PGA Championship - Can Tom Lehman Find the Magic at Hazeltine?

TOM LEHMAN: ANYBODY FOR A HOMETOWN LONGSHOT?

Tom Lehman, a Minnesota native, is naturally very excited about the PGA Championship coming to his home state. Can the veteran who is 21st on the all-time PGA money list shock the world in front of friends and family at the PGA Championship?

Tiger Woods (+160 at BetUS) may be the big favorite in the PGA Championship that gets underway on Thursday at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota, but as we saw from 59-year-old Tom Watson at the British Open and 48-year-old Kenny Perry at the Masters, both of whom went into sudden-death playoffs, it is not impossible for an "elder statesman" of sorts to spring a real surprise in a major.

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Tom Lehman is certainly hoping this could be his year to put another major championship trophy on his mantle.

Lehman is admittedly a long shot in the upcoming PGA Championship, checking in at +25000 (250/1) in golf betting odds, but he is not without hope; not by a.... well, by a longshot.

If you are looking for a rags to riches story in professional golf, Lehman is one you could really latch on to. And many did in the early 1990's, as he was climbing the ladder into the upper echelon of players on the PGA Tour. A native of Austin, Minnesota, he attended the University of Minnesota and after a short-lived tenure playing on tour, he had to go the route of the back roads in order to regain his playing status, going to Asia, South Africa and the minor league Ben Hogan Tour.

Lehman eventually earned his way back to a PGA Tour card, and started to excel, reaching the pinnacle when he captured the British Open title in 1996. Lehman could have had even greater success; he finished second in the Masters in 1994 and went into the final round leading the U.S. Open in 1995, 1996 and 1997, but could not close things out. Nonetheless, in April of 1997 Lehman spent a week in the #1 spot in the Official World Golf Rankings.

Three years ago, Lehman was named captain of the Ryder Cup team that went undefeated. He has also played on three Ryder Cup teams for the U.S. In his debut on the Champions Tour, which Lehman qualifies for now that he is 50 years old, he won a pairs event with Bernard Langer. He recently finished eighth in the U.S. Senior Open.

He comes to Hazeltine this week with a strong likelihood of a big home following, but not necessarily a big home course advantage.

"You know, I really haven't played there all that much," Lehman told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. "I played there a few times in college, just goofing around, that's about it. I don't have a lot of experience out there." Lehman played at Hazeltine when the PGA Championship was held there in 2002, and finished in a tie for 29th.

Still, he feels that he has been pretty consistent in his play this year. He's played in 13 events on the regular tour this year, with one top ten finish, a tie for eighth in the Transitions Championship, and three in the top 25. He's won $416,600 and his driving accuracy and greens in regulation are better than the PGA tour average. Sure, he has not had a top ten finish in a major championship since 2000, but as Watson demonstrated at Turnberry and Perry showed at Augusta, a lot of magic can come to the surface when the bright lights are on.