Scheffler cards 2-over 73, worst score in 266 days

The 2019 Presidents Cup Captains have been revealed — Tiger Woods for the U.S. Team and Ernie Els for the International Team. The event at Royal Melbourne in December, 2019, will be the first captaincy for both players, and will continue a rivalry that has lasted more than two decades.  The highlight of that rivalry was their memorable sudden-death playoff at the 2003 Presidents Cup, as they matched scores in a fading light, ultimately resulting in a shared Cup that year. (See details below). A closer look at the Woods-Els rivalry: THE PRESIDENTS CUP Woods and Els have each participated in eight Presidents Cups as players for their respective teams. They’ve faced each other in eight scheduled matches — but only once in Singles. Here are the results of their head-to-head Presidents Cup battles: 1998 Day 1 Foursomes: Tiger Woods-Fred Couples def. Ernie Els-Vijay Singh, 5 and 4 Day 2 Four-balls: Ernie Els-Vijay Singh def. Tiger Woods-John Huston, 1 up 2000 Day 1 Foursomes: Tiger Woods-Notah Begay def. Ernie Els-Vijay Singh, 1 up Day 2 Foursomes: Tiger Woods-Notah Begay def. Ernie Els-Vijay Singh, 6 and 5 2003 Day 2 Four-balls: Ernie Els-Tim Clark def. Tiger Woods-Charles Howell III, 5 and 3 Day 4 Singles: Tiger Woods def. Ernie Els, 4 and 3 Playoff: Woods and Els were selected for a playoff after the U.S. and International teams tied in regulation. They halved the first three playoff holes before play ended due to darkness and the Cup was shared.  2007 Day 3 Foursomes: Tiger Woods-Jim Furyk def. Ernie Els-Adam Scott, 4 and 3 2013 Day 3 Foursomes: Ernie Els-Brendon de Jonge def. Tiger Woods-Matt Kuchar, 1 up. 2003 PRESIDENTS CUP Tiger Woods was sitting on one side of the patterned couch with muted colors. Ernie Els was on the other side. At the time, they were ranked No. 1 and No. 3 in the world, respectively, and on a collision course that neither could have imagined a few days later. The man sitting between them never learned to play golf. He dealt in more serious issues. Nelson Mandela — fours years after completing his historic term as the first post-apartheid president of South Africa — gently placed his left hand on Woods’ arm as the two golfers shook hands. All three were smiling. It was a show of great sportsmanship … and a foreshadow of how the week would end. The 2003 Presidents Cup, held at Fancourt Resort in George, South Africa, goes down as one of the PGA TOUR’s most legendary events. There was Mandela, his presence providing the event with unprecedented gravitas. There were the captains — Gary Player for the International Team, Jack Nicklaus for the U.S. Team. Els and Woods were at the top of their games, and the Internationals were not yet burdened by the long losing streak that haunts the current generation. But as delicious as the set-up was, the ending was just as memorable. With the two teams tied at 17 points following the completion of Sunday’s Singles action — Woods defeated Els 4 and 3 in their match — Presidents Cup rules required a sudden-death playoff between two players to determine the winner. Woods and Els had been pre-selected by their respective captains to participate in the playoff, and so the showdown began, the outcome of the entire tournament now weighing heavily on their shoulders. On the first playoff hole (no. 18), both players converted par putts inside 10 feet. On the second playoff hole (no. 1), Els drained a 12-foot par saver after missing the green to halve the hole. On the third playoff hole (the par-3 no. 2), Woods’ tee shot landed 90 feet from the pin; Els was 45 feet away. After their birdie attempts, Tiger was left with a 15-foot par putt and Els had a 6-footer. In the fading light, Tiger made his putt, punching the air in celebration. Els calmly followed by making his par putt to again halve the hole. That’s when the action stopped and the conversations heated up. Believing it unfair to continue play in the darkening skies, captains Nicklaus and Player discussed the possibility of simply calling it a tie and sharing the Presidents Cup. Then-PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem was involved, and the two captains also consulted their respective sides. Finally, it was declared a tie, with Nicklaus and Player raising their hands together in a show of unity the likes of which golf may never see again. “I think it’s the perfect decision,” Woods said that night. “The way the week has gone, it’s the right decision for the game of golf.” Els called it a “fitting finish” in the spirit of The Presidents Cup. “We really beat each other up,” Els noted, “and at the end of the day, I think we were so evenly matched, it would have been unfair to myself and Tiger to win or lose the Cup. It’s a team event, and to play in the darkness, you bring luck into it, also. “I think it was a fair decision.” TALE OF THE TAPE PGA TOUR SHOWDOWNS Woods and Els have played in the same PGA TOUR event a total of 213 times. Woods won 52 times; Els won 10 times. On eight occasions, they both finished either as the winner or runner-up. A quick look at those eight events: 1999 Nissan Open: Els won by two strokes at Riviera, with Woods finishing T2 (Ted Tryba and Davis Love III) 1999 National Car Rental Golf Classic at Disney: Woods won by one stroke at Magnolia Golf Club, with Els finishing solo second. 2000 Mercedes Championships: Woods beat Els in a sudden-death playoff at Kapalua. 2000 Memorial Tournament: Woods won by 5 strokes at Muirfield Village, with Els finishing T2 (Justin Leonard). 2000 U.S. Open: Woods won by 15 strokes at Pebble Beach, with Els finishing T2 (Miguel Angel Jimenez). 2000 Open Championship: Woods won by 7 strokes at St. Andrews, with Els finishing T2 (Thomas Bjorn). 2002 Genuity Championship: Els won by 2 strokes at Doral, with Woods finishing solo second. 2009 The Barclays: Els and Woods finished T2 (with Padraig Harrington and Steve Stricker) at Liberty National behind winner Heath Slocum. Click here for more on the Els-Woods battles SAME GROUP Woods and Els have played in the same group in 20 different stroke-play events for a total of 31 different rounds. Woods shot the lower score 17 times; Els shot the lower score eight times; and they shot the same score seven times. Tiger’s low round while playing with Els was a 62 in the final round of the 2012 The Honda Classic. Els’ lowest score was a 65 in the third round of the 1998 Bay Hill Invitational. That was the first time Woods and Els were paired in their TOUR careers. The last two tournaments they’ve been in the same group was at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard in 2012 and 2013. Their stroke averages when in the same group: Woods is 69.19, Els is 70.68. They’ve been in the same group in the final round five times. The results: 1998 Bay Hill Invitational: Els won, Woods finished T13 2000 Mercedes Championships: Tied in regulation, with Woods beating Els in a playoff. 2002 World Golf Championships-NEC Invitational:  Woods finished fourth, Els finished T15. 2009 World Golf Championships-CA Championship: Woods finished T9, Els finished T20. 2012 The Honda Classic: Woods finished T2, Els finished T21.

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — In what already was the toughest pre-cut round at THE PLAYERS Championship in 15 years, Justin Thomas and Bubba Watson managed to play bogey-free Saturday in ferocious wind on a day of far more spills than thrills. RELATED: Full leaderboard | High winds wreak havoc at THE PLAYERS The rain finally cleared out and the TPC Sawgrass got even more terrifying with gusts that approached 40 mph on a Stadium Course that can be punishing even in calm conditions. Where that leaves Thomas (69) and Watson (68) won’t be determined until Sunday when the second round is completed. The rain-plagued tournament is so far behind that 27 players have yet to start the second round. Thomas and Watson shared the clubhouse lead at 3-under 141. They left in a tie for 15th, and six of the players ahead of them had not finished a single hole. Kevin Kisner reached 6 under in his second round until missing a short par putt on No. 4 and going from rough to water for a double bogey on the next hole. He shot 74 and was at 2-under 142. Dustin Johnson birdied his final hole for a 73 and was at 142, with two double bogeys on the par 5s over 36 holes. The course was so saturated by rain that it took 54 hours, 16 minutes from Adam Schenk hitting the opening tee shot Thursday morning to Brendan Steele holing out early Saturday afternoon to complete the first round. Tom Hoge goes into Sunday with his name atop the leaderboard. He still has played only 18 holes. He opened with a 6-under 66 on Thursday and was tied with Tommy Fleetwood, who was even par through three holes when play was suspended. Those who spent more than six hours on the course Saturday held on for dear life, especially when they came to the notorious island green on the par-3 17th. Over two days, only four players hit into the water. On Saturday when play resumed, the first four players couldn’t find the green. Scottie Scheffler had the wind die and went long into the water. Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka caught a gust and came up short, as did Collin Morikawa in the group behind them. By the end of the day, 29 balls had gone into the water. The average score for the second round when play was suspended was 75.37, and it was certain to go higher Sunday morning. The average was 75.41 for the opening round in 2007, the first year THE PLAYERS was in May. The highest ever for the opening two rounds was 76.19 in 2000 when it was in March. Scoring tends to get lower after the cut. The highest average score for any round was 76.51 in the third round of 2005. “Insane,” Thomas said to describe the challenge. Keegan Bradley (71) spoke of hitting a 9-iron from 96 yards on the 12th hole dead into the wind, and the same club from 206 yards with the wind at his back on the par-5 16th. The forecast was for temperatures in the upper 30s when play was to resume Sunday morning and wind not quite as fierce but still challenging. Thomas thought he was going to end up on the good end of the draw when they started out Friday in soft, still conditions in the rain. Returning to 30 mph wind on Saturday morning to finish the round and then facing 18 holes of that in the afternoon? Not so much. “There’s always one person who play good on the bad side of the draw,” Thomas said. “I kept saying, ‘Be that guy.’ I’m very proud of myself today.” So many others went the wrong direction. Schauffele was 4 under for his opening round, two shots out of the lead, when he hit into the water on the 17th and did well to salvage a bogey. But on the 18th hole — playing so long into the wind that some players needed fairway metal to reach the par 4 in two shots — Schauffele drew such a bad lie in the rough that he advanced it only about 15 yards. From there, he hit into the water. After a drop, his pitch had so much spin into the wind that it rolled back some 75 feet back into the fairway. He finished bogey-quadruple bogey for a 73, and then shot 78 in the second round. Koepka was 3 under when he returned and was just left of the par-5 16th in two. It took him four shots to get down, he put his tee shot in the water on the 17th for double bogey and shot 72. He followed that with an 81, matching his highest score on the PGA TOUR. Asked to describe the 17th, Koepka said, “It’s luck.” He hit 8-iron from 205 yards on the 16th hole in the morning. He estimates his 8-iron on the 17th going the other direction went 105 yards in the air, and then some 20 feet to the bottom of the pond. Tour officials tried to prepare with easier pins for the second round, slightly raising the cut of the greens the last two days by not rolling them since Friday. The second round was to resume at 8:15 a.m. That will be followed by the third round, which would not end until Monday morning. The tournament still was likely to finish Monday evening.

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KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – World No. 1 and reigning FedExCup champ Dustin Johnson has missed consecutive major cuts in the same year for the first time in his career after he failed to make the weekend at the PGA Championship. Johnson backed up his 4-over 76 from round one at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course with a 74, leaving the Carolina local to miss out on weekend play by a single shot at six-over. RELATED: Full leaderboard | DJ sees promise with new driver shaft Gusty winds proved difficult for many players with the scoring average hitting 75.15 over the opening two rounds. Teeing off on the 10th hole, Johnson’s second round started positively with an opening birdie but he dropped five shots in 11 holes during the middle of his day. A late reprieve appeared possible when he eagled his third to last hole but the 24-time PGA TOUR winner backed it up with another bogey. Johnson wasn’t the only big name to struggle. Fellow major winners Justin Thomas, Sergio Garcia and Adam Scott also missed out by a shot as did multiple time TOUR winners Marc Leishman and Xander Schauffele. Thomas produced a brilliant 37-foot birdie on the brutal par-3 17th setting up a birdie or bust final hole scenario. Despite a brilliant drive and approach to 16-feet his birdie putt burned the edge and his week was over. Schauffele was 4 over on his final eight holes and five-time TOUR winner Leishman finished double bogey, bogey to earn the weekend off. Former world No. 1 Jason Day thought he’d missed the cut after the morning wave when he posted in at 5 over only to see the high winds help his chase for a spot in the US Open at Torrey Pines alive. Day entered the week at 65th in the world rankings, his lowest spot since 2010, needing to move inside the top 60 to earn a ticket to the US Open to be held at San Diego’s Torrey Pines – a venue where he won two of his 12 PGA Tour titles. In what turned out to be a prophetic exchange, U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau reminded Day what could happen as the two crossed paths Friday. Day was packing up his bag as DeChambeau headed out to prepare for his afternoon tee time. “Don’t do what I did. It was an expensive mistake,” DeChambeau joked to Day in reference to his mercy dash during the Wells Fargo Championship two weeks ago. The big-hitting bomber thought he had missed the cut and flew from North Carolina to Texas only to find out on arrival he was still alive, leaving him to fly back again. Good thing the Australian listened.

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