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World Golf Championship-Accenture Match Play Championship
The PGA Tournament makes it back to San Diego County at the end of the month with the World Golf Championship Accenture Match Play Championship, Feb. 24-March 2. Held at the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, the WGC is an invitation only event, with the top 64 players in the official world golf rankings coming together in match-play format. The WGC Accenture Match Play Championship is one of four World Golf Championships events which debuted in 1999. It is sanctioned and organized by the International Federation of PGA Tours.

Unlike stroke play (lowest cumulative score), match play pits players head-to-head, hole-by-hole. The player who wins the most holes in the match moves on to the next round. The uniqueness of match play, and the fact that it's single elimination makes the WGC so intriguing. It's also what can make it so maddening to golf fans -- and network television. Only in match play can a Tiger Woods or Ernie Els can play well, yet lose their matches and go home after only one day. It is indeed a possibility.

At the same time, match play brings a whole different mindset to how the tour golfer plays. Instead of gripping and ripping and fire at pins, players approach each hole as a match in itself. For instance, at double bogey on 8 only counts as a lost hole -- the slate is clean on the ninth. And don't forget the gamesmanship: players are allowed to concede putts, or they may not concede, depending on how close the match. As the golfers say, "That's match play."

WGC Match Play Facts

• The International Federation of PGA Tours, formed in 1996, created the World Golf Championships to enhance the competitive structure of professional golf worldwide while preserving the traditions and strengths of its six member Tours.
• The format for the event is single-elimination match play. Players are seeded 1 through 64 based on their Official World Golf Ranking with the No. 1 seed playing the No. 64 seed, the No. 2 seed playing the No. 63 seed, etc.
• Past champions include Jeff Maggert, Darren Clarke, Steve Stricker and Kevin Sutherland.
• The World Golf Championships were launched in February 1999 as a series of events that feature the game's top players competing against one another in a variety of competitive formats -- match play, stroke play and team.
• The events are the Accenture Match Play Championship, NEC Invitational, American Express Championship and EMC World Cup.
• La Costa Resort & Spa formerly played host to the Mercedes Championship PGA tour event, before being awarded the WGC.
• The course is hosting the Accenture Match Play Championship for the fourth time. La Costa is a par-72 layout that plays to a yardage of 7,247.

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