PGA TOUR's Arnold Palmer Invitational

Site: Orlando, Fla.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Bay Hill Club and Lodge (7,162 yards, par 70).

Purse: $6 million. Winner’s share: $1.08 million.

Television (all times PDT): Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, noon-3 p.m., 5:30-8:30 p.m.) and NBC (Saturday-Sunday, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m.).

Last year: Tiger Woods made a 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a one-stroke victory, his fifth consecutive PGA Tour victory and fifth Bay Hill win.

Last week: South Africa’s Retief Goosen won the Transitions Championship for his first PGA Tour win in nearly four years. Goosen beat Charles Howell III and Brett Quigley by a stroke on Innisbrook’s Copperhead course.

Notes: Woods is making his third start since returning from a left knee injury that sidelined him eight months. He opened in the Accenture Match Play, beating Brendan Jones and losing to Tim Clark, then tied for ninth two weeks ago in the CA Championship at Doral. After sweeping the 2000-03 Bay Hill titles, winning by a tournament-record 11 strokes in 2003, Woods tied for 20th, 23rd, 46th and 22nd in his next four starts before winning last year. He also won the 1991 U.S. Junior winner at Bay Hill. … Phil Mickelson, the 1997 champion, is coming off a victory at Doral. He also won at Riviera. … Gig Harbor's Kyle Stanley, a junior at Clemson, is in the field by way of his Southern Amateur victory last summer. He is playing on a sponsor's exemption. … Tournament host Arnold Palmer is 79. … British Open and PGA winner Padraig Harrington is making his first Bay Hill start since 2000. … Davis Love III is 47th in the world ranking, putting him in position to qualify for the Masters. The top 50 after the week will earn spots at Augusta National. … Ryo Ishikawa and Erik Compton are in the field. The 17-year-old Ishikawa, a two-time winner on the Japanese tour, was 71st last week at Innisbrook in his second PGA Tour start. Compton is playing his fourth tour event since having his second heart transplant in May 2008. … The Houston Open is next week.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

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LPGA TOUR's J Golf Phoenix LPGA International

Site: Phoenix.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Papago Golf Course (6,711 yards, par 72).

Purse: $1.5 million. Winner’s share: $225,000.

Television (all times PDT): Golf Channel (Thursday, 3:30-5:30 p.m.; Friday, 9:30-11:30 p.m., 3:30-5:30 p.m.; Saturday, 11 p.m.-1 a.m., 3:30-6:30 p.m.; Sunday, 9-11 p.m., 4-6:30 p.m.; Monday, 9-11 p.m.).

Last year: Lorena Ochoa successfully defended her title at Superstition Mountain for the second of her seven 2008 victories. The top-ranked Mexican star finished at 22-under 266, seven strokes ahead of Jee Young Lee and Minea Blomqvist.

Last week: Pat Hurst won the Mastercard Classic at BosqueReal in Mexico, beating Ochoa and Yani Tseng by a stroke. Hurst has six LPGA Tour victories.

Notes: Michelle Wie is making her second start of the season. She was second in the season-opening SBS Open in Hawaii, losing the final-round lead in a three-stroke loss to Angela Stanford. Winless in 48 LPGA Tour events, Wie is ranked 84th. … Ochoa opened her season with a victory in the Honda LPGA Thailand, her 25th LPGA Tour title. … The top 10 players in the world and 79 of the top 80 on the money list are in the field. … Annika Sorenstam shot a 59 in her 2001 victory at Moon Valley. … J Golf, set to become the tour’s South Korean television outlet next year, replaced Safeway as the sponsor. … The event is in its first year at Papago, the restored municipal course in the shadow of the Papago Buttes, after five seasons at Superstition Mountain. … Hurst jumped from 17th to 13th in the U.S. standings. Paula Creamer tops the list, followed by Stanford and Cristie Kerr. The top 10 will qualify for the Solheim Cup and captain Beth Daniel will add two players for the August matches against Europe at Rich Harvest Farms. … The Kraft Nabisco, the first major of the season, is next week in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

On the Net: http://www.lpga.com

CHAMPIONS TOUR's Cap Cana Championship

Site: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: Punta Espada Golf Club (7,260 yards, par 72).

Purse: $2.1 million. Winner’s share: $315,000.

Television (all times PDT): Golf Channel (Friday, 9:30-11:30 a.m.; Saturday, 9-11 p.m., 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., 6:30-8:30 p.m.).

Last year: Mark Wiebe won the inaugural tournament, leading wire-to-wire en route to a four-stroke victory over Argentina’s Vicente Fernandez.
Last event: Dan Forsman won the AT&T Champions Classic on March 15 in Santa Clarita, Calif., for his first victory in 12 Champions Tour starts. The five-time PGA Tour winner overcame a five-stroke deficit and beat Don Pooley on the first extra hole.

Notes: Greg Norman is making his sixth career Champions Tour start and first in an non-major. … Jack Nicklaus-designed Punta Espada opened in November 2006. … Ken Green was seventh in the AT&T, his only top-40 finish in 11 starts on the 50-and-over tour. He won five times on the PGA Tour. … The tour is off the next two weeks. Play will resume April 17-19 with the Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am at TPC Tampa Bay.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

PGA EUROPEAN TOUR's Andalucia Open

Site: Seville, Spain.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Real Club de Golf de Sevilla (7,140 yards, par 72).

Purse: $1.37 million. Winner’s share: $227,750.

Television (all times PDT): Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 7:30-10:30 a.m.; Saturday, 7-9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 6-9 a.m.).

Last year: France’s Thomas Levet won at Aloha Golf Club in Marbella, beating 19-year-old Englishman Oliver Fisher with a par on the first hole of a playoff.

Last week: Argentina’s Estanislao Goya won his first European tour title, holding off Scotland’s Callum Macaulay by a stroke in the Madeira Islands Open. The 20-year-old Goya topped the Tour de Las Americas money list last season.

Notes: Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie is making his 500th European tour appearance as a professional. The 2010 European Ryder Cup captain has 32nd victories. … Miguel Angel Jimenez is the event promoter, and fellow Spanish star Jose Maria Olazabal designed the course. … The Estoril Open is next week in Portugal.

On the Net: http://www.europeantour.com

NATIONWIDE TOUR's Louisiana Open

Site: Broussard, La.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Le Triomphe Country Club (7,006 yards, par 71).

Purse: $550,000. Winner’s share: $99,000.

Television: None.

Last year: Australia’s Gavin Coles won his fourth Nationwide Tour title, shooting a 1-under 70 in windy final-round conditions for a one-stroke victory over Kyle Thompson.

Last event: Spokane native and University of Washington product Alex Prugh won the New Zealand Open on March 15 for his first Nationwide Tour title, beating Martin Piller by three strokes. The 24-year-old Prugh, a former University of Washington player, closed with an 8-under 64 in the event also was sanctioned by the Australasian tour.

Notes: The tournament, in its 18th year at Le Triomphe, opens the tour’s North American schedule. … Tacoma's Michael Putnam has played all three Nationwide Tour events so far, and will play again this week. … The top 25 on the money list at the end of the season will earn 2010 PGA Tour cards. … The Stonebrae Classic is next week at TPC San Francisco Bay.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

OTHER MEN's TOURNAMENTS
• ASIAN TOUR: Black Mountain Masters, Thursday-Sunday, Black Mountain Golf Club, Hua Hin, Thailand. On the Net: http://www.asiantour.com