3M lead shared by Im, smooth-putting Piercy after 1st round

This is the last Fantasy Insider column of the 2016-17 season, and because my Power Rankings included all 30 golfers at the TOUR Championship, this conclusion is abridged. The Wild Card, Draws, Fades and other sections will return in two weeks when the Safeway Open kicks off the 2017-18 season. Not that there isn’t a lot going on in the fantasy world in the meantime. In fact, you don’t even have to take a week off if you don’t want to. PGATOUR.COM is introducing The Captain’s Pick for next week’s Presidents Cup. It’s a hybrid of a One & Done and Roster games. As usual, terrific prizes will be up for grabs. I’ll have a stand-alone primer for the free competition as well as daily recaps and previews during the event to assist you along the way. If you’re currently registered for any of the current games, you already have access. If not, go to FantasyGolf.PGATOUR.COM and sign up. Join a public or private league if you’d like. The PGA TOUR Experts league is open to everyone. That’s where I’ll be participating. Also squeezed into the “offseason” is my full-membership fantasy ranking and the first editions of Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions and Rookie Ranking. We’re then right back at it with my array of preview material for the Safeway. Thank you for your interest and loyalty to fantasy golf at PGATOUR.COM. Without you, none of this exists PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the TOUR Championship (in alphabetical order): Jason Day Dustin Johnson Matt Kuchar Justin Rose Webb Simpson Jordan Spieth You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Paul Casey; Kevin Chappell; Brooks Koepka; Marc Leishman; Jon Rahm; Justin Thomas Driving: Paul Casey; Kevin Chappell; Rickie Fowler; Brooks Koepka; Jon Rahm Approach: Daniel Berger; Patrick Cantlay; Jason Dufner; Rickie Fowler; Sergio Garcia; Jon Rahm Short: Paul Casey; Rickie Fowler; Adam Hadwin; Marc Leishman; Jon Rahm Power Rankings Recap – BMW Championship Sleepers Recap – BMW Championship Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR September 19 … Ryan Palmer (41) September 20 … Chad Collins (39); Cody Gribble (27); Rick Lamb (27) September 21 … none September 22 … none September 23 … Rod Pampling (48) September 24 … none September 25 … none September 26 … Freddie Jacobson (43) September 27 … none September 28 … Will MacKenzie (43) September 29 … none September 30 … none October 1 … Grayson Murray (24) October 2 … George McNeill (42); Zach Sucher (31)

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HONOLULU, Hawaii – Blayne Barber’s caddy Cory Gilmer is in an intensive care unit at a local Hawaiian hospital after collapsing and hitting his head in Waikiki last night. Gilmer was out some fellow caddies in downtown Waikiki after finishing dinner with Barber when he is said to have collapsed while sitting on a high-top chair, hitting his head hard on the ground in the process. He was rushed to hospital with swelling around the brain and has been unresponsive for the night and most of the morning. Barber rushed to Gilmer’s side as soon as he heard the news. “By the time I got there, he was unconscious, and the paramedics were there. Then I went to the hospital with him last night. And he’s pretty much just been unresponsive since then,â€� he explained. “He’s in the neurological ICU, a lot of bleeding and swelling in his brain. So, I went by this morning, and that was kind of the last update I had. He’s in pretty critical condition. His parents are flying in tomorrow.â€� To make matters worse Barber was caught up in the false alarm regarding a missile strike in Hawaii when he returned to the hospital in the morning, forcing him to head to lower ground. He returned to Waialae Country Club to play the third round with his brother Shayne on the bag, hoping the golf would take his mind off things. But the emotions got the better of him as he shot a 2-over 72 – dropping him to T68. Barber had considered withdrawing from the event but ultimately decided to play on given there was little he could do. “I’ve been gone from my kids and my wife for ten days, and between that happening to Cory and then just the emotions of facing your own mortality in that moment, it’s just been a heavy day for sure,â€� he said emotionally. “It certainly wiped me out. I was kind of out of it all day, just trying to push through and have something to concentrate on, but it was hard to focus on any of that. “I slept about three hours. That was about the hardest day of golf I’ve ever played.â€� Doctors were trying to contain the swelling medicinally overnight and had not yet taken a surgical route in his recovery. Barber said there was nothing he was aware of in Gilmer’s medical history that would be prone to him collapsing. “Seizures was mentioned (by some in attendance to the collapse), but as far as I know, he collapsed, and the head trauma is the issue,â€� Barber said. “We don’t know why he collapsed. I mean, he could have been dehydrated or any number of things. I don’t think there’s any necessarily clear answers at the moment.â€�

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BROOKLINE, Mass. (AP) — Matt Fitzpatrick of England is a champion again at The Country Club, this time with the grandest of trophies. A U.S. Amateur champion in 2013. The U.S. Open champion Sunday. RELATED: What’s in Fitzpatrick’s bag In a three-way battle at Brookline that came down to the wire, Fitzpatrick seized control with a great break and an even better shot on the 15th hole for a two-shot swing. He was even more clutch from a fairway bunker on the 18th that set up par for a 2-under 68. Victory was not secure until Will Zalatoris, who showed amazing fight-back from every mistake, dropped to his knees when his 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th just slid by the left side of the cup. Zalatoris was a runner-up in the second straight major. Masters champion Scottie Scheffler never recovered from back-to-back bogeys to start the back nine. He had a 25-foot birdie chance on the 18th that just missed and left him one behind. Fitzpatrick is the second man to win a U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open on the same course, joining Jack Nicklaus who turned the trick at Pebble Beach. Juli Inkster won the U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Women’s Open at Prairie Dunes. Along with the $3.15 million in prize money, Fitzpatrick had the gold Jack Nicklaus medal draped around his neck. He moved to No. 10 in the FedExCup standings. Fitzpatrick, who briefly played at Northwestern before turning pro, won for the eighth time worldwide, and this was his first on the PGA TOUR. Fitzpatrick said he won the member-member at The Bear’s Club in Florida at the start of the year, the course Nicklaus built. “He gave me a bit of abuse at the start of the year. He said, ‘Finally. Congratulations for winning in the States,'” Fitzpatrick said with a laugh. And then slightly lifting the trophy, Fitzpatrick sent a fun message to Nicklaus: “Jack, I won a second time.”

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