Defending champ Aaron Baddeley is back at Riviera, Northern Trust Open
The defending champion, Aaron Baddeley will tee off at the Northern Trust Open on Thursday, February 16, 2012.
He is considered as a renowned player, achieving the title in 2011 and happy to be in the field again. He looks positive to deliver his best at the Riviera Country Club.
Riviera is one of Baddeley’s favourite venues and he enjoys every time he plays on it.
He said that he was watching pictures of the past and became sentimental to see the past champions.
"The history (at Riviera) is one of my favorite things," Baddeley said.
He continued, "Every year I always look at the photos in the men's locker room. I look at those photos over and over. It's just so great just to see the pictures of Hogan, the pictures of past champions ... just seeing old pictures is so awesome".
He added that he passes his time by watching pictures normally. According to him, it is good to spend some time with old memories and remembering the past championship is also amazing.
Last year, he performed extremely well on the same course of California. He scored a 12-under par and 272 strokes in total. His two-stroke lead over Vijay Singh helped him secure a win.
He turned professional in 2003 and since then he won three Professional Golf Association Tour titles. He had also won four tournaments at PGA Tour of Australasia.
The 30-year-old Australian golfer earned handsome figures of $3,094,693 in 2011. He currently holds the 44th position, according to Official World Golf Rankings.
Last year, Baddeley played the Presidents Cup in November. He was picked by the captain of the International Team, Greg Norman. His team was unable to win the title but competed well against the Americans.
Baddeley enjoyed playing the mega tournament and desires to be in the team every year.
"I want to play the Presidents Cup every year," he said. "Such a great week, such a unique week. I loved being part of the team. I hit a really good tee shot down the first, which calmed me down".
His goals are achievable. He just has to finish among the top 25 in most of the tournaments. Delivering the best on every golf course will definitely help him to get selected for the team this year.
However, tough competition is expected at the Northern Trust Open. The presence of other top-ranked players is making the tournament even more appealing this year.
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