Belgian Pieters takes early lead in Dubai

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ATLANTA – There was a fear before the TOUR Championship debuted its new format that the FedExCup leader could run away with the tournament and create a weekend devoid of drama. That wasn’t the case Thursday at East Lake Golf Club, though. The two-shot advantage that Justin Thomas held when he stepped on the first tee was gone by the 13th tee. After struggling to find fairways and hitting an iron into the water, Thomas finds himself in a three-way tie for the lead with 54 holes remaining. The leading trio features some of the TOUR’s most successful players over the past two years. They’ve combined to win a FedExCup (Thomas), Rookie of the Year (Xander Schauffele) and two Player of the Year awards (Brooks Koepka, Thomas). Koepka also is the hands-down favorite to win this year’s Player of the Year trophy. RELATED: Tee times | How new format works | JT switched driver shafts after last week’s win The leaders sit at 10 under par, one shot ahead of 2016 FedExCup champion Rory McIlroy. Patrick Cantlay and Georgia Tech alum Matt Kuchar are another shot back. Cantlay started the day in second place, while McIlroy and Kuchar both shot 66. Entering Thursday, there were just five players within five shots of the lead. There are now 12. Schauffele made the biggest move. His 64 was the low round of the day by two strokes. Schauffele won at East Lake two years ago to clinch the Rookie of the Year award, then finished seventh the following year. He’s been under par in eight of his nine rounds at East Lake. The exception was an even-par 70. “For how important and how top-notch this tournament is, it’s a very surprisingly relaxed week. You don’t see a bunch of guys grinding on the range in 90 degrees,â€� Schauffele said. “I just think I’m comfortable, and it sort of feeds into my sort of California vibe surprisingly, just because it’s so laid back.â€� Schauffele won twice this year, at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions and Sentry Tournament of Champions. He’s shown a propensity for performing well at the game’s biggest events – he had two top-3s in majors this year – and now is trying to win his first FedExCup. Thomas won the season-long title when Schauffele was victorious at the TOUR Championship. Thomas won eight times in the preceding two seasons, but last week’s win at the BMW Championship was the first win of his injury-interrupted 2019 season. He left Medinah discontent with his driver, and that feeling continued Thursday. He hit less than half his fairways during his first-round 70. “It was very, very close out there, but I definitely — that being said, that’s golf, and I just needed to hit the fairways,â€� Thomas said. His most penal shot was with an iron, though. He hit his tee shot into the water at the 150-yard, par-3 15th. Only three players missed that green Thursday, and he was the only player to hit it in the water. Thomas preceded his first round last week with what he coined the “worst warm-up I’ve ever had.â€� Koepka is hoping he can win this week after a frustrating range session. Like Thomas two years ago, Brooks Koepka is trying to wrap up a Player of the Year campaign with a victory in the FedExCup. Koepka already has three wins this season, including a major (PGA Championship) and World Golf Championship (FedEx St. Jude Invitational). Koepka was “freaking out a little bitâ€� while trying to find his game on the range Tuesday. “I never felt that uncomfortable over the putter or just hitting the ball,â€� Koepka said. He described it as “full panic modeâ€� after he made the turn Thursday and hit his tee shot well right of the fairway. “I felt like the train was off the tracks there on 9 and 10,â€� he said. “I hit that ball on 10, 75 yards right. It started 70 right and cut 5, so that wasn’t very good.â€� He regrouped to birdie three of the final four holes, though. He’ll join his Presidents Cup teammate, Schauffele, in the final group. “It’s funny about this game. When it’s going really well, you’re never thinking. And then all of a sudden, everything kind of abandons you, and you’re trying to figure out, what’s the answer? What’s the answer? How do I right the ship? How do I figure it out? And you start looking at ten different things, and odds are it’s one simple thing,â€� Koepka said. The task ahead is straightforward, as well. Now that one round is in the books, there’s no more talk about starting positions or strokes. Fifty-four holes remain and the leaderboard is all that matters.

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Even though The RSM Classic is just the eighth tournament of the season, it signifies the conclusion of a long year of PGA TOUR action. So, it’s no doubt welcoming that neither course at Sea Island Resort is a grind. The Seaside Course is a par 70 at just 7,005 yards. In its seventh edition as host, it averaged a tournament-low 68.889 a year ago. The Plantation Course measures 7,058 yards, yet it’s a stock par 72. Its scoring average of 69.763 was more than one stroke lower than its debut in 2015. The 36-hole cut fell at 5-under last year. More on both tracks, the format and expectations beneath the ranking. Four consecutive top 20s upon arrival and six in his last seven starts. Perfect in five trips to Sea Island with a playoff loss in 2011 and a T7 in 2013. Season debut. It’s been two years now since he captured his first PGA TOUR title here. After a mild regression, he’s now a threat every time he competes. Like clockwork. He’s opened the new season T19-T15-T4. Ranked T2 in GIR at Mayakoba. He’s also 7-for-7 with three top 10s and a T13 (2016) at Sea Island. It took an illness to sidetrack him in Mexico, but that’s better than a swing-related malady. Seeking to avenge last year’s fade (T45) at the RSM; sat fifth through 54 holes. Since last year’s MC, he’s risen 100 spots in the OWGR to 27th. The lefty already has a pair of top 10s on the board this season. Also placed T10 here in 2013. One of the horses for the courses with a 4-for-4 record that includes a T13 last year. Two top 20s in his last four starts, including a T17 at the Safeway Open. Took three weeks off since launching 2017-18 in T17-T23-T19. Placed T6 in his rookie debut at Sea Island last year. Led field in proximity and birdie-or-better percentage. Making noise a little more often than usual. Top 10s in two of last three starts and five top 25s in his last eight. Three top 20s in four starts at The RSM Classic. Two of his 11 career top 10s have occurred in his only visits to Sea Island, so he’s adapted admirably. Placed T5 at THE CJ CUP four weeks ago. The FedExCup points leader is fresh off his breakthrough win, so a letdown is expected. Or maybe not. He placed T10 and T4 in his previous two starts. Co-led Mayakoba at the midpoint and played in the final threesome in the finale but finished T14. He’s 2-for-2 at The RSM Classic with a T10 last year. A consistent performer both early in the season (4-for-4 with three top 20s) and over the past five-and-a-half months (12-for-13 with seven top 20s). Among the plethora of locals. Although he has five top 25s in six tries, only one was better than a T20. Since the Presidents Cup, he recorded a pair of T31 in Asia. Off to a nice start with a T25 at the Sanderson Farms and a T10 at the Shriners. Making his fifth start at the RSM where he finished a personal-best T27 last year. Showcased his mettle with a T14 in Mexico after fading to a T10 in Vegas. In his debut at Sea Island last year, he was positioned inside the top 20 after 36 holes. Rank player comment POWER RANKINGS: THE RSM CLASSIC Defending champion Mac Hughes, Brandt Snedeker, Zach Johnson and Bubba Watson will be among the notables in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. For everyone who has worked as a course maintenance staffer in the Southeast, the last couple of years have tested that passion. Last year, Tropical Storm Hermine and Hurricane Matthew blew through the Golden Isles in the months leading up to The RSM Classic. This year, it was Hurricane Irma. But once again, after five dozen trees were removed and recovery from the storm surge was complete, both Seaside and Plantation are ready. As it pertains to the competition, preparation to challenge the field of 156 demands consistency since every golfer gets one round on the Plantation Course before the cut falls. Half the field will open on the co-host, while the other half will take its turn in the second round. Only Seaside hosts the final two rounds. Bermudagrass greens will be receptive, so splitting fairways won’t be as much of a prerequisite as a coincidence on the shorter courses. As with any shootout, hitting greens in regulation and converting on those opportunities is key. Mac Hughes ranked T50 in GIR en route to victory last year, but he still averaged 13 per round. Of the five in the playoff from which he emerged, the Canadian authored the strongest short game. (Only Seaside is lasered for ShotLink purposes.) A primary motivation to introduce Plantation two years ago was so that all of the Web.com Tour graduates could plan on making the trip. That’s pivotal because the first reshuffle of 2017-18 will occur after the conclusion of the tournament. Once the calendar turns over in January, playing time for the guys near the bottom of the category will be reduced until fields expand to 156 in the second half of April. Mother Nature will walk off official competition in 2017 with primarily cloudless skies and a drop-off in the daytime high temperature. After peaking in the mid-70s on Saturday, it’ll be some 10 degrees cooler for the finale. Wind is almost always a variable along the coast, but it’s proven not to be as much of a challenge as other destinations. ROB BOLTON’S WRITING SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Columnist Rob Bolton will be filing his usual staples leading up to this week’s event. Look for the following columns this week. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.

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