Adamonis

This is the week we find out how many serious golf fans there are in Southern New England.

The PGA Tour playoffs come to town, with the Deutsche Bank Championship, the second round of the FedEx Cup at the TPC of Boston in Norton, Mass. The focus nationally will be on the two-year-old playoff system and who will replace Tiger Woods as champion and win the $10-million first-place prize.

Locally, it will be more of a test to see how golf fits these days into the crazed New England sports scene. The Tiger factor is a key issue in that respect, too.

Until now, the event has been as much celebrity showcase as a golf tournament. Having Woods take part every year, which was assured when his foundation was made the official tournament charity, guaranteed huge interest. Most years the event has been sold out before it begins.

This year tickets remain available. The buzz locally is more muted. Tournament officials know it all too well.

“Tiger won’t be here, but we’re still going to have the tournament,” Eric Baldwin, the tourney director the other day. “We’ve got a lot of good things going on. We think we will have a great tournament.”

The casual fan might not think so. But for serious golf fans, Baldwin is right.

Unlike last year, when some players, including Woods, skipped a playoff event, the system has been changed to better entice players. Among others, Ernie Els will take part, the first time he has competed in the tournament.

There were many who disliked the format last year, including this corner. But it was made clear in the last few days, with what has happened at The Barclays, that the changes are very much for the better. This year’s system allows for much more fun for the fans.

R.I. golfers well represented

The three Rhode Islanders taking part in the playoffs, Patrick Sheehan, Brett Quigley and Brad Adamonis, are perfect examples of how the changes make for more excitement.

Last year, the system made movement limited. As the three Rhode Islanders showed at The Barclays, there is much more shuffling with the new system.

The top 144 earned spots this week. Only the top 120 move on to Boston. Sheehan began the week as No. 120, squarely on the bubble. Quigley was there with him, at No. 118. Both easily made the cut, clinching enough points to earn spots for this week.

Making the cut is now a priority. Players are assured of points if they make the cut. They get nothing if they do not. Sheehan began with 69-70, which left him in a tie for 14th at the midway point. A finish there would earn him enough points to vault up the ladder to somewhere between 75th and 85th, depending on how others finish.

Quigley, playing for the first time in more than two months after suffering a stress fracture, played in the same threesome with Sheehan the first two days and shot 71-69 to tie for 21st. He would jump somewhere between 80th and 90th if he finished there.

Regardless of how they do in today’s final round, both have earned enough points to clinch a spot at the Deutsche Bank.

Adamonis is at the other extreme. He began as the 93rd seed. Last year, it was impossible to fall 27 spots in one week and get out of the top 120 from that spot. Adamonis had rounds of 76 and 72 and missed the cut. Under the new system, everyone behind him who made the cut passed him. Early tabulations had Adamonis falling all the way to 121st. If that stands up, it would mean he would be the odd man out for the Deutsche Bank.

Baldwin feels the new system will give fans plenty to get excited about this week.

“There’s a system in place now that links everything together just like every other major-league sport,” he said. “That’s a great thing. It’s created a purpose. Two years ago we had 48 individual events with four majors. Now, everything is linked together, everything is tied together. That’s exciting.”

Special tribute for John Henderson

East Greenwich’s John Henderson helped raise more than $6 million to fight cancer in the last 10 years. This past year, Henderson died of cancer.

Because of all he did, this month’s Dunkin’ Donuts George Mandell Memorial Golf Tournament, the largest one-day golf event held to raise money for the Jimmy Fund, paid special tribute to Henderson.

Henderson was longtime owner of several Dunkin’ Donuts in Rhode Island when, in 1998, he started the golf tournament. As chairman of the Dunkin’ Donuts Northeast Distribution Center, he guided the tournament with the help of his board.

“John was so much more than the man we saw at the podium collecting pledges,” said 2008 tournament chairman David Liguori. “He quietly gave extraordinary time to bettering the lives of complete strangers. His unbreakable strength and compassion guided him to live his life helping others. As the tournament grew in popularity and donations, so, too, did John’s desire for making a difference.”

Around the links

For the second straight year, a team from Newport National has won the right to represent New England in the PGA’s McGladrey Team championship to be held in Pinehurst, N.C. The Newport National team is made up of pro Andrew Farrea and amateurs Jamie Farrea, Tod Camara and Andrew Marshall. North Kingstown, with pro John Rainone and amateurs Rob Aldrich, Dave Nuttall and Paul Gendron tied for third. . .

URI grads Michael Carbone and Devon Quigley and veteran pro Larry Demers all have qualified for next month’s Sovereign Bank New England Open in New Hampshire. Carbone finished second in qualifying at Marshfield Country Club with a 66, Quigley had 68 and Demers 71. It took a score of 72 to advance. . .

Dan McCaslin of Morrisville, N.C., won the R.I. Mini-Open, held at Mulligan’s Island, for the second year in a row. He had a 72-hole score of 165 on the miniature golf course to win the $1,000. He beat his brother, Matt, currently ranked No. 1 in the country in mini golf. John O’Leary, Randy Rice and Samantha Vendettuoli rounded out the top five in the pro division.

Among amateurs, Matthew Signore won with a 98 over 36 holes. Austin Rooke was second and Jim Sturges and Bruce Ciummo tied for third.

pkenyon@projo.com