Padraig Harrington
Padraig Harrington remains on the West Coast of the United States following his 63rd place finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am on Sunday where he carded a final day 78 to end the event on 2 over par.
The Dubliner is entered for his second PGA Tour event at the Northern Trust Open which is being held at the Riviera Club in Pacific Pallisades this week.
The Northern Trust Open today announced that a sponsor's exemption has been extended to South Korea's Kyung-Tae Kim, who is currently ranked No. 33 in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) and will be making his first start in an official PGA TOUR event outside of the major championships (Kim finished T48 last year at both the British Open Championship and PGA Championship).
In addition, tournament officials announced sponsor's exemptions for TOUR veterans Brad Faxon and Scott McCarron, who have eight and three TOUR victories, respectively; two-time PGA TOUR winner Will MacKenzie; third-year PGA TOUR member Scott Piercy; and recent Nationwide Tour grads Brendan Steele and Peter Tomasulo.
These six players, along with Northern Trust Open Exemption recipient and 2011 PGA TOUR rookie Joseph Bramlett, who was announced last week at media day, round out the event's allotment of sponsor exemptions.
"We are excited to welcome Kyung-Tae to the Northern Trust Open field, and although he's teed it up in two major championships already, we're confident he will enjoy his first start at beautiful and historic Riviera Country Club," said Northern Trust Open Executive Director Jerry West. "Our other sponsor's exemptions will add a nice mix of veterans, rookies and local favorites to what is shaping up to be a world-class field. The level of competition is sure to be as exciting as ever for this year's event."
A native of Seoul, South Korea, Kim enjoyed a career year in 2010, winning three times on the Japan Golf Tour and moving inside the top 50 in the OWGR for the first time. In addition to competing in both the British Open Championship and PGA Championship, Kim, who will turn 25 the week prior to the Northern Trust Open, also participated in the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions for the first time, finishing T41.
While Kim will be making his first-career start at the Northern Trust Open, Faxon will arrive at Riviera Country Club for his 17th appearance in the event. His only top 10s at the Northern Trust Open came in 2002 when he finished T2 and 1994 when he finished 4th. Faxon also finished solo 5th in the 1995 PGA Championship held at Riviera Country Club.
A 1988 graduate of UCLA, McCarron has posted three top 10s in 15 appearances at the Northern Trust Open. He finished T2, along with Faxon, in 2002 and collected a T6 and a T10 in 1997 and 2009, respectively. The Sacramento, Calif., native made 29 starts on the PGA TOUR in 2010 with his best finish a T7 at the Wells Fargo Championship.
In four starts at the Northern Trust Open, MacKenzie has made just one cut, finishing T70 in 2008. The Greenville, N.C., native captured the 2006 Reno-Tahoe Open and the 2008 Viking Classic for his two PGA TOUR victories.
In his only appearance at the Northern Trust Open, Piercy withdrew following an opening round 1-over 72 in 2010. His career-best finish on the PGA TOUR, a T5 at The Honda Classic, came during his rookie campaign in 2009.
Natives of Southern California, Steele (Idyllwild) and Tomasulo (Long Beach) both graduated from the Nationwide Tour in 2010, finishing No. 6 and No. 23 on the money list, respectively. Both players will make their Northern Trust Open debut in 2011.
