The condensed journey would have included two trips to California positioned between excursions to Dubai and Florida, and Mark O'Meara decided he'd had enough.

Last February, with his 50th birthday on the near horizon, O'Meara didn't do something he'd done for 26 years — play in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

In its six decades, under six different different names and on five different course, no one has had more than success at the AT&T than O'Meara. His five victories span 12 years and date to 1985 when tournament founder Bing Crosby's name was still in the title.

But O'Meara opted to play in Dubai and then make his Champions Tour debut in Florida last February. Consequently, his AT&T tournament streak, which began when he was 24, stopped.

Two weeks prior to the 2007 tournament, O'Meara was asked if he'd ever play in the event again.

"No, I don't think so," he told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I'm done. Stick a fork in me."

O'Meara missed the cut in the 2006 AT&T and finished in a tie for 51st with six others in 2005.

O'Meara's departure from the AT&T could have also designated the end of his competitive play at Pebble Beach Golf Links. But it didn't.

Like he's done in 11 other Champions Tour events this season, O'Meara will make his debut at the Wal-Mart First Tee Open beginning Friday at Pebble Beach Golf Links and Del Monte Golf Course.

"It's going to be different for me, of course, playing with amateurs and the youth players," said O'Meara, the 1998 Masters and British Open winner. "But it's a great opportunity to come back to a place that's meant so much to me and my family through the years. I'm just really looking forward to it."

O'Meara's last victory at the AT&T occurred in 1997. He compiled four consecutive rounds of 67, including birdies on two of the final three holes at Pebble Beach en route to a one-stroke victory over then-rookie Tiger Woods and David Duval.

Woods finished with rounds of 63 and 64; Duval equaled the course record of 62 in his third round at Pebble Beach, but followed with a 71 on Sunday.

With its long list of comedian entrants through the years, the AT&T field has also provided its share of golf's great quips. O'Meara added to the lore, commenting after his fifth win:

"If I'm going to have success, I couldn't ask for a better place to find it than Pebble Beach. Somebody up there is looking after me. I don't know if it's the blimp or somewhere higher."

Although it has only been a decade, O'Meara's final AT&T title also provided a brief, relevant glimpse into how much golf has changed, yet stayed the same.

In addition to the top three finishers, the remaining 1997 top-10 included: Jim Furyk, Jesper Parnevik, Craig Stadler, Billy Andrade, Paul Azinger, Mike Brisky and Glen Day. O'Meara earned $342,000 while Brisky and Day, who tied for ninth, each earned $53,200.

Last February, when Phil Mickelson won the 60th anniversary AT&T with a five-stroke victory over Kevin Sutherland, he earned $990,000. The remaining top-10 finishers included: John Mallinger, Davis Love III, Greg Owen, Furyk, Matt Kuchar, Corey Pavin, Ryan Armour and Ted Purdy. Armour and Purdy, who also tied for ninth, each earned $154,000.

Although he hasn't won since his two major titles in 1998, O'Meara and Nick Price, another first-year player, were expected to immediately fare well on the Champions Tour. Yet neither has won.

"A lot of people and perhaps most of all myself, expected me to win on the Champions Tour," said O'Meara who has two runner-up tournament finishes. "I've played well, and of course I want to win again. But it just hasn't happened yet and that's been disappointing."

In addition to his 12 Champions Tour events, O'Meara has competed in four PGA Tour tournaments this season. He missed the cut at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and Masters, and he respectively finished tied for 39th and 60th at the Buick Invitational and British Open.

O'Meara's debut at the First Tee Open will also provide a strong dose of reminiscence.

As a junior golfer, O'Meara played in an event that included pros of yesteryear, and he remembers the importance of meeting them. Now, the roles are reversed.

Like several other entrants, O'Meara will play for the first time in many years at Del Monte. The historic course has never been used in the AT&T, but O'Meara remembers the layout.

"It might be the shortest course we play on," he said. "It's still a very competitive course and it will be interesting to go have a round there and two rounds at Pebble. You're going to have to play accurately at Del Monte and I'm going to need a practice round out there."