Featured Groups: Tiger Woods, Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele at Farmers Insurance Open

Neither Xander Schauffele nor Tony Finau – two of the PGA TOUR’s brightest young stars – have ever played with the legendary Tiger Woods during a PGA TOUR event. That will change this week at the Farmers Insurance Open. Schauffele (the current FedExCup points leader with two wins this season) and Finau (the highest-ranked FedExCup player without a win last season) will be paired with Woods in the first two rounds at the Torrey Pines South and North courses, the TOUR announced Monday. Woods will be making his 2018-19 season debut as he looks to build on his last official TOUR start – a win at the TOUR Championship. It was his first win in five years, and the 80th of his career, putting him two wins away from tying Sam Snead’s TOUR record. Woods has won the Farmers Insurance Open seven times, and also won the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, the most recent of his 14 major victories. Given his victory at East Lake in the FedExCup Playoffs finale in September, this is renewed optimism in 2019 that Tiger is on the verge of a big season. Schauffele, meanwhile, already is in the midst of a big season. He won the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions last fall, and then started 2019 by winning the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii. Finau is looking for his second TOUR win of his career after a 2017-18 campaign in which he contended in several big events. Finau has played with his idol Woods before … for nine holes during a practice round at East Lake. Two months later, Finau was invited to play in Woods’ 18-man Hero World Challenge in the Bahama, an unofficial TOUR event. “To be on TOUR now is really special because I think we’re going to have a few years to compete against Tiger when he’s playing good golf and is in a good mindset,â€� Finau said that week. “It’s going to be a cool thing and I look forward to these next few seasons to be able to tee it up with him and play with him and hopefully we have some really cool battles together. It’s something that I dreamed of as a kid and now it seems like more of a reality and a possibility than it ever has. To potentially have that opportunity to play against him and maybe play against him in the final group of a big tournament, the reality is there and it’s pretty exciting for someone like me who’s looked up to him since I was a kid.â€� Besides getting to play with Woods for the first time, the added benefit for Schauffele and Finau is that they’ll be able to show off for Woods, who is the U.S. Captain at this year’s Presidents Cup in Australia. Schauffele currently ranks second in points, with Finau in sixth. The top eight players in points through after this year’s TOUR Championship will automatically qualify for the team, with Woods making his four Captain’s Picks after that. “Big goal of mine to be on the Presidents Cup team, and especially to play for Tiger is going to be very special,â€� said Finau, a teammate of Woods at last year’s Ryder Cup. “We’ve got a full season ahead of us and a very important one at that.” Starting times, day (Thursday/Friday) and course (North/South) for the featured groupings will be announced when the official groupings and starting times for the entire 156-player field are finalized on Tuesday afternoon at approximately 3 p.m. ET. To watch the featured groupings on Thursday-Friday, fans in the United States can tune into the Golf Channel telecast (3-7 p.m. EST) and stream PGA TOUR LIVE via subscription on NBC Sports Gold and Amazon Prime Video Channels. Here’s a look at this week’s Featured Groups (current FedExCup ranking in parentheses): Xander Schauffele (1) — In early January, he blitzed the field with a final-round 11-under-par 62 and edged Gary Woodland by one stroke at the Sentry Tournament of Champions. Tony Finau (16) — Finished runner-up in a playoff to Schauffele at the WGC-HSBC Champions. Tiger Woods (N/A) – Woods has won eight times at Torrey Pines Golf Course, seven at the Farmers Insurance Open and once at the 2008 U.S. Open. Jason Day (35) – The defending champion of the Farmers Insurance Open and a two-time winner at Torrey Pines, having also won in 2015. He has qualified for the season-ending TOUR Championship eight of the last nine years. Rory McIlroy (82) – Tied for fourth in his first career start at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January. Making his Farmers debut. Adam Scott (84) – Having played on eight straight International Presidents Cup teams dating back to 2003, Scott is targeting a ninth in December in his homeland of Australia at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club. Also making his Farmers debut. Brandt Snedeker (15) – A two-time Farmers winner, Snedeker is the last player to post a round of 59 on TOUR, having done so last August en route to victory at the Wyndham Championship. Jon Rahm (39) – Has 20 top-10 finishes in 53 career professional starts including a top-10 performance last week at the Desert Classic. Rickie Fowler (60) — A four-time PGA TOUR winner, Fowler will be making his 10th career start at the Farmers Insurance Open. Justin Rose (40) – The reigning FedExCup champ, Rose is in search of his 10th career TOUR title. Billy Horschel (56) – Won last year’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans team event with partner Scott Piercy and finished fifth in the FedExCup, his best finish since winning the FedExCup title in 2014. Jordan Spieth (T-203) – The 2015 FedExCup champ, Spieth made his professional debut at the Farmers Insurance Open in 2013.

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