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The PGA Tour heads to Minnesota, where Matthew Wolff will defend his title at the 3M Open. Here are our experts’ best bets.
Catch up on the past six months of the NFL offseason, including a CBA extension, a team name change and more.
Round 1 of the 3M Open takes place today at TPC Twin Cities. The strong field features players such as Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Tommy Fleetwood and defending champion Matthew Wolff. Here’s everything you need to know to follow the action. Round 1 leaderboard Round 1 tee times HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Friday, 2:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday 1 p.m.-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday 7:45 a.m.-6:30 p.m. (Featured Groups). Saturday-Sunday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m. (Featured Groups), 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Holes). Radio: Thursday-Friday, 1 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday 1 p.m.-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio). FEATURED GROUPS Dustin Johnson, Tony Finau, Tommy Fleetwood Thursday: 8:30 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee); Friday: 1:40 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee) Matthew Wolff, Max Homa, Branden Grace Thursday: 1:30 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee); Friday: 8:20 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee) Brooks Koepka, Keith Mitchell, Charles Howell III Thursday: 8:20 a.m. ET (No. 10 tee); Friday: 1:30 p.m. ET (No. 1) Bubba Watson, Pat Perez, Paul Casey Thursday: 1:40 p.m. ET (No. 1 tee); Friday: 8:30 a.m. ET (No. 10) MUST READS Power Rankings Expert Picks Insider: Fleetwood returns to work Four burning questions about DJ PGA TOUR University’s inaugural top 15 ranking
Minnesota is ready for just the second installment of the 3M Open which kicked off last season in fantastic fashion. The emergence of Matthew Wolff and his huge eagle to finish off victory will forever be folklore at TPC Twin Cities. RELATED: Featured Groups, tee times | Power Rankings | Expert Picks Now, with the FedExCup Playoffs fast approaching, the 3M Open takes on huge significance in this shortened season. Can Brooks Koepka make his mark? Is Tommy Fleetwood set to shock on his return? And can the Wolff bite again? Or will a new star step up and steal the limelight? THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER THE FLYOVER The 596-yard par-5 18th finishing hole at TPC Twin Cities is built for drama. Last season, Wolff needed a birdie to enter a playoff with Bryson DeChambeau and Collin Morikawa… so he made eagle and won outright instead. But while eagle is absolutely on the table, so too is a big number. Avoid the water on the right and find the fairway off the tee and it’s a green light to go for the green. But to do so you must fire right over a lake. Final round pin has water short and bunker long… you better be ready. LANDING ZONE The 502-yard par-4 ninth hole at TPC Twin Cities turned out to be quite the brute to finish the front side last season as the tournament made its TOUR debut. It played to a 4.279 average despite Dylan Frittelli’s incredible hole-out eagle in the third round. That made it the 25th hardest hole on TOUR. There were 116 bogeys, 26 double bogeys and five others on the hole that added just 51 birdies to Frittelli’s 195-yard hole out. Here’s a look at where tee shots landed last season. Hitting the fairway doesn’t guarantee anything… WEATHER CHECK From PGA TOUR meteorologist Joe Halvorson: “Dry conditions are likely to continue Thursday as surface high pressure begins to shift east while a warm front lifts into southwestern Minnesota. A complex of showers and thunderstorms is expected to be ongoing across northern Minnesota Friday morning, with precipitation chances remaining isolated around TPC Twin Cities as a warm front lifts through the area. As heat and humidity continues to build on Saturday, an upper-level disturbance is expected to push across the Northern Plains – likely setting off a complex of showers and thunderstorms. The precise timing and placement of Saturday’s shower and thunderstorm potential remains uncertain. A cold front is expected to bring another round of showers and thunderstorms at some point on Sunday, however, there remains large discrepancies in the forecast guidance for the timing of this boundary. Heat indices will be in the upper 90s to near 100F Friday through Sunday.” For the latest weather news from TPC Twin Cities, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK I don’t need to keep up with anybody, I’m good. BY THE NUMBERS 9 – Pat Perez is one of eight players with a current streak of at least nine consecutive rounds par or better. Perez is 19-under par in his last nine PGA TOUR rounds. 11 – Number of PGA TOUR winners from Minnesota. They have accounted for 30 wins with Lee Janzen’s eight being the best of the group. Tom Lehman (five) and Tim Herron (4) could add to their numbers this week. 22.3 – The average age of the top-three finishers at the 2019 3M Open. It was the lowest of any PGA TOUR event in the last 37 years. 24 – Number of top-eight finishes in the last four seasons for Tony Finau, the most of any player without a PGA TOUR win in that span. 196 – Number of career eagles from Charles Howell III on the PGA TOUR. In the last 40 years, only five players have made over 200 eagles in their PGA TOUR careers. Howell made three eagles last year at the 2019 3M Open, marking his fourth career PGA TOUR event to make three eagles. 260 – Number of balls hit in the water during last season’s 3M Open. It was the third most of any course on the PGA TOUR. SCATTERSHOTS Five-time PGA TOUR winner and 1996 Open Championship winner Tom Lehman is in the field via a sponsor invite. A local from Austin, Minnesota who played collegiately at the University of Minnesota, Lehman plays on PGA TOUR Champions these days where he has 12 wins. He is the only player in history to be named Player of the Year on the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Champions. Lehman consulted on course renovations at TPC Twin Cities where he played the 3M Championship (PGA TOUR Champions) eight times with a T2 in 2011 his best result. FedExCup fight: With just five events and four weeks remaining before the start of the FedExCup Playoffs, a handful of stars need strong finishes to improve or secure their positions in the FedExCup standings. Brooks Koepka, who has finished among the top 10 in the standings the last three years and won the inaugural Wyndham Rewards Top 10 last year, is 154th in the FedExCup. England’s Tommy Fleetwood, in his first start since the Return to Golf, sits 81st in the FedExCup standings. Dustin Johnson – winner of the Travelers Championship in June – is 25th the FedExCup standings as he looks to extend his streak qualifying for the TOUR Championship to 12 years. Local imports: England’s Angus Flanagan, who recently was named a third-team All-American after his junior season at the University of Minnesota, makes his PGA TOUR debut. He recently shot a course-record 64 at Royal Golf Club to win the Minnesota State Open and he won the Big Ten individual title his sophomore year. South Africa’s Erik van Rooyen, who played his collegiate golf for the Gophers between 2009-13, is ranked No. 42 in the Official World Golf Ranking as a member of the European Tour. The Power of Community: The tournament’s 2020 charitable giving efforts will be directed largely toward local nonprofit organizations which are focused on supporting individuals impacted by COVID-19 and for social justice initiatives. Funds will be donated to: Urban Ventures, Lake Street Council, YWCA of St. Paul, YWCA of Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital, VEAP, Greater Twin Cities United Way, and Science Museum of Minnesota. Frontline workers recognition: At the driving range, there will be a wall with 156 Extreme Post-in Notes where the field will be encouraged to write thank you notes to frontline workers. Players can sign to whomever they like or keep their messages generic. Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson will sign one Post-it each for two specific healthcare workers from Masonic Children’s Hospital, one of the 3M Open’s primary beneficiaries. Course Changes: In preparation for the event, the first tee complex was relocated approximately 20 yards left, a walk bridge was installed in front of the second green, bunker modifications were completed on holes 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 13, 14, 16, and 18, and fairways were narrowed on hole 6, 7, 10, 14, and 18.
A condensed PGA TOUR schedule has one benefit: a wild race to determine the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. That competition doles out $10 million in bonus money to the top 10 in the standings on Aug. 16, when the PGA TOUR’s regular season concludes at the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina. RELATED LINKS: 15th Club There are only four events left on the schedule before the TOUR visits historic Sedgefield Country Club for the Wyndham Championship, but there’s still plenty of time for rapid movement into, and out of, the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Using projected tournament fields, player performance data and other forecasting tools, 15th Club ran more than 20,000 simulations of the remaining events on the PGA TOUR’s regular-season schedule. Below are some players to keep an eye on as they try to burst into the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Abraham Ancer Current FedExCup position: 15 Odds of finishing in Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 19% Currently five spots out of the $500,000 bonus for 10th place, Ancer came out of the gates hot when the Return to Golf began. The Presidents Cup participant finished in the top 15 at the Charles Schwab Challenge, RBC Heritage and Travelers Championship. His scoring average since the restart (68.6) ranks third among players with at least 10 rounds. While his iron play may have drawn more attention in recent weeks (he hit all 18 greens in the final round at Harbour Town), his putting has improved too. Ancer has more than doubled his Strokes Gained: Putting per round since the resumption of play. The 15th Club predictive model says Ancer has a 6% chance of finishing in the top five of the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Tyrrell Hatton Current FedExCup position: 16 Odds of finishing in Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 17% With just six starts this season, Hatton has played the least of anyone in the top 40 of the FedExCup standings. The Englishman has made the most of his opportunities, though. He has yet to finish outside the top 15 this season. He leads the TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total and has the best scoring average (67.0) of any player with eight or more rounds since the Return to Golf. He has averaged fewer than two bogeys per round during that stretch. Hatton has a 7% chance of finishing in the top five of the Wyndham Rewards Top 10, and a 17% chance of winning the $500,000 bonus in tenth place. Viktor Hovland Current FedExCup position: 22 Odds of finishing in Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 8% The captivating former U.S. Amateur champion is assembling quite the ball-striking profile as a professional. Since last June, Hovland ranks fifth on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, fourth in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and third in Strokes Gained: Approach. He currently sits just outside the top 20 in the FedExCup standings, but our model is bullish on his potential finish to the season, giving him a nearly 10% chance of leaping into the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Hovland is taking this week off after making the cut in each of the first six PGA TOUR events since the Return to Golf. Tommy Fleetwood Current FedExCup position: 81 Odds of finishing in Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 1% So, you’re saying there’s a chance? Fleetwood is teeing it up in Minnesota this week, making his first start worldwide since the Arnold Palmer Invitational back in March. At 81st in the FedExCup, Fleetwood is the lowest-ranked player that our model gives a 1 percent chance or better to finish in the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Fleetwood is currently the top-ranked player in the OWGR without a PGA TOUR victory. How’s half-a-million dollars as a bonus incentive to break through? Bryson DeChambeau Current FedExCup position: 4 Odds of winning Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 7% The PGA TOUR’s new king of driving distance had his run of seven straight top 10 finishes on the PGA TOUR snapped when he missed the cut at last week’s Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. Currently fourth in the FedExCup, our analytical model gives DeChambeau a reasonable chance at jumping into the top spot of the Wyndham Rewards Top 10, at 7%. He has an 80% chance of staying in the top five. Since the Return to Golf, DeChambeau leads the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total, greens in regulation, and of course, Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. Webb Simpson Current FedExCup position: 2 Odds of winning Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 16% A North Carolina native, there may be a $2 million homecoming gift for Simpson next month. Simpson, who earned his first career victory at the 2011 Wyndham Championship, held the top spot in the Wyndham Rewards Top 10 until Justin Thomas finished runner-up to Collin Morikawa at the Workday Charity Open. Simpson’s strong history at Sedgefield could help return to the top spot in the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. Simpson has nine top-25s in 11 starts at Sedgefield, including seven top-10s. He’s finished third, second and second in the last three Wyndham Championship. Simpson’s career renaissance has been well-documented. In each of his last two starts, he has entered the week with a mathematical possibility of becoming No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Simpson is averaging a career-high 4.88 birdies per round this season. He has six top-10s in just nine starts this season, including four top-3 finishes. He has two wins (RBC Heritage, Waste Management Phoenix Open), making this his first multiple-win season since 2011. Justin Thomas Current FedExCup position: 1 Odds of winning Wyndham Rewards Top 10: 67% The current leader of the Wyndham Rewards Top 10 has a stellar opportunity to earn the $2 million first place bonus. He holds a 229-point lead over Simpson and a 347-point lead over No. 3 Sungjae Im. DeChambeau, who trails Thomas by 375 points, is the only other player within 500 points of the lead. In more than 20,000 simulations run by 15th Club, Thomas’ average finishing position is 1.38. He’s a mathematical lock to finish in the top five and has a 67% chance of finishing in the top spot. Thomas leads the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and will be on the short list of favorites at TPC Harding Park for the PGA Championship. He’ll be a tough man to catch, but there’s still plenty of opportunity for volatility as the race to the finish heats up.
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