Weibring has a lot to keep up with, Adcock takes Texas, and more

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SAVANNAH, Ga. -- D.A. Weibring is watching a three-ring circus this week. The Champions Tour player is keeping an eye on his own leaderboard at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf, where he's currently tied for 18th.

He's also spying on his son Matt's progress at the Nationwide Tour's Henrico County Open, Matt's first event of the season.

D.A. Weibring can't be faulted for not focusing on his game. (Miller/WireImage)

Then there's the EDS Byron Nelson Championship, Weibring's project over the past 20 months since he was the man behind the renovations at the TPC Las Colinas course.

When the winds whipped around the course during the first round on Thursday, scores went up but Weibring didn't get an earful from belly-aching players. During the early part of the week, when conditions were calm, players expressed their approval and haven't changed their minds, he said.

"They liked the changes, they saw what we did and how it tied together. I think it challenged them a little bit to make decisions to play certain types of shots and create options," Weibring said.

"We pushed the contours a little bit in the greens, I think fairly. The ball will funnel towards certain pin areas if they play the right shot. There was some talk of 'roller coaster putts' yesterday. Of course, I'm a little protective of our product and [don't like to hear that] but I'm real pleased at the overall feedback."

His primary goal was upholding the traditions and integrity of the event that Byron Nelson started. Nelson passed away in 2006 and last year the tournament suffered some problems with the greens.

"Over the years he cared about the tournament and the PGA TOUR as well as that property so I wanted to turn things back to the way they were. It had kind of slipped a little bit. Golf courses wear out and wear down," Weibring said. "Last year, when they had the brown spots on the green in the year after he passes away, it was tough."

Weibring got in touch with PGA TOUR and Champions Tour players to determine how to make the course a better place. Not only did he succeed in pleasing the players but he also made the Four Seasons, the Salesmanship Club and the sponsor EDS very happy. In fact, EDS extended their sponsorship for four more years.

"There was a lot sitting on the whole outcome of the product and in a quick few days everything turned hopefully in the right direction with a new momentum that we were hoping to create for Byron," he said.

TEXAS TWO-STEP: Mitch Adcock wasn't eligible for the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf in Savannah, Ga. The Champions Tour heads to Texas for the FedEx Kinko's Classic next week, so Adcock hit the road early to qualify for the event in Austin.

His path to the Champions Tour in 2008 led through the annual National Qualifying Tournament, where Adcock tied for third. This allows him access into the weekly qualifiers prior to each Tour event, like the one for the FedEx Kinko's Classic.

While in Texas, Adcock figured he'd give the qualifying tournament for the EDS Byron Nelson Championship a shot. Lo and behold, he was one of the top four finishers in that after shooting 65 at the Sherrill Park Golf Course on Monday. That 65 gave him a spot in the PGA TOUR event.

This is Adcock's first start on the PGA TOUR since the Viking Classic in July 1994. He's made five tournaments on the Champions Tour this season and tied for 11th at the Allianz Championship, his best '08 finish.

After opening the front nine at TPC Las Colinas in 35 strokes, Adcock finished the back nine on Thursday in 41. Though a second-round 71 means he won't play the weekend in Dallas, he certainly made the most of his first week in Texas.

IMPROMPTU LESSONS: The driving range at the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa on Thursday afternoon featured the usual suspects: Tom Kite, Andy Bean, Bernhard Langer.

Two special guests, however, were hitting balls in the middle of the pack. Erwin Rahmer and Joseph Hall, both Army members stationed at nearby Hunter Army Airfield, happened to be at the tournament for the week. The two soldiers, along with about six others, brought a M1114 up-armoured Humvee to the course and have it on display near the driving range.

Rahmer and Hall were invited to take a break from their duties and get a few tips from the practicing pros.

Bean dropped by to watch Rahmer, who'd only picked up a club for mini-golf prior to Thursday. When Rahmer drove the ball straight (albeit a little short), Bean nodded.

"Straight beats the heck out of the long and crooked," Bean, an 11-time PGA TOUR winner, said encouragingly.

Hall, 22, served a tour of duty in Iraq from Oct. 2005-Oct. 2006. He didn't have his driver's license when he left for Mosul so he learned to drive on a Humvee similar to the one parked by the course this week. This vehicle resembles a tank more than a car, so naturally driving lessons on the Humvee were a bit different from ones on a sedan.

Not as unusual, however, as the driving lessons he was getting on the range. Hall said golf wasn't nearly as easy as it looks.

"It's pretty fun," Hall said. "But it takes some getting used to. It's not just hitting a ball with a club, you have to think about posture, your hands, movements to make. This really is something hard."