NATCHEZ — At least eight former champions are expected to participate in the 2009 Bill McKinney Memorial City Golf Championship will take place this weekend at the Duncan Park Golf Course.

And that wasn’t enough, Greg Brooking, himself a five-time champion and golf course superintendent at Duncan Park, said this will be the strongest field in the history of this tournament.

“This is going to be some city tournament. These guys can play,” Brooking said. “The public is invited to watch.”

In addition to Brooking, the other former city champions he anticipates will play or have already signed up and paid to play in this year’s tournament are defending champion Jordan Farmer, 11-time champion Pete Powell, four-time champion P.Z. Brewer, two-time champion Paul Guido, and one-time champions Clay Arnold, Kevin Smith Jr. and K.G. Watkins.

“As of (Thursday at noon), Jordan has not signed up. I believe he will play,” Brooking said. “Bill McKinney’s grandson, Kenny Weeks, is in town for a class reunion this weekend and we hope he plays.”

Among the favorites for this year’s city championship are Farmer, Arnold, Watkins, Guido, Weeks, Casey Ham, left-hander Jason Rooks, Neil Partridge, Bill Byrne, Billy Ulmer, Richard Edgin, Peter Powell Jr., Bubba Bruce, Alan Smith, Arliss Rodgers, Cornelius Lewis and Clayton Foster.

“Cornelius Lewis and Clayton Foster are both in their 70s. They have a chance to win the championship,” Brooking said.

Brooking said that Lloyd Trisler, who recently won his third Beau Pré Club Championship, will play in the tournament.

The tournament will included two days of green fees and cart fees as well as lunch and beverages on both Saturday and Sunday.

Tee times for Saturday will begin at 8:30 a.m., but Brooking said that some players will start at 8 a.m. As for Sunday, that is still to be determined because, as Brooking pointed out, some of the players go to church on Sunday. However, the latest he expect the tee times to start that day will be 10 a.m.

“We cannot start at noon because if we do, we would never get finished,” he said.

As of early Thursday afternoon, 57 players had signed up and paid their registration fee. The fee was $85 through last Sunday and went up to $100 on Monday. Brooking was hoping that more players would have registered early so the tee times would have posted by today. He said that by the end of today, he expects there to be 80 players registered and have paid their fees. He also said registration, which will be at the Duncan Park Golf Pro Shop, will conclude today at 3 p.m.

“Last year we had 78 players. This year we expect to have that many if not more,” Brooking said. “We were thinking there would be (fewer) players this year because of economic factors around the nation. Maybe Natchez is a microcosm financially.”

Brooking said if there are 80 players, there will be five flights. He said as of Thursday, there were enough players for four flights — championship, first, second and third. There will be four places per flight. Tournament prizes per flight include membership for the Duncan Park Golf Course.

For the second year in a row, the tournament will be played by the USGA Rules of Golf.

“Fourteen clubs in each bag. One-ball rule is in effect. We will be playing the game of golf,” Brooking said. “Last year we enjoyed it. Everyone had a good time.”

As for the course itself, Brooking noted, “The course is in great shape. The vandalism (on the greens on Nos. 8, 9 and 13) put us back a little. They’re putting okay. They will be playing faster than the other greens because the grass is dead. We’re not going to let that bother us.”