Sleeper Picks: Cadence Bank Houston Open

The ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP was Tiger Woods’ first tournament in two months. It was his first start since knee surgery. He bogeyed the first three holes. It didn’t matter. Woods still earned his record-tying 82nd win. The ShotLink team broke down Woods’ 82 wins here. Today’s Stats Insider will focus on last week’s performance in the first PGA TOUR event in Japan. 1. BOUNCE BACK: Woods became the first player in the ShotLink era (since 2003) to win after making bogey on his first three holes of a tournament. Woods is the fifth player since 2003 to win after playing his first three holes in +3 or worse. Highest score to par on first three holes to start event among PGA TOUR winners since 2003 2. IRON IT OUT: Woods’ impressive iron play was on full display in Japan. He was in full control of his ball, finishing third in greens hit (55 of 72, 76.4%). This shouldn’t be a surprise. Among players with at least 300 measured rounds, Woods has the highest career Strokes Gained: Approach per round, and it’s not even close. He’s averaged +1.1 strokes gained per round. Jim Furyk is second with +0.74, while ZOZO runner-up Hideki Matsuyama is third with +0.72. 3. HAPPENS IN THREES: Here’s further proof of Woods’ stellar iron play last week: he played the par-3s last week in 9-under-par. It marked his career-best performance on par-3s (in relation to par). He is one of six players since 1983 to play the par-3s in 9 under or better en route to victory. Best Par-3 performance among PGA TOUR winners since 1983 4. GOING LOW: Woods finished three shots ahead of Matsuyama. Third-place finishers Rory McIlroy and Sungjae Im finished six shots back. The 10th-place finishers were 10 shots back. Woods’ 36-, 54- and 72-hole scores this week were among the best of his career. Yes, one of the par-4s was shortened to a par-3 for one round, but it was still an incredibly impressive performance. This was the 25th consecutive time that Woods converted a 54-hole lead of 3+ shots into a victory. He’s never lost in that scenario. 36 HOLES: 64-64—128 (5th-best of his career) 54 HOLES: 64-64-66—194 (3rd-best) 72 HOLES: 64-64-66-67—261 (3rd-best) 5. TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER: Woods led the field in birdies (27) and putts per green in regulation (1.62). The latter is proof of strong ball-striking and strong putting. It means you’re hitting it close enough to one-putt, and rolling it well enough to convert. There was no ShotLink in Japan, but wasn’t necessary to show us that Woods was the cream of the crop.

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PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Buses were brought in from Miami and Orlando. Some 6,000 parking spaces were procured, and 160 portable toilets were added to the grounds. Extra server space was acquired to ensure the website could handle the increased traffic and the media center was doubled in size. These measures were all part of the 50-point checklist the Valspar Championship put into action after Tiger Woods committed to the tournament March 2. “We want everyone to be able to see him,â€� said tournament director Tracy West. And plenty did. She estimated that an additional 40,000 spectators came to Innisbrook’s Copperhead Course last week. Television ratings spiked, as well. West’s team was preparing for the unprecedented. This was Woods’ debut at the Valspar Championship. Now, after his successful week on the Copperhead Course, it looks like the new normal. At least for as long as he stays healthy. Of course, that’s a big ‘if’ for a man who’s had four back surgeries, but the recoils and club twirls we saw last week seemed to signify that he is. “He’s, I think, for real healthier this time because of the different surgery. I can tell by the way he’s swinging and carrying on off the golf course,â€� said his caddie, Joe LaCava. “He seems healthier. That’s the big difference.â€� Woods’ rebuilt back has proven strong enough to support his rebuilt swing. The talent never went away. The long birdie putt he holed on 17 heralded a return to the days when we could expect the unexpected from Woods. No, he didn’t win the Valspar Championship. In the final round, mediocre iron play and poor pace on his putts kept him out of the winner’s circle. Yes, Old Tiger would have probably stormed out of that second-to-last group with a 67. But, if we’re criticizing Woods for falling short Sunday, we’re likely falling into the same trap that we did during his best years. “We all took him for granted,â€� said his old Stanford teammate, Notah Begay. Even Woods’ competitors were cheering his return to contention. His absence provided the space for young stars like Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas to develop, but also showed that no one is capable of creating the environment that Woods does. “(We) got to see some amazing stuff and hear the roars,â€� said Valspar champion Paul Casey.  The familiarity of seeing Woods in Sunday red makes it easy to forget that this was just the 14th round of hislatest comeback. He spent most of the past two years out of the public spotlight, living “minute to minuteâ€� as he struggled with his back injuries. “You have no idea how hard it was,â€� he said. When he returned in January, he was just happy to be there. He simply wanted to play a steady schedule. A few weeks later, Woods looks like one of the best players on TOUR. He should be among the favorites for this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. He first won at Bay Hill in 1991, claiming the first of his six consecutive USGA amateur titles. He shared a victorious handshake with Palmer eight times. He’s won four of his last five starts at Bay Hill. When asked what he wanted to improve before Thursday’s opening round, he didn’t talk about his golf game. “Maybe get a few good lifts in,â€� he said. He wasn’t going to touch a club the day after the Valspar. Woods said he’s working as his own coach this season because no one knows what it’s like to swing 120 mph with a fused back. He’s right. He’s been influenced by all his previous teachers, but, at this point, does anyone need to teach him how to play? He seems to be tapping into his innate talent, and his body seems healthy enough to make the move his mind envisions. He’ll never be able to swing the way he did in 2000, but he’s back to hitting sky-high long-iron shots, shaping his short-irons and displaying deft touch around the greens. “You never lose your instinct. You lose your ability,â€� Begay said. “I don’t think that Nolan Ryan ever forgot how to pitch. Athletes don’t forget. Their bodies just expire.â€� Woods’ due date will come, as it will for all of us, but for now he’s keeping at bay the inexorable marching of time. He ranks second on TOUR in clubhead speed, the only 40-something in the top 30. He’s also inside the top 30 in three of the four Strokes Gained statistics: Approach-the-Green (19th), Around-the-Green (21st) and Putting (23rd). At the Valspar, he ranked inside the top 20 in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, Approach-the-Green and Around-the-Green. “I think that I’ve gotten a little bit better than I was a couple weeks ago at Honda, keep getting a little bit better and sharper,â€� he said. He’s ranked highly in the Strokes Gained stats despite his poor play at Riviera, where he shot 72-76 to finish 111th. His struggles were so deep in that second start that it tempered some of the excitement following an impressive T12 at The Honda Classic. When he arrived at Innisbrook, we still didn’t know if this comeback would be full of fits and starts, if every step forward would be followed by two steps back. Nearly winning on a course that he hadn’t seen in more than two decades confirmed that Woods is ready to win, possibly sooner than later. He can remember a putt from 20 years ago, Begay said, but Woods couldn’t rely on course experience or good memories to carry him through this week. He last saw Innisbrook in 1996, in a co-ed exhibition event. The course has been renovated since then. Instead, he simply had to execute to contend at the Valspar. He displayed well-controlled iron play in the winds that swirled during the first three rounds, as well as a deft short game. He needed to hole just two putts outside 15 feet to earn a spot in Sunday’s second-to-last group. He made seven bogeys last week and just one apiece in each of the final three rounds. Only four players made fewer. He still struggles with his driver, but that’s been the case throughout the latter half of his career. He ranks 104th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and 106th in Driving Distance (all drives) because of his reliance on long-irons and 3-woods off the tee. PGA National and the Copperhead Course are two layouts where control trumps distance off the tee, so he could navigate them with something less than driver. In the third round at Innisbrook, he hit long-iron off the tee on seven of the par-4s and par-5s. He used 3-wood and driver three times apiece. He’ll eventually need to hit more drivers. But, after just 14 rounds, it’s appropriate to marvel at the lengths he’s come instead of looking at the heights he once scaled. It’s not long ago that he wondered if he’d ever play golf again. “At this particular moment, don’t question the genius,â€� Begay said. “Just enjoy the music.â€�

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HOW THEY QUALIFIED Winner – PGA/U.S. Open Championship Jason Dufner Jordan Spieth Justin Thomas Jimmy Walker Winner – THE PLAYERS Championship Si Woo Kim Winner – The Open Championship Zach Johnson Winner – TOUR Championship Xander Schauffele Winner – World Golf Championship Event Russell Knox Winners of the Arnold Palmer Inv. & the Memorial (Last 3 Years) Matt Every Marc Leishman William McGirt Tournament Winner in Past Two Seasons Ryan Armour Aaron Baddeley Daniel Berger Jonas Blixt Wesley Bryan Greg Chalmers Austin Cook Tony Finau Fabián Gómez Cody Gribble Emiliano Grillo James Hahn Brian Harman Russell Henley Jim Herman Mac Hughes Billy Hurley III Smylie Kaufman Chris Kirk Kevin Kisner Patton Kizzire Peter Malnati D.A. Points Webb Simpson Cameron Smith Kyle Stanley Chris Stroud Brian Stuard Hudson Swafford Vaughn Taylor Career Money Exemption K.J. Choi Sponsors Exemptions – Members not otherwise exempt Jerry Kelly Mark Wilson Sponsors Exemptions – Unrestricted Daisuke Kataoka Satoshi Kodaira Yusaku Miyazato Tyler Ota Designated Sponsor Exemption Shugo Imahira Hyung-Sung Kim Tatsuya Kodai PGA Club Professional Champion – 6 Events Omar Uresti PGA Section Champion\Player of the Year Eric Dugas Life Member Vijay Singh Top 125 on Prior Season’s FedExCup Points List Gary Woodland Bill Haas Chez Reavie Charles Howell III Kevin Na Keegan Bradley Luke List Stewart Cink Scott Brown Jamie Lovemark Ollie Schniederjans Sean O’Hair Robert Streb Kevin Tway Danny Lee Kelly Kraft Jason Kokrak Patrick Rodgers Morgan Hoffmann Chad Campbell Whee Kim Harold Varner III J.J. Spaun Scott Piercy Michael Kim Luke Donald Richy Werenski Ryan Blaum Robert Garrigus Brian Gay Tyrone Van Aswegen Harris English Dominic Bozzelli John Huh Blayne Barber Ben Martin Rory Sabbatini J.J. Henry Major Medical Extension Ryan Palmer Sangmoon Bae Jon Curran Colt Knost John Peterson Top Finishers from Web.com Tour Prior Season (reordered) Alex Cejka Andrew Landry Peter Uihlein Tyler Duncan Brandon Harkins Ben Silverman Beau Hossler Tom Hoge Martin Piller Nicholas Lindheim Jonathan Randolph Brice Garnett Aaron Wise Abraham Ancer Stephan Jaeger Talor Gooch Ted Potter, Jr. Xinjun Zhang Adam Schenk Joel Dahmen Rob Oppenheim Michael Thompson Corey Conners Bronson Burgoon Cameron Tringale Ethan Tracy Seamus Power Roberto Díaz Tom Lovelady Andrew Putnam Brett Stegmaier Matt Jones Troy Merritt Conrad Shindler Keith Mitchell Nate Lashley Steve Wheatcroft Sam Saunders Sam Ryder Jonathan Byrd Lanto Griffin

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