Expert Picks: Houston Open

The best players in the world descend on the Stadium Course this week at THE PLAYERS Championship. The top 30 golfers in the FedExCup standings – including 2017 FedExCup winner and defending champion Justin Thomas – will tee it up. It’s the strongest field of the season, and it includes world No. 1 Jon Rahm, 2019 PLAYERS champion Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Jordan Spieth, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, Hideki Matsuyama and reigning FedExCup Champion Patrick Cantlay. And that’s just to name a few. Also, 600 FedExCup points will go to the winner as well as a first-place check worth $3.6 million. Here’s everything you need to know to follow the action, including Featured Groups for PGA TOUR LIVE and newly expanded and extended coverage on ESPN+. Click here for more details. Leaderboard Full tee times HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Friday, 12 p.m.-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1 p.m.-6 p.m. (NBC). PGA TOUR LIVE: See full coverage details below Radio: Thursday-Friday, 11–6 p.m. ET. Saturday-Sunday, 12–6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio) For outside of the U.S., click here for GOLFTV powered by the PGA TOUR ENHANCED COVERAGE DETAILS THE PLAYERS and NBCU • 22 total hours of coverage from Thursday through Sunday ESPN+ coverage • More than 20 groups from the morning sessions will be available on ESPN+ Live From THE PLAYERS • 45.5 live hours on GOLF Channel, including the World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony • PGA TOUR LIVE to produce an estimated 167 hours of coverage across our 4 streams for the 4 tournament channels. Practice round shows • Tuesday: Military Appreciation Ceremony followed by Kelsea Ballerini concert • Wednesday: World Golf Hall of Fame Ceremony PGA TOUR LIVE • 12 hosts, 3 walking announcers, 130 personnel onsite, 75 personnel in St. Augustine • Use of ARL graphic technology for tracing and hole flyover animations with statistical information PGA TOUR LIVE PGA TOUR Live is available exclusively on ESPN+ • Main Feed: primary tournament-coverage featuring the best action from across the course • Marquee Group: new “marquee group” showcasing every shot from each player in the group • Featured Groups: traditional PGA TOUR LIVE coverage of two concurrent featured groups • Featured Holes: a combination of par-3s and iconic or pivotal holes FEATURED GROUPS THURSDAY Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson, Daniel Berger FRIDAY Patrick Cantlay, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland Hideki Matsuyama, Cameron Smith, Joaquin Niemann Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen MUST READS The First Look Inside the Field Nine Things to Know: TPC Sawgrass Tiger Woods among those to be inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame

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BLAINE, Minn. — Matthew Wolff shot a 9-under 62 Saturday to share the lead with Collin Morikawa and Bryson DeChambeau at 15 under after three rounds of the inaugural 3M Open. Morikawa shot a 64 at the TPC Twin Cities, while DeChambeau had a 70. Wolff, 20, who won the NCAA individual title on Memorial Day, is playing in his third TOUR event since turning professional, and the 22-year-old Morikawa his fourth. DeChambeau, who opened the day with a two-shot lead, is vying for his sixth career win and first since the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in November. Seeking his first TOUR win in 31 starts, Wyndham Clark, 25, shot a 64 and was tied with Adam Hadwin (69) one shot back. Sixteen players are within four shots of the lead, including Hideki Matsuyama, Charles Howell III and Troy Merritt, who graduated from nearby Spring Lake Park High School. Each shot a 66 and were two shots behind. Playing in ideal weather conditions — temperatures in the low-80s, increasing clouds and no wind — 65 of the 85 players shot under par on the par-71 layout. Wolff, who made his professional debut two weeks ago by finishing 80th at the Travelers Championship and missed the cut at last week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic, used stellar approach shots to help him record six straight birdies on Nos. 5-10. None of the putts were longer than 8 feet. Birdies at No. 13 and 15 made a round of 59 seem possible. However, Wolff missed a 4-foot birdie putt on No. 16 and a tee shot into a bunker led to bogey on the par-3 17th. He scrambled for birdie on No. 18 after an errant tee shot. Named the Pac-12 Men’s Golfer of the Year in May, Morikawa made his professional debut four weeks ago and finished tied for 14th at the RBC Canadian Open. He tied for 35th at the U.S. Open and tied for 36th at the Travelers Championship two weeks ago. Morikawa birdied five of his first seven holes, but only three the rest of the way. DeChambeau birdied the first and last holes, had one bogey and 15 pars. Clark, 25, who has two top-10s in his previous 30 events since 2017, had eight birdies, including four straight to start the back nine, as part of a 7-under 64.

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