Par 3 Shootout 2006 - Monday Notes

HE IS THE WALRUS...

Perhaps drafting off the rookie success of Andy North from 2005, Craig Stadler and Chris DiMarco seized the stage at the ING Par-3 Shootout, winning three holes, validating one with the ninth hole pending Tuesday and collecting five closest-to-pin shots for another $50,000 and a total of $90,000. Stadler won the second hole with a 7-foot-9 birdie, but failed to validate on No. 3 when fellow rookie DiMarco canned a 5-foot-7-inch birdie. DiMarco would validate on the following hole to win $60,000 – two thirds of his first-day haul of $90,000. Stadler hit the closest shot of the day on No. 5 (2-11), but missed the putt. Two-time champion Fred Couples, meanwhile, earned all $70,000 of his first-day take on the sixth and seventh holes, when he dialed in a 9-iron to 5-5 on No. 6, drained the birdie putt, then validated with a par on the next hole. Defending champion North, meanwhile, was shut out.

GET ME RICK SMITH... NOW!

Sanjay Kuttemperoor is a 38-year-old real-estate developer from Naples, Fla., who counts among his achievements the new TPC at Naples course. After a brief lesson from Treetops Managing Partner Rick Smith, Kuttemperoor can count one of the most remarkable feats in golf as another achievement. During a practice round on the Threetops Course with Smith before Monday’s ING Par-3 Shootout Pro-Am, Kuttemperror aced the 140-yard fifth hole. But he wasn’t done. Four holes and 35 minutes later, Kuttemperror reached the uphill, 142-yard ninth hole and launched a looping shot into the right trees. “The ball came out really soft and kicked left toward the hole,” Smith said. “I said ‘Sanjay, that looks like it’s headed to the hole. It’s a real soft landing.’ He’s looking in the rough around the green. I said ‘You better look in the hole.’ The result: Kuttemperror’s second ace in four holes. Not bad for someone with a whopping 20 rounds of birdie-free golf in his life. “I’ve been around the game forever and I’ve never seen anything like this. He’s become my star pupil,” Smith said. “Rick gave me two tips before I started: stand more upright and don’t scoop the ball,” Kuttemperoor said. “Those really helped a lot.” The odds against Kuttemperoor’s feat were estimated at 67 million to 1.

WELCOME BACK, CHRIS. GLAD YOU COULD JOIN US

Chris DiMarco was a late add to the ING Par-3 Shootout, replacing event stalwart and part-owner of Treetops Phil Mickelson, who withdrew Thursday morning. The runner-up to Tiger Woods in the 2005 Masters and the hero of the 2005 President’s Cup with a 4-0-1 record, DiMarco got the call Friday morning from ESPN executive Tony Renaud and couldn’t get to Treetops fast enough. “I’ve always watched this on TV and it always seemed like so much fun. I got the call Friday and it was like the movie Jerry Maguire. I told him “You had me at ‘Do you want to play?’” DiMarco said. The Orlando, Fla., resident last visited Treetops for a SIDS benefit tournament in 1998.

WHOA... THAT SHOT’S COMING AT US AGAIN

For the second straight year, the ING Par-3 Shootout will be produced and televised in HD-TV on ESPN2, which will air the event on a same-day, delayed basis beginning at 10 p.m. ET Monday and 8 p.m. ET Tuesday. Last year’s ING Par-3 Shootout marked the first golf broadcast produced in HD-TV on any network.

I KNOW THIS COURSE

The Threetops Course at Treetops will play at the same 2,804 yards it played at in 2004 and 2005. Monday’s first nine stretches from 135 yards (No. 8) to 205 (No. 3) for a total of 1,380 yards. Tuesday’s second nine go from 143 yards (No. 7) to 216 (No. 3) for a total of 1,424 yards.

WHERE’S SANJAY KUTTEMPEROOR WHEN YOU NEED HIM?

There is a $1 million bonus for any player recording an ace during the ING Par-3 Shootout. The players have agreed - should they card the elusive eagle - to donate half of the bonus to their favorite charity. The charities are: Fred Couples – Jimmy V Foundation; Chris DiMarco – Tee Up For Life, benefiting the R.O.C.K. (Reach out for Cancer Kids); Andy North – The Susan and Andy North Foundation and Craig Stadler – Disabled Sports U.S.A.

Lee Trevino recorded the only ace in the seven-year history of the ING Par-3 Shootout when he holed out on the 7th hole, “High Five,” in 2001. Yet while Trevino earned the $1 million bonus and an extra $10,000 for dropping his shot closest to the pin, he didn’t win the $20,000 hole prize because he didn’t validate on the next hole.

POCKET ACES

While Kuttemperoor went ace-less Monday, there were two carded during Monday’s pro-am. Pro and ESPN analyst Charlie Rymer carded one on the fifth hole. ING broker Mitchell Andrews of Buffalo Grove, Ill. carded his first career ace on the first hole, using a 9-iron.

PRO-AM RESULTS

He was a late add to the festivities, but DiMarco wasted little time getting reacquainted with Treetops. He piloted the team of Jeff Riley, Mark Noffsinger, Devon Beranski and Rob Skinner to the Monday pro-am title with a record-tying score of 8-under-par 19.

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