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By John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor

The year that Hunter Mahan was born, Fred Funk played three PGA TOUR events. The next year was Tom Lehman's rookie season. When Hunter was just out of diapers, Billy Mayfair won the U.S. Amateur. When Hunter was in first grade, David Toms turned pro, and a year later Jay Williamson did the same. When Hunter was in the third grade, Olin Browne won on the Nationwide Tour for the first and second times.

Hunter Mahan will have to battle with 10 players over the age of 40 on the leaderboard Sunday. (Chris Condon/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

At 25, Hunter is not even close to being the youngest member of the PGA TOUR. He has been on TOUR for four years now, which makes him far more experienced than most players his age. However, the company that he will be keeping on Sunday at the Travelers Championhip will be decidedly different than hanging with his peers. Going into Sunday's final round, there are 10 players over the age of 40 on the leaderboard, including all the old guys I mentioned above.

Maybe he can help the old guys program their iPods -- although he probably wouldn't recognize any of their music. Hunter and young Ryan Moore tied for second here a year ago, but this is a tournament that has always favored the old guys. Peter Jacobson won here when he was pushing the half-century mark. Brad Faxon won here two years ago just shy of his 43rd birthday. Lanny Wadkins' final PGA TOUR victory came here in 1992.

Hunter can certainly win his first PGA TOUR event on Sunday, but the age disparity is certainly against him. The year that Hunter Mahan was born, "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" was released and people of a certain era fell in love with Phoebe Cates. On Sunday the old guys are going to play Mr. Hand to Hunter's Spicoli.

That year, Craig Stadler led the PGA TOUR money list with a whopping $446,462. Hunter was 1 month old when Tom Watson hit one of the most famous shots in golf history -- chipping in on the 17th green to steal the U.S. Open from Jack Nicklaus.

The elder statesman on Sunday will be the ageless Funk. At 51, Fred has victories on the PGA TOUR and the Champions Tour this season, and he said after his round that he would like to go ahead and play the final round on Saturday afternoon. "At my age when you go to bed, you never know what to expect when you wake up," Fred quipped following his 67 on Saturday.

The 40-year-old Williamson must be drinking from the same fountain of youth that Fred discovered. Jay is playing the best golf of his career. He won earlier this year on the Nationwide Tour for the first time in his career. He is making the most of his sponsor's exemption here this week, too -- leading Mahan by a stroke at 11 under.

The salt-and-pepper foursome of Billy Mayfair, Vijay Singh, Jerry Kelly and Lehman are all at 5 under par, tied for seventh entering the final round. You have to go down the leaderboard to the group at 4 under to find anyone in Hunter Mahan's age group. Kevin Na still has to show his driver's license to get into R-rated movies. So does Ryan Moore. The 27-year-old rookie, Steven Marino, could pass for a student on any college campus in the country. Even though the 20something boys are well represented in that tie for 12th, they are surrounded by the old guard as well. Tom Pernice, Kenny Perry and Olin Browne are closer to being Grand Champions than BMOCs.

Perhaps young Hunter will push through on Sunday. Either way, for him it will be a learning experience. The lessons Hunter will learn and the tests he will face have long been committed to memory for the other men in contention at the Travelers Championship. There has always been a struggle between generations. On Sunday, youth will be flying directly in the face of experience.