Australian Aaron Baddeley defends his title and goes for more than $1 million in prize money this week when the FBR Open golf tournament tees off in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Baddeley won the second of his two U.S. PGA Tour titles last year in Scottsdale, when he birdied three of the last four holes to beat American John Rollins by one stroke.
World No. 2 men's player Phil Mickelson of the United States looks to keep Baddeley from winning in Arizona. Mickelson, who finished tied for sixth last week at the Buick Invitational, won this tournament in 2005. The former Arizona State University golfer also won the FBR in 1996.
Another top player in the field is two-time former U.S. Open winner Retief Goosen of South Africa, who had to pull out of the Qatar Masters because of complications from eye surgery. No. 11 Vijay Singh of Fiji, a two-time winner at Scottsdale, is back to try for a third win.
Among the other former champions vying for the title are Americans Tommy Armour III, Paul Azinger, Mark Calcavecchia, Chris DiMarco, J.B. Holmes, Jonathan Kaye, Tom Lehman, Rocco Mediate and Sweden's Jesper Parnevik. This week's winner earns $1.08 million.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
