Sanderson Farms Championship, fourth round: Leaderboard, tee times, TV schedule

THE OVERVIEW AUSTIN, Texas — In Arizona, Dustin Johnson was a pushover. In Austin, he’s practically unbeatable. No player in this week’s World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play field has benefitted more from a change of scenery than the world’s No. 1 player. When the event was held in Dove Mountain outside Tucson, Johnson’s match record was 2-6, and he was ousted in the first round in four of his five appearances. The event was then played at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco in 2015, which was also the first year of the format change. Johnson did not advance out of group play. The next year, Austin Country Club became the home course, and Johnson immediately took a liking to the Hill Country layout. He advanced to the quarterfinals before losing to Louis Oosthuizen in 2016, a precursor to last year’s dominating performance in which he not only won the championship with seven match wins but never trailed at any time. Johnson, who held off Jon Rahm in a tough championship match a year ago, didn’t hesitate Tuesday when asked why his performances improved. “It had a lot to do with the golf course,â€� he said. “I don’t want to talk bad about any golf course, but it wasn’t my favorite place to play. It didn’t suit me very well.â€� Of course, Johnson’s game also was elevated in recent years, as he won his first major while reaching the top of the world standings. Given Johnson’s elite status and current form, perhaps Dove Mountain might not provide as much frustration now as it did then. Paul Casey – another player in great form right now – was asked if the feeling of uncomfortableness at a golf course can be reduced by being in good form. “Certainly less of a factor,â€� said Casey, recent winner of the Valspar Championship. “Maybe a nemesis hole you’ve never been able to figure out, suddenly you see a way. Or it bothers you less.â€� While Johnson has shown his ability to thrive in a match play environment, he doesn’t get caught up in the differences between this week’s format and a regular stroke-play event. In other words, he’s not fixating on his opponent, just his own game. “If you play well, usually that takes care of your opponent,â€� he said. “Obviously there are certain situations where you’re kind of just playing him. But for the most part, you’re out there just trying to make as low a score as you can on every hole.â€� If nothing else, Johnson knows what it takes to win at Austin Country Club. He’s hoping to follow the same gameplan this week.   THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER Dustin Johnson Defending champ has won at least one World Golf Championships event every year since 2014. Jason Day Didn’t get a legitimate chance to defend his 2016 title after withdrawing due to his mother’s health. Consider him the co-defending champ. Rory McIlroy Anybody else get the feeling that McIlroy’s win at Bay Hill might be the start of a big run for the next few weeks?   Three matches to ponder Wednesday: Tony Finau vs. Thomas Pieters. If the last two years are any indication, then Austin Country Club favors the big hitters. Finau and Pieters, part of Group 13, are two of the longest on the world stage. Thursday: Justin Thomas vs. Patton Kizzire. This Group 2 match pits the top two players in the FedExCup standings, as each already has won twice this PGA TOUR season. Thomas, the defending FedExCup champ and current leader, could also move to world No. 1 if he wins on Sunday. Friday: Jordan Spieth vs. Patrick Reed. Spieth joked on Tuesday there “might be some sort of rigging that’s going onâ€� in order to have Reed drawn into his Group 4. (Ah, the Patrick Ewing lottery conspiracy theory!). Safe to assume that for U.S. golf fans, this is the most anticipated group match of the week.   The Flyover Jordan Spieth calls the par-4 stretch of hole Nos. 13, 14 and 15 “the most pivotal holesâ€� at Austin Country Club this week. “That’s where the difference in the match happens,â€� Spieth added. The 317-yard 13th can be drivable and has played under par in the first two years. The 465-yard 14th and 440-yard 15th both played over par last year; the 14th was the most difficult hole on the back nine last year. “When you’re playing those three holes and playing them accordingly should put you at an advantage if you were to play them at par or better over your opponent,â€� Spieth said. The Landing Zone The 498-yard eighth hole is the longest par 4 at Austin Country Club, and consequently the most difficult par 4 on the course. It played to a stroke average of 4.283 last year. Players will favor going down the left side of the fairway to take advantage of the slope running to the right, but a long iron will still remain into a small green guarded by several pot bunkers. Weather check From PGA TOUR meteorologist Stewart Williams: “Showers and isolated t-storms will be likely through daybreak Wednesday morning as a cold front sweeps through the region. Skies will quickly clear with breezy and cooler conditions expected for the afternoon. Cooler and drier air continues Thursday and Friday with highs in the 60s each day. Warmer temperatures return Saturday with highs in the mid 70s. The next cold front appears to be slowing down and will likely bring showers and t-storms Sunday afternoon into Sunday night.â€�   For the latest weather news from Austin, Texas, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK I could shoot 2 over every single round and win a WGC this week. There’s a luck of the draw to it.The margin around here is very small. You’re always 3 feet away from a glorious shot or a disaster. Thank god it’s match play because I wouldn’t want to play straight play around here. BY THE NUMBERS 85.7 – The career winning percentage of Jon Rahm (6-1) in the event, the best of anyone in the field. 62 – The lowest seed to ever win the tournament (Kevin Sutherland 2002) 18 – Number of different countries represented in the tournament. 112 – Amount of holes played by Dustin Johnson last year in winning the title. It was a record high equal to Louis Oosthuizen from 2016. SCATTERSHOTS Of the 96 matches set for the three days of group play, 19 of them pit American versus fellow American. Just three others match up non-U.S. players from the same country – Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama vs. Yusaku Miyuazato and England’s Tommy Fleetwood vs. Ian Poulter on Wednesday, and England’s Paul Casey vs. Matthew Fitzpatrick on Friday. Jason Day is the only player in the field with multiple wins in this event, having won in 2014 and 2016. Tiger Woods won three times and Geoff Ogivly won twice. Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter have each won 23 matches in this event. That’s the most of any players in the field. Poulter’s amount is impressive since only one of his 12 appearances came in the current group-play format that guarantees at least three matches.

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Robert Garrigus is a huge fan of the Chicago Cubs, who ended a 108-year world championship drought last fall. He feels a special kinship with recently retired catcher David Ross, too. Not because of that home run he hit that helped clinch the title in Game 7 of the World Series, though. Actually, Garrigus likes Ross because he can relate to what the baseball player went through as he competed on the most recent season of “Dancing With The Stars.â€� He didn’t win a mirror ball trophy either — Ross ended up a surprising second to former NFL running back Rashad Jennings. But Garrigus was impressed with Ross’ effort because he knows what it takes.  “(He was) kicking butt,â€� Garrigus said. “… I admire him for that.â€� Garrigus, you see, took ballroom dancing lessons with his wife Ami several years ago. Dances like the waltz and the salsa and the cha cha  became second nature to the couple. “It was my wife’s idea for sure, but I was like, you know what, that’s not a horrible idea,â€� Garrigus said. “I was willing to do it just because I thought it would be a lot of fun just to be with her and focus on something other than golf and the crazy life that we have.  “It was definitely a lot of fun.â€� Garrigus admits to feeling self-conscious at first. But then he realized that everyone else on the dance floor was busy doing his or her own thing, rather than watching him. “It’s a very enjoyable thing to do,â€� said Garrigus, who won the 2010 Children’s Miracle Network Classic. And as it turned out, learning the intricate steps at the dance studio isn’t that different than the thought process Garrigus goes through when he’s trying to hit a draw or a fade. “It was almost like golf shots, like you’re focusing on technique and executing and stuff,â€� Garrigus explained. Garrigus and his wife Ami, who have two sons, actually enjoyed dancing so much they thought about competing. But the competitions at their studio were usually held on weeks when he was playing on the PGA TOUR. When he was home, though, Garrigus and his wife went out to dance as often as twice a week.  They got to be pretty smooth, too. “It’s just funny how you can work around the room when there’s a bunch of people in there,â€� he said. Garrigus said the couple took nearly 30 lessons. Even though they’ve quit going to the classes, the two still like to put on their dancing shoes – Robert’s are brown and white, like “old-school 50s shoes,â€� he says – and hit the floor. One of their favorite spots is an outdoor music venue in Providence, Rhode Island. It’s a must-stop for Garrigus when he advances to the second round of the FedExCup Playoffs. “And sometimes if we’re in Vegas, there’s places where you can go and dance,â€� he said. “Not like it’s crazy dancing with the kids but you can go out and hang with people your age at a piano bar and dance. “We’ve started not to worry about what everybody is thinking. Just go out and have fun. I guess that’s what it’s all about.â€� And his favorite dance? There are elements of the waltz that he enjoys but the salsa wins out over all the dances Garrigus and his wife learned. “It was kind of upbeat and kind of gave us a little bit of a workout, too,â€� he explained. “Salsa was our favorite, for sure.” While he leaves the “flash and the hipsâ€� to the instructors, Garrigus is up for any challenge. And he once showed off his salsa skills to settle a bet on the range. “He was like, you know how to salsa?  He’s like, show me,â€� Garrigus said with a smile. “I was like, I’ll do it myself right here.â€� Suffice it to say, Garrigus won the bet. And ballroom dancing has definitely won him over, too. “We ended up getting pretty good and enjoying it, having a lot of fun with it,â€� Garrigus said. Can “Dancing With The Starsâ€� be next on the horizon? 

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