player to win at Pebble Beach five times.
Tim Petrovic
AGE: 37. RESIDES: Dade City.
VICTORIES: None.
DID YOU KNOW?: He once worked as baker and delivery man at Pizza Hut, spending his breaks hitting golf balls in the parking lot.
