Expert Picks: BMW Championship

LAKE FOREST, IL. – Anirban Lahiri spent 10 days at a silent meditation retreat in western Massachusetts earlier this summer, but not even quiet persistence can fully explain how he’s hung on the last 10 days, barely squeaking into the fields at two of golf’s most elite events. First, Lahiri got by without his best at the Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston on Labor Day, finishing T56 but watching the breaks go his way as Branden Grace and Russell Knox struggled coming in. That left Lahiri at 70th in the FedExCup, making him the last man into this week’s BMW Championship. Barely 24 hours later, Lahiri, 16th on the International Presidents Cup team points table, found out he had received one of captain Nick Price’s two wildcard picks—the most surprising of the four by Price and U.S. Captain Steve Stricker. The Internationals will play the United States at Liberty National, Sept. 28-Oct. 1. “It’s been a good time for me,� Lahiri said from the BMW at Conway Farms. “Last man in here, arguably the last man into the Presidents Cup, if you want to put it that way.� The cookies, as Lahiri likes to say, are crumbling his way. It has taken something special to get here for everyone in this week’s field at Conway Farms, but maybe for Lahiri most of all. His father, an Army officer, introduced him to the game when he was 8, and he was hard-pressed to find many golfing role models in India. Jeev Milkha Singh played a little on TOUR, as did 2010 Wyndham Championship winner Arjun Atwal. Lahiri, 30, proved an equal if not superior talent. He won 18 times worldwide but is still searching for his first victory on the PGA TOUR. He’s also still searching for his A game, and is admittedly fortunate to be doing so here among the elites at the BMW. After saying all season that he wanted a chance to atone for his 0-3-0 record at the 2015 Presidents Cup, he’ll get that. “I’ve obviously got Nick’s cell phone number, but he must have called me from his home phone, so I wasn’t expecting it—the call just showed up as Hobe Sound,� Lahiri said. “I didn’t do the math. I know he lives in Hobe Sound. ‘Hey, it’s Nick.’ ‘Oh!’ “Obviously, Nick and I are friends now, since the last Presidents Cup. We talked about the hurricane, talked about what’s happening, my game, how are you feeling, and then he said, ‘Oh, by the way, we had a long conference call.’ I was almost expecting him to say, ‘I’m really sorry,’ but he said, ‘We want you on the team.’ This was probably five minutes into the call. I was looking at my wife and gave her the thumbs-up. She didn’t know who I was talking to.� As if narrowly getting into the BMW Championship and the Presidents Cup didn’t leave his nerves sufficiently frayed, Lahiri and his wife, Ipsa Jamwal, evacuated from their U.S. base in West Palm Beach to New York in advance of Hurricane Irma last week. Once they arrived in the safety of New York, Lahiri and Presidents Cup teammate (and fellow evacuee) Emiliano Grillo of Argentina caught the U.S. Open semifinal between Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro, then played Liberty National for the first time on Sunday. It was part and parcel of Lahiri’s commitment to making this Presidents Cup experience different from the last one. “Obviously, it left a bitter taste in my mouth, but not just me, the whole team,� Lahiri said of Korea, where the U.S. won 15.5-14.5. “There is such a huge difference between being a rookie and coming back. I was sort of like a deer in the headlights because I had not played on this TOUR, I was not used to being on the big stage.� Two years later, Lahiri has a home here, and plays the TOUR fulltime. He and his wife have rented in West Palm since April of last year, but they’ve bought a home in PGA National and have been renovating it for the last nine months. “Like a baby,� Lahiri said. The home, which they are scheduled to move into late next week, was mostly spared by Irma, leaving Lahiri to focus on other things, like his golf. First on the agenda will be to get to East Lake and the TOUR Championship, which will probably require a win or close to it. There’s a certain freedom in that, though. The last time Lahiri felt the need to go for broke, at the 2015 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, where his TOUR card hung in the balance, he tied for fifth. (He would eventually get his card through the Web.com Tour Finals.) Then he’s got the Presidents Cup to look forward to, in front of the legendary New York fans. Lahiri has watched with great interest as players like Ian Poulter, Patrick Reed and Phil Mickelson have upped their games for team golf. “I definitely believe I can do that,� he said. Two years ago, Lahiri was the first from India to play in the Presidents Cup. It was a nice distinction, and while he’s still the only one to play in the event, and is proud of it, he says it’s now time to up the ante. “The time has come where it’s not just about representing,� Lahiri said. “You’ve got to show up and make those points for your team, make a difference, be a part of a winning cause. I’ve been saying this to the media back home. “Just playing the Olympics is not enough. Just playing the World Cup is not enough. Just playing in the Presidents Cup is not enough. Just playing in the majors is not enough. You’ve got to show up and contend and play well and win one of those things. Otherwise, you’re not going to have the next generation want to play the sport. You need to do something special.� That’s true, but there’s also something to be said for sheer survival, and just getting this far has been at least half the battle. As for the other half, who knows? If his next 10 days are as charmed as his last 10, Anirban Lahiri could be ready to make some serious noise.

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This week’s RBC Heritage slots familiarly immediately following the Masters where Scottie Scheffler prevailed for the first time in a major. For the 42 who competed at Augusta National and are committed at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina (as of Monday afternoon), the tournament promises that – hang on one sec … checks field to confirm that Scheffler isn’t playing –someone else will win. Notwithstanding Scheffler’s historic surge, the tournament also is known for its heaters. In its first 53 editions dating back to 1969 – all contested at Harbour Town – there have been 10 golfers who have won it multiple times. Davis Love III headlines the club with five titles, while Hale Irwin and this year’s defending champion, Stewart Cink, have won thrice. Twelve former RBC Heritage champions are among the 132 in the field this week, including all of the last nine. Continue reading beneath the ranking of projected contenders for how Harbour Town tests, which boxes Cink checked en route to victory, what’s new this year and more. RELATED: How Team Format Works | Play Pick ‘Em Live | The First Look | Inside the Field POWER RANKINGS: RBC HERITAGE OTHERS CONSIDERED Joaquin Niemann & Mito Pereira Will Zalatoris & Davis Riley Adam Hadwin & Adam Svensson Matthew NeSmith & Taylor Moore Sahith Theegala & Beau Hossler The Zurich Classic of New Orleans does not contribute to PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, so Draws and Fades on Tuesday will be abridged Eighty two-man teams have gathered at TPC Louisiana for the largest field on the PGA TOUR. All will follow the same format in every round. Four-ball will be used for scoring in the opening round. Foursomes will be utilized for the second round. When two rounds are complete, the low 33 teams and ties will survive the cut and repeat the sequence of scoring for the third and final rounds, respectively. Both members of the winning team will be credited with an official PGA TOUR victory and both will receive exemptions into next month’s PGA Championship as well as the 2023 editions of the Sentry Tournament of Championship and THE PLAYERS. Each also will have his membership extended through at least the 2023-24 season. The distribution of FedExCup points and earnings will treat the final results as if an individual competition occurred. For example, instead of rewarding 500 FedExCup points to the winner and 300 to a solo runner-up, the winning team will split 800 points evenly. Prize money will be calculated similarly. What isn’t in play is an impact on the Official World Golf Ranking. From that standpoint, divisors will not increase. That’s important for those who monitor their values like a stock portfolio in real time. Unlike last year’s reveal of new fairways and greens at TPC Louisiana, nothing has changed since last year’s edition of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Well, no modifications were planned, that is. The impact of Hurricane Ida’s pass last August has required a few hundred trees to be planted as well as significant attention paid to the bunkers that were damaged. For the fifth spin as a team competition, overseeded TifEagle bermuda greens are governed to 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. With the absence of overseed and sluggish growth of the only layer of rough (up to two inches), guys who can move it off the tee on the 7,425-yard stock par 72 will be encouraged regardless of the round. As is the case in every shootout, particularly this team competition that’s yielded winners of 20-under and lower in the first four stagings, the primary objective will be to pile up scoring opportunities. The targets at TPC Louisiana can be tricky what with their segments and undulations. Considering the promise of persistent winds throughout the tournament, including gusts exceeding 20 mph, strategy in foursomes could be a gamechanger. Daytime highs in the 80s is forecast. Rain is not a threat. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY: Sleepers, Draws and Fades WEDNESDAY: Pick ’Em Preview SUNDAY: Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Rookie Ranking

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