He turned pro only about a month
ago, but Aaron Baddeley is not worried in the least.
``I'm fairly relaxed. I am just trying to approach this as
another golf tournament,'' he said. ``I guess there'll be more
people watching what I do this year and focusing on what scores I
shoot.''
The 19-year-old Aussie is the defending champion at the
Australian Open, which begins Thursday. To win back-to-back titles
he'll have to beat the likes of Greg Norman, Nick Faldo and Mark
O'Meara.
Baddeley burst on the international scene last November at Royal
Sydney, becoming the first amateur in three decades to win the
Australian Open.
He missed out on the prize money because of his amateur status
but earned invitations to the Masters and the U.S. Open, where he
practiced and played alongside Tiger Woods.
Baddeley failed to make the cut at those tournaments and others
in the United States. But his confidence was restored when he made
the cut in his professional debut two weeks ago at the Taiheiyo
Masters in Japan.
``I think if I can keep playing well and keep it in play I have
a good chance of winning back to back,'' he said.
With a shortage of international stars in the field, Baddeley
has emerged as a serious contender at Kingston Heath. But Norman is
eyeing a sixth Australian Open title, and Robert Allenby cannot be
discounted.
Allenby has two wins on the U.S. tour this year, including the
Western Open, where he beat a strong field that featured Woods. He
says he is especially confident this week.
``There are not too many guys this year who have beaten Tiger,''
he said. ``I guess I could say that I am privileged.''
Allenby won the Australian Open in 1994 and was a runner-up in
1991.
Faldo, a winner of six majors, and O'Meara, who has Masters and
British Open titles, admit they're nowhere near their prime but are
hoping for turnaround Down Under.
Norman hasn't won a title since his signature event, the Greg
Norman International, in Sydney in 1998. Since then, he's had
surgery on a shoulder and hip and missed the cut in four majors.
Norman won the last Australian Open played at Kingston Heath. He
says the course has been improved since his title there in 1995.
Now he's hoping his game is ready.
``I'm always confident going into a tournament,'' he said.
``With the flow of my game lately I think I'm just a little more
excited about playing.''
