Cameo appearance for Campbell on PGA Tour
Open champion Michael Campbell will make his 2006 debut next month in the Mercedes Championship at Kapalua.
Take away the majors, World Golf Championships and The Players Championship, and that leaves him only one other PGA Tour event he can play.
Despite winning a major, Campbell’s options on the PGA Tour are limited because of a bad year in 2003.As a New Zealand native, he claimed “home circuit” status on the PGA Tour two years ago, meaning he did not need a release to compete overseas provided he played at least 15 times on tour. Campbell quit after playing 14 events, and it has cost him.
“The penalty for using the home circuit exception and not satisfying the requirements is immediate forfeiture of membership the following year, and for five years, he can play only 10 tournaments as a nonmember,” said Andy Pazder, the tour’s vice president of competition.
Campbell was at a low point in 2003. He made only five cuts in his 14 tour events, and three of those were at WGC events that had no cuts. He was disqualified at The Players Championship after opening with an 89.
“I played (bad),” he said. “I had no house to go to. I was traveling with the family, two kids. It made me crazy. So I went back to England, to the European tour, and I won about a month later at the Irish Open. That told me it was time to pack up my bags and get back to England.”Campbell sought a compromise with the tour, asking if he could play 12 or 13 events in 2006. Because he could not commit to 15 tournaments, his request was denied.
The only other regular tournament he will play is the Bay Hill Invitational.
“I want to play Memorial, but I can’t play that now because of my restrictions,” Campbell said. “I feel that my wings have been clipped a little bit. I want to be a global player. I want to play in Europe and Australia and different parts of the world. But I couldn’t commit to 15 events.”
Take away the majors, World Golf Championships and The Players Championship, and that leaves him only one other PGA Tour event he can play.
Despite winning a major, Campbell’s options on the PGA Tour are limited because of a bad year in 2003.As a New Zealand native, he claimed “home circuit” status on the PGA Tour two years ago, meaning he did not need a release to compete overseas provided he played at least 15 times on tour. Campbell quit after playing 14 events, and it has cost him.
“The penalty for using the home circuit exception and not satisfying the requirements is immediate forfeiture of membership the following year, and for five years, he can play only 10 tournaments as a nonmember,” said Andy Pazder, the tour’s vice president of competition.
Campbell was at a low point in 2003. He made only five cuts in his 14 tour events, and three of those were at WGC events that had no cuts. He was disqualified at The Players Championship after opening with an 89.
“I played (bad),” he said. “I had no house to go to. I was traveling with the family, two kids. It made me crazy. So I went back to England, to the European tour, and I won about a month later at the Irish Open. That told me it was time to pack up my bags and get back to England.”Campbell sought a compromise with the tour, asking if he could play 12 or 13 events in 2006. Because he could not commit to 15 tournaments, his request was denied.
The only other regular tournament he will play is the Bay Hill Invitational.
“I want to play Memorial, but I can’t play that now because of my restrictions,” Campbell said. “I feel that my wings have been clipped a little bit. I want to be a global player. I want to play in Europe and Australia and different parts of the world. But I couldn’t commit to 15 events.”
posted by Michelle at 3:28 PM
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