The name change occured after a suggestion by Palmer's daughter, Amy Saunders. Finchem concurred and made the change official. Importantly, I think what's happened here with the development of the tournament under Arnold's tutelage is very special," Finchem said. "It is one of those things that's a part of the texture and the fabric of the PGA Tour."

The name change is, in a word, a formality as Palmer has been the overseer of the tournament since he moved the event across Orlando from Rio Pinar to the Bay Hill Club in 1979.

"If it can be what I had hoped this tournament would be over the years, I'll be very happy for it," Palmer said.

When asked if we can expecct his comeback in the first-ever Arnold Palmer Invitational, Palmer responded, "I won't have any problem with that at all. I can promise you that. So it's pretty easy for me to say I will not miss trying to play."

Regarding his opinion of the condition of the course for this year's event, Palmer put it bluntly, "I suppose that the bottom line for our purposes is that the golf course is the best this year that it has ever been."

Players will notice that the rough is precariously deep, but the fairways are not narrower from regular member play. Palmer has allowed the rough to grow to 3 1/2 inches, topping it off last Sunday. It will not be mowed throughout the tournament. According to Palmer, the greens and fairways have responded to off-season treatments very well and the length of the golf course is unchanged. The greens will be running "a modest 11 or 12 on the speeds."

"We have kept it muc the same as it has been over the past few years," he said. "We haven't really tried to change the character of the golf course." Palmer takes great care not to trick up his prized golf course, leaving the classic layout alone for the membership, while providing the professionals a demanding challenge.

"Well, I really have to analyze the situation and look at it from all aspects of the game of golf," Palmer said. "One of the things we continually try and do is grow the game, and grow it not for the professionals necessarily, certainly in their interest, but grow the game for the people who go out and play the game and enjoy playing it."

So far, Palmer's plan for Bay Hill has worked even though the average driving distance on the Tour has risen over the past few years with the advancement of equipment technology.

"Last year, I was very happy with the consistency of how the golf course was treated by these long hitter, 12-under-par," he said. "If we can keep in that area, that doesn't change much in 50 years; it's still running around the same number."

Bob Byman won the first Bay Hill tournament with a 278 total in 1979.

It's a delicate balance, but one Palmer pays close attention.

"So I have to look at it from the point of view that I love the game and I don't want to ruin it for the guys who go out and shoot 80 or 85," He said. "I want them to be able to enjoy it and I want them to feel like they can go out and improve their games just like the professionals can improve theirs."

The game is in good hands with Palmer and renaming the tournament will remind us all of that.