A bittersweet time for Furyk

Jim Furyk isn't sure whether Monday's Exelon Invitational will be the final one, given the state of the economy and Tiger Woods' bringing the PGA Tour to Delaware County in 2010 and 2011.

But if the 11th Exelon Invitational is indeed the last, it could go down as the best.

Furyk, Kenny Perry, Paul Casey, and Anthony Kim will play in the four-ball competition at the ACE Club in Lafayette Hill for a $305,000 purse. All four participated in last year's Ryder Cup competition and are in the top 15 of the World Golf Rankings.

"We have three top-notch players," Furyk said Tuesday via telephone from the Memorial Tournament. "Anthony's one of those young guys . . . I wouldn't call him cocky, but he's as close to it as you can get. Kenny and Paul are friendly, good people. They'll all do a great job. The sponsors make this thing work and we make sure they get their money's worth."

The Exelon Invitational has raised more than $1 million for charity. The primary beneficiary in recent years has been the Boys and Girls Clubs of Philadelphia.

Furyk conceded that this could be the last Exelon Invitational. The economy has caused the pool of sponsors to shrink. Those remaining probably will flock to Woods' tournament, the AT&T National, to be held at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square.

"I'm happy the PGA Tour is coming to Philadelphia," Furyk said. "It's big to have Tiger's tournament coming here. It's a world-class field, one of the best events we have on tour. Tiger's presence is going to drive that tournament. It's going to be a special event for Philadelphia, and I'm happy it's there.

"That being said, there are only so many sponsors. It's going to be more difficult with Tiger's event. So this might be the last" Exelon Invitational.

Tickets will be available at the ACE Club on the day of the event.

Putting for a dream. Fourteen players with Philadelphia-area connections will compete Monday at various sites for a berth in the U.S. Open.

More than 700 golfers will tee off at 13 sites for the 65 remaining spots in the field, which will begin play June 18 at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, N.Y.

The entries include:

Rockville, Md. - pros John Allen of Media; Christian Bartolacci of Langhorne; Stu Ingraham of Harrisburg; Dave McNabb of Newark, Del.; Greg Pieczynski of Kingston; and Vince Covello, a former Philadelphia resident who lives in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; and amateurs Jim Kania Jr. of Haverford and Buddy Reed of Wilmington.

Purchase, N.Y. - pros Eric Dovre of Mays Landing, N.J., and Keith Dicciani, a former Temple player from White Plains, N.Y.; and amateurs Peter Barron III of Mays Landing and Buddy Marucci, the U.S. Walker Cup captain from Villanova.

Memphis - pro Joey Bonargo of Mechanicsville, Pa.

Orlando - amateur Luke Vargo of Chadds Ford.

Fixing the divots. The U.S. Kids Golf Foundation has announced a schedule of 16 junior events in the Philadelphia area, beginning June 18 at Coatesville Country Club. Go to www.uskidsgolf.com for information. . . . Basketball coaches Jay Wright of Villanova, Phil Martelli of St. Joseph's, and Fran Dunphy of Temple will participate in Monday's Coaches vs. Cancer Golf Invitational in Raleigh, N.C., to raise money for the American Cancer Society. . . . Virginia senior Conrad von Borsig, a graduate of Strath Haven High School, carded rounds of 80, 72 and 76 for a 228 in last week's NCAA championships at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.