This Week in Golf - June 21st through June 24th

Golf Betting Lines

06/18/2007 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - PGA TOUR - TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP, TPC River Highlands, Cromwell, Connecticut - J.J. Henry made this tournament his first win last year when it was called the Buick Championship, shooting a final-round 67 to hold off Hunter Mahan and Ryan Moore by three shots at 14-under 266.

Henry's weekend included a 63 on Saturday. After brutal Oakmont chewed up golf's best players at the U.S. Open last week, that score must look like candy to the players entered in this week's field.

Phil Mickelson is still among them, although it's unclear whether or not his nagging wrist injury will force him to withdraw. He played Oakmont wearing a brace and missed the cut by a shot.

Mickelson won this event twice when it was still known as the Greater Hartford Open.

Vijay Singh, David Toms, Chris DiMarco and Masters champion Zach Johnson are among the players who will be competing this week after also appearing in the U.S. Open. They will be getting a break: TPC River Highlands is 6,820 yards, more than 400 yards shorter than Oakmont.

The rough is sure to be less penal, too.

The Golf Channel will have three hours of coverage on the first two days beginning at 3 p.m. (et), and CBS is back this week with the same amount of coverage on the weekend.

Next week's event is the Buick Open, where Tiger Woods won his 50th PGA Tour title last year.

EUROPEAN TOUR

BMW INTERNATIONAL OPEN, Golfclub Munchen Eichenried, Munich, Germany - Recent winners of this event include Henrik Stenson, David Howell, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Lee Westwood, Thomas Bjorn, John Daly and Colin Montgomerie.

It's a testament to the tournament's importance that so many players who competed at the U.S. Open have entered this field as well, including three who finished in the top 10 at Oakmont: Niclas Fasth, Nick Dougherty and Paul Casey.

In a star-studded playoff last year, Henrik Stenson eagled the first extra hole to defeat Retief Goosen and Padraig Harrington, knocking a six-iron 235 yards to three feet at the par-five 18th.

Stenson will return to defend his title, but playoff casualties Goosen and Harrington are not in the field.

The Golf Channel has coverage of all four rounds beginning at 9:30 a.m. (et) on the first three days and a half-hour earlier on Sunday.

Next week's event is the Open de France Alstom in Paris, which was won by John Bickerton last year and by Jean-Francois Remesy the previous two seasons.

LPGA

WEGMANS LPGA, Locust Hill Country Club, Pittsford, New York - Jeong Jang won the Wegmans LPGA last year, adding to her victory at the Women's British Open the previous season.

Jang went 66-70 on the weekend to hold off Julieta Granada by a shot at 13- under 275.

The event served as a tune-up for the U.S. Women's Open, and will so again this year. Annika Sorenstam is not in the field, but the remainder of the world's top 10 players will be at Locust Hill, including the season's first two major champions, Morgan Pressel and Suzann Pettersen.

ESPN2 has coverage from Friday through Sunday beginning at 2:00 p.m. (et) on the first two days and at 2:30 p.m. for the final round.

Next week's U.S. Women's Open will be held at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, North Carolina. Annika Sorenstam beat Pat Hurst in an 18- hole Monday playoff last year to win her third U.S. Women's Open title and 10th career major championship.

CHAMPIONS TOUR

BANK OF AMERICA CHAMPIONSHIP, Nashawtuc Country Club, Concord, Massachusetts - This week's host course, Nashawtuc, gains its name from an American Indian term meaning "between two rivers."

Last year, there was no "between." The event was cancelled due to heavy rains that caused the Sudbury River to overflow and spill onto the golf course -- an occurrence that left fish swimming in the fairways.

It was the first cancellation for the Champions Tour since the weekend following the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Mark McNulty won the last Bank of America Championship in 2005, beating Tom Purtzer and Don Pooley in a playoff with a birdie on the second extra hole.

The tournament is being dedicated to U.S. troops. Champions Tour players, and Vietnam veterans, Larry Nelson and Ed Dougherty will visit with the soldiers.

The Golf Channel will have coverage beginning at 1 p.m. (et) on all three days. The next Champions Tour event is the Commerce Bank Championship, which was won by John Harris in a playoff last year.

NATIONWIDE TOUR

KNOXVILLE OPEN, Fox Den Country Club, Knoxville, Tennessee - Last year, Hunter Haas shot four rounds under 70 to beat Parker McLachlin by five shots at 19- under 269.

It was his second career victory at the event, the first coming in a playoff in the 2004 season. Haas is still toiling on the Nationwide Tour and will be in the field this week looking for win No. 3 in Knoxville.

There is not television coverage this week, but there will be next week when John Merrick defends his playoff win at the Peak'n Peak Classic.

CANADIAN TOUR

GREATER VANCOUVER CHARITY CLASSIC, Hazelmere Golf Club, Surrey, British Columbia - Last year, Lee Williamson squeezed out a one-shot win over Andy Doeden and Jason Hartwick at eight-under 280.

It was Williamson's second win of the season and third career victory on the Canadian Tour.

Williamson went on to make the final stage of PGA Tour Q-school and is now playing his rookie season on the Nationwide Tour, where he has a pair of top- five finishes this season.

Next week's event is the ATB Financial Classic, a new tournament on the schedule that marks the Canadian Tour's first visit to Calgary since 2000.

PGA OF AMERICA

PGA PROFESSIONAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP, Sunriver Resort, Sunriver, Oregon - This week is the 40th PGA Professional National Championship, a golf tournament for golf club professionals and teachers who are members of the PGA of America.

The top 20 finishers this weekend at Sunriver will gain entrance to the PGA Championship, to be held August 9-12 at Southern Hills.

Last year, Ron Philo Jr. defeated Alan Schulte with a bogey on the third playoff hole to earn his berth in the PGA Championship, as well as $75,000 and six PGA Tour exemptions for this season.

Philo, the head professional at Metropolis Country Club in White Plains, New York and a former Nationwide Tour player, is also the brother and sometimes caddie of LPGA Tour player Laura Diaz.

His final-round 68 at Turning Stone included a hole-in-one. He ended tied with Schulte at 10-under 278.

This is the second time the PGA Professional National Championship will be held at Sunriver, the last time coming in 2001 when Wayne DeFrancesco won.

DURAMED FUTURES TOUR

DURAMED CHAMPIONSHIP, The Golf Club at Stonelick Hills, Batavia, Ohio - The Duramed Futures Tour officially moves into the second half of its season this week with the 11th of 20 events scheduled for 2007.

This is the first year for the event, which features a prize purse of $100,000 -- $5,000 less than the tour's most lucrative tournament, the Michelob ULTRA Duramed Futures Players Championship, which was held last week and won by Emily Bastel.

The tour shifts west next week for the Team WLF.org Golf Classic in Saint Anne, Illinois.