CORAL SPRINGS, Fla., March 6 (UPI) -- Defending champion Jesper Parnevik will be celebrating his 37th birthday when the Honda Classic opens Thursday.
Parnevik captured his fifth and most recent PGA Tour title here last year with a winning score of 18-under-par 270. The Swede is the only player to tee it up each week in 2002 and vowed to play every week until he wins.
In his string of consecutive starts to begin 2002, Parnevik has two top-25 finishes -- a tie for 15th at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and 10th at the Genuity Championship last week.
Tiger Woods and Ernie Els, the winner of the Genuity Championship,are skipping this weekend's event along with Kevin Sutherland, whois second on the PGA money list, Jose Maria Olazabal, Scott McCarron and Sergio Garcia.
Chris DiMarco, the Tour's leading money winner hopes to rebound from a disappointing tie for 67th last week at the Genuity. He already has won more than $1.75 million this year on the strength of his victory at the Phoenix Open and has three other top-10 finishes in his first seven starts.
Jerry Kelly, Brad Faxon and David Toms are the other players ranked among the top-10 money leaders participating in the event.
Kelly captured his first career title at the Sony Open earlier in the year and placed in the top 10 in three of his first four starts. He also finished fifth at the Bob Hope Classic and tied for eighth
at the Buick Invitational.
Faxon lost in the semifinals of the Match Play Championships in his last appearance, and is off to a solid start in 2002 with three top-10 finishes. Toms has yet to win after posting three victories in 2001
but has three top-10 finishes.
John Daly will make his first appearance since losing in the second round of the Match Play Championship.
Jack Nicklaus is the only player to successfully defend his title at The Honda Classic, winning in 1977 and 1978.
