Sure the four champions of the Pebble Beach hosted U.S. Open’s – Tom Watson, Tom Kite, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods, also have Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Trophies (or versions of them under various sponsorship reigns) at home but that is about as far as the comparison should go.

As many players have stated, it does not take a lot of rounds to gain enough knowledge to play Pebble Beach Golf Links, the host of a three-course tournament rotation, well but playing there in February is far different than playing it in U.S. Open conditions.

Rain has already been falling this week on the Monterey Peninsula and the course set-up will be much softer than what the USGA will lay out from June 17-20, 2010. Yes, the 40 yard fairways at Pebble Beach have already been narrowed to almost half that span but at this time of year drives will land softly on them. Come June those same drives will be bouncing off wildly into the rough.

Of course, many players already know this, and combined with the normally slow pro-am format, a fair number of the tour’s best players, including last week’s winner Steve Stricker, will not be present this week in Northern California.

That is not to say that the field will not be flush with quality players. The overall recognition level of the combatants maybe the strongest of the season so far, rivaling the attendance at the limited-field season-opening SBS Championship.

Last year’s winner of the rain shortened event, Dustin Johnson, will be trying to improve on his third-place finish last week at Riviera in pursuit of his third PGA Tour victory. Just five men have won AT&T National Pro-Am’s in back to back years and undoubtedly Johnson would like to join the names of Snead, Middlecoff, Watson, O’Meara, and Nicklaus in having completed the feat.

Other leading players in the field this week include perennial contender (but yet a victor) Mike Weir, the now #3 player in the world, Phil Mickelson, and Padraig Harrington. Luke Donald could also be a factor, considering his ability to keep the ball in play and his high confidence level based on a second-place finish last week.

This year the players will not have to endure Poppy Hills GC (often soggy at this time of year), the layout has been replaced by the more acceptable Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s Shore Course. It will join Pebble Beach GL (Host) and Spyglass Hill in the tournament rotation for the first time since 1977.

The Shore Course is highly regarded by all who have played it. It was revamped in 2004 by the team of Forrest Fezler and Mike Strantz. It was the last project for the artistic Strantz who lost his fight with cancer the next year.

Of course, we cannot forget that there is an amateur side to this pro-am. The usual cast of suspects are back. With Golf Channel providing early round coverage you can expect a lot of air time for Ray Romano as he is the subject for their new Hank Haney Project rolling out on March 1^st.

Joining Romano and likely to show up in the TV coverage will be quarterbacks Tony Romo and Tom Brady, along with celebs Huey Lewis, Chris Berman, George Lopez, Chris O’Donnell, Michael Bolton, Kenny G. and John O’Hurley.

Golf Channel will have live broadcasts from 3 P.M. to 6 P.M. (all time quoted as EST) on Thursday and Friday. CBS picks up the weekend from 3 P.M. until 6 P.M. on Saturday and from 3 P.M. until 6:30 P.M. on Sunday.

Notes:

The event got its start in 1937 when Sam Snead won the first Bing Crosby hosted tournament in Rancho Santa Fe and won $500.

The winner this year will pick up $1.116 million out of the $6.2 million purse.

This year celebrates 25 years with AT&T as the primary sponsor.

The 3-course rotation began in 1947 and then included Pebble Beach , Cypress Point Country Club, and Monterey Peninsula Country Club.