Associated Press
Wednesday, June 21

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- No more Pebble Beach. No Tiger Woods. The PGA Tour turns this week to the birdie-friendly TPC at Southwind course, which presents its own unique challenge.

If you want to win the St. Jude Classic, shoot low, sometimes obscenely low.

"Tomorrow when I get out here, there's probably going to be somebody already seven ahead of me or maybe more," Stewart Cink said. "That's just the way it's going to be."

For the golfers who couldn't crack par at the U.S. Open last weekend -- and only Woods did -- the St. Jude Classic seems like the perfect therapy.

The par-71, 7,030-yard course offers scoring opportunities on nearly every hole with few penalties for being aggressive with ample fairways and slow, soft greens. The lowest winning score was an 8-under 276 in 1986, while John Cook torched the course in 1996 in setting a PGA Tour scoring record with his 26-under 258 total.

Remember, this is the tournament where Al Geiberberger shot his 59, albeit at the Colonial Country Club in 1977.

Cink said the pressure to score low prevents golfers from relaxing.

"It's almost more difficult here because you have to shoot so low to keep up. I don't think it's a very easy course. The scores they shoot on it are mind-boggling to me," he said.

Local favorite Loren Roberts, who lives nearby, said golfers will be targeting the greens all day long.

"You've got to putt," Roberts said. "That's the only chance you have. You're going to have to make six, seven birdies a round."

Proof of how easy the course will be in the tournament, sponsored by FedEx, came on Wednesday when Paul Stankowski's team posted a 19-under with nine birdies and five eagles in the pro-am.

Then there's the lack of the Tiger factor.

Woods is taking the week off following his record-smashing victory in the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.

"So there's not a clear favorite," Cink said. "Maybe there is a clear favorite, but it's not Tiger."

That favorite might be Hal Sutton, who is looking for his third victory this year. Only he and Cink are here from the top 10 money list this week. The field also includes defending champion Ted Tryba, two-time champion Nick Price and Casey Martin.

"I hope you guys don't write this field is weak because Tiger's not here," Cink said. "There's no such thing as a weak field on our tour. Not anymore."

Roberts, who tied for eighth at the Open and finished third at the Masters in April, wouldn't mind winning before his family and friends. He has finished in the top 10 only three times in 17 previous visits, but he thinks he might have a chance.

"I'm hitting the ball probably the best I've hit it in several years the last couple months. I haven't always scored that well but feel tee to green probably the best I've ever been. Hopefully, I can find the putter and turn that into something good this week," Roberts said.