The Genesis Invitational, Round 1: Leaderboard, tee times, TV times

THE OVERVIEW Five years ago at Innisbrook, Jordan Spieth earned his way onto the PGA TOUR. Three years ago, he won the Valspar Championship, the first of five wins in a season that elevated him to superstar status. Now he comes to Innisbrook without a win in his last 14 worldwide starts – his biggest drought since his rookie season in 2013. He’s yet to post a top-5 finish in his six TOUR starts. He ranks 163rd in strokes gained: putting, a baffling development for one of the game’s biggest clutch putters. And good friend Justin Thomas has passed him in the world rankings. The confidence is not wavering, though. Spieth likes the way his game is progressing, and he hopes that Innisbrook – which has treated him so well – will be the spark to the rest of his season. “This tournament bringing really good vibes being here can do a lot for me going forward for the rest of the season,â€� he said Wednesday. Suffering the flu in late December is one reason for Spieth’s slow start. In fact, speaking of slow starts, that’s another reason why Spieth has struggled to contend this season. He ranks 156th on TOUR in first-round scoring average (71.50), breaking 70 just once in his six starts. Compare that to his TOUR ranking in the other three rounds – 3rd in the second round, 13th in the third round and 7th in the final round. Too often, Spieth has been playing catch-up for most of the week, requiring him to take more chances. “The first rounds set me back this year,â€� Spieth said, “but talked with Michael (Greller, his caddie) yesterday. We’re in a very similar position to 2015 at this very moment.â€� Provided Spieth can solve his putting issues – he said the holiday flu reduced the amount of practice time on the greens, and thus led to some alignment problems – the rest of his game seems good to go. He ranks sixth on TOUR in strokes gained: tee to green. “Ball-striking is all there to win golf tournaments,â€� Spieth said. “Just a matter of seeing a couple putts go in and getting comfortable early in a tournament and gaining that confidence.â€� That confidence (or lack thereof) on the greens is the primary thing Spieth thinks is preventing him from flashing the kind of form he did in 2015. “You go through peaks and troughs through every part of your game,â€� Spieth said. “I believe I hit a trough and I’m back rising towards a peak when it comes to on the greens. I’ve got to maintain everything else and I believe I’ll be a better player, if that’s the case.â€� Innisbrook has provided Spieth with many fond memories. Perhaps he’ll add another chapter this week. THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER Tiger Woods It’s great to see Tiger add some new tournaments to his schedule. Would be even better if he’s in contention Sunday afternoon. Rory McIlroy Like Tiger, McIlroy is making his tournament debut this week. His last start in Florida did not go well (T-59 at Honda Classic). Henrik Stenson If a 40-something wins for the second consecutive week, it’s likely to be this 41-year-old Swede who’s fared well at Innisbrook. THE FLYOVER Moccasin. Rattler. Copperhead. Those are the nicknames of the closing three holes at Innisbrook’s Copperhead course. Collectively, they’re known as the Snake Pit, one of the toughest closing stretches on TOUR. Since 2003, it has played to a cumulative 0.559 strokes over par, the third-highest average among regular TOUR courses (non-majors) during that span. Here’s a look at the 16th, 17th and 18th holes at Copperhead. THE LANDING ZONE The Snake Pit draws most of the attention, but the hardest hole at Innisbrook last season was the 465-yard par-4 sixth, which played to a stroke average of 4.217. A total of 113 bogeys were made on the hole last year, 20 more than any other hole. Players often find trouble off the tee, as their drives roll into the trees on the downhill, dogleg-right hole. Here is where all tee shots ended up last year. WEATHER CHECK From PGA TOUR meteorologist Stewart Williams: “Cooler and drier air continues Thursday and Friday as high pressure builds over the region. Temperatures will be cool each day with lows in the upper 40s to low 50s and highs in the 60s. Warmer temperatures return Saturday before another cold front brings showers and isolated t-storms Sunday afternoon into Sunday night.â€� For the latest weather news from Mexico City, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK It’s because of the second shots, both on the par 3s and the par 4s, a lot of times it’s those kind of mid-irons. It’s the 5-, 6-, 7-, 8-irons into the greens, and when I’m hitting it well, then that’s the strong part of my game. So it’s going to set up a lot of birdie chances. BY THE NUMBERS 9 – Wins by Tiger Woods when making his tournament debut (out of 40 debuts in his career). That’s a 22.5 percent rate. Woods is making his 41st career tournament debut this week at Innisbrook. 422 feet, 11 inches – Cumulative length of putts made by Adam Hadwin last year in winning the Valspar Championship. That was the most of anybody in the field and included two putts of longer than 50 feet. 273 yards, 6 feet – Average length of all drives last season at Innisbrook. That was the fourth shortest average distance of any tournament on the PGA TOUR last season. 47.06 – Percentage of Valspar winners since 2000 that were in their 30s (8 of 17). That’s higher than winners in their 20s (5) and 40s (4). SCATTERSHOTS Winning the Valspar Championship pretty much assures you of reaching the TOUR Championship. Ten of the 11 Valspar winners have advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs finale at East Lake. Two have gone on to win the FedExCup title (Jim Furyk in 2010, Jordan Spieth in 2015). Don’t be surprised if Adam Hadwin successfully defends his title this week. Making his 10th start of the season, the Canadian comes in off back-to-back top 10 finishes (a T-6 at the Genesis Open, followed by a T-9 at last week’s World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship). Steve Stricker’s in the field this week after his first PGA TOUR Champions win on Sunday at the Cologuard Classic. He’s seeking to become the fourth player to win on the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions in the same year (Raymond Floyd in 1992, Craig Stadler in 2003 and Fred Funk in 2007).

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR announced today that The WARM Place, a Fort Worth-based non-profit beneficiary of the Charles Schwab Challenge, has been named the 2021 PGA TOUR Charity of the Year. The WARM Place provides year-round grief support services to children ages 3 1/2 to 18 and their families, as well as young adults ages 19 to 25, who have experienced the death of a loved one. The non-profit provides a safe environment for children to express feelings and emotions as well as the opportunity to meet with children and families who are experiencing circumstances like their own. Since 1989, The WARM Place has companioned over 40,000 children and their families along their grief journeys. Families are never charged a fee for services and there are no geographical limitations or time limits – families are welcome to participate as long as the children are benefiting from the program. Powered by the Colonial Country Club of Fort Worth, the Charles Schwab Challenge has made a charitable impact of more than $150 million on over 150 different organizations during the past two decades. “All of the charitable organizations that we support are special, but The WARM Place is an incredibly special place and they do so many wonderful things for the benefit of families with children,” said Jim Whitten, Tournament Chairman, Charles Schwab Challenge. The award comes with a $30,000 grant from the PGA TOUR to assist The WARM Place, which will be utilized to further support their grief support program, providing children and families with the support they need to work through their intense feelings of grief after the devasting loss of a loved one. The grant will provide a month of services, at no cost, to 240 children and their families grieving. “To be recognized by the PGA TOUR nationally is so touching. I know the TOUR has a huge heart for giving back to people in need, and The WARM Place is such a wonderful organization. I couldn’t be more thankful and overwhelmed with gratitude,” said Shelley Bettis, Executive Director, The WARM Place. With the support of more than 100,000 volunteers annually, the PGA TOUR assists approximately 3,000 charities each year. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations to maximize charitable giving, and to date, tournaments across all Tours have generated more than $3.2 billion. The Charles Schwab Challenge, won in 2021 by Jason Kokrak, will be held May 26-29, 2022 at Colonial Country Club.

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DETROIT — Nate Lashley shot a bogey-free, 9-under 63 on Saturday to open a six-stroke lead in the Rocket Mortgage Classic at 23-under 193. The 36-year-old Lashley slipped into the field at Detroit Golf Club as an alternate and has put himself in position to win for the first time on the PGA TOUR. He tied for eighth in February in the Puerto Rico Open — played opposite the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship — for his only top-10 finish on the TOUR. Lashley, the first- and second-round leader, started Saturday with a one-shot lead and pulled away with the low round of the day. J.T. Poston (66) was second. Cameron Tringale (65) was another stroke back. Lashley is in his second season on the PGA TOUR, reaching the highest level of golf after a long road that included tragedy and selling real estate. After watching Lashley play in a tournament for the University of Arizona in 2004, his parents and girlfriend died in a plane crash in Wyoming. Rod and Char Lashley along with Leslie Hofmeister, all of Scottsbluff, Nebraska, were missing for three days before their bodies and the wreckage were found near the 13,780-foot Gannett Peak. Lashley, who is from Nebraska, made a living as a real estate agent after graduating from college and his playing career started, stopped and resumed again. He won the Waterloo Open, a professional tournament, in Iowa in 2011 and quit competitive golf the next year. Lashley gave the game another shot, playing on the PGA TOUR Latinoamerica circuit in 2015 and moved up to what is now called the Korn Ferry Tour two years later. He made his PGA TOUR debut last season in his mid-30s, but he had to end his year after 17 events because of a knee injury. Lashley is not long off the tee, ranking among the middle of the pack at Detroit Golf Club. He has been spectacularly accurate on his approach shots into receptive greens, setting him for a lot of relatively short putts that he’s making. When Lashley did take chances, he was able to make shots. His drive on the 559-yard, par-5 seventh landed in an adjacent fairway, leaving him with the choice of hitting a shot low below branches or sending the ball over towering trees and toward the green. He chose to go high and cleared the trees, leaving him 120 feet from the pin. Lashley’s approach landed just 4 feet from the cup and he made the putt for birdie. He had birdies on four of his first seven holes and had five more on the back nine in the third round. He opened the Rocket Mortgage Classic with a 63, setting a career low he matched Saturday. He shot a 67 in the second round.

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