Past Nationwide Tour player Ron Philo Jr. will be one of the new faces at next week's $50,000 Gosling's Invitational at Belmont Hills.

The 2006 PGA Professional National Championship winner, poised to make his debut in the premier local event, only returned to playing competitive golf earlier this month in his native Florida where he failed to make the cut at the Children's Miracle Network Classic at the Disney Golf Resort - the last stop on the annual PGA Tour.

Philo, who has appeared in six PGA Championships and a sole US Open, has spent most of the year catching up on family life but says he's now ready to get back into the swing of things on a course he described as "tricky".

"It's a golf course where you can make a lot of birdies but you have to be careful because the bogeys can sneak up on you as the greens are not very big," the American acknowledged.

"My game has been on hold a little bit lately; I've had some time off which was nice. I have been taking time off playing with my kids, sitting at the beach and going to soccer games. . . . doing a lot of the things I don't get to do whenever I'm travelling on the road.

"But hopefully I can come in, get some practice and get feeling good because I always look forward to coming to Bermuda. I'm looking forward to a good relaxing couple of weeks of golf, Bermuda hospitality and good cooking."

Philo will face off with defending champion PH Horgan III and multiple Gosling's Invitational winners Ian Doig and Kirk Hanefield and local hopeful Dwayne Pearman at Belmont next week. And the five-time PGA Section Player of the Year winner and golf instructor says he's up for the challenge.

"You just have to take it all in stride because there's always great players wherever you go," he said. "Just because you don't see them on TV doesn't mean they are not capable of shooting good scores. So I hope to make as many birdies as I can and see if I can walk away with a trophy."

Philo, who turned pro in 1989, has so far compiled $58,200 in Nationwide Tour earnings with his best finish to date arriving in 1999 when he finished runner's up at the Nike Pensacola Classic.

The Florida State University graduate has also competed in 18 PGA Tour events, pocketing $12,750 in earnings.

Like his American counterpart, 1992 Invitational winner Pearman has also made himself scarce on the golf course in recent weeks, opting instead to spruce up his Southampton residence with the paint brush in time for the holidays.

But despite having resigned himself to house chores since last month's failed World Cup qualifying bid in Aruba, the 44-year-old Ocean View pro is confident he can regather himself ahead of next week's 72-hole event and mount a serious bid for a title that has eluded him for nearly two decades.

"I haven't been playing much but still have a few days left to try and get things back in shape and hopefully I will be ready. Hopefully I can get something going even though I haven't been playing much. We have some very good players coming down and so it should a be a good week of golf. It's a strong field and so it should be a nice battle that I look forward to," Pearman said.

The multiple Bermuda Open champion finished eighth last year in a two-way tie with Canadian Keir Smith but is determined to improve on that showing at Belmont next week.

"I always try to put my best foot forward but you can only go out there and do the best you can under the circumstances. So at the moment I'm trying to get my arms back in order and get myself fired up for next week," he said.

Also set to carry the Island's banner next week are Belmont pros Brian Morris, Dwayne Gibson, Darrick (Nails) Douglas, Darren Swan and Twilton Smith.

Current Bermuda Open champion Tim Conley remains doubtful through family commitments, while reigning amateur champ Nick Mansell wont be back to defend his title this year having been ruled out through work commitments.

The 2007 Gosling's Invitational swings into action next Monday at Belmont Hills that will also play host to the annual Bermuda Goodwill Tournament, starting December 3.