PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (Feb. 9, 2007) – Past champions Adam Scott and Ernie Els are among eight of the top nine players in the world rankings and 15 of the top 20 who are in the field for the 81st Nissan Open presented by Countrywide, Feb. 12-18, at Riviera Country Club.
Joining Scott (2005) and Els (1999) are Jim Furyk, Retief Goosen, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Luke Donald and Padraig Harrington. Other leading players committed include: Geoff Ogilvy, Sergio Garcia, Trevor Immelman, David Howell, Nick O’Hern, David Toms and Chris DiMarco. Others entered among the top 50 in the World Rankings include: Stuart Appleby, Jose Maria Olazabal, Shingo Katayama, Stewart Cink, Robert Karlsson, Joe Durant, Ian Poulter, Angel Cabrera, Rod Pampling, past champion Robert Allenby (2001), Chad Campbell, Bart Bryant, Stephen Ames, Carl Pettersson, Aaron Baddeley, Ben Crane, Charles Howell III, defending champion Rory Sabbatini and Lucas Glover. In all, 34 of the top 50 players in the World Rankings are entered. Other Nissan Open past champions in the field include: Len Mattiace (2002), Billy Mayfair (1998), Corey Pavin (1994-95), Kirk Triplett (2000) and Mike Weir (2003-04). John Daly, Anthony Kim, Kevin Stadler and Duffy Waldorf are among the sponsor exemptions.
The Nissan Open will have a record purse of $5.2 million, with the winner earning $936,000.
The 81st playing of the Nissan Open and its ancillary activities begin on Saturday, Feb. 10 through Sunday, Feb. 18. The week’s activities begin with Countrywide Classic Am Golf Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 10 at Riviera Country Club. Practice rounds will be held on Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 12 and 13, with the pro-am scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 14 and the 2007 edition of the PGA TOUR’s Nissan Open presented by Countrywide Thursday, Feb. 15 through Sunday, Feb. 18.
The beautiful Riviera Country Club will again be the host site of the tournament. This historic venue has been the official home of the tournament since 1929 when the fourth tournament was first played at the club. This is the 45th time Riviera has played host to the tournament, including every year but two since 1973. The 1983 tournament was played at Rancho Park Golf Course due to the PGA Championship at Riviera that year and the 1998 tournament was held at Valencia Country Club due to the U.S. Senior Open at Riviera.
Tickets for the tournament are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $15 for juniors and can be purchased by calling 1-800-752-6736 or by visiting local Roger Dunn’s Golf Shops or online at www.lajcc.org/nissan.
About Nissan North America, Inc.
The tournament’s title sponsor, Nissan North America, Inc. is celebrating its 19th year in that capacity. In North America, Nissan’s operations include automotive styling, design, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. More information about Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.NissanUSA.com and www.infiniti.com.
About Countrywide Financial Corporation
Countrywide Financial Corporation is in its fifth year as the presenting sponsor of the tournament. Founded in 1969, Countrywide is America’s #1 home loan lender as ranked for 2006 by "Inside Mortgage Finance" (Jan. 29, 2006, Copyright 2006) – and is a member of the S&P 500 and Fortune 500. Countrywide, through its subsidiaries, provides mortgage banking and diversified financial services in domestic and international markets. Mortgage banking businesses include loan production and servicing principally through Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., which originates, purchases, securitizes, sells, and services residential loans. The company is headquartered in Calabasas, California and has a workforce of more than 54,000 individuals and over 900 offices worldwide. For more information about the company, visit Countrywide’s Web site at www.countrywide.com.
About the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce
The Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce has managed the tournament for the past 81 years, making it the oldest civic-sponsored event on the PGA TOUR. The programs and projects of the LAJCC focus on at-risk youth sports that emphasize education, life skills, family growth and leadership development. Membership information can be obtained by calling (213) 482-1311 or online at www.lajcc.org.
Contact:
Toby Zwikel, Brian Robin, Brener Zwikel & Associates, Inc., 818-344-6195, ext. 104, 110
