TOUR Insider: Determination, desperation at Disney

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They're playing for the keys to the kingdom this week at the Magic Kingdom.

The last of the PGA TOUR's 48 official events begins Thursday near Orlando at the Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by Wal-Mart. Varying degrees of determination and desperation will undoubtedly course through the veins of the assembled cast of 132 players preparing to take their best shots at the Magnolia and Palm courses at Walt Disney World Resort.

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Jeff Overton comes into the season-ending Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by Wal-Mart 125th on the money list.

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On the line for some in the field is a final chance to work their way into the top 125 on the money list, and thus secure full exempt status on the TOUR in 2009. For others, there are different incentives, including a spot in the top 30, and with it an invite to the Masters, or the top 70, which is good for invitations to limited field tournaments like the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley or the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard.

The $4.6 million tournament, now in its 38th year, also represents one last chance to qualify for the Mercedes-Benz Championship at Kapalua Resort in Maui, Hawaii, or a great opportunity to simply improve in the world rankings.

Stephen Ames wasn't one of the desperate souls when he showed up last year and notched a one-stroke victory over Tim Clark at 17-under-par 271 -- the highest winning score since Tiger Woods won by the same score in 1999. In fact, going back to '98, the winner of this event hasn't been on any kind of roller coaster. Only Bob Burns in 2002 didn't have at least a top-25 finish within his most recent three starts preceding his Disney victory.

If players have nerves that jingle-jangle-jingle, they couldn't be heading to a more enjoyable location than Disney World. While vacationers enjoy the nearby amusement parks, TOUR members shouldn't mind the ride on the Palm and Magnolia Courses. The former is just 7,010 yards, the latter significantly more muscular at 7,516 yards. Both are par 72. Both yield birdies the way the theme park yields smiles.

Neither course has displayed a proclivity for resistance to scoring. The field has combined to register more than 1,800 birdies every year since 1999, and 10 of the last 15 winners led the field in number of birdies.

Jeff Overton, who recently underwent an emergency appendectomy, is the man on the bubble in the 125th position. Only seven players between 126 and 150 are absent, including the likes of Mark Calcavecchia and Tom Lehman, out with injuries, and Champions Tour player Greg Norman, who is 148th on the strength of his British Open performance.

FALL SERIES NOTES

• Just five months after a second heart transplant and two weeks after his miraculous final-round comeback at the first stage of PGA Tour qualifying, Erik Compton will be competing in the Children's Miracle Network Classic after accepting one of four sponsor's exemptions. Compton hasn't played in a TOUR event since the 2005 Ford Championship at Doral near his home in Miami, Fla., where he tied for 44th. The other sponsor's exemptions went to Lee Janzen, Scott McCarron and Bob Tway.

• Tway is scheduled to make his 19th start at Disney dating back to 1985, and he owns the course record at the Lake Buena Vista Course, which was dropped from the rotation in 1998. Interestingly, Tway has never won at the Magic Kingdom. In fact, he has only three top-10 finishes there, but two have come after '98, including a third-place finish in 1999.

• Not to be a joy-kill, but Disney was no last-minute panacea for struggling players last year. Only one man, Kevin Stadler, who tied for 15th, was able to break into the top 125 on the money list after starting the week on the wrong side of the line. He moved up two places to that coveted 125th position, but he'll need a bigger move this time around, coming into the week at 147th. Only two others, Jeff Gove and Robert Gamez, broke into the top 150 (which awards conditional exempt status) after starting the week 153rd and 152nd, respectively.

• Veterans had an early run on Disney titles, led by Jack Nicklaus, who won the first three. But rookies have made inroads, especially of late -- Lucas Glover, Ryan Palmer, Bob Burns, Brad Bryant, Rick Fehr and Jeff Maggert all captured their first titles at the Magic Kingdom.

• Five-time TOUR winner Scott Verplank has struggled for most of the season after a steady '07. The last of his two top 10s came in June, but maybe he'll find his form at Disney, where he has made the cut for 12 straight years -- just one off the tournament record. He tied for third last year.

• Reigning British Open and PGA champion Padraig Harrington, the newly minted PGA Player of the Year, has decided to re-sign with Wilson Golf for an additional three years. Harrington, who has been with Wilson for 10 years, had input into Wilson's new Smooth driver and Tw9 wedges.

• There are a record 102 players who have earned more than $1 million, and John Rollins, Scott McCarron and Fred Couples could add their names to the list with a finish somewhere in the top 20. Rollins could get there just by making the cut.