Insider: Caddie hits the ground early in Asia

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Troy Martin, D.A. Weibring's caddie, traveled early to the Jack Nicklaus course in Korea and reported his findings to players and other caddies.

The buzz has been getting louder and the anticipation levels have swelled. That's what happens when an uncharted experience draws nearer.

SONGDO CITY

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The Champions Tour breaks new ground this week with its first-ever tournament in Asia, the Songdo Championship.

"The closer it's getting, the more I'm looking forward to it," Scott Simpson said.

For Simpson, the Posco E&C Songdo Championship Presented by Gale International marks a return to Korea. He played on the Asian Tour in 1978 and visited the country for one of the final tournaments of the series.

"I'm sure I won't even recognize it," Simpson said. "I've heard the course is really good and definitely ready to play."

Mark O'Meara is a two-time major champion. He has traveled the world playing golf. But this will be his first journey to Korea.

"I'm looking forward to it," O'Meara said. "I've spent a lot of time in the Far East, in Japan, but never in Korea so it's a new experience for me. I've heard some wonderful things about the course and about the resort.

"I know that golf is growing in Korea by leaps and bounds. There are great Korean players and more are coming along. This is a win-win situation for the Champions Tour and also for Korean golf."

The Champions Tour has visited several international destinations -- Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Korea joins that list this week.

The Songdo Championship will introduce a major economic development in Korea to the golf world. The centerpiece from a sports perspective is the new Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea, home of the new event. The Songdo International Business District, 40 miles west of Seoul, is being developed by Gale International, a New York-based real estate development and investment firm. The model is dynamic and futuristic.

Troy Martin, caddie for D.A. Weibring, got a first look at the Nicklaus course and the development. His reports back to the Champions Tour have been a popular talking point the past few weeks.

With Weibring's blessing, Martin made a quick 2 ½-day trip to Korea on the Monday after the JELD-WEN Tradition. His mission: Chart the course to provide players and other caddies a source book and a head-start on preparing for the tournament. It is something Martin does on a regular basis.

"Troy is working all the time on his books," Weibring said. "He was expanding his business when this opportunity came up."

The challenge was to find a time slot for Martin to get away from his central duties as Weibring's caddie.

"It was a major effort on his part to leave Monday morning after the JELD-WEN," Weibring said. "It all came together. I could tell he really enjoyed the experience."

Martin was greeted warmly and widely supported during the trip to Korea. He returned with plenty of insights, stories and pictures. "Fascinating," Weibring said of the photos.

"It was a really cool experience," Martin said. "I'm very grateful D.A. let me go. Korea was amazing. The country is very pretty, the course is excellent.

"They're golf crazy over there."

Martin expects every facet of the tournament to be top-drawer. He says that because he has seen the detail and the expense that has gone into the Songdo City development, including the breathtaking $1 billion Incheon Bridge that stretches nearly 10 miles from the mainland to Yeongjong Island. The bridge is a six-lane motorway linking the economic zone with the nearby Incheon International Airport just a short drive away.

Once the Champions Tour players arrive at the Nicklaus course, what they'll find as a defining characteristic, according to Martin, are greens with "a lot of slope and undulations."

"They might be the most difficult set of greens I've ever seen," Martin said.

The amazement won't stop there.

"The clubhouse is beautiful, marble and granite unlike anything I've ever seen," Martin said. "The bridge, it's incredible. And it's going to be really neat for all the guys to experience the culture."

Champions Tour Insider Notes:

• The Songdo Championship has a Champions Tour record $3 million purse.

• Mark Calcavecchia won the 2004 Maekyung Open at Seoul's Lakeside Country Club. It was his first victory with then soon-to-be wife Brenda on the bag.

"We had a great time there that week," Calcavecchia said. "Best breakfast set-up I've ever seen in my life. It was half the size of this putting green. They had Kim-Chi. I'm Mr. Kim-Chi."

Kim-Chi is a spicy cabbage that is a staple of Korean cuisine. It is served at every meal and, Calcavecchia said, "flamingly hot."

• Jack Nicklaus isn't in the field on the course he designed -- Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea -- but he'll tee it up in Thursday's pro-am.