Angela Stanford ended her long wait for a first major title when her 3-under 68 was enough to win the Evian Championship by one shot Sunday after long-time leader Amy Olson made double-bogey on the 18th.
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SILVIS, Ill. – You cry all the tears and put your life on hold. You hug your loved ones and look for ballast anywhere you can find it. You prepare, but are never really ready. And then, when it’s over, you begin to step back into your old life, unsteady but resolute. “Kandi just wanted to return to something normal,� Hunter Mahan said of his wife, whose sister, Katie Enloe, died of leukemia last week. “You’re never going to forget, but you’ve just got to wake up the next day, and God willing you will wake up the next day and start living.� Mahan returned to competition with a 1-under 70 in the first round of the John Deere Classic on Thursday. He is here in the Quad Cities with Kandi; their three children; Mahan’s mother, Cindy; and Kandi and Katie’s mom, Debbie. They’ve rented a house for the week and are trying to get back to normal, whatever that might be now. “We’ve heard the first year is the hardest with birthdays and holidays,� said Mahan, who has played the Web.com Tour and the PGA TOUR this season. “It’ll be a hard year. I have bad moments, and Debbie—a mother losing her kid is pretty heartbreaking.� For six-time TOUR winner Mahan, 36, getting back to normal looks like golf. On a muggy Thursday at TPC Deere Run, he drove his ball into an old divot hole in the 18th fairway, but after assessing the situation he hit his approach to just inside eight feet and made the birdie. After signing his scorecard, Mahan obliged a few autograph seekers and indulged a reporter. The orange “KJE� on his white golf bag was a reminder of his last few months. Katie Jo Enloe was 35, and in addition to her husband, Jason Enloe, the former Web.com Tour player and now SMU men’s golf coach, she left behind two daughters, Emma, 5, and Maddie, 3. “My girls, my family are devastated right now but believe in the good Lord that he will provide us all with peace and happiness in the future,� Jason Enloe wrote on Instagram. “I sincerely have appreciated the notes, phone calls and generous gestures during the last 6 months. God has a plan, and we must trust in him that Katie is in heaven and will guide all of us as we continue our journey on Earth.� Katie was diagnosed in January, and late last month left the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston to be surrounded by her family at home in Dallas. Mahan withdrew from the Quicken Loans National, where Meagan Laird, wife of PGA TOUR pro Martin, organized an orange-ribbon campaign for leukemia awareness in Katie’s honor. The campaign galvanized the players, one of whom was Ryan Armour, one of Jason’s best friends from the Web.com Tour, who would finish second to Francesco Molinari. Instead of worrying about the Quicken and the topography of TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm, Mahan was miles away both literally and figuratively, huddled up with his family. He had planned on playing A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, too, but couldn’t see how. The situation at his mother-in-law’s house back in Dallas was too dire. “We just stayed at Debbie’s house, and just bunked up on the floors and were with her,� Mahan said. “I would come home and take care of the kids, my mom would take care of the kids.� At the end, the call came at 4 a.m., and Hunter stayed home with the kids while Kandi rushed to her mother’s house. Katie died before Kandi got there. The funeral was last Friday. Now much of the family are here at the John Deere, thinking about Katie, yes, but also birdies and bogeys, Hunter’s FedExCup number (161), and other odd things from their old life. “My wife was ready to get out here,� Mahan said. “She hadn’t traveled in a long time. And it’s good for Debbie to get out here with us, get out of her house, which have bad memories for her right now. Good time for her to just start her process, whatever that is. Hard to imagine, but to be with her daughter and a couple of her grandkids is about as good a therapy as you can get. “Kind of the new reality for our family,� Mahan added. “It’s nice to be out here, but also you’re still sad and emotional about everything that’s happened. That won’t go away for a long time.�
Drive for show, putt for dough. We’ve all heard it before but the numbers suggest you better do both well this week at the Sanderson Farms Championship. With the Country Club of Jackson hosting for the ninth consecutive season we have the luxury of a dive deep into the numbers of previous winners in our quest to maximize our fantasy or betting goals this week. John Fought’s late 2000’s redesign melded the two nines into a par-72 that can stretch to 7,461 yards. One of the longer courses on the schedule, it still gives up plenty of low scores to the players on song. Bermudagrass returns to the menu this week. Champion is on the 6,200 square feet (on average) putting surfaces and will push 13 slick feet on the Stimpmeter. The rough is a combination of 419 Bermuda and Zoysiagrass at two inches so recovery shots are playable, but not maybe ideally controllable. The average winning total over the previous eight editions hovers at 19 under and the tournament scoring record was established on 22 under last year by Sam Burns. Will Zalatoris also set the course record (61) last year and there were 47 bogey free rounds. Seven players were 20-under or better. The streak of six consecutive first time winners was broken in the 2020-21 season and extended last year with Burns. The only playoff was in the 2019-20 season. Of the eight champions, six were aged 20-29 and two were 40 and 41. Key Statistics Only players listed are competing this week; click stat headline for additional players; Stats from 2021-22 completed season. SG: Off the Tee With some of the tighter fairways on TOUR (just 28 acres total) being able to play from the short grass to control approach shots is paramount. The last four winners have ranked first, first, fourth and second in this category and that sets the table for scoring chances. Those of you who are curious for KFT graduates stats please click here and navigate. SG: Putting Bermuda greens pushing 13 feet on the Stimpmeter will keep the players attention until the putt disappears into the hole. Before last season the previous seven winners gained 49% of their strokes on the greens. The last two winners were T1 GIR so they didn’t fall into the upper end of this category. The previous six winners all registered in the top seven. Country Club of Jackson ranks in the top 10 annually for most three putts and putting inside five feet. Par-5 Scoring Different angle this week as it relates to the field. Of the four par-5 holes, three play 584 yards or deeper including both on the front nine. More power rather than precision needed this time around. Of the eight winners, seven registered in the top nine and the worst of the bunch was T12. Putting: Birdie or Better Conversion Percentage As shown above, putting is a key stat in a shootout. Time to take advantage of those GIR and get circles on the card! There aren’t many rounds above par annually from the top players this week so go ahead and get all the birdies you can handle. The last three years the cut has been 5-under, 3-under and 3-under. Better get low! The Bottom Line Tournament favorite Sam Burns (Win: +1000; Top 5: +225; Top 10: +100; Top 20: -190; Top 40: -350) comes up on three of the four lists above and is defending his title. While some caution may be needed given his Presidents Cup participation and possible fatigue, he can’t be ignored as a player in all formats this week. You’ll also notice Trey Mullinax (Win: +4000; Top 5: +750; Top 10: +350; Top 20: +170; Top 40: -125) pops up three times and might represent value in your line ups as a point of difference. Interestingly blast from the past veteran Rory Sabbatini (Win: +15000; Top 5: +2500; Top 10: +1200; Top 20: +550; Top 40: +200) pops up twice. Feeling lucky this early in the season? Might provide some value in DFS or top 40 markets. As always don’t forget to also look at Horses for Courses, and Rob Bolton’s Sleepers for extra value and the Power Rankings for the top of the board considerations. Responsible sports betting starts with a game plan. Set a budget. Keep it social. Play with friends. Learn the game and know the odds. Play with trusted, licensed operators. CLICK HERE to learn more at HaveAGamePlan.org
Tiger Woods says while his surgically repaired back may never be 10-out-of-10 again, it won’t stop him from being healthy and ready to go when the PGA Tour starts up again. The 44-year-old Woods says he’s been able to use the down time during the coronavirus pandemic to get himself in shape for an expected condensed fall golf season. “It is going to be interesting,” said Woods during a four-man charity golf tournament in Florida on Sunday.
