Things looked so promising for Nick Watney five days into 2008.

He was coming off his best PGA Tour season in which he earned his first victory and more than $1.8 million in prize money.

He was in Maui for the winner's-only Mercedes-Benz Championship.

He was driving his ball prodigious distances, leading the field in that category and impressing the heck out of the network broadcasting bunch.

He was in second place after three rounds.

He couldn't have bet that a final-round 71 and an ensuing tie for fifth would be the highlight of his year.

Book it. Other than an 11th-place tie in the Masters, it was a mostly forgettable year for the Sacramento native and longtime Dixon resident.

"I was just looking at the stats," he said from Las Vegas, where he now lives. "I'm very low in putting – but I didn't need to look at stats to know that."

The 27-year-old with the cross-handed putting grip looked tentative on Maui's Kapalua greens, for those who remember. He finished the year 154th in putts per round and 127th in putts per greens hit in regulation.

He earned about $1 million less than he did in 2007 as a result, even though he finished seventh in driving distance at 302.9 yards.

"I need to spend a ton of time on the greens, but I'm not sure on exactly what at this point," he said.

Because of his victory in the 2007 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, Watney is fully exempt through 2009, so he didn't have to sweat whether or not he finished inside the all-exempt top 125 on the money list. He finished relatively strong, earning slightly more than $71,000 in his last two starts to wind up 121st at $878,173 after making 21 of 27 cuts but finishing better than 20th only twice.

The end of the season was "more of a wake-up call than make or break," he said. "I'm eager to start working on having a better year in 2009."

See the pros play – free

Watney is in the field for this week's Callaway Golf Pebble Beach Invitational played at Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Del Monte.

The 37th annual "offseason" renewal of the event features 81 pros from the PGA, LPGA, Champions and Nationwide tours. Admission to the tournament is free, as is entrance to 17-Mile Drive for spectators.

With great weather expected through the weekend, golf fans can't afford not to attend.

Sacramento's Kevin Sutherland, who had two runner-up finishes this season, is the top 2008 PGA Tour money-list entrant (18th with more than $2.5 million).

Four 2008 PGA Tour winners – Ryan Palmer, Steve Lowery, D.J. Trahan and Chez Reavie – are playing, as is Rocco Mediate, who gave Tiger Woods all he could handle before falling just short at U.S. Open in June.

John Cook, who finished fifth on the money list this season, will lead nine Champions Tour entrants.

Brittany Lincicome, one of the longest hitters on the LPGA Tour, will lead seven LPGA Tour entrants.

The 14 entrants from the Nationwide Tour include nine players who will be competing on the PGA Tour in 2009.

Setbacks in PGA Tour qualifying

Tom Johnson and Dillon Dougherty both fell six shots short of advancing to the final stage of the PGA Tour qualifying tournament at different Florida sites over the weekend.

Johnson, a Del Campo High School graduate and Weaverville resident, had a final-round 75 to doom his chances. His second-stage magic, which had allowed him to reach the final stage "on the number" the past four years, eluded him. He has conditional Nationwide status for 2009 based on his 75th-place finish on this year's money list.

Woodland's Dougherty opened with consecutive rounds of 73, hurting his chances. He has no status on any major tour for next year.

Sacramento residents Erick Justesen and Jeff Wood begin second-stage play today in Texas.

Go to U.S. Open, break 100

Get out your golf pencils – Sacramento needs a representative in this year's U.S. Open Challenge.

The premise is straightforward. Write a six-word essay explaining how you could break a score of 100 at Bethpage Black in New York, the site of the 2009 U.S. Open.

The winner will play 18 holes at Bethpage days before the Open with Michael Jordan, Justin Timberlake and another celebrity to be determined. NBC will broadcast the round.

Submit your essay at www.gdopencontest.com. Super-serious entrants may also submit a short video (less than 60 seconds) that further supports their words.

FYI, these essays are taken:

• I just got out of rehab.

• My swing wouldn't make Hogan puke.

Call The Bee's Steve Pajak, (916) 326-5526.