ON THE FAIRWAYS This week’s pro golf events

LPGA TOUR

Bell Micro LPGA Classic

Mobile, Ala.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Magnolia Grove, The Crossings (6,253 yards, par 72).

Purse: $1.4 million. Winner’s share: $210,000.

Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 3:30-6 p.m., 9-11:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 3:30-6 p.m., 10 p.m.-midnight).

Last year: Inaugural event.

Last event: Cristie Kerr won the Safeway Classic on Aug. 24 for her 11th tour title and first since the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open. She beat Helen Alfredsson and Sophie Gustafson with a 15-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole.

Notes: Paula Creamer won the Tournament of Champions last year at The Crossings, leading wire-to-wire en route to an eight-stroke victory. ... Top-ranked Lorena Ochoa, a 10-stroke winner at Magnolia Grove in 2006, is skipping the event. ... The tour is off next week. Play will resume Sept. 25-28 with the Navistar LPGA Classic in Prattville, Ala.

On the Net: http://www.lpga.com

CHAMPIONS TOUR

Greater Hickory Classic

Conover, N.C.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: Rock Barn Golf and Spa (7,090 yards, par 72).

Purse: $1.7 million. Winner’s share: $255,000.

Television: Golf Channel (Friday, 1-3:30 p.m.; Saturday, 12:30-3 a.m., 1-3:30 p.m.; Sunday, 1-3 a.m., 1-3:30 p.m.; Monday, 1-3 a.m.).

Last year: R.W. Eaks won the second of his two 2007 titles, holding off Jay Haas and Rod Spittle by two strokes. Eaks won the 3M Championship this year.

Last event: Jeff Sluman won the First Tee Open on Aug. 31, closing with a 67 at Pebble Beach for a five-stroke victory over Fuzzy Zoeller and Craig Stadler. Sluman also won the Bank of America Championship in June.

Notes: Andy Bean won the 2006 tournament, two-putting for birdie to beat Eaks on the first hole of a playoff. ... Five-time PGA Tour winner Ken Green is making his fourth Champions Tour start. ... The tour is off next week. Play will resume Sept. 26-28 with the SAS Championship at Prestonwood in Cary, N.C.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

PGA EUROPEAN TOUR

Mercedes-Benz Championship

Pulheim, Germany.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Gut Larchenhof Golf Club (7,289 yards, par 72).

Purse: $2.82 million. Winner’s share: $469,800.

Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 9 a.m.-noon; Saturday-Sunday, 8:30-11:30 a.m.).

Last year: Denmark’s Soren Hansen made two late eagles en route to a four-stroke victory over England’s Phillip Archer and Scotland’s Alastair Forsyth.

Last week: France’s Jean-Francois Lucquin won the European Masters, beating Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff.

Notes: Hansen and Ryder Cup teammates Graeme McDowell, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Robert Karlsson are in the field along with four-time winner Bernhard Langer, 2005 champion Retief Goosen, Stuart Appleby, Fred Couples and John Daly. ... The Ryder Cup is next week in Louisville, Ky., followed by the British Masters at The Belfry.

On the Net: http://www.europeantour.com

NATIONWIDE TOUR

Albertsons Boise Open

Boise, Idaho

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Hillcrest Country Club (6,801 yards, par 71).

Purse: $725,000. Winner’s share: $130,500.

Television: Golf Channel (Thursday, 6:30-9 p.m.; Friday-Sunday, 3-5 a.m., 6:30-9 p.m.; Monday, 3-5 a.m.).

Last year: Canadian Jon Mills won his second career Nationwide Tour title to lock up a spot on the 2008 PGA Tour, closing with a 64 in chilly conditions for a three-stroke victory over D.A. Points.

Last week: Brendon Todd won the Utah Championship for his first Nationwide Tour title, finishing with a tournament-record 22-under 262 total for a six-stroke victory.

Notes: The tournament is one of four events remaining from the tour’s first season in 1990. ... Todd earned $99,000 last week to jump from 53rd to 15th on the money list with $194,961. The top 25 at the end of the season will earn 2009 PGA Tour cards. ... The Oregon Classic is next week.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

PGA TOUR

Next events: Ryder Cup, Sept. 19-21, Valhalla Golf Club, Louisville, Ky.; Viking Classic, Sept. 18-21, Annandale Golf Club, Madison, Miss.

Last week: Colombia’s Camilo Villegas won the BMW Championship for his first PGA Tour title, leading wire-to-wire at Bellerive en route to a two-stroke victory over Dudley Hart. Vijay Singh, the winner of the first two FedEx Cup events, tied for 44th and earned enough points that all he has to do is complete four rounds at the Tour Championship to collect the $10 million payoff.

On the Net: http://www.pgatour.com

Associated Press