Schneiter, Weir are locals to watch at PGA Championship

Steve Schneiter has never made it to the PGA Tour, but the Sandy professional has become sort of a regular at the PGA Championship.

The 45-year-old, who is a teaching pro at Schneiter's Pebblebrook Golf Course in Sandy, will be playing in golf's fourth major for the 10th time when he tees it up today at Hazeltine Golf Club in Minnesota.

Schneiter qualified for the PGA by finishing in a tie for second at the PGA Stroke Play Championship in Florida in January. The top 20 club pros from that tourney earn berths in the PGA in what is arguably the strongest field of the four majors.

For today's opening round, Schneiter will tee off at 1:05 MDT in a threesome with France's Thomas Levet and South Korea's Y.E. Yang.

Schneiter's best finish at the PGA — in fact, the only time he made the cut — came in 2005 at Baltusrol in New Jersey in 2005, when he finished in a tie for 40th place at 286. In his most recent appearance, in 2006 at Medinah (Ill.), Schneiter missed the cut with a second-round 79 after an opening 72.

The other golfer at the PGA with local ties is another Sandy resident, Mike Weir, who is coming off a solid 10th-place finish at the Bridgestone Invitational.

Weir tees off at 7:55 a.m. today with fellow Masters champion Zach Johnson and Boo Weekley.

Weir will be playing in his 11th consecutive PGA. He came close to winning in 1999, when he paired in the final group before shooting a final-round 80 and tying for 10th. His best finish was in 2006, when he tied for sixth place. Last year, he tied for 42nd place.