Singh cites timing for poor turn-out

World number 10 Vijay Singh has urged the PGA Tour to consider changing their schedule to give players more time off in the new year.

The first event of the 2008 season – the Mercedes-Benz Championship – gets under way in Hawaii today but in a winners-only event there are some big names missing.

Open champion Padraig Harrington, world number one and 2007 USA PGA winner Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott are all missing the event at Kapalua’s Plantation course.

Their absence has reduced the field to just 31 and Singh feels the top players need to be given more incentive to turn out so early in the year.

“It’s just unfortunate,” said the tournament’s defending champion.

“It’s a big event and I think everybody should be grateful that we have a big event to play in. I would really push the [schedule] one week back. Instead of January 3, start on the 9th or the 10th. I’m sure they should be able to do that.”

For his part Singh is looking to repeat last season’s success and use it as a springboard for the rest of the year.

“Last year I was very disappointed in the way I played,” Singh said.

“Although I had two wins, I was really very discouraged in the way I played in the mid-season and during the majors.

“The two wins happened very early in the season, in the first three months, and the rest of the season was pretty cold for me.

“I did not perform like I thought I would. I had my chances but just never closed the deal. It was very disappointing.”

Swedes Henrik Stenson and Daniel Chopra are the only two Europeans in the field but it was American Boo Weekley who had the most eventful pre-tournament build-up.

As he went through airport security last Friday two bullets were found at the bottom of his carry-on bag.

“I used it for hunting and I left two bullets in it,” he said. “I had the cops there – I thought I was going to jail.

“I just begged and pleaded. I just sat there and shook my head like I was an idiot. The security guys come up, the actual police guys, the dog and he’s sniffing around at my heels and stuff.

“They said: ’We’re going to re-run this one again’. I said: ’There ain’t nothing in there’ and he said: 'Yeah, there is – some bullets’. They confiscated them and said they were going to red flag me.”

That means he can expect extra searches every time he flies.

“I can understand – they’re doing their job. Accidents do happen like this one, for sure, but it’s kind of comical because no matter where you fly anyway we get red-flagged half the time anyway.”

Following the incident Weekley had a two-hour wait for his flight, missed the connection from Atlanta, was up at 4am the next morning, then spent nine hours in the terminal at Los Angeles before completing his marathon.