Hamilton, Sept 04: Masters champion Mike Weir is too busy trying to win the Canadian Open to think about the PGA Tour's player of the year award.

``There's nothing that would mean more than to play well this week and somehow pull out a victory,'' the Canadian star said Wednesday.
Weir, in a tight race with Tiger Woods, U.S. Open champion Jim Furyk and Davis Love III for the Tour's top award, is the only one of the four entered in the tournament that begins Thursday at Hamilton Golf and Country Club.
``To tell you the truth, I haven't thought about it very much,'' Weir said. ``When I'm asked about it, I respond that there are a lot of players who have had great years. It's been a long time since there's been a debate about three or four guys.''

Weir won three times in his first nine events of the season, taking the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and Nissan Open before his breakthrough victory at Augusta. He also tied for third in the U.S. Open and tied for seventh in the PGA Championship, two of his nine top 10 finishes in 17 starts this year.



``Whatever happens, happens,'' he said of the award to be decided in a vote of the players. ``I know I've had a great year no matter what.''



Pat Fletcher was the last Canadian to win his country's national championship, taking the 1954 event at Point Grey in Vancouver, British Columbia.



``Obviously, it would be a dream of mine to win this tournament,'' said Weir, from the small Ontario town of Bright's Grove. ``And to do it this year, especially with the kind of year I've had, would really just be unbelievable.''



The left-hander tied for 22nd last year at Angus Glen in suburban Toronto, his best finish in 12 starts in the tournament. He missed the cut in his first nine appearances, failing to break 70 in any round.



``I'm looking forward to playing a great golf course here,'' said Weir, who won the 1999 Air Canada Championship in British Columbia for the first of his six PGA Tour titles. ``I just want to enjoy myself and not get too far ahead of myself.''



The tournament returns to the hilly, tree-lined Hamilton course for the first time since 1930. That year, Tommy Armour beat Leo Diegel in a 36-hole playoff after finishing regulation with a 6-under 64.



``You're not going to see a lot of guys standing up bombing drivers,'' Weir said. ``You have to really shape the ball here. There's a lot of doglegs and there's some serious rough out there. The premium is on accuracy.''



Young star Charles Howell also praised the 87-year-old course. ``It's awesome with the trees and the way the holes are shaped,'' Howell said. ``There's not one bad hole. I don't think you'll hear one complaint.''



Divots: Woods, the 2000 winner at Glen Abbey in Oakville, is skipping the tournament for the second straight year. ... Armour's grandson, Tommy Armour III, is in the field. ... The tournament will return to Glen Abbey next year and the 2005 event is set for Shaughnessy in Vancouver. ... Tom Carter is trying to complete a Canadian hat trick. The former Temple player won the Nationwide Tour's Canadian PGA in July and earned a promotion to the PGA Tour on Sunday in Alberta with his third victory of the season. ... Loren Roberts had the best round in the pro-am Wednesday, a 5-under 65. Weir had a 69, and fellow Canadian Ian Leggatt shot a 66.


Bureau Report