2020 was a very good year for Will Zalatoris

SAN DIEGO – Hideki Matsuyama, who hasn’t won in nearly 18 months, is Justin Rose’s closest competition at the Farmers Insurance Open. Matsuyama is alone in second place, three shots behind Rose, after shooting back-to-back 66s. Friday’s 66 at the South Course matched the low round of the week on the longer of Torrey Pines’ two layouts. He shot 6 under despite hitting just 11 greens Friday. He leads the field in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (+3.32). “I’m very happy to shoot 66 on the South Course,� Matsuyama said. “Two chip-ins really helped out today, but I hit the ball well.� He could have gone even lower but he missed a 5-foot birdie putt on his last hole of the day. He made only one bogey Friday, after his tee shot plugged in a bunker on the par-3 16th. The ball was completely covered with sand. He’s seeking his first win since the 2017 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. He won three times that season, including his second consecutive Waste Management Phoenix Open. “It was a disappointing year last year in that it didn’t include any victories,� Matsuyama said. “Over the offseason, I’ve worked hard and trained hard.� An injury ended Matsuyama’s attempt at a Phoenix three-peat, but he will return to TPC Scottsdale next week. He’s finished no worse than fourth in four appearances at that event.

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GREENSBORO, N.C. – Payne Stewart noticed a spindly 12-year-old waiting patiently outside the ropes at the Open Championship that day at Royal St. George’s and tossed him a golf ball. Justin Rose, who is now 41, still remembers the feeling when he caught it. “That was a cool moment and made my day,” he said. So, imagine what it felt like on Monday when he hopped on a Zoom call to do some media interviews and the faces of Tracey Stewart and her son Aaron popped on the screen. Suddenly the cameras in the background made a little more sense. Stewart’s widow and son were on the call to tell Rose that he was the 2021 winner of the Payne Stewart Award presented by Southern Company. “My heart was pounding,” Rose said. “Speaking to Tracey and Aaron, (it) really sort of hit me when you see the family themselves who are so obviously invested in it and invested in Payne’s legacy. “It made me realize — I’ve been to the awards ceremony many times, but now to be on the receiving end of things, the gravity of it definitely hits you.” The award has been given annually since 2000 by the PGA TOUR to recognize a golfer who exemplifies Stewart’s character, sportsmanship and commitment to charity. Stewart, who counted three majors among his 11 TOUR victories, died in an airplane accident during the 1999 TOUR Championship. Rose, who has 10 wins on TOUR, including the 2010 U.S. Open, called the honor a “huge surprise and something that’s definitely uplifted me.” Other winners of the Payne Stewart Award include Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Bernhard Langer, Davis Love III and Tom Watson. “It’s the kind of award I think that clearly it’s not based around your golf,” he said. “The golf’s been a platform for me to sort of I guess do other things and be honored and recognized in this way, but it’s the type of reward that kind of makes you reflect a little bit on all the things that contributed towards that. “… Something I’m very proud of, and obviously the list of the names I’m joining on that trophy, yeah, it’s overwhelming actually. It’s definitely some great players and more importantly some great role models in the game.” Rose turned pro at the age of 17 after tying for fourth at the Open Championship, the year before Stewart died. As a result, he never got to know the larger-than-life American, but he does remember the Stewart watching him hit balls on the range that year. “I can’t remember exactly what he said, but he watched me hit two or three balls and said, ‘Oh, that’s how it’s done,’ like a cool comment, just something that showed his charisma really, I suppose,” Rose recalled. The award is accompanied by a $500,000 grant from the Southern Company. Of that total, $100,000 will go to the Stewart Family Foundation; $100,000 to the Payne Stewart Memorial and $300,000 to a charity designated by the winner. In this case, it will go to the Kate & Justin Rose Foundation that was established in 2009. The many charitable efforts of Rose and his wife Kate, a former international gymnast, have focused on improving the lives of children in their adopted home of Orlando, as well as the Bahamas, Rose’s native South Africa and England, where he moved to at the age of 5. The Kate & Justin Rose Foundation has provided nutrition, books and educational experiences to children in central Florida since 2009. Toward that end, the KJRF – whose mission is to “feed hungry tummies and curious minds” — started the Orlando chapter of Blessings in a Backpack, called Rose Blessings Orlando, in 2020. To date, the KJRF has given $2.2 million to Rose Blessings Orlando and has gone from feeding 1,625 children to nearly 5,000 on the weekends and during the summer. The long-term goal is to serve all 16,000 food-insecure children in Orlando by 2030. In addition, the KJRF partnered with the ONE Bahamas Fund in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian to rebuild and support the operations of the hard-hit Grand Bahamas Children’s Home. And with the Ladies European Tour shut down in 2020 as COVID-19 ravaged Europe, Rose and his wife also sponsored “The Rose Ladies Series.” The Series consisted of eight events to provide playing opportunities for British women professionals and was expanded in 2021 to 11 to fill gaps in the LET schedule. Rose also sponsors the “Justin Rose Telegraph Junior Golf Championship” to help grow the game. Any amateur under the age of 18 can enter at no charge.

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NEWBURGH, Indiana – Justin Suh closed out his first PGA TOUR-sanctioned victory with a 4-under 68 in the final round of the 2022 season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance. Suh made just three bogeys all week at Victoria National Golf Club, the fewest scores of bogey or worse by any player in the field, and finished at 21-under par, two strokes ahead of Austin Eckroat, who was among the 25 players awarded PGA TOUR cards via The Finals 25. By virtue of the victory and the 1,000 points awarded, Suh finished No. 1 on both the Korn Ferry Tour Finals Eligibility Points List and the season-long Korn Ferry Tour Eligibility Points List. As a result of sweeping the No. 1 rankings, Suh will have fully exempt status for the 2022-23 PGA TOUR season, an exemption for the 2023 PLAYERS Championship and, for the first time in history, an exemption for the 2023 U.S. Open. Suh joins world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (2019) and PGA TOUR winner Chesson Hadley (2017) as the only players in history to win both points lists. “My game has progressed so much over the course of the year and it feels extremely gratifying that it paid off,” Suh said. “I wasn’t really thinking about the overall season title. I wanted to win this event, especially since it’s the last Korn Ferry (Tour) event. I knew I could win out here. I’ve been close so many times. To put it all together, it feels great. “It’s one of the most important weeks of the year. I know it’s a lot of stress for guys fighting to get their (PGA) TOUR cards, but it’s an exciting week. I’m just really happy a couple of my friends got in.” Suh carried a one-stroke lead into the final round and maintained the outright lead for the majority of the day. The San Jose, California native birdied the par-4 fourth, bogeyed the par-3 seventh and immediately bounced back with a birdie at the par-4 eighth to turn at 1-under par. Suh birdied two of the first three holes on the back – the par-5 10th and par-4 12th – and put extra distance between he and Eckroat with a birdie at the par-5 15th. “After I birdied No. 12, I felt pretty good there,” Suh said. “It was a big par save on No. 14 and birdie on No. 15. I saw Tano (Goya)’s name at No. 25 on No. 15 and I was nervous for him because he just made a bogey on No. 12 and I knew he was on the bubble. Super happy for him. It was awesome to see him finish.” Goya, who played alongside Suh and Nicholas Lindheim in the final group Sunday, and eventually held on for his first PGA TOUR card as he played the final six holes at 1-under par. Another central figure of drama Sunday afternoon was Kyle Westmoreland, who played collegiately at the United States Air Force Academy and attained the rank of captain as he served a five-year stint with the United States Air Force after graduation. Westmoreland was anywhere from No. 23 to No. 26 on the Korn Ferry Tour Finals Eligibility Points List after he finished his round with a birdie at the par-5 ninth. After a relatively lengthy wait, Westmoreland finished No. 25 and became the first Air Force Academy graduate to earn a PGA TOUR card. The first man out of The Finals 25 was Joey Garber, who double bogeyed the par-4 14th but closed with four consecutive birdies for a chance at a return to the PGA TOUR. Garber signed his scorecard as the No. 25 players on The Finals 25, but Nicolas Echavarria’s bogey-free 6-under 66, highlighted by birdies on the par-5 15th and par-4 17th, ultimately knocked Garber out. The 2023 Korn Ferry Tour schedule will be announced Tuesday, October 4.

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