Winner’s Bag: Sepp Straka, The Honda Classic

Tiger Woods needs one more victory to move ahead of Sam Snead as the PGA TOUR’s all-time winningest player. Woods is among PGATOUR.COM’s top 30 players to watch entering 2020. Click here for more on all 30 players. Insider Insights PGATOUR.COM’s Insiders offer their expert views on what to expect from Tiger Woods in 2020. TOUR INSIDER by Cameron Morfit He turns 44 on Dec. 30 and says he can’t do anything physically that he used to, but Tiger still delivered three big wins in a span of 13 months. His fused back seems to be holding up, and left knee looked strong as ever in victory at inaugural ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP in Japan. Iron giant is +1.1 in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green in the ShotLink era, which is miles ahead of everyone else. (Jim Furyk is next at +0.7.) Uses guile (“I know how to playâ€�) to keep up with younger, longer players, which could prove formidable again in title defenses at the Masters and ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. Still so good when healthy that virtually no one questioned him picking himself for Presidents Cup.  STATS INSIDER by Sean Martin Woods didn’t have enough rounds to qualify for 2019’s statistics, but his +0.65 average for Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green would have ranked in the top 10. Woods finished first in that statistic five times. He hit 69.67% of his greens last season, which would have tied Brooks Koepka for 11th in the rankings. FANTASY INSIDER by Rob Bolton As exhilarating and compelling as he remains, appearances at the Masters and in limited-field events present the best opportunities to invest in a weekly format. The days of salary leaguers splitting his season in halves or thirds are over, but so is the chasm that I used to cite in this space when he’d appear despite the absence of fantasy value. He’s now two seasons removed from the ceremonial nod.  EQUIPMENT INSIDER by Andrew Tursky In typical Woods fashion, he not only had the biggest story of 2019 with his win at the Masters, but he was also a part of probably the biggest equipment story of 2019, as well. Anytime Woods changes irons, it’s a big deal, but in 2019, he switched into all-new P-7TW prototype irons made by TaylorMade, and then TaylorMade released a limited supply of the irons to retail. Woods also switched into new TaylorMade Milled Grind 2 wedges late in 2019. Earlier in 2019, PGATOUR.COM was lucky enough to sit down with Woods for an in-depth conversation about his equipment. Here’s the full Q&A. STYLE INSIDER by Greg Monteforte Don’t expect many surprises from Tiger in the style department in 2020. He has settled into a style that works for him. His classic looks with an infusion of the latest technology from Nike suit him to a T. Tiger has been rocking the same kicks for a couple of years. Will this be the year Nike refreshes his shoe closet? BEYOND THE ROPES by Helen Ross One of the things that Woods enjoys away from the golf course is diving, particularly cave diving, and spear fishing. He has been certified as a master diver according the National Association of underwater instructors. He reportedly has learned to hold his breath underwater for four minutes. By The Numbers Strokes Gained rankings for Tiger Woods in the 2018-19 season.

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Tour rookie Maria Torres shared the four-way lead Friday after two rounds in her second major tournament. Top-ranked, two-time major winner Sung Hyun Park has the weekend off.

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PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) — There are times in life, maybe a handful, when everything changes. A moment, simple or world shattering, slanting the past, shaping all still to come. There are people who have the same effect, someone so generous, so genuine, so joyful, meeting them transforms perspective. RELATED: How Amy watched Woodland win the U.S. Open | Amy inspires Woodland: ‘You’ve got this’ Amy Bockerstette is one of those people. Playing one hole of golf with Gary Woodland at the Waste Management Phoenix Open was one of those moments. “Amy has a huge impact on everyone she meets,â€� her swing coach Matt Acuff said. “You can’t meet Amy and not be impacted by her.â€� Parents of children with Down syndrome are often told what their children can’t do. Joe and Jenny Bockerstette quickly realized all Amy could do. She had good hand-eye coordination. Perhaps more importantly, she had determination. It may have taken Amy a little longer to learn how to do things, but she was willing to work at it, repeating until she got it right. Amy bowled, swam, played basketball, baseball and soccer. She took up piano, loved to dance, learned to ride a bike. She was a natural with a golf club in her hand. Amy also had something else in abundance: Charisma. Expressive and happy-go-lucky, she drew people in to her orbit, making friends at school, in Special Olympics, everywhere she went. Teachers and counselors fought for her when things got tough. Football players carried her bags across campus. Love followed her wake. “I remember saying when she was five or six years old, this child changes people,â€� Joe Bockerstette said. “She has this sort of love and light everywhere she goes.â€� Special Olympics were founded 51 years ago by Eunice Kennedy Shriver to change perceptions of people with intellectual disabilities. The sister of President John F. Kennedy wanted a better life and to create opportunities for children who were often bullied, isolated by the parents or institutionalized. Special Olympics offered a world where people with special needs could thrive in ways they never had before, to find acceptance, confidence, a feeling of inclusion not exclusion. Parents were given an opportunity to be openly proud of their children, for others to see how special they were beyond their disabilities. Amy’s story is a blueprint for Special Olympics athletes and their families. Joe and Jenny provided the foundation for Amy’s success, encouraging and pushing her along the way. Amy, through her own focus and determination, ran with it, earning multiple Special Olympics medals, a spot on her high school golf team, a college scholarship. She parred a hole with a PGA TOUR player at the rowdiest hole in golf, shining in the moment instead of shrinking under the pressure. She was a keynote speaker at the National Down Syndrome Congress, writing the 20-minute speech herself. Amy has become a beacon, an inspiration, a symbol of possibility. “Doctors will often counsel new parents what their child may never be able to do,â€� said Rhonda Rice, engagement director for the National Down Syndrome Congress. “Here is an example of a young lady with Down syndrome and look at everything she’s accomplished. Amy is an example of inclusion. Just give her the chance.â€� Amy’s story extends beyond the Special Olympics realm. It started when Amy made the golf team at Sandra Day O’Conner High School. As senior, she drew local attention when she played in the state high school tournament. National attention came when she earned a golf scholarship at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, believed to be the first college athletic scholarship awarded to someone with Down syndrome. Then came golf with Gary. Amy arrived at the Waste Management Phoenix Open’s 16th hole in late January believing she was there to meet Woodland during a practice round. When the diminutive 20-year-old in the purple shirt and white skirt got up and down for par from a greenside bunker, it sent reverberations beyond the golf-hole-turned-stadium. Woodland’s career trajectory veered upward. Known for his inability to close out tournaments, he won his first major title after his moment with Amy, relying on her “I got thisâ€� mantra to win the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. Woodland made his connection with Amy a lasting one instead of a fleeting moment by staying in touch, even inviting her to join him — and the U.S. Open trophy — on the Today Show. “She’s meant everything for me from a mental standpoint,â€� Woodland said. “The world needs more of her in it.â€� Amy became a celebrity, zigzagging across the country, her parents barely able to keep up with all the golf tournaments, engagements, requests for interviews. She worked the red carpet at the ESPYs with ease, received a standing ovation and was mobbed by inspiring attendees at the National Down Syndrome Congress to find their superpower. “My superpower is confidence and believing in myself,â€� she told them. “With your superpower, you can create your own purpose.â€� Video of her moment with Woodland has been viewed more than 10 million times, a powerful message sent with each click. Amy’s ability to focus, close off pressure that would make every day golfers shank one into the stands, is a stay-in-the-moment example for golfers worldwide to follow. “That’s just Amy,â€� Joe Bockerstette said. “She doesn’t get nervous. The bigger the moment, the more likely she’s going to love. She has so many examples in her life of doing that.â€� Amy’s sweetness, confidence, purity and determination are an archetype for everyday life, no matter how many chromosomes a person has. “So many people could learn so many lessons just from how she lives her life,â€� Acuff said. “The abundance she lives her life and the joy she gets out of, if we all live like that, we’d be far better off.â€� Amy had a life-changing moment with a professional golfer. She changes lives every day just by being herself.

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