Kang wins KPMG PGA for 1st LPGA title

Aaron Wise pulls into a tie with Marc Leishman atop the AT&T Byron Nelson leaderboard.

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He’s chased it for two decades now, the last piece of his major puzzle. What if it never happens? Is he OK with that? Are we?

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Judging by the questions I’ve received since the start of the season, this is a good time to plug my full-membership fantasy rankings. See, the extended introduction serves as a reference board of sorts. Built in are all kinds of bits and pieces regarding membership, tournaments, provisions, exemptions and, whoa, even fantasy-specific information. Included in the latter is an adjustment made to PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. Beginning in 2017-18, golfers who lose in playoffs are awarded bonus points based on actual finish. Marc Leishman was the first golfer impacted when he was defeated by Justin Thomas at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES on Sunday. The Aussie’s fantasy bonus was 150 points, which is equal to one-half his actual haul in FedExCup points (since the tournament didn’t utilize ShotLink data). Until now, playoff losers were under the same bonus structure as the winners who beat them. The only wrinkle is that Leishman’s bonus points weren’t manually adjusted in the platform until Monday. It occurred at the usual time that all non-members who contributed to fantasy teams were credited with their equivalent bonuses. Please relay this to others if you’re a commissioner or if you know of anyone who isn’t yet aware. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions (in alphabetical order): Dustin Johnson Brooks Koepka Marc Leishman Hideki Matsuyama Jon Rahm Justin Rose You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Daniel Berger; Jason Day; Tony Finau; Brian Harman; Phil Mickelson; Pat Perez; Patrick Reed Driving: n/a Approach: n/a Short: n/a Power Rankings Wild Card Alex Noren … Turning points are visible only with hindsight, so it remains to be seen if the WGC-HSBC Champions is a launch pad or a flat tire for the Swede. It’s not often when a 35-year-old from anywhere debuts as a PGA TOUR member, but that’s his reality this week. Thanks to four wins in 2016 and a statement victory at the BMW PGA Championship five months ago, he’s secured a spot on all of the planet’s biggest stages for the recent past and near future. He descended for his fifth appearance at Sheshan International with just one top 25 in his last five starts, but he has a pair here, including a T12 last year. Strongest for his aerial approaches and greenside game, he occupies the inside lane for a mammoth 2017-18. Draws Tommy Fleetwood (all) Branden Grace (DFS) Bill Haas (all) Brian Harman (DFS) Matt Kuchar (all) Michael Lorenzo-Vera (DFS) Thomas Pieters (all) Haydn Porteous (DFS) Hyun-woo Ryu (DFS) Peter Uihlein (DFS) Bernd Wiesberger (DFS) Fades Wesley Bryan Adam Hadwin Russell Henley Charles Howell III Charl Schwartzel Jhonattan Vegas Returning to Competition Brandon Hagy … A sore wrist thwarted a start at the Safeway Open where he had committed. Last year’s T14 at the Country Club of Jackson was his second-best finish of 2016-17. Roberto Diaz … Had to call it quits during his second round in his rookie debut at the Safeway Open with a back injury. A T20 at the Web.com Tour Championship the week prior was his first top 25 in 15 starts dating back to June. George McNeill … Eked into the field of the Sanderson Farms Championship as the fifth alternate. Hasn’t pegged it since withdrawing during the final round of the Barbasol Championship. An explanation wasn’t released. The 42-year-old is embarking on his second straight season in the Past Champions category. He made only seven PGA TOUR starts in 2016-17 and hasn’t cashed since last year’s SFC. Notables WDs Louis Oosthuizen … Unexpected withdrawal from the WGC-HSBC Champions because he tweeted last Saturday that he was eager to resume playing. Mackenzie Hughes … Second consecutive early withdrawal (this time in China) due to the imminent birth of his first child. Luke Donald … Withdrew from the Sanderson Farms Championship with a sore rib. It would have been his first appearance in 14 years. It was in that event in 2002 when he broke through for his first of five PGA TOUR victories. Power Rankings Recap – THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1 Tony Finau T26 2 Justin Thomas Win 3 Paul Casey T19 4 Pat Perez T5 5 Xander Schauffele T72 6 Russell Henley T33 7 Rafa Cabrera Bello T11 8 Marc Leishman P2 9 Jason Day T11 10 Keegan Bradley T47 11 Cameron Smith 3rd 12 Chez Reavie T15 13 Anirban Lahiri T5 14 Sung Kang T54 15 Kyle Stanley T19 Wild Card Patrick Reed T11 Sleepers Recap – CIMB Classic Golfer  Result Scott Brown T5 Jinho Choi T36 Luke List T5 Ollie Schniederjans T19 Young-han Song T58 Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR October 24 … Marc Leishman (34) October 25 … Troy Merritt (32); Xander Schauffele (24) October 26 … none October 27 … Fabián Gómez (39) October 28 … none October 29 … none October 30 … none

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