PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. --- At the Honda Classic, it'll forever be known as the Mark Wilson Rule.

Wilson was struggling just to make the cut at PGA National a year ago, and needed three routine shots to finish the par-3 fifth hole during his second round. Problem was, caddie Chris Jones told Camilo Villegas, who was playing alongside Wilson, what his boss hit on that hole.

That's where Rule 8-1 came into play.

Giving other players advice during competition is prohibited, so Wilson paid dearly for the caddie's mistake. He called a rules official on the sixth tee and docked himself two strokes, putting his chances of staying for the weekend in serious danger.

"I thought we were done," Jones said.

By now, everyone knows Wilson wasn't done.

In a stirring turnaround, Wilson was 8 under over the next 49 holes, got into a four-man playoff and ultimately wound up getting his first tour victory, along with a $990,000 check. He's back at PGA National this week, aiming to become the first back-to-back Honda champion since Jack Nicklaus, who won three in a row from 1976-78.

"I guess it shows that there's more to the game than just hitting the ball in the hole," Wilson said Wednesday. "You know, I think that's maybe why it snowballed."

Wilson still hears about the penalty just about everywhere he goes.

It's part of Honda lore now, but this week, Wilson is looking ahead to the challenge PGA National's Champion Course presents.

His winning score here last year, 5 under, was the highest on tour in any 2007 event other than the U.S. Open (won by Angel Cabrera at 5 over) and the Masters Tournament (won by Zach Johnson at 1 over).

Johnson and Cabrera are in the field, along with Sergio Garcia and all three of the players Wilson beat in the 2007 playoff: Villegas, Boo Weekley and Jose Coceres.

Vaughn Taylor, of Evans, and former Augustan Richard Johnson will also test PGA National.

Former Louisville, Ga., resident Brian Gay, who won last week's Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico, is among the players who withdrew.