King of Kapalua

Australian Stuart Appleby is so comfortable at the Mercedes he bought a home on the course

KAPALUA, Maui » Most of Stuart Appleby's fondest memories as a golfer have occurred right here at the Plantation Course, so it was only fitting for him to buy a piece of property overlooking his favorite 18 holes.

The three-time defending champion of the $5.5 million Mercedes-Benz Championship will try to become the first golfer since Tiger Woods to win a PGA Tour event four consecutive times. Given the Aussie's track record here, you might want to think twice before betting against the King of Kapalua.

MERCEDES-BENZ CHAMPIONSHIP Who: Winners of PGA tournaments in 2006 Where: The Plantation Course at Kapalua, Maui When: Thursday through Sunday Defending champion: Stuart Appleby Purse: $5.4 million Winner's share: $1,080,000

"Coming back as defending champion in this event, now being my fourth attempt in a row, is exciting," Appleby said yesterday. "I've never done this before. Maybe Tiger has more experience in knowing what it's like, but it's exciting and I'm looking forward to it."

Last year, Appleby beat Vijay Singh in a one-hole playoff to capture his third straight title on Maui. The first time he won here in 2004, Appleby also held off Singh by a single shot. He beat Jonathan Kaye by a stroke in 2005 with Ernie Els finishing third and Tiger Woods fourth.

This year, 33 other winners of tour events in 2006, including world No. 2 Jim Furyk, will do their best to keep Appleby from trying to reach the rarified air of winning the same event four consecutive times. It has happened only three times in PGA Tour history.

Furyk won this event in 2001 and built a house near the famed 18th fairway of the Plantation Course. Appleby's plot of land is on Honolua Ridge. There's no house yet, but the view, according to Appleby, is to die for.

"It's not my home, but it's become my golf home, in a way," Appleby said of his Plantation digs. "Half of my victories have come out of this section of the woods, so it was a no-brainer. It's beautiful.

"If I keep winning, I'll keep turning up. It's a unique part of the world. It is like another country, Hawaii. I know it's the U.S., but it's like another country. There's very few places like it. So many people were saying you should buy here, I was happy to do it. It's an amazing piece of property."

Appleby became only the second golfer in tour history to win this event three consecutive times. Gene Littler turned that trick first in 1955 through 1957 when it was called the Tournament of Champions. Granted, there are only 30-something golfers in this exclusive field compared to 144 in a full event, but Appleby is proud of the accomplishment just the same.

He also won last year at the Shell Houston Open. It was the first time Appleby took home more than one title in a single season. When asked to compare the two, Appleby needed a few minutes to explain which victory in 2006 was more special.

"This is more important because I had three in a row," Appleby said. "Not many people have done that. But Houston was special because it was my second win for the year and it was the first time I had ever done that.

"If I was to win this week, I think this would be the most important one because, I don't know, it would just be like rolling the dice. The numbers keep coming up. Vijay, I know, has played 800-some odd shots and only three shots separate us through all those years. Fortunately for me, it's been on the right side of victory."

Singh is back to try to get a win on Maui after coming close so many times since this event moved here in 1999. In seven tries here, Singh has two seconds, a tie for third and two fourth-place finishes.

He had several close calls at the Sony Open in Hawaii as well, before winning the event in 2005.

Furyk should give Appleby a go here as well. He won this tournament in 2001 after finishing fourth to Woods in 2000. Furyk placed fourth as the defending champion in 2002 to Sergio Garcia. He finished third to Appleby last year, missing the playoff by a single shot. In all, he has seven top-10 finishes here in nine tries.

The secret to his success?

"You have to invent a lot of golf shots out here," Furyk said. "It is an interesting piece of property. They built the golf course on the side of a mountain, so other than tee shots, you rarely have a flat lie and you are rarely hitting a shot that you would hit on the driving range.

"It's inventing little cut shots and punches and just working the ball and using the wind to try to help you instead of letting it eat you up. Experience is usually a key factor around here.

"There are holes that play 30 yards shorter and 30 yards longer than what the yardage is, so it's just kind of getting used to the shots that you have to hit. That being said, I won my first event here and that probably has a lot to do with liking it and looking forward to coming back."