On the death of a brother, Tiger’s epic Masters and the bonding power of sports

NAPA, Calif. – Brandt Snedeker didn’t qualify for the TOUR Championship, but made his kids watch Tiger Woods pick up his historic 80th win at East Lake. Snedeker didn’t make the U.S. Ryder Cup team, either, but he watched that on TV, too, as the Americans got clobbered. Not long ago, Snedeker played in those select tournaments, so when he watched them from afar he wasn’t just keeping track of his friends, he was also reminding himself of where he wants to be. He’ll soon return to that rare air if his play Thursday is any indication; Snedeker shot an opening-round 66 under overcast skies at the Safeway Open at Silverado Resort & Spa. “It was kind of a disappointing year, even though I won,� Snedeker said of the season just ended, when he got off to a slow start only to shoot 59 on the way to winning the Wyndham Championship, the last tournament before the FedExCup Playoffs. “One week can almost make up for a poor year, but I didn’t play up to my standard. East Lake is kind of the bar for me; if I don’t make East Lake, it’s a bad year.� Playing alongside Fred Couples and Patrick Cantlay in the first round of the new season Thursday, Snedeker made over 106 feet of putts and, finishing on the front nine, birdied five of his last six holes. So far, so good in making it back to East Lake for the nine-time TOUR winner and 2012 FedExCup champion. “The last two months I’ve really started playing better golf,� said Snedeker, 37, who last played the Safeway three years ago, when he finished T17.  His first-round 59 at the Wyndham was the 10th sub-60 score in PGA TOUR history, and he went wire-to-wire for the win, his second at Sedgefield Country Club. Now he’s looking to notch his 10th victory in fitting fashion; Snedeker already has four wins in California, two apiece at the Farmers Insurance Open and AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-am. “California for whatever reason has always been good to me,� he said. “I like the lifestyle here, I like the people. Kind of where my career got started was at Torrey in my rookie year in ’07, and ever since then I’ve just loved it when I get on a plane that’s going west.� OBSERVATIONS WRIGHT’S SUPER START: Chase Wright had quite a week last week, getting engaged to his girlfriend, Gretchen Zoeller, daughter of the former TOUR pro Fuzzy. Wright, 29, is having a big week this week, too, after making six birdies and an eagle in his opening-round 64 to take the early lead in his first start of his rookie season. “Good first day at the office,� Wright said after hitting all 18 greens in regulation and making 100 feet of putts. He was the leader in Strokes Gained: Putting after the morning wave. The University of Indiana alumnus was having a solid if unremarkable round before he went 6-under for his last seven holes, including an eagle at the par-5 16th. Wright is a Web.com Tour graduate who has won at every level, most significantly at the Rust-Oleum Championship last season, which made him enough money to ensure he would graduate to the PGA TOUR. He once lived in Bloomington, Indiana, with Jeff Overton, the former TOUR pro who has battled back injuries of late, but recently moved to Naples, Fla.  As for advice from his future father-in-law Zoeller, Wright said, “He’s seen me play enough, so he’s just like, ‘Just relax and go play. It’s just a game.’� Wright smiled. “That’s how some of those old guys like to think of it. We make it a little harder than it should be sometimes.� NOTABLES FRED COUPLES – Making his first non-major PGA TOUR start in 2 ½ years, the 59-year-old Hall of Famer hit 10 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens but putted terribly for a 1-over 73. “If I could have putted for him,� said playing partner Brandt Snedeker, “he’d have shot 63 or 64.� SAM SAUNDERS – Crediting his new right-to-left ball flight, Arnold Palmer’s grandson shot 66. “I played a big cut the last few years, and last year a lot of my good play was due to just driving the ball a lot longer and straighter,� Saunders said. “This golf course fits my eye a lot better now, being able to turn it over off the tee.� SUNGJAE IM – In his debut PGA TOUR season after leading the Web.com Tour money list from start to finish last season, Korea’s Im, 20, saved par on his last hole for a 6-under 66. QUOTABLES It’s not too difficult to be in a good mood out here.I could barely see my tee shot because it was so dark. Good first day at the office.

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SHEBOYGAN, Wis. — The Americans haven’t opened with a lead this large in the Ryder Cup since Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino were playing, and before Tiger Woods was even born. RELATED: Full recap from Day 1 | Pairings, preview for Saturday morning That didn’t seem to be big enough to satisfy U.S. captain Steve Stricker. Dustin Johnson and Xander Schauffele each won two matches, Bryson DeChambeau smashed a drive that had everyone talking and the Americans were relentless Friday at Whistling Straits in losing only one match to build a 6-2 lead. “It’s a great start. We are happy with the start,” Stricker said. “But my message to the guys is tomorrow is a new day. Pretend today never happened, and let’s keep our foot down and continue to play the golf that we know we can play.” Oh, how Europe would like to forget this day ever happened. Rory McIlroy never made it to the 16th hole in losing both his matches on the opening day for the first time. The lone bright spot was Jon Rahm, living up his No. 1 ranking by winning in foursomes with Sergio Garcia and keeping Europe in a tight fourballs match long enough for Tyrrell Hatton to birdie the last hole to at least salvage a half-point. Europe has never trailed by four points after the first day since the Ryder Cup was expanded to include the continent in 1979, the modern era of these matches that Europe now dominates. Go back to 1975 to find the last time the U.S. had a four-point lead in the Ryder Cup. “No doubt, it was a tough day,” European skipper Padraig Harrington said, attributing the difference to a putt here, there and pretty much everywhere. “There’s obviously still 20 points to play for.” Suddenly, though, there seems to be a sense of urgency. The Americans were delivering big moments and the big smiles, waving up hands to get the one-sided gallery to cheer even louder, cupping hands to their ears to urge them along. They are looking for a fresh start after a quarter-century of losing, and its youngest team in history took a big step to creating their own memories. “They fought hard every single shot out there, from what I saw,” DeChambeau said after he and Scottie Scheffler earned a halve in fourballs. “This is a great start, but the job’s not over. We have two more days. A lot more golf. And we cannot lose our mindset to win.” The first point of the 43rd Ryder Cup, postponed one year by the pandemic, went to Europe and its new “Spanish Armada” of Rahm and Garcia. The final match ended in a halve when Justin Thomas delivered a late eagle putt that allowed him and Patrick Cantlay to come all the way back from a 3-down deficit. Through the morning chill, the midday warmth, a ferocious wind in the afternoon and even a little rain, the one constant was American red scores filling the boards across Whistling Straits. “We can come back from 6-2,” said McIlroy, trying to summon calm and confidence after losing both matches. Europe will have to do it without him. McIlroy is not part of the foursomes lineup Saturday morning, the first time he has sat in a Ryder Cup. Both captains stuck to their plans, and it only worked out for one of them. Even with a 3-1 start in foursomes, Stricker broke up all his American teams as planned and still won the afternoon fourballs session with two wins and two draws. Johnson and Schauffele never trailed together, while the high-spirited Tony Finau made six birdies as he and Harris English trounced McIlroy and Shane Lowry. DeChambeau still hasn’t won a Ryder Cup match, but he delivered quite a show. He pounded a drive to where no one had dared to go on the par-5 fifth hole. It cleared a massive bunker complex and stopped rolling at 417 yards, setting up a 72-yard flip wedge for an easy eagle. “There are two towers behind the green — I can’t even describe to you — they are like 250 or 200 yards right of where I’m trying to hit my drive,” Scheffler said. “And it’s crazy for him to be able to commit to that shot. “It was great. That was a good spark for us and good momentum for the rest of the day.” DeChambeau and Scheffler were poised for a 1-up victory until Hatton hit 5-iron into a hard left-to-right wind that landed near the hole and settled 7 feet away. He made the birdie putt to scratch out a halve and could only hope it was worth more. “Things like this can turn the tide,” Rahm said. After one day, it already feels like a strong tide, and that makes Saturday and another round of foursomes and fourballs more important than ever. Harrington also broke up all his pairings. This was the first time since the Ryder Cup was expanded to include all of Europe in 1979 that no one from the morning played together in the afternoon from either team. Cantlay and Schauffele were tough as ever in foursomes, which set the tone for the Americans. They were 5 up through five holes against McIlroy and Ian Poulter, and closed out their impressive 5-and-3 win with four straight birdies, the last one conceded. “I don’t know if anyone could have beat Xander and Patrick today,” McIlroy said. Only one shot went into the lake — a pull-hook from Tommy Fleetwood on the par-5 16th. And there almost was one player who went into Lake Michigan. That would be Jordan Spieth, facing an impossible shot beneath the 17th green with the ball on a severe slope in the morning round. He swung so hard with a 52-degree wedge that momentum sent him backward, scrambling to keep his footing and then running down toward the edge of the bank until he could get his balance. The shot? Remarkable as ever, plopping down 6 feet away. Thomas missed the par putt and the match was over. That was one of the few moments that didn’t go the American’s way.

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