KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii (AP) — Jay Haas and Loren Roberts have been dueling for the past few years for the top spot on the Champions Tour.
In 2006, Haas swept the money title, player of the year award and Charles Schwab Cup. Actually, Roberts lost the Schwab Cup when he missed a 4 1/2-foot par putt on the final hole of the season.
Haas repeated as player of the year and the tour's top money-winner last year, but Roberts' strong finish helped him capture the Schwab Cup and its $1 million annuity.
The third round between the Champions Tour stars begins on Friday in the MasterCard Championship, the first of 29 events this season on the 50-and-over tour.
"I'm sure he's trying to beat me as bad as I'm trying to beat him and everybody else in the field," said Roberts, coming off a two-win season including a victory at the Senior Players Championship.
Roberts finished fourth at Hualalai last year and won in his 2006 debut with a 25-under 191 total, breaking the tour's 54-hole record in relation to par.
Haas finished third in 2006 and fifth last year, but noted he hasn't come close to winning because of the low scores.
"So when I think I've made enough putts, I need to make a few more," he said.
The 54-year-old Haas is coming off his second straight four-win season and is seeking an unprecedented third straight player of the year award. Jim Colbert and Hale Irwin are the only back-to-back winners of the Jack Nicklaus Trophy.
In the offseason, Haas kept his usual workout regiment and took brief stretches away from golf to rest physically and mentally.
"At our age now, I think we have to be really emotionally ready to be out here," he said. "You just can't go through the motions. I don't think our play will show its best side if we're not ready to play in our head."
Haas played 27 of 29 events last year, but plans to limit his schedule this year to about two dozen tournaments to stay fresh, especially at the end of the year. He's skipping next week's Turtle Bay Championship on Oahu.
"For me, when I get tired physically, I start making some bad decisions on the golf course," he said.
Haas said he feels pressure for another strong season just to prove to himself what he's capable of. But it won't be easy.
"I really have to play well," he said. "There's more and more good players coming out or as we say, 'The young guys.' The 50 year olds."
The field of 41 includes seven members of the World Golf Hall of Fame including Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Bernhard Langer, Curtis Strange, Lee Trevino and Tom Watson.
The winners-only tournament also feature eight first timers, including R.W. Eaks, who remembered to bring his clubs to the Big Island but forgot to pack his golf shoes.
The 62-year-old Irwin, who withdrew from Wednesday's pro-am for personal reasons, is looking to defend his title and continue his magic in Hawaii, where he has nine official victories.
Last year, he beat Jim Thorpe and Kite by five strokes for his tour-record 45th victory. Irwin shot a second-round 62 en route to a 23-under 193 total to become the sixth-oldest winner in tour history.
It was his lone victory of the 2007 season.
While the MasterCard will be the first event for most of the field, Fred Funk already appears to be in midseason form and enjoying the islands.
Funk already has earned $208,688 (142,000) after playing in the U.S. PGA Tour's Mercedes-Benz Championship and the Sony Open. He tied for 25th at Kapalua and tied for 10th at Waialae.
His win at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico earned him an exemption in the events.
The 54-hole, $1.8 million (1.2 million) MasterCard is being played at Hualalai, known for its generous greens, reachable par 5s and black lava rock surroundings. If the wind stays down, the course will be very forgiving for the golfers who didn't practice during the offseason.
