Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler rolled in their opening alternate-shot match for the Americans. See how the rest of team did on the first day.
Click here to read the full article…
| Do you like online slot and want to know more about the best payouts? Slots with the hightest payouts can be found here! |
Tournament host Tiger Woods announced late Monday that he will make his return to competitive golf at the 18-man Hero World Challenge, Nov. 30-Dec. 3, at Albany, Bahamas. After a nine-month recuperation from his latest back operation, Woods announced on Twitter that he and Daniel Berger will round out the field. “I’d like to thank the committee of 1 for picking myself and Daniel Berger to play in this years #HeroWorldChallenge,� Woods tweeted. Although he won five times on the PGA TOUR in 2013, Woods has made just 19 starts since then, including one in 2017, at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. He shot 76-72 to miss the cut, and announced in April that he had undergone back fusion surgery—his fourth back operation in three years. “I am excited to return to competitive golf at the Hero World Challenge,� Woods said. “Albany is the perfect setting and it will be great to join this outstanding field. I want to thank Pawan Munjal and Hero MotoCorp for their continued support of this tournament and my foundation. I would also like to thank the fans for their unwavering support during my injury.� Woods was an assistant to U.S. Team Captain Steve Stricker at the Presidents Cup at Liberty National, where he was asked why it was important for him to return to competitive golf. “I think it’s fun,� said the 14-time major winner Woods, who will turn 42 in December. “You know, I’ve been competing in golf tournaments since I was, what, four years old. From pitch, putt and drive to playing major championships, it’s always been fun to me.� Younger players like Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, each 24, grew up watching Woods on TV and now dominate the TOUR along with Dustin Johnson, 33. But it can’t be lost on Woods that two of the first five winners this season, Pat Perez and Ryan Armour, are his age, 41.  Woods has given regular updates of his slow progress. He engaged in putting contests with fellow South Floridians Rickie Fowler and Thomas, and said he was sleeping better and had no nerve pain running down his legs. Then he was chipping. Then he was hitting full shots. Last week he posted a slow-motion video of himself hitting his old standby, the “stinger.� “I don’t know what 100 percent means after eight surgeries,� Woods said at the Presidents Cup. “But I’ll try and get as close as I can to that number, yes. But as I said, we just take it one step at a time. It’s a process, and I’m in no hurry.� The youngest assistant captain on either team at the Presidents Cup, Woods huddled with fellow assistants Fred Couples, Jim Furyk and Davis Love III as Stricker announced the lineups. “It would be fun to have him back,� Brooks Koepka said. “Fans want it. Players want it.� Starting at the Hero, they’ll get it.
CROMWELL, Conn. (AP) — Xander Schauffele shot his second straight 7-under 63 on Friday to take a five-stroke lead in the Travelers Championship. The Olympic champion shot a 31 on the front nine at TPC River Highlands with four birdies, then had a 32 on the back, making birdies on 11, 14 and 17. He has hit 33 of 36 greens in regulation and is the only player in the tournament without a bogey. His closest call came close at the par-3 16th, where he hit his tee shot found the rough behind a greenside bunker. “It plays really interesting with the wind swirling through there,” Schauffele said. “It was my least committed swing of the week and just really happy to get up and down there and save par.” Kevin Kisner (64), Nick Hardy (64), defending champion Harris English (65), Cam Davis (66) and Patrick Cantlay (67) were tied for second at 9 under. First-round leaders Rory McIlroy and J.T. Poston followed opening 62s with 70s to drop six strokes back. Cantlay, who shot a 60 at TPC River Highlands as an amateur in 2011, played in the same morning group as English. “(I’m) still right here in this tournament, and looking forward to the weekend,” Cantlay said. “I enjoy the challenge, and that’s all you can do in golf, is give yourself as many chances as you possibly can.” English, who won on the eighth hole of a playoff last year, is playing in his third tournament since returning in May from Valentine’s Day surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right hip. “The toughest thing is walking and playing,” English said. “I mean, I feel like back home I can go hit a bunch of balls on the range, but up and down these hills and being on your feet for five or six hours is the toughest part. It’s getting better and better, and I feel like the more I play competitive rounds out here, it’s just going to get stronger.” Hardy, starting on the back nine had four consecutive birdies on 16, 17, 18 and 1. He also is coming back from injury after damaging the tendon is his left wrist in April. “I just was in great rhythm,” Hardy said. “That’s kind of been the name of the game for me since I came back. Just being in good rhythm. I think I’m swinging the club well and my mind is in a good spot.” Kisner had some good luck on 15 when his tee shot went right and rolled toward the course’s signature lake before getting hung up on a microphone cable, inches from the water. “Five shots is not insurmountable but I’m a going to need (Schauffele) to slow down a little bit,” Kisner said. Schauffele, played one group ahead of McIlroy, who was still leading by a stroke at 13 under before getting into trouble on the 12th hole. McIlroy hit his tee shot left and out of bounds into the woods, then found the deep rough to the right on his next shot. He put the ball into a green-side bunker from there, then chipped out short of the green and into the rough again, before finishing with a quadruple bogey. He left the hole trailing by three strokes and then found more trouble on the 15th. He went right on his tee shot, finding the high grass, then ran his third shot over the green, down the hill and into the water. He finished that hole with a 6. But he made birdie on 16, finishing with an even-par 70 when his birdie putt lipped out on 18. “I should be closer to the lead,” he said. “Feel like I let a lot of guys into the golf tournament because of it.” The last player to make a quadruple bogey and go on to win a PGA Tour event was Adam Scott at the 2016 Honda Classic. Scott put two shots in the water on the par-3 15th hole. The cut was at 2 under, with 2017 winner Jordan Spieth (1 over) dropping out with Sam Burns (even par), Zach Johnson (4 over) and Jason Day (6 over).
It’s a star-studded field at Austin Country Club in Texas, where 62 of the world’s 64 top-ranked golfers are competing in the round-robin event.
