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By PGA TOUR staff

• The Nationwide Tour returns home to the United States as the 2007 season begins in earnest with the Chitimacha Louisiana Open presented by Dynamic Industries. The Tour will only have three idle weeks between this event and the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship at Barona Creek near San Diego in early November where the 25 PGA TOUR cards will be awarded.

• Three international events launched the 2007 season. Argentinian Miguel Carballo, a tournament invitee, won the season-opening Movistar Panama Championship in January. Americans Scott Sterling of Baton Rouge, La., and Nicholas Thompson of Coral Springs, Fla., then won the Jacob's Creek Open Championship in Adelaide, Australia and HSBC New Zealand PGA Championship, respectively, in February. Thompson, Sterling and Carballo are one, two and three on the current money list. All three are entered in this week's event in Louisiana.

• Speaking of Carballo, he's an interesting story......the 27-year-old Argentinian gained entry to the Movistar Panama Championship when one of eight invitees off the Tour de Las Americas money list did not play. Four days later he found himself having earned a two-shot victory and holding a check for $90,000, not to mention the full Nationwide Tour exemption that went along with the win. He comes to America this week full of hope and inspiration despite speaking little or no English. His journey on the Nationwide Tour will be more unique than that of most of his fellow players.

• 18 of the top 50 players and 40 of the top 100 on the current Official World Golf Ranking are former Nationwide Tour players.

• A pair of U.S. Open champions are entered in the Chitimacha Louisiana Open -- Steve Jones (1996/Oakland Hills CC) and Larry Mize (1987 Masters).

• New Zealander Craig Perks, who was an All-American at UL-Lafayette and resides in Lafayette, is entered in his hometown Nationwide Tour event. He won the 2002 PLAYERS Championship. He will be making his first appearance in the tournament since 2000, having made eight starts in the event. Perks was also an assistant golf professional at host Le Triomphe from 1990-1992.

• There are a total 17 PGA TOUR winners in the Chitimacha field including John Cook (11), Steve Pate (6), Carlos Franco (4) and Len Mattiace (2).

• Next Week on the Nationwide Tour.....the Livermore Valley Wine Country Championship at Wente Vineyards in Livermore, CA (east of Oakland).

DID YOU KNOW? The average prize money for a Nationwide Tour event this year is $564,000 and the average first prize is $101,454.

• There's a strong field assembled this week at the Chitimacha Louisiana Open as the Nationwide Tour opens the domestic portion of its schedule. There are 17 former PGA TOUR winners in the field, including two former major championship winners. There are also three former Nationwide Tour Players of the Year, four former U.S. Amateur and four former U.S. Public Links champs entered, as well as four former Ryder Cup team members and one former President Cup team competitor.

• If Steve Jones and Larry Mize tee it up as scheduled, they will become the eighth and ninth former major championship winners to compete on the Nationwide Tour.

• The best players from around the world are finding the Nationwide Tour an attractive place to play. There will be competitors from 17 different countries teeing it up this week in Louisiana.