PGA Player of Year Present but Not Yet Accounted For

CARLSBAD, Calif. —  When the $1.2-million Mercedes Championships begin today at La Costa, one fact is certain: The 1996 PGA Tour player of the year will be in the field.

Who it will be isn’t known yet.

Odds are the PGA Tour’s top player will be Tom Lehman, but Phil Mickelson and Mark Brooks also must be considered for the award, which will be announced Friday night.

Lehman won three times, including the British Open, and is considered the favorite by many, including Mickelson.

“I think Tom has won it,” said Mickelson, who won four tournaments in 1996. “Sure, it would be disappointing [for me]. I don’t know the last time someone won four tournaments and wasn’t player of the year.”

Actually, it hasn’t happened since the PGA Tour started handing out the award in 1990.

“On the other hand, I didn’t win a major like Tom Lehman did and his scoring average was lower.”

Lehman won the Vardon Trophy with his PGA Tour-best 69.32 scoring average and also won the money title with $1.78 million. Mickelson was second with $1.69 million, and three-time winner Brooks, who also won a major with his PGA Championship victory, was third with $1.43 million.

Mark O’Meara is the defending champion at La Costa, the inaugural tournament of the season open only to the winners of last year’s events.