Emotional Champ hangs on to win Safeway Open

The desert-encircled, neon-charged cityscape of Las Vegas is instantly recognizable, and while images of the stark definition from the air are attention-grabbing, views from elevated spots on the ground perhaps are the most intriguing. Because you can see for miles and miles, the scope of The Strip against the distant backdrop of the Spring Mountains is more compelling. This is true approaching from the northeast on I-15 and especially just past dusk when the entire width of the city is visible, lit up and fronting the silhouette of the mountains under an orange sky. The daytime perspective from the opposite angle will be on display from the perch of this week’s host of the fourth PGA TOUR event of the 2021-22 season. Contested at The Summit Club, THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT features a limited field of 78 and no cut. For details of the tournament, the new venue, the specific history that defending Jason Kokrak is chasing and more, continue reading beneath the projected contenders. Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider will include reviews of defending champion Jason Kokrak, Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Sergio Garcia and other notables. For the second consecutive year, THE CJ CUP is being staged in the United States due to the pandemic. Last year’s edition was held at Shadow Creek Golf Course north of downtown Las Vegas. The Summit Club is due west of The Strip and only six miles south of TPC Summerlin, site of last week’s Shriners Children’s Open. As of Monday, 46 of the 78 in the field at THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT competed at the Shriners, including champion Sungjae Im. Because the tournament originally was scheduled to be in South Korea, eight exemptions into the tournament still were reserved specifically for golfers from the country. Five qualified via the money list on the KPGA, while the other three were selected using the Official World Golf Ranking on Oct. 4. Sixty exemptions are reserved for golfers in order of the final standings of the 2020-21 FedExCup. Only eight of the top 60 have elected not to play. The Summit Club opened in the spring of 2017. The stock par 72 is a Tom Fazio design tipping at 7,431 yards. The viewpoints on the tee boxes at the 614-yard, par-5 sixth hole and 508-yard par-4 10th face The Strip about 10 miles to the east, but elevated sightlines with scenic vistas in all directions are experienced throughout the walk. The jackpot probably won’t be settled until the finishing hole. Measuring 580 yards, it’s also is par 5. Bentgrass greens are average in size and are prepped to touch a typical 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. The rest of the property is blanketed with overseeded bermudagrass and the primary rough stands at four inches. Despite the relative youth of the course, all 62 bunkers recently have been replaced with fresh sand. The exclusive club claims two-time major champion Collin Morikawa among its members. The scary thing about that fact is that ball-strikers already have an edge on unfamiliar tracks because it takes a round or two to get the feel for the greens, their undulations, where to miss, etc. Morikawa already is a proven, world-class tee-to-green technician, but now he’s equipped with perhaps more first-hand knowledge than everyone else in the field. Kokrak capitalized on the formula at Shadow Creek last year. Arguably most familiar with it, he broke through for his first PGA TOUR title in what was his 10th season as a member. Now he’s faced with defending on a different test. If he converts, he’ll be the first to do so in a non-major on a different course since Jim Furyk successfully defended at the RBC Canadian Open at Angus Glen Golf Club’s North Course in 2007. (He connected for the 2006 Canadian Open title at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.) Conditions as spectacular as the views will be the norm throughout the tournament. Just about nothing but sunshine is expected for all four rounds. Daytime highs will climb from the upper 60s into the mid-70s for the finale. Winds will be light. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers; Fantasy Insider SUNDAY: Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Rookie Ranking * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – PGA TOUR and CJ Group officials today announced that THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES will move venues and will now be staged at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, Nevada, Oct. 15-18, 2020 and will change to THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK. Since 2017, the event has been played annually at The Club @ Nine Bridges on Jeju Island, Korea, with Justin Thomas securing a playoff victory over Marc Leishman in the inaugural event and winning again last year. Brooks Koepka was victorious by four shots in 2018. "The PGA TOUR is truly appreciative of CJ Group's commitment to bring THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK to the United States this October," said Ty Votaw, PGA TOUR Executive Vice President, International. "While our players have always looked forward to visiting Korea, the current circumstances provided this new opportunity to bring the event to Las Vegas which will also provide brand exposure and awareness to the viewing audience in the United States and around the globe. We are thankful for the partnership and support that CJ Group and the Korean PGA have shown in view of the circumstances. We are confident this year's event will showcase a stellar field while bringing the CJ Group's brand values to a new time zone." Ethan Kim, Sports Marketing Director of CJ Group, said: "We are delighted to bring THE CJ CUP to the U.S. and to the renowned Shadow Creek. It is unfortunate we will not be able to showcase the PGA TOUR and the best players in the world on Jeju Island this year, but we look forward to having this tournament again in Korea in 2021. We are excited to bring our Korean culture and flavor of bibigo to show the TOUR players and American audience through coverage of THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK." As part of the early events on the 2020-21 PGA TOUR Season, THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK is slated to be played a week after the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas, Nevada. Votaw added: "We would like to express our appreciation to both Shriners Hospitals for Children and their tournament team in Las Vegas who have been fully supportive of our decision to bring THE CJ CUP to the U.S, immediately following their long-standing and successful event, the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. This will create an exciting and seamless two-week Las Vegas swing for the TOUR and our players." THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK will once again feature a 78-man field comprising of the highest ranked player of Korean nationality from the Asian Tour Order of Merit, up to five players designated by the KPGA and the top-3 available players of Korean nationality from the Official World Golf Ranking as part of CJ Group's vision to support the development of professional golf in Korea. The remainder of the field will be made up of the leading players from the 2019-20 FedExCup points list and sponsor exemptions. "THE CJ CUP quickly became one of my favorite events on TOUR. While winning twice certainly helped, the hospitality shown to us by CJ Group and the Korean community has made the tournament special to all of us as PGA TOUR players," said 13-time PGA TOUR winner and defending THE CJ CUP champion Justin Thomas. "It's unfortunate that we won't be able to travel to Korea for this year's event, but it is fantastic that we will still be able to shine a light on CJ Group through the tournament at a venue like Shadow Creek." George Kliavkoff, president of Entertainment & Sports for MGM Resorts International, said: "Shadow Creek is one of the country’s leading courses offering guests exclusive, first-class experiences. The course will be in tremendous shape and ready to host our PGA TOUR partners and the world’s best golfers as they compete in THE CJ CUP in Las Vegas." Shadow Creek, built in 1989 by renowned golf architect Tom Fazio, played host to The Match: Tiger vs Phil in 2018, which was a winner-take-all shootout between PGA TOUR legends Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. The exclusive course, owned by MGM Resorts International, is available only to guests of the company's properties.

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CHICAGO, Ill. – So far, so good for Phil Mickelson. Mickelson has won the TOUR Championship at East Lake twice (2000, 2009) but if he is to make it a third time he must first negotiate his way into the FedExCup top 30 at the BMW Championship. With an opening 5-under 66 leaving him tied 10th and just four off the lead at Conway Farms the veteran has put himself inside the projected top 30. Now he has to stay there. Mickelson, who found form in Boston two weeks ago with a T6 finish, started 36th and now projects to 29th. It’s been a frustrating year for the Hall-of-Famer who feels his form hasn’t translated to good scores. “I don’t know if validation would be the word I would use. Certainly encouragement and it would be a real positive given the lack of results,â€� Mickelson said when asked if a berth at East Lake would validate his year. “If you watch on the range and through the round it looks better than the score is. Now the score in the last five rounds have matched up. So, to make it into East Lake would be great.â€� Mickelson, who suffers from arthritis, has recently revealed a tweak in his medications and how he deals with it have helped unclog his mental game. The 47-year-old is able to focus more, particularly on the greens. He was 10th in strokes gained: putting in the opening round. “I was able to get my energy back up, get my focus back up and I think going bogey-free it shows that I’m much more in tune with each shot and really only hit one or two tee shots that I wasn’t happy with and then from there was able to recover and play a good, solid round,â€� he explained. “You have to be able to get connected to the hole (when putting) so that no matter how perfect the stroke is if you don’t tie in the speed with the line that you’ve chosen and get it connected to the hole you’re not going to make putts. “And that’s one of the things I’ve really struggled with on the greens is getting connected to the hole.â€� BUBBLE WATCH Here are the players who are projected to move inside and outside the top 30 that will advance to the final leg of the FedExCup Playoffs, the TOUR Championship. QUOTE OF THE DAY We have so much to play for every week but especially in these FedExCup Playoffs. All of a sudden you have a really good week, you could legitimately have a chance of winning the FedExCup. TOP 5 WATCH The Top 5 players entering the TOUR Championship will control their own destiny at East Lake. Here’s a look at how the current top 5 fared Thursday at the BMW Championship. 1. Jordan Spieth (65). Needed just 24 putts in a solid bogey-free 65. Spieth is protecting his top spot at the moment nicely. Projected first. 2. Justin Thomas (67). Bounced back from a double bogey to stay in contention for another Playoff win. Projected to second. 3. Dustin Johnson (71). Scrappy opening but Johnson showed character after falling to 3-over through opening six holes. Work to do from here but remains projected third. 4. Hideki Matsuyama (72). The Playoffs have not been too friendly to Matsuyama thus far. A tough day with the putter left him floundering. Projected to fifth. 5. Jon Rahm (69). Looked likely to make a surge after three straight birdies to close front nine. But an even par back nine stalled his push. Projected to sixth. FEDEXCUP NOTES • Danny Lee’s season officially ended on Thursday after the Kiwi was forced to withdraw early in his round with a lower back injury. Lee tried to get treatment on the course to continue but was unable to power on. At 69th in the FedExCup entering the week he will not advance to the TOUR Championship. • Team USA could have an early “winâ€� in the Presidents Cup with Phil Mickelson projected inside the top 30 and Louis Oosthuizen projected out. The TOUR Championship represents another competitive week to keep the game in sync. Mickelson was a captain’s pick for the U.S. team while Oosthuizen is a member of the Internationals. As it stands all 12 USA members project inside the Top 30 now. Just 5 Internationals project there. “To make it into East Lake would be great and also great to play the week before the Presidents Cup and help me keep my games sharp,â€� Mickelson said. • Jason Day, the winner at Conway Farms in 2015, came in ranked 28th and in danger of missing Atlanta. A 7-under 64 to be tied second projects him inside the top 10. • Charley Hoffman continues to flirt with wins. His 64 left him tied second and projected to 8th in the FedExCup standings. He and Paul Casey (projected 9th) remain the highest players without victories this season. • Marc Leishman started the week ranked 7th in the FedExCup and, after his opening 62, projects into the all-important top 5 at 4th. But he needs to remain in the top 2 to keep his spot, such is the impressive seasons of those above thus far. • The biggest potential mover of the week is Jamie Lovemark. At T2 after his -7 64 Lovemark projects up 39 spots from 58th to 19th.

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