PGA Tour 2020-21 schedule, results

It’s a star-studded field this week at the Charles Schwab Challenge, but one of the most interesting players to watch will be a player whose recent struggles stand in stark contrast to his past performances at Colonial Country Club. It can be argued that no one has had more success at Colonial over the past few years than Jordan Spieth. In seven starts, he has a win (2016), two runner-up finishes and a pair of other top-10s. Twenty-one of his 28 rounds at Colonial have been in the 60s. Of players with at least a dozen rounds in the Charles Schwab Challenge over the last 30 years, Spieth’s scoring average leads all players (67.8). RELATED LINKS: 15th Club But before competition halted in March, Spieth’s ball-striking numbers were far from his peak. Spieth is 195th on the TOUR this season in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green and 198th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. For the fourth consecutive season, his greens in regulation rank has dropped – from fourth in 2017, all the way down to 221st so far in 2019-20. Spieth has hit less than 48% of his fairways this season – only four of 231 qualified players on the PGA TOUR currently have a lower percentage. Comparing Spieth’s career Strokes Gained statistics at Colonial with what he’s done the last two seasons on TOUR provides an even starker contrast. Spieth is 195th on the TOUR this season in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green and 198th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. For the fourth consecutive season, his greens in regulation rank has dropped – from fourth in 2017, all the way down to 221st so far in 2019-2020. Spieth has hit less than 48% of his fairways this season – only four of 231 qualified players on the PGA TOUR currently have a lower percentage. Comparing Spieth’s career Strokes Gained statistics at Colonial with what he’s done the last two seasons on TOUR provides an even starker contrast. Over the last 15 years, no player has averaged more Strokes Gained: Total (+2.41) and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (+1.83) per round at Colonial than Spieth. Spieth is ranked 82nd and 166th (of 205 players) in those two statistics since the beginning of last season. He has gained 1.28 strokes per round at Colonial in ‘long game’ – a statistic that combines Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and Strokes Gained: Approach. That’s fifth-best among players with 12 or more rounds at Colonial since 2005. Over the last two seasons, he’s losing -0.69 strokes per round in that stat, ranking 187th. Colonial could provide a great opportunity for Spieth to rediscover his best self on the golf course. Statistically speaking, the venue plays to Spieth’s strengths and masks the less glittering aspects of his performance. For one, missing fairways at Colonial is not as penalizing at other PGA TOUR events. ‘Missed fairway penalty’ is the difference in the field’s average when hitting the fairway versus missing it. Last year at Colonial, only one hole (the fifth) had a penalty of a half-stroke or more. Spieth is the all-time leader in scoring average at this tournament despite hitting just over 50% of his fairways at Colonial. Driving distance does not reap huge rewards at Colonial, either. Not that Spieth has ever been a short hitter off the tee – he’s always ranked among the top half of PGA TOUR players in driving distance – but the typical benefits reaped by the longest players just aren’t present at Colonial. A player outdriving the field average by 25 yards will gain one stroke less throughout the course of a tournament compared to the average PGA TOUR event. Throughout his career, Spieth has struck his approach shots better at Colonial than anywhere else on TOUR. Jordan’s average proximity to the hole in 28 career rounds at Colonial is 31 feet, 10 inches. To put that into perspective, that is about two feet closer, on average, than his proximity for the entirety of his FedExCup-winning 2015 season. Spieth has averaged +0.88 strokes gained approach per round at Colonial – fifth-best among all players over the last 15 years. Fans seemingly remember Spieth making every putt he looked at when he played his best – from the famous ‘Go Get That’ at The Open Championship, to the putts he made all over East Lake in his 2015 TOUR Championship win. But narratives, often punctuated by highlights, can mask the statistical reality behind performance. Such has often been the case with Spieth in his career. When Spieth was playing his best golf, it wasn’t because he was making every putt in sight. It was because he was outperforming the field with his irons. Consider his aforementioned halcyon season of 2015. That year, Spieth actually ranked better on the PGA Tour in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (fourth) than he did in Strokes Gained: Putting (ninth). Colonial, a place where Spieth has had immense success, reflects that, too. Spieth is ranked 20th among all players at Colonial since 2005 in Strokes Gained: Putting per round – a worse ranking than any of his ball striking metrics in that span. Spieth has been putting better in regular PGA TOUR events the last two seasons (+0.73 strokes gained per round) than he has at Colonial in his career (+0.58 per round). It’s been Spieth’s exceptional performance tee-to-green at Colonial that has set him apart. Over the last decade, no player has averaged more strokes gained tee-to-green per round than the Texan has (1.83). If there’s one place best suited for Spieth’s on-course revival, Colonial just might be it.

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Two drivers, no drivers, long drivers, mini drivers, Phrankenwoods, prototype wedges, game improvement irons, blade irons, blade putters, mallet putters, lots of lead tape, no lead tape, oversized putter grips (and gripping the putter in different manners), Lefty has tried it all. Accordingly, it was intriguing but not entirely shocking to see the six-time major champion rolling his Callaway Chrome Soft X ahead of the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational with an armlock-style putter in his hand and, well, on his arm. In recent years, Mickelson has largely stuck to some version of his Odyssey “Phil Mickelson” blade putter. Sometimes, he uses a version with a milled face. Sometimes, it has an insert. Sometimes it has an abundance of lead tape, and sometimes it has none. For Phil, green speed and feel dictate the specific setup. In fact, he’s using a prototype version of the same 8802-style head with the 40.75-inch putter shaft, as you can see in the photos below, which are courtesy of Callaway’s Tour Content Creator, Johnny Wunder. So, what’s going on here? Most obviously, the longer shaft (roughly 5 inches longer than standard) and the armlock grip, which appears to be a SuperStroke WristLock, is intended to sit flush against the inside of the forearm to stabilize the putter face. In short, the objective is to make it easier to get the ball started on line. With respect to the putter head itself, Gerrit Pon, the man who builds all Mickelson’s equipment at Callaway told the company he made a prototype putter for Phil that features a center of gravity closer to the middle of the putter face, rather than the heel. Heel-shafted blade putters have the highest amount of toe hang of any flatstick. This means they are the easiest to open and close, as happens in an arcing (rather than straight back-straight putting stroke). The prototype putter, while still looking at address like Mickelson’s PM Blade, would rotate less on a similar stroke path than his club. In short, it’s a heel-shafted putter designed to play more like a medium or low toe-hang putter — a mid-mallet or mallet-style putter, for example. According to Pon, Mickelson tested the putter briefly last year in a non-armlock/traditional setup, but it wasn’t until last week when he decided to install a longer shaft and armlock grip. While Mickelson hasn’t explained the reasoning behind the putter switch, we can assume he’s looking for more stability, consistency, and a slightly less arcing stroke. As a final point, Mickelson utilizes a forward press (moving his hands toward the target prior to taking the putter back) as much as anyone on tour, so the armlock-style setup in which the hands are well ahead of the putter at address, ought to feel comfortable for him.

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Island hopping continues in Hawaii as the TOUR shifts from the newly redone Plantation Course on bucolic Maui to the hustle and bustle of the classic Seth Raynor Waialae Country Club in Honolulu on Oahu. The traffic on the course, and island, increases this week as 144 players comprise the first full-field event of calendar 2020. The top 60 and ties will play the weekend for a piece of a $6.6 million prize purse with the winner taking home $1.188 million plus 500 FedExCup points. Waialae CC stretches only 7,044 yards (Par-70) and has hosted the event since 1965, so course form plays a massive angle. Bermuda greens and tight driving targets usually provide the challenge but this week, the trade winds will also keep scoring at a premium. The classic layout has only crowned two debut winners this century and only two more under the age of 30 since 1999 so experience, in the wind and on the course, matters this week. With gusty conditions in the forecast, experience and ball-striking receives extra emphasis. Of the 144 players entered, 23 knocked the rust off last week in Maui. Over the last 21 events, 15 champions played the week prior in the winner’s-only event. Justin Thomas (2017) and Ernie Els (2003) are the only two to win both Hawaii events back-to-back to kick off the year. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks Recent Winners 2019: Matt Kuchar (-22, 258) Became the third winner since 2012 to also win the previous year at Mayakoba. … Just the second player 40 or older to win this century. … Played the previous week on Maui. … Top nine in EVERY major statistical category other than Strokes-Gained: Around-the-Green. … Led the field in GIR and Ball-Striking. … Won in his 14th attempt. Notables: Only four over-par rounds posted from the top 28 players in benign conditions. … Andrew Putnam (2nd) and Brian Gay (T22) both gained over 10 strokes on the greens. … Corey Conners closed 64-64 for T3 after qualifying on Monday. … Noted wind player Marc Leishman cashed T3. … Top 28 were 10 under or better. @GolfOdds has set this year’s winning total for 270.5. #Windy. 2018: Patton Kizzire (-17, 263) The 2017 Mayakoba champion defeated James Hahn on the second playoff hole to win in his second visit to Waialae CC. … Joined the previous four winners by finishing in the top five in Strokes-Gained: Putting. … Third-consecutive winner who did NOT finish in the top 55 in driving accuracy. … T1 Par-3 scoring. Notables: James Hahn fired 62 in Round 4 to force a playoff. … Tom Hoge led by one after 54 holes and missed the playoff by a shot. … Brian Harman led by three after 36 holes (64-63) before cashing T4. … Webb Simpson’s furious finish (63-65) secured T4. … 10 under was good for T25 and there were only five over-par rounds from those 31 golfers. 2017: Justin Thomas (-27, 253) Completed the Maui-Honolulu double as he set the course record (59; Round 1) and the tournament record to win by seven shots. … Set the TOUR record for best 36-hole score (123) and tied the 54-hole mark (188). … Led by seven after 54 holes over Zach Johnson. … Top four in all Strokes-Gained categories minus Around-the-Green. … Won in his third attempt. Notables: Kevin Kisner posted 60 in Round 3 and eventually cashed T4. … Johnson signed for 61 in Round 2 and played in the final group (T6). … Chez Reavie closed the proceedings with 61 to hit T8. … The top 44 players were 10 under or lower. Key stat leaders With gusty conditions in the forecast and a winning total expected around 10 under, this week is going to look different to previous editions at Waialae. Getting the ball in the hole is going to trump scoring for me this week. Top golfers in each statistic on the 2019-20 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week.  * -  previous top-10 finish here since 2015 Strokes-Gained: Putting  4  Graeme McDowell (first appearance)  5  *Andrew Putnam  7  *Patton Kizzire  9  Vaughn Taylor 11 *Webb Simpson 12 *Brandt Snedeker 14 *Pat Perez 19 Peter Malnati 20 *Kevin Kisner 22 Patrick Rodgers 23 Sam Burns Strokes-Gained: Approach-the-Green  2  *Justin Thomas  3  Emiliano Grillo  5  Hideki Matsuyama  9  *Corey Conners 13 *Chez Reavie 14 *Webb Simpson 15 Talor Gooch 17 *Matt Kuchar 18 *Russell Knox 19 Keegan Bradley 24 Nate Lashley 25 Joaquin Niemann 28 *Marc Leishman Bogey Avoidance  2  *Webb Simpson  4  *Charles Howell III  6  *Matt Kuchar  7  *Scott Piercy 10 Vaughn Taylor 13 Matt Jones 14 Sungjae Im 16 *Justin Thomas 17 Bud Cauley 22 *Rory Sabbatini 25 Patrick Reed Mahalo Justin Thomas: T16 or better in four of five starts the last five years. … Also owns 61 from debut event in 2015. … Scoring average is 66.56 and is 51 under his last three trips. Charles Howell III: Leading money winner at the event and he’s never won! …  18 visits, 18 paychecks. … Hit the top 10 in five of his last 10 starts and 10 overall. … 23 rounds in the red and counting and 61 of 68 career rounds 70 or better. Matt Kuchar: Last six have gone for WIN, T13, T3, T8, T5 and T5. Frequent Fliers Marc Leishman: Never missed in 10 trips. … Of 40 rounds, nine have gone for 65 or better. … Eight of 10 paydays T28 or better. Webb Simpson: Never missed in nine trips. … 11 of 35 rounds 66 or better. … T20 or better last five visits. Brian Gay: Cashed 16 of 19 career including 16 of his last 17. Wait, What? Brian Stuard: Made six of seven weekends with four top-10 paydays and 67.23 scoring average. … Top 10 last two years. Hudson Swafford: 67.32 scoring average in six tries; three top-10 paychecks including T3 last year. Jimmy Walker: Last repeat champion in 2015 hasn’t found his mojo in his last three visits. Caution. Pat Perez: Almost half of his 17 appearances have ended up in the top 25 with half of those in the top 10, but his last three (MC-81-T69) have been clunky.

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