Golf: Campbell seeking to bury bad memories of tournament

Michael Campbell

ORLANDO, Florida - New Zealand golfer Michael Campbell this week returns to the scene of his second best US PGA tour performance but also the venue of one of his poorest moments in pro golf.

Campbell is in Orlando, Florida to join the likes of Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, defending champion Kenny Perry and Adam Scott in the Arnold Palmer-hosted Bay Hill Invitational.

It is the 40th staging of the event, first known as the Florida Citrus Open when Lionel Hubert managed to hold off Augusta heroes Jack Nicklaus and Charles Coody.

Palmer has since welcomed some of the game's best players and only last week the US Tour announced the event will be known from 2007 as The Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Palmer posted Campbell a personal invite to compete this week straight after the New Zealander claimed last year's US Open.

The US$5.5 million ($8.62 million) tournament is Campbell's third in the US this year.

This week will be Campbell's fifth appearance at Bay Hill.

He made his debut in 1996 but missed the halfway cut with scores of 78 and 76.

It was not until 2001 before Campbell returned but he again sat out the weekend after rounds of 73 and 78.

Campbell went back a year later to brilliantly finish second, four shots behind Woods.

The effort was and remained until last June, Campbell's best ever finish on the US tour and also earned him a US$432,000 prize cheque.

But the joy of finishing second to Woods in 2002 ended just three holes into Campbell's opening round of the 2003 tournament.

Three balls off the third tee and each into the water for an eventual '10' was enough for Campbell.

With bemused caddy, Michael Waite, following close behind, Campbell walked back to the clubhouse where he conveyed his apologies to Palmer and then withdrew from the event.

It was the commencement of a horror start to Campbell's attempt to compete fulltime on the US Tour.

A week later at the elite Players Championship, where he had finished 11th a year earlier, Campbell walked from the 18th green remarking: "Well! At least I broke 90."

He'd actually shot 89 but a short time later Campbell found himself being thrown out of golf's unofficial 'fifth major' for signing an incorrect score.

It's believed he wrote down 87. Official records still show him having an 89.

Campbell proceeded to miss the cut in his next six US events including the Masters and US Open where he posted a second round 80 on the Olympia Fields course.

He then walked out on the US tour a week later at Westchester, New York with Buick Classic scores of 75 and 71.

Because of this, Campbell has only ever been allowed to play 10 US money list events a year ever since but with the ban ending on December 31.

This week Campbell returns to Bay Hill a hero.

He's the reigning US Open champion and among the three major winners from 2005.

But there's sure to be a few, including Campbell himself, who'll be interested to see how he negotiates the par four, third hole come Thursday's first day of the tournament.

- NZPA