Courtesy: AP

PGA Tour officials were few and far between. The top brass from FedEx were nowhere to be seen this year after ballyhooing the Cup at the season opener last year.

But, all in all, the Mercedes Championship was a pretty good way to kick off the 2008 season.

Two Canadians - Mike Weir and Stephen Ames - battled down the stretch, not just for the lead but for the victory, before misfiring to finish in the top five.

Steve Stricker, who was a dark horse favorite for the FedEx Cup last season with his superb mid and late season play, drained a key putt on the final regulation hole to force a playoff with Daniel Chopra, the Swede with the Indian surname who's a former Nationwide Tour player living in the United States. Need any more proof that golf is international?!

We even share a birthday. I don't think he realizes that.

And, as playoffs go, this one was good. Four holes, several putts left hanging on the lip for victory and finally, Chopra gets the job done when Stricker misses a long putt for par.

The Swede had one PGA victory last year and one third-place finish to claim 114th on the money list. He's already nearly doubled his FedEx Cup points from last year in his first event.

His win yesterday earned him over a million dollars. Last season, he banked 1.7 million. So he's on his way to a profitable season already.

But best of all for Chopra, his win automatically guarantees him a spot in the field for the Masters in April.

And what aspiring golfer doesn't dream about that drive down Magnolia Lane with the flowers in bloom, the trees in blossom and the smell of high-powered, tradition-steeped golf in the air?