Golf Channel

Kemper OpenSite: PotomacSchedule: Today-Sunday.Course: TPC at Avenel (7,005 yards, par 71)Purse: $2.5 million.Winner's share: $450,000.TV: Golf Channel and Fox Sports Net (today-tomorrow, 4-6: 30 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday, 4-6 p.m.; Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).Last week: Olin Browne won his second career title, the MasterCard Colonial.Notes: Tiger Woods won last week's European Tour event, putting him back into second place in the world golf rankings. He moved ahead of Davis Love III, who had passed him two weeks ago. Brad Faxon slipped on a ladder in his home, broke his wrist and will be off the tour for six to eight weeks.

Standing at the base of a fake volcano in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., I plan my putt around a stream dyed electric blue. Sixties' surfer rock blares from hidden speakers, and the rest of my golf party waits. My powers of concentration evaporated long ago. Only instinct will see me through this miniature-golf hole.Just as I swing my club, I hear and feel a low tremor. The volcano that gives the Hawaiian Rumble course its name is erupting on its three-times-an-hour schedule. Flames shoot to the sky, my stomach shakes with vibrations from rock-concert-sized speakers.

PGA TourEvent: Buick ChallengeSite: Pine Mountain, Ga.Schedule: Today-SundayCourse: Callaway Gardens, Mountain View Course (7,057 yards, par 72)Purse: $1.5 million (winner receives $270,000)Television: ESPN (tomorrow, 1: 30-3: 30 p.m.; Saturday, 4: 30-6: 30 p.m.) and ESPN2 (Sunday, 4: 30-7 p.m.)Last year: Davis Love shot 67-65-67-68 for a 21-under 267 total. Stewart Cink finished second, four strokes back.Last week: Hal Sutton won the Texas Open at San Antonio, finishing with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Justin Leonard and Jay Haas.

British OpenSite: Southport, England.Schedule: Today through Sunday.Course: Royal Birkdale Golf Club (7,018 yards, par 70).Purse: Estimated $2.9 million.Winner's share: $498,000.Television: ESPN (Today-tomorrow, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. and 7: 30-10 p.m.) and ABC (Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Sunday, 9: 30 a.m.-1: 30 p.m. and 5-6 p.m.).Last year: Justin Leonard won at Royal Troon, finishing with a 6-under 66 for a three-stroke victory over Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke and Sweden's Jesper Parnevik.Last week: Lee Westwood won the Standard Life Loch Lomond, the English star's third victory in his past four European starts.

PGA TourEvent: Quad City ClassicSite: Coal Valley, Ill.Schedule: Today-SundayCourse: Oakwood Golf Club (6,696 yards, par 70)Purse: $1.55 million (winner receives $279,000)Television: The Golf Channel (Today, 4-6: 30 p.m.; tomorrow, midnight-2: 30 a.m. and 4-6: 30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, midnight-2: 30 a.m. and 3-5: 30 p.m.; Monday, midnight-2: 30 a.m.)Last year: David Toms won his lone tour title, closing with a 5-under 65 for a three-stroke victory over Jimmy Johnston, Brandel Chamblee and Robert Gamez.

PGA TourSept. 28-29: Gillette Tour Challenge Championship, BermudaOct. 8-11: Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail LPGA Tournament of Champions, Grand National, Auburn, Ala.Oct. 15-18: Samsung World Championship of Women's Golf, The Villages in Lady Lake, Lady Lake, Fla.Oct. 30-Nov. 1: Nichirei International, Tsukuba Country Club, Ibaraki, JapanSenior PGA TourEvent: Boone Valley ClassicSite: Augusta, Mo.Schedule: Tomorrow-SundayCourse: Boone Valley Golf Club (6,731 yards, par 72)Purse: $1.3 million (winner receives $195,000)

What: LPGA ChampionshipSite: Wilmington, Del.Schedule: Today through SundayCourse: DuPont CC (6,386 yards, par 71)Purse: $1.2 million Winner'sShare: $180,000Television: The Golf Channel (today, tomorrow, 3-5 p.m. and 8-10 p.m.; Saturday, Sunday, 9-11 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday, Sunday, 4-6 p.m.)Directions from Baltimore: I-95 north to New Castle, Del., exit and follow signs.Pub Date: 5/15/97

Comcast offers Golf ChannelGolf fanatics in parts of Baltimore County can now watch their favorite sport morning, noon and night on the Golf Channel, Comcast Cablevision announced yesterday.The cable operator said more than 50,000 subscribers who live in areas where its fiber network has been upgraded have access to the all-golf network on Channel 70.Comcast said the new channel ultimately will reach about 285,000 homes in Baltimore, Harford and Howard counties as the cable operator completes its $100 million-plus upgrade of its local systems.

Though there are many questions about the impending cable network explosion, what is certain is that more and more channels are coming whether you want them, need them or will ever even see them.Here is a guide to some of the planned channels, with projected dates and some helpful explanations.* FXTV: Fitness and Exercise Television (July 1994) -- Will feature every type of exercise program, from walking and jogging to aerobics and weights. The hosts will be athletes, instructors and some celebrities who probably don't know a thing about fitness but look good enough to pretend.

Sad to say, this appears to be the last appearance for the sports broadcasting year in review in this space. The Sun was outbid for the rights by Fox. Next year, look for Luke Perry and Shannen Doherty to write this feature.That's assuming, of course, that anyone still remembers who they are next year.January* During ABC's telecast of the Florida Citrus Bowl, Mark Jones demonstrates once and for all the value of a sideline reporter. He picks up and displays the discarded mouthpiece of an Ohio State receiver.

When Blair O'Neal showed up at the McDonald's LPGA Championship at Bulle Rock on Friday, it was a case of life imitating television. O'Neal is one of the final four contestants on the Big Break Prince Edwards Island reality show on the Golf Channel (which airs Mondays at 10 p.m.). A former college player at Arizona State and a former pro in Asia, O'Neal is better known as a runway model than a fairway tiger, nevertheless. If she has her way, she will use the reality series as a springboard to the LPGA Tour.

When the Golf Channel was looking for a golfer to mike up for its coverage of today's first round of the McDonald's LPGA Championship, Christina Kim seemed the ideal choice. The 25-year-old Korean-American had an impressive seventh-place finish at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, the season's first major. She's in fifth place in the U.S. Solheim Cup Team point standings. And, perhaps most important, the San Jose, Calif., native is plenty animated and was willing to participate. "All things combined, she's a natural," said Golf Channel producer Beth Hutter, who came up with the idea of having a player miked up during a round of golf.

8:30 p.m. [Golf Channel] The program highlights the biggest moments from the 2008 U.S. Open, most of them, we would guess, involving Tiger Woods saying, "Owww, my leg."

Live from the Masters 6 p.m. [Golf Channel] It's Tuesday, so let's get the hype machine all wound up. How many times do you figure they can say "Tiger" during the two hours?

1 More Madness (Part 1): The early NCAA game (7 p.m, chs. 13, 9) is Xavier-Pittsburgh. Xavier is the best school with the nickname Musketeers. 2 More Madness (Part 2): The late game (same channels) is Villanova-Duke. 'Nova means "it doesn't go" in Spanish - bad for selling a car but no issue for the Wildcats. 3 Check with Cuz: During the Suns-Trail Blazers game (10:30 p.m., TNT), TNT could interview Portland's Brandon Roy about his cousin Patrick losing the NHL wins record. 4 Not in the Army: So you're not playing in the tournament today (3 p.m., Golf Channel)

1 First of two?: Don't look ahead, Terps, past this North Carolina State game (7 p.m., ESPN2), even though everyone is looking for two wins. 2 ACC-tion: All other ACC tournament games today are on Channel 54. In the noon game (Miami-Virginia Tech), the Terps need both to lose. Can that happen? 3 On the prowl: If you're not watching college basketball, Tiger Woods (left) is in his second tournament of the year, the CA Championship (2 p.m., Golf Channel). 4 Final foursomes: Comcast Center hosts the first day of high school boys basketball state semifinals, starting at 3 p.m. Meanwhile ... 5 Don't forget them: ... the girls basketball semifinals start at the same time at UMBC.

Posting this week's sports media notes while wondering whether I should be concerned how the cactuses in the background of the Accenture Match Play golf telecasts make me think of Quick Draw McGraw: * I was having a discussion this week with a colleague about radio sports talk shows, and he was of the opinion the best shows were the ones that had the most guests and took the fewest calls. In fact, he said it was optimal for a show to take no calls from listeners at all. I wouldn't go that far, but I would agree some shows lean too heavily on callers.

Accenture WGC Match Play 2 p.m. [Golf Channel] Yes, you're tuning in to watch Tiger Woods (left), but did you get a look at those overhead views of the course in Marana, Ariz.? All that green in the middle of all that desert - I just kept thinking of how much water they must use.

3 p.m. [Golf Channel] I'm not sure how much we'll see him, but Bill Murray (left) is a fixture in this tournament. And that's the Saturday Night Live, goofball Bill Murray, not the Lost in Translation, doleful-faced Bill Murray.

1 Loyola live: The Peacocks visit the Greyhounds (Saint Peter's-Loyola, 7 p.m., MASN). Seems all those feathers would cut down on fast-break opportunities. 2 Spicing it up: During the Wizards-Lakers game (10:30 p.m., TNT) watch for people in the stands eating a new dish at Staples Center - Kung Pau Gasol chicken. 3 Best of five: Don't get confused: It's a Thursday but the second round of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic (3 p.m., Golf Channel) because they play five rounds. 4 Nick the Stick: Nick Markakis meets the press at noon to discuss his new contract and the challenges facing the new president.