After a lifetime of instruction, Tiger Woods will go at it alone as he returns to golf at the Farmers Insurance Open. He says the reason is simple: No one knows what a swing is supposed to look like after back fusion surgery.
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AUGUSTA, Ga. — The opening round of the Masters is almost upon us, and, per usual, there’s no lack of storylines to keep track of come Thursday. To get you prepared for the opening round, here are 5 Things to Know about this year’s Masters. 1. A HISTORIC START: The honorary starters are a beloved tradition at the Masters, allowing the tournament to embrace its history before more is made over the next four days. This year, the ceremony will honor an important Masters milestone. Lee Elder, the first Black man to compete at Augusta National, will join Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player on the first tee at 7:45 a.m. Thursday. Elder, who made his Masters debut in 1975, is the first honorary starter added to the ceremony since Player in 2012. Nicklaus hit his first honorary tee shot in 2010 and Arnold Palmer took part until his passing in 2016. 2. THE FIRM: The course conditions this week are a stark contrast to what we saw in November, when Johnson tied the lowest 72-hole score in relation to par in a major championship (20 under par). It’s been several years since players have seen the course this firm in the days leading up to the event. Jose Maria Olazabal, a two-time Masters champion, said, “If the weather stays like this, we’re going to see Augusta as good as ever.” Another former champion, Fred Couples, said the course could play as difficult as it has in a “long, long time.” A firm and fast Augusta National accentuates the genius behind Alister Mackenzie’s masterpiece and often draws the best players to the top of the leaderboard. When Augusta plays fast, the extreme slopes on the course’s famed putting surfaces can funnel good shots toward the hole while increasing the penalty for mishits. This could be the first time since 2017 that the winning score is single digits under par. The average winning score in the last three Masters is 16 under par. 3. FORE(!)-CAST: The weather is the one thing Augusta National can’t control (we think). There is a chance of precipitation this week, which could dramatically alter how the course plays but the rain is far from guaranteed to fall. As of noon Wednesday, there was a 20% chance of rain Thursday evening and 70% chance of scattered thunderstorms Friday afternoon. There’s also a 60% chance of late-afternoon thunderstorms Saturday. Temperatures are expected to be in the high 70s and low 80s every day this week, which should help the course stay firm. 4. QUESTION TIME: Many years, it feels like a handful of players establish themselves as Masters favorites. This year, it feels like there are more questions than answers. Here’s a few to ponder: – Despite three consecutive finishes outside the top 25, can Johnson become the first player since Tiger Woods in 2001-02 to go back-to-back at Augusta? Johnson has finished in the top 10 in five straight Masters. – How will new father Jon Rahm fare after arriving at Augusta on Wednesday? “My concern is that … from Thursday to Monday I didn’t sleep much, didn’t hit a single golf shot,” he said Wednesday. Rahm’s three consecutive top-10s at Augusta National is the second-longest active streak. – Can Rory McIlroy’s new swing coach help him win his first Masters and complete the career Grand Slam? “I think being a little bit more in control of what I do, … that’s the sort of golfer that I want to be going forward,” he said. That could be helpful here. The big number has plagued him several times at this tournament. He had a round of 77 or higher in six Masters appearances in a seven-year span (2010-14, ’16). A decade ago, he famously shot a final-round 80 after taking a four-shot lead into the final round. – Is Brooks Koepka’s surgically-repaired knee strong enough for him to contend at Augusta National? He’s one of just four players to finish in the top 10 in the past two Masters. – What will a bigger Bryson DeChambeau’s second crack at the Masters look like? He finished T34 here last year while struggling with physical issues. DeChambeau said Tuesday that low oxygen was the culprit. “The brain was stressed … and wasn’t feeling that great. And they were like, well, let’s check out your oxygen levels. … And immediately from after changing the way I was breathing, the way I was feeling that day from breathing, it took it out. It literally just went away.” – Can Jordan Spieth win again after last week’s victory at the Valero Texas Open, his first since 2017. Spieth, has four top-3 finishes in seven Masters, including his win in 2015, and the lowest career scoring average (70.46) at Augusta National among players with at least 25 rounds. 5. EXPERIENCE MATTERS: There have been just three Masters rookies to win the Green Jacket, and two of them were in the first two Masters (Horton Smith, 1934; Gene Sarazen, 1935). No rookie has won since Fuzzzy Zoeller in 1979. There’s a good chance that streak continues this year. There are just six first-timers in this year’s field, including just three professionals who are making their Masters debut (Will Zalatoris, Carlos Ortiz and Bob MacIntyre). The three amateurs in this year’s field tie a tournament low; there were also just three amateurs in the 2008 and 1942 Masters. Several big names – including Collin Morikawa, Matthew Wolff, Sungjae Im, Scottie Scheffler and Cameron Champ – are playing their first April Masters this week. Considering the severe contrast in course conditions, there is some limit to what can be learned from last year’s Masters. The course was much softer in November, and there were no patrons last year. A limited number of patrons will be on the grounds this week.
BROOKLINE, Mass. (AP) — The storms dodged Brookline and the stars began to emerge Friday in the U.S. Open. Collin Morikawa showed signs of emerging from pedestrian play at just the right time, matching the low score of the championship with a 4-under 66 for a share of the 36-hole lead with Joel Dahmen and a shot at a third straight year winning a major. He had plenty of company at The Country Club, one player in clear view. Defending champion Jon Rahm played with Morikawa and did his best to keep pace with an eagle and a series of big par putts that felt just as valuable. Rahm had a 67 and was one shot behind in a group that included Rory McIlroy. McIlroy, coming of a win at the Canadian Open, was never more entertaining. He was two holes into his round when an errant approach landed in waist-high fescue. He took a hack. And then another. The third try finally found the green, and he holed a 25-foot putt to salvage a double bogey. McIlroy hit his stride on the back nine with three birdies over his last four holes for a 69. Not to be overlooked was Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, who chipped in from thick rough short of the par-5 14th green for an eagle that brought the Texan back into the mix with a 67. He was two shots behind. “It’s the U.S. Open. No one has taken it deep so far and kind of run away,” Morikawa said. “The last few days is a huge confidence booster for me heading into this weekend, and hopefully we can kind of make some separation somehow.” Morikawa, Rahm and Scheffler have combined to win four of the last nine majors. And then there’s McIlroy, who has four majors by himself, but none since 2014. “I think it’s great for the game of golf that the highest ranked players and the best players are up there, especially in the tournament where truly the best player ends up winning,” Rahm said. The idea of the U.S. Open is to identify the best players. Some of them require some introductions to major championship contention on the weekend. Start with Dahmen, the cancer survivor and everyman who will never be accused of taking himself too seriously, even if he takes his game seriously. He thought about withdrawing from the 36-hole qualifier twice last week, before it started and after the first round. But he stuck it out, and with a 68 on Friday, plays in the final group of a major for the first time. He joined Morikawa at 5-under 135. The group one shot behind includes Hayden Buckley, who actually studied while at Missouri because he never thought playing golf for a living was going to work out. He wasn’t in the U.S. Open until making a 20-foot birdie putt in a playoff for the last spot in his qualifier 11 days ago. He was fading, like so many others, with three bogeys during a five-hole stretch around the turn when he got back on track. Birdies on the last two holes gave him another 68. Also at 136 were Aaron Wise, with one PGA Tour victory and nothing better than a tie for 17th in his nine previous majors; and Beau Hossler, who featured on the weekend at Olympic Club as a teenage amateur in 2012 but hasn’t been heard of since then in the majors. They were examples that the U.S. Open being open to all doesn’t just stop with qualifying for the right to play the toughest test in golf. Signs posted warned of the potential for bad weather as the wind started to shake trees late in the morning. The clouds dispersed and the wind died late in the afternoon, allowing for better scores and a few less mistakes. McIlroy never panicked after his double bogey. He took advantage of the birdie chances on the drivable par-4 fifth and the short par-5 eighth. And he finished strong to get right in the mix, his main goal going into the weekend. Adding to the anticipation for McIlroy was seeing so many familiar names at the top. “You want to go up against the best to try to bring the best out of yourself,” McIlroy said. “And to see Collin and Jon and Scottie and Sam (Burns) up there and whoever else, that’s what major championship golf is all about. That’s what competition is all about. “And that’s at the heart of this game. I’m excited to be in that mix going into the weekend.”
In-Kyung Kim’s clubs went missing on an American Airlines flight in January, but thanks to a TV segment and three very nice golfers, she’s got them back.
