Appleby pursues fourth straight PGA opener Mercedes-Benz Championship

Australian golfer Stuart Appleby will be going for his fourth consecutive Mercedes-Benz Championship this week. If Appleby wins the season-opening event in Hawaii, which both Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are sitting out of, he will become the first player to win a PGA Tour event four straight years since Woods accomplished the feat at the 2003 Bay Hill Invitational …

After more than six years as a professional, Ryan Armour finally has his PGA Tour card after a strong performance at the tour’s qualifying school. Armour, who turned professional in 1999 and made it to the final stage of the Q School in 2003, 2004 and 2005, will travel to Hawaii the second week of January with the hopes of playing in the Sony Open. He plans on playing in around 25 tour events this season …

At LasVegasGolf.com, Chris Baldwin writes about the madness the NBA All-Star Game is expected to bring to Las Vegas in mid-February. Nearly half a million people are expected to descend on Vegas the weekend of Feb. 15-19 for the game.