A Tiger Woods guarantee, Tony Romo rumors, and the best Johnny Miller quote of all time

• COURSE: TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm, 7,139 yards, par 70. Once an annual PGA TOUR stop, the facility returns to host duties with a new look that followed a two-year, $20 million overhaul. The original 1986 layout was designed as host of the old Kemper Open, but players never warmed to the course, which also was plagued by drainage and turf issues. The tournament’s demise after 2006 paved the way for massive renovations, with every hole modified in some fashion and major changes to at least a dozen. The new course opened in 2009 and staged the Senior PLAYERS Championship a year later to positive reviews. This will be the Quicken Loans National’s first visit, as the tournament ventures away from Congressional CC in odd-numbered years. • FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 points. • CHARITY: The Tiger Woods Foundation, with proceeds earmarked for two Tiger Woods Learning Center campuses in Washington, D.C., along with 25 Tiger Woods Scholars who come from the D.C. area. • FIELD WATCH: Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas, both top-10 finishers at the U.S. Open after contending early in the final round, give the QLN two of the top dozen players in the current world rankings. … Si Woo Kim, winner at THE PLAYERS six weeks ago, also will tee it up along with PGA Championship titleholder Jimmy Walker. … The lineup includes 16 PGA TOUR winners from this season, including recent winners Billy Hurley (AT&T Byron Nelson) and Kevin Chappell (Valero Texas Open). … Arjun Atwal, winner of the 2010 Wyndham Championship, tees it up for just the fifth time anywhere in 2017. … Recent college stars Wyndham Clark (Oregon) and Sam Horsfield (Florida) both make their second professional starts. • 72-HOLE RECORD: 266, Troy Merritt (2015 at Robert Trent Jones GC). • 18-HOLE RECORD: 61, Troy Merritt (3rd round, 2015 at Robert Trent Jones GC). • LAST YEAR: Billy Hurley III produced perhaps the top feel-good victory of 2016, winning not only in home territory but following a year of adversity that included his father’s suicide. With old (Vijay Singh) and young (Jon Rahm) pursuers making a run, Hurley holed out from 35 yards for birdie at Congressional’s 15th hole, then drained a 27-foot birdie putt at No.16 to seal a three-stroke triumph. The Naval Academy graduate finished at 17-under-par 267, one off Troy Merritt’s tournament record and tying Woods (2009) for the QLN’s best total at Congressional. Singh, 53, fired a final-round 65 for the Hall of Famer’s best finish since taking second at the 2013 Frys.com Open. Rahm tied for third in his professional debut, four shots back alongside Bill Haas. • STORYLINES: Fowler, who lost a playoff to Troy Merritt two years ago, seeks the elusive trophy again in his first start since tying for fifth at the U.S. Open. He already has won once this year at the Honda Classic. … Thomas, who missed the cut at the Travelers Championship after final-round struggles at Erin Hills, seeks a bounceback at TPC Potomac. A top-two finish would vault him to the top of the FedExCup standings past Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama. … Hurley seeks to become the first back-to-back winner in the tournament’s 11-year history. Anthony Kim came closest, following his 2008 victory by finishing third in ’09. • SHORT CHIPS: Woods, who has served as tournament host even when unable to tee it up, may not be in attendance at all this year after announcing he is seeking help to manage a reliance on prescription painkillers. … Hurley became the sixth winner in the past eight editions to convert at least a share of the 54-hole lead. The others: Troy Merritt (2016), Bill Haas (2013), Nick Watney (2011), Justin Rose (2010) and Woods (2009). … As at Congressional, TPC Potomac will feature the “We Salute Our Heroes� tribute wall where fans can leave personal messages of thanks for those who serve in the nation’s military. • TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 3:30-6:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday, 1-2:30 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS). Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m. (GC), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS). • PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (featured groups), 3:30-6:30 p.m. (featured holes). Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m. (featured holes). Sunday, 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m. (featured holes). • RADIO: Thursday-Friday, noon-7 p.m.; Saturday, 1-6 p.m.; Sunday, 1-7 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com).

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Could John Oda be this season’s version of Austin Cook? Oda, who turned pro last fall, does not have any PGA TOUR status, but will be making his fourth start of the season at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. He earned his tee time at TPC Scottsdale by shooting 7-under 65 on Monday at McCormick Ranch Golf Club’s Pine Course in Scottsdale, Arizona. Oda was the medalist in the Phoenix Open’s Monday qualifier, which awards three spots in this week’s PGA TOUR event. Oda finished T8 in his pro debut after receiving a sponsor exemption into the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. That earned him a start at The RSM Classic, where he missed the cut. Oda is now 2-for-2 in Monday qualifiers this season. The Honolulu native qualified for his hometown TOUR event, the Sony Open in Hawaii, for a second consecutive year and now has a spot in the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Cook is a PGA TOUR rookie who won The RSM Classic in November. He first gained attention in 2015, when he finished in the top 25 in five of seven TOUR starts. He Monday qualified three times, received two sponsor exemptions and got into two events after finishing in the top 10 the previous week. Oda finished T67 at this year’s Sony. He’s earned 89 non-member FedExCup points, which most years would be sufficient for him to qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals. Players who earn non-member points equivalent to the amount earned by No. 200 in the FedExCup standings are eligible for the Finals. Three players – PGA TOUR member Cameron Tringale, Richard Lee and Eddie Olson — will participate in a playoff for the final two spots in the field. All three shot 66 on Monday. The playoff will resume at 8 a.m.

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