A golden breakthrough for Xander Schauffele

A star-studded field has gathered near Hollywood for the PGA TOUR’s annual stop at historic Riviera Country Club. That means this week’s Featured Groups are loaded with players who can be identified by just a single name. Tiger. Rory. JT. Phil. DJ. Jordan. They’ll all be on PGA TOUR LIVE this week. PGA TOUR LIVE’s broadcasts on Thursday and Friday will begin at 9:30 a.m. Eastern. After the Featured Groups, Featured Holes coverage will run from 3-6 p.m. on Thursday and 4-8 p.m. on Friday. The Featured Holes are Riviera’s famous 10th hole, a drivable par-4, and the par-3 16th. The weekend broadcasts will begin at 10 a.m. with Featured Holes coverage followed by the CBS simulcast. PGA TOUR LIVE also can be viewed on Twitter on Thursday and Friday. Coverage will begin at 9:30 a.m. Eastern and end at approximately 11 a.m. Here’s a closer look at the players you’ll see on PGA TOUR LIVE this week. (Note: FedExCup ranking in parentheses) THURSDAY Tiger Woods (175), Rory McIlroy (NR), Justin Thomas (10) Thomas and McIlroy are the past two FedExCup champions, while Woods is the only man to win the Cup more than once. Woods, who’s made 10 starts at Riviera, is still seeking his first victory in his hometown event. He first played here in 1992 as a 16-year-old but this will be his first appearance at Riviera since 2006. He is coming off a T23 finish in his return to the TOUR at Torrey Pines. Thomas, the reigning FedExCup champion, won earlier this season at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES. Phil Mickelson (18), Matt Kuchar (83), Tommy Fleetwood (160) There could be some trash talk in this grouping of prospective Ryder Cup opponents. Mickelson and Kuchar have been stalwarts for the U.S. team in Presidents and Ryder cups, while Fleetwood seems like a lock to represent Europe for the first time this year. Fleetwood, who’s playing his first season as a PGA TOUR member, is coming off an impressive win in Abu Dhabi. He has finished no worse than sixth in his past four worldwide starts. Mickelson, a two-time winner at Riviera, seems to be closing in on his first win in nearly five years; he’s coming off a T5 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and runner-up finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Kuchar, runner-up to Jordan Spieth at last year’s Open Championship, also finished fifth in Phoenix. FRIDAY Jordan Spieth (80), Patrick Cantlay (11), Kevin Chappell (48) UCLA is just four miles from Riviera, and Bruins fans will be able to cheer for two alums in this group. Chappell won the 2008 NCAA individual title while a Bruin, leading UCLA to the team title. Cantlay was the world’s No. 1 amateur during his tenure at UCLA. He won his first PGA TOUR title earlier this season at the Shriners for Children Hospitals Open. Spieth, the 2015 FedExCup champ, has good memories here. He led Texas to the 2012 NCAA title at Riviera in his lone full season for the Longhorns. Spieth beat Thomas in the championship match between Texas and Alabama, holing a 4-iron for eagle on No. 15 en route to a 3-and-2 win over his good friend. Dustin Johnson (3), Adam Scott (165), Bubba Watson (166) This group features three former winners of the Genesis Open, including the defending champ. Johnson won here last year after finishing 2nd-T2-4th in his previous three starts at Riviera. Johnson has a victory and two runners-up in his past three official PGA TOUR starts. Watson, who will participate in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game this week at Staples Center, won the Genesis Open in 2014 and 2016. Scott won an unofficial victory here in 2005 after the tournament was shortened to 36 holes because of inclement weather.

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Patrick Reed, thanks to his breakthrough major win at the Masters, is a Best of April finalist for the Team USA Awards presented by Dow. The awards recognize the outstanding achievements of Team USA athletes from last month. Reed is one of four PGA TOUR golfers who represented Team USA at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Fans can vote for their favorite athletes and teams through midnight Monday, May 7. Click here to vote. A total of 10 sports – including curling, equestrian, fencing, golf, gymnastics, Para swimming, Para track and field, shooting, tennis, and track and field – are represented among the 13 finalists across men’s, women’s and team categories. Reed won his first major at Augusta National, collecting the sixth victory of his TOUR career. He’s currently ranked fifth in the FedExCup standings and 10th in the Official World Golf Ranking. At the 2016 Olympics, Reed finished T-11. Matt Kuchar was the top American performer, collecting the bronze medal behind England’s Justin Rose (gold) and Sweden’s Henrik Stenson (silver). Golf will again be part of the Olympics at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. Here’s a complete list of the April finalists: Male Athlete of the Month Patrick Reed (Spring, Texas), Golf  — Secured his first major golf title at the Masters, finishing 15-under at 273 after firing a final-round 71 to edge fellow Team USA Olympian Rickie Fowler by one stroke. Jeremy Campbell (Perryton, Texas), Para Track and Field — Opened the season by defeating the reigning Paralympic champion with a world-record mark of 65.47 meters to win the men’s F64 discus at the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational. Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Massachusetts), Fencing — Improved to a career-high No. 3 world ranking after earning the bronze medal in saber at the grand prix in Seoul, South Korea. Robert Griswold (Freehold, New Jersey), Para Swimming — Won two gold medals in the 400-meter freestyle and 100 backstroke and set American and Pan American records in the 100 butterfly at the World Para Swimming World Series. Vincent Hancock (Eatonton, Georgia), Shooting — Captured his second consecutive gold medal by tying his own world record in the skeet final, topping the reigning Olympic champion at the world cup in Changwon, South Korea. Female Athlete of the Month Desiree Linden (San Diego, California), Track and Field — Became the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years, overcoming brutal weather conditions to clock 2:39:54 – more than five minutes ahead of the field. Beezie Madden (Cazenovia, New York), Equestrian — At age 54, became the oldest world cup jumping champion, and only the second American to win the Longines FEI World Cup Jumping Final twice and only the sixth U.S. woman to accomplish the feat. Tatyana McFadden (Clarksville, Maryland), Para Track and Field — Won her fifth Boston Marathon and finished second in the London Marathon six days later, improving her record to 22 world major marathon series victories. Kim Rhode (El Monte, California), Shooting — Bested her own world cord, hitting 58-60 targets en route to her second consecutive gold medal in women’s skeet at the world cup in Changwon, South Korea.   Leanne Smith (Beverly, Massachusetts), Para Swimming — Set four American records and three Pan American records in the 50-, 100- and 200-meter freestyle and 50 butterfly at the World Para Swimming World Series. Team of the Month Jamie Sinclair Rink, Curling — Made U.S. history by becoming the first American team to win a Grand Slam of Curling event at the Players’ Championship in Ontario, defeating the reigning world champion and improving to a No. 6 world ranking. U.S. Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Team — Clinched its tenth consecutive Pacific Rim Championship title with a 15-point margin of victory, with Grace McCallum and Morgan Hurd finishing 1-2 in the all-around competition. U.S. Davis Cup Team, Tennis — The team of John Isner, Sam Querrey, Jack Sock, Steve Johnson and Ryan Harrison advanced to the Davis Cup semifinal for the first time since 2012 after defeating Belgium, 3-0.

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