Course at SentryWorld in Wisconsin to remain closed all year as opening of resort’s inn is delayed

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Thursday’s first round at the Wyndham Championship started poorly for Brandt Snedeker, as he snap-hooked a 3-wood off the 10th tee, leaving him on the wrong side of the cart path left of the fairway. It was 7:40 a.m. at Sedgefield Country Club, and already he was in scramble mode. Not to worry. His next 58 shots were of significantly higher quality. The final stroke was a birdie putt from 20 feet, 4 inches, just off the fringe and below the hole at the par-4 ninth, and it put Snedeker in the record book with the 10th round of 59-or-better on the PGA TOUR. Thanks to his opening bogey, Snedeker’s 59 is the first in which a player was over-par at any point of the round. “Crazy day,� he said, still wrapping his head around the 11-under round — and an 8-under 27 coming in — that left him with a substantial first-round lead. On one hand, it’s not surprising that Snedeker joined the 59 Club. You might even make the argument that it was inevitable, given that when he heats up, he runs hotter than most. He’s shown that on several occasions, most notably the third round of the 2012 HSBC Champions in China, when he reached the 18th hole with a chance to shoot the first 59 on the European Tour. He couldn’t convert the birdie putt, leaving him with a 60 — still tied for the lowest score on that tour. He also showed early in his TOUR career that he can go super-low. In just the eighth round of his first full season in 2007, he shot an opening 61 at Torrey Pines North that included seven birdies and an eagle for a 27 in his first nine holes. Of the TOUR’s 13 nine-hole scores of 27-or-better, Snedeker is the only player to do it twice (Corey Pavin is the only one to record a 26). He knows how to produce lots of birdies. In three of the previous seven seasons, he’s finished inside the top 10 on TOUR in birdie average. Most of the damage he does with his flatstick. “That putter,� said his caddie, Travis Perkins, not feeling the need to elaborate. Plus, it’s no surprise that Snedeker went low at Wyndham. Of his three previous career-low rounds of 61 on TOUR, one of those was at Sedgefield in 2015. And his lowest final round on TOUR was also in the Wyndham, albeit at Forest Oaks in 2007. He shot a 63 that Sunday to win his first TOUR event. On the other hand, Snedeker entered this week hardly in the best shape to shoot a 59. His last win was two years ago. His eight missed cuts this season are in his most since 2011, and he’d only finished top-3 just once in 22 starts, last month at The Greenbrier. He tried to convince himself that his game was coming around, but he acknowledged on Wednesday that it has been a frustrating season, that his hard work on the range had yet to be rewarded. His play during the pro-am was nothing to get excited about. “As much as I tried to positive self-talk myself into playing good, I didn’t see 59 coming today, to be honest with you,� Snedeker said. “But I kind of found something late yesterday on the golf course that kind of built on what I was working on earlier in the week.� Even later that night, he was on the range at Sedgefield. He hit five balls, was thrilled that his swing seemed to be properly syncing up, and called it an evening. He left thinking he could take an aggressive approach into Thursday. He didn’t let the wayward opening tee shot derail him. He rolled in a putt from 26 feet, 3 inches for birdie at the 13th and followed with a birdie from practically the same distance on the next hole. Two more birdies immediately followed, but the key stroke might have been his bunker shot at the 18th. He blasted to within 8 feet and made the putt for par. “Probably not many guys are going to get up-and-down out of that bunker today,� Snedeker said. “It’s just a death place to be. Hit a great bunker shot and to make that putt to keep the momentum going.� Said Perkins: “He made a couple of long putts, but he wasn’t hitting it that great. Then something clicked right as we made the turn.� Indeed. His approach at No. 1 finished inside 4 feet. Birdie. His approach at No. 2 finished inside 2-1/2 feet. Birdie. His tee shot at No. 3 finished inside 5-1/2 feet. Birdie. His third shot to the par-5 fifth finished inside 2-1/2 feet. Birdie. “You can see why I shot 59,� Snedeker said, smiling. “I had a lot of tap-ins.� Then came the par-4 sixth. He didn’t even need his putter. From 176 yards on his approach shot, he cut a 7-iron and the ball sailed into the hole for eagle. He didn’t even see it go in; in fact, he didn’t realize it until he reached the green. Once there, he also realized his ball had “destroyed the cup a little bit.� Damage to the cup forced tournament officials to first, try to fix the issue (to no avail), then eventually moving the cup 18-20 inches. Snedeker was now 9 under through 15 holes. The unusual delay as the hole was re-cut allowed him to take an emotional breather and contemplate his legitimate chase at history. “I’ve got two birdie holes left I know of — that’s 8 and 9,� Snedeker recalled. “It’s not crazy to shoot 59. Like that’s why we’re here. Let’s keep going. Don’t be complacent now because you’re 9-under par. Take advantage of the opportunity.� Which he did with a 5-iron to inside 3 feet at the par-3 seventh. Now he was 10 under and headed to the shortest and easiest par-4 on the course, the 352-yard eighth. At that point, playing partner Billy Horschel figured 59 was now inevitable. “Almost made a hole-in-one,� Horschel said. “Oh my gosh, he’s going to shoot 59. This is awesome.� Actually, 59 was no longer the biggest target. Snedeker now had a shot at joining Jim Furyk, the only player on TOUR to shoot 58. He turned to Perkins and said simply, “C’mon, two more.� His approach at the eighth finished inside 3 feet. Another tap-in, right? Only this time, he missed the delicate birdie putt. “We left it on the wrong side of the hole,� Perkins said. “It was downhill, right to left. That was a tough putt to make.� The missed putt could have easily been the momentum killer, an emotional deflater. Snedeker refused to let it carry over to his final hole. “Try to tell myself, listen, it’s not the end of the world,� Snedeker recalled. “You still have a birdie hole left. I kind of had in my mind if I make this putt, I’ve got one more birdie to shoot 58 and tie Jim Furyk for 58. “So when I missed the putt, I got a little disappointed right away, but I said, you know what, if I hit the fairway on 9, I’m going to have a birdie opportunity. I’m going to figure out a way to get it done.� So he found the fairway, then hit a 9-iron that left his ball clinging on the fringe. It was uphill, right to left, into the green. Snedeker could be aggressive with the putt. He told himself one thing. You’re not going to leave this thing short. You don’t know when this is going to happen again. His stroke was solid and pure. The ball was still 6 feet from the cup, but he knew it was going to fall. He knew 59 would be the number written on his scorecard. He celebrated with handshakes and hugs from both playing partners, Horschel and Hideki Matsuyama. Horschel had never seen a 59 in person. His smile was almost as big as Snedeker’s. “I was jacked up for him,� Horschel said. “I said, ‘Oh dude, that was awesome. Special playing.’ I was thrilled. I mean, I was speechless.� Snedeker wasn’t speechless. More like satisfied. An opportunity had presented itself — and now he was in the record books. “It’s very rare out here when you have something you’re trying to do and you step up with this pressure and all the stuff on you and you do it,� he said. “You hit the shots you’re supposed to hit and you make the putts you’re supposed to do. “If you don’t get excited for that, then you need to find another job.�

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On arguably the toughest non-major course on the PGA TOUR, Keith Mitchell birdies four of the last seven holes, including a clutch putt from 15 1/2 feet at the last, to break through for his first win at The Honda Classic. Welcome to the Monday Finish, where Mitchell dominated from tee to green, held his nerve, and shot up 85 spots to 17th in the FedExCup. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1. Mitchell used ‘no-name’ quip as fuel. Not many people had Mitchell winning The Honda Classic before the tournament began, and for good reason. His last top-10 finish before Sunday: a T7 at the John Deere Classic last July. Heck, people couldn’t even get his name right. Baseball fans who recall a certain former San Francisco Giants third baseman sometimes call him Kevin Mitchell. Undaunted, the golfer used the confusion to his advantage. “I feel like I play better when I try to come from behind or when people don’t expect you to win,â€� Mitchell said, “and a friend of mine sent me a newspaper article and it says ‘No-name is leading Honda after Friday.’ And I don’t expect to have any great stuff to be written about me because I’ve only been out here for a year, so I’m not saying that in a negative light. “I just used that as a little kind of emotion,â€� he added, “that everyone gets their start somewhere, everyone gets their first win somewhere, and I wanted this to be mine, and I was able to do it.” 2. Clutch shots abounded. First came Ryan Palmer, who went out some two hours ahead of the leaders but shot up the leaderboard with his closing 63, including a 29 on the front, to get to 7-under for the tournament. Then came Lucas Glover, who drained a must-make birdie on 18 for a 66 to tie Palmer at 7-under. Mr. Clutch Brooks Koepka made yet another crucial birdie on 18 to get to 8-under. Rickie Fowler rolled in a ridiculous, nearly 45-foot birdie putt on 17 and got up and down from the back bunker to birdie 18, as well, joining Koepka at 8-under. Clutch. Clutch. And clutch. Then came Mitchell’s heroics at the last, where he refused to be sidetracked by his wayward tee shot. He played the hole against type, which is to say he took three shots to make his way to the green before making the deciding, left-to-right birdie putt. “Thankfully, I knew what it was doing before I even got there,â€� Mitchell said of his final stroke. “I mean, all the grain on the green goes left to right, the slope on the green goes left to right, and it was a little uphill. So, I didn’t really have that much questioning in terms of my read and my speed.â€� 3. Fowler had the low-key reaction of the week. Rickie Fowler admitted he did not have his best day with the driver, but it was hard to be too critical after he birdied three of the last four holes, including that crazy, almost 45-foot birdie putt on 17, only to notch his 14th runner-up finish on TOUR. “It’s hard to separate yourself here on such a tough golf course, especially in the conditions,â€� Fowler said after making a nerveless up-and-down birdie out of the back-left bunker on 18, only to watch Mitchell clip him by one. “You can’t really run away. It’s tough to do that. … I’m happy with the way I finished, and at least I gave myself a chance.â€� Fowler had the longest made putt of the third round, from 56 ½ feet at the par-4 6th. In the fourth round, he connected from 44 feet, 10 inches at the par-3 17th hole, keeping himself in the tournament, then gave barely a wave–easily the low-key reaction of the week. 4. Water/wind combination took a toll. On a course with as much water and wind as PGA National, disaster avoidance is key. Mitchell did not make anything worse than a bogey, but Rickie Fowler triple-bogeyed the par-4 sixth hole Thursday (and still shot 67), while Brooks Koepka double-bogeyed the par-3 15th hole on Thursday, the par-3 fifth on Friday, and the par-4 second hole Saturday. Fowler and Koepka putted well, but couldn’t completely overcome their blow-up holes. “I know I don’t need my “A” game to be in contention,â€� said Koepka, who reported being fractionally off from tee to green. “I feel like as long as I do one thing really well, whether it’s iron play, putting like this week, I’m going to be in contention. I’m going to give myself a chance at a win come Sunday with nine holes to go, and that’s all you want to do. “I felt like I hit it kind of OK,â€� he added. “Iron play was definitely not up to par, but I drove it OK, too. I hit some shots. I mean, it’s so difficult with this wind, too, to really find a rhythm, and especially if you’re not quite striking it as well.â€�     5. Singh was a surprise and an inspiration. Sam Snead remains the oldest to win on TOUR. He was 52 when he captured the 1965 Wyndham Championship. Vijay Singh, 56, had that record in his sights before he bogeyed the 17th hole and failed to birdie the par-5 18th. He finished solo sixth, his first top-10 since he was runner-up at the 2016 Quicken Loans National. “It’s so amazing what that guy can do at his age,â€� said Mitchell. “I’m standing there holding the trophy and my back is already kind of hurting a little bit. That guy is 30 years older than me and he’s out there hitting more balls than I am. “That guy is a true testament to fitness,â€� Mitchell continued, “to health, to just (being) a true competitor because there’s days that I wake up and kind of not feeling right, and I don’t really want to hit balls, et cetera, and he’s out there grinding and competing at — is it 56? At 56. If I’m anywhere near a golf course at 56, I’m going to be excited.â€� FIVE INSIGHTS 1. Mitchell led the field for the week in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (+11.917), and ranked T2 in Scrambling (21 of 27). He joined Michael Thompson (2013), Y.E. Yang (2009), Mark Wilson (2007), Padraig Harrington (2005), Todd Hamilton (2004) and Matt Kuchar (2002) as players to earn their first TOUR win at The Honda Classic since 2000. 2. Just one of many reasons to be bullish on this year’s winner: Each of the last three winners of The Honda Classic before Mitchell went on to finish in the top seven of the FedExCup: Justin Thomas (2018/7th), Fowler (2017/7th), and Adam Scott (2016/4th). 3. Defending champion Thomas finished T30 in his attempt to become the only other player besides Jack Nicklaus (1977, ’78) to successfully defend his title at The Honda Classic. Brooks Koepka (66, T2) was trying to keep the trophy in Jupiter after fellow residents Fowler Thomas won it in ’17 and ’18, respectively. 4. Mitchell joined the following University of Georgia winners on TOUR: Bubba Watson (12), Chris Kirk (4), Chip Beck (4), Tim Simpson (4), Billy Kratzert (4), Russell Henley (3), Brian Harman (2), Harris English (2), Kevin Kisner (2), Hudson Swafford (1), Brendon Todd (1), Ryuji Imada (1). 5. Jim Furyk (T9) focused largely on his Ryder Cup captaincy last season, but he recorded a top-10 finish for the fifth time in 10 starts at The Honda Classic. The 17-time TOUR winner and 2010 FedExCup champion, 48, moved up 33 spots to 64th in the current FedExCup standings. WYNDHAM REWARDS The Wyndham Rewards Top 10 is in its first season and adds another layer of excitement to the FedExCup Regular Season. The top 10 players at the end of the FedExCup Regular Season will earn bonus payouts from the Wyndham Rewards Top 10. There were no changes at the top after The Honda Classic, with the top four players holding their positions. In finishing T2 at PGA National, reigning PGA TOUR Player of the Year Brooks Koepka was the biggest mover among the Wyndham Rewards Top 10, going from 17th to 8th.

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The man in the arena at the Puerto Rico Open qualifier was medalist Christian Salzer, who rebounded from a three-putt bogey at the opening hole to card 7-under 64, earning his first career PGA TOUR start. The 23-year-old who turned professional last June had made just one start in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event, missing the cut at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard in early February. The North Carolina State alum has mostly tested his game on mini-tours. In his professional debut, he finished T3 at the 2021 Mimosa Open on the GProTour after carding rounds of 64-65-68. He felt like his game had been solid all year, he said, but hadn’t really cashed in until Monday. “Whole lot different than college golf,” Salzer told PGA TOUR Digital after the round. “Pars are good in college, but they don’t cut it in professional golf no matter what level you are. Mini-tours teach you to keep your foot on the gas and keep making birdies.” Salzer, who chalked up eight birdies on Monday, always believed he had the talent to compete on the PGA TOUR. But it has taken time and veteran advice from former North Carolina State golfer and 2010 PLAYERS Championship winner Tim Clark to propel Salzer’s game. “Tim told me something once when we were at his house for a college tournament,” Salzer said. “He said that the club and the golf ball don’t know what the shot is for, or how much it means, or what could go wrong. It resonated with me and put things in perspective. Golf doesn’t change or get harder. No matter the situation, only the player can put the pressure on and make it harder.” Salzer will look to channel that newfound perspective this week as he makes his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open. Patrick Flavin qualified for his second PGA TOUR event of the season after posting a 6-under 65. Flavin’s T17 finish at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship was tied for best for a Monday qualifier this year until Martin Contini’s finish at The Honda Classic last week. Alejandro Tosti tied Flavin at 6-under and will make his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open. Tosti becomes the third Argentinian in the last two weeks to qualify for a PGA TOUR event. The 4-for-1 playoff to decide the last qualifier for the Puerto Rico Open ended on the fourth extra hole when veteran Brett Stegmaier made birdie. His most recent PGA TOUR start came at the 2018 Wyndham Championship, finishing T11. Drew Nesbitt, Brian Carlson and Brian Richey fell just shy of Puerto Rico Open entry via the 4-for-1 playoff. It marked the second consecutive week in which Richey lost in a Monday qualifier playoff, after he competed in last week’s 16-for-1 playoff at The Honda Classic qualifier. Here’s a capsule look at the four Puerto Rico Open qualifiers … Christian Salzer (7-under 64) Age: 23 College: North Carolina State Turned pro: 2021 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Will make PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open … Made Korn Ferry Tour debut at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard, resulting in missed cut … Played four years of college golf at North Carolina State … Finished senior year with 71.57 scoring average, which was 12th lowest in program history … Prior to North Carolina State, Salzar ranked as the No. 2 junior in the state of South Carolina … Won the 2015 South Carolina Junior Championship … Represented the United States at the 2015 Can – Am Championship. Alejandro Tosti (6-under 65) Age: 25 College: University of Florida Turned pro: 2018 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Will make his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open … Has two top-25 finishes in three starts on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica this season … Currently No. 18 on Totalplay Cup… Finished inside the top-10 three times in eight events on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica in 2019 … Won the 2019 Termas de Rio Hando Invitational on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica … Turned pro in 2018 … Had already recorded two finishes inside the top-20 on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica as an amateur … Played collegiately at the University of Florida … Was 2017 Golfweek First Team All-America and First Team All-SEC … Made the 2015 SEC All-Freshman Team … Won individual portion of the 2017 SEC Championship at Sea Island, Georgia … Won first and last event while playing for the University of Florida … Represented Argentina at the 2014 World Amateur Team Championship in Japan … Finished T2 with Lucas Herbert in the 2014 Eisenhower Trophy for individual play, three strokes shy of winner Jon Rahm. Patrick Flavin (6-under 65) Age: 26 College: Miami (Ohio) Turned pro: 2018 PGA TOUR starts: 2 Cuts made: 1 Notes: Will make second start of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season at the Puerto Rico Open … Qualified for the 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship and finished T17 … Has made two cuts in three events on the 2021-22 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica … Best finish was 18th at the 115 VISA Argentine Open presented by Macro … Played five events on the 2020-21 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica, recording one finish inside the top-10 at the 61 Abierto Mexicano de Golf … Played 13 events on the 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour, finishing T5 at the Evans Scholars Invitational presented by First Midwest Bank and T10 at the Wichita Open Benefitting KU Wichita Pediatrics … Finished T5 in the Forme Open at TPC River’s Bend and T7 at the Forme Tour Championship on the 2021 Forme Tour … Played 16 events on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica in 2019, winning the Bupa Match Play and finishing inside the top five in two other events (Shell Championship; 66 JHSF Aberto De Brasil) … Two-time Miami (Ohio) Athlete of the Year … Stands No. 658 on the Official World Golf Ranking. Brett Stegmaier (5-under 66; birdie on fourth hole of 4-for-1 playoff) Age: 38 College: University of Florida Turned pro: 2006 PGA TOUR starts: 80 Cuts made: 40 Notes: Puerto Rico Open will be Stegmaier’s first PGA TOUR event since the 2017-18 PGA TOUR season … Played 34 events on the 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour … T11 at Live and Work in Maine Open was best result … Opened 2019 Korn Ferry Tour season with back-to-back finishes inside the top-10 in the Bahamas … Best Korn Ferry Tour finish was second at the 2014 Chitimacha Louisiana Open presented by MISTRAS … Played on the PGA TOUR from 2015-16 to 2017-18 … Best finish was T2 at the 2015 Shriners Children’s Open … Stands No. 915 on the Official World Golf Ranking. Notables to fall short of qualifying: Brian Richey, Chase Koepka, Tom Lovelady, M.J. Maguire, Erik Compton, Mickey DeMorat, Jamie Lovemark, Max Sear, Daniel Wetterich, Ben Silverman, Kyle Reifers, Marcelo Rozo, Andrew Svoboda, Andrew Loupe, Nicholas Thompson, Stephen Stallings Jr., Mark Baldwin This week’s Puerto Rico Open qualifiers will aim to build on the momentum cultivated at The Honda Classic last week. Three of The Honda Classic’s four open qualifiers survived the cut. Argentinian Martin Contini was T7 heading into the final round at PGA National (Champion) before finishing T16. It was the best finish by a Monday qualifier so far in 2022. Rick Lamb, who qualified last Tuesday morning after making eagle on the first hole of a 16-for-1 playoff, carried his quality play to PGA National and finished T30. It was his best finish on the PGA TOUR since the 2017 Wyndham Championship. Sam Stevens, medalist at The Honda Classic qualifier, was T19 heading into the final round before carding 4-over 74 and finishing T55. 2021-22 Monday qualifier statistics Top-25s: Martin Contini (T16, The Honda Classic); Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship) Best finish: Martin Contini (T16, The Honda Classic) Most times qualified: Patrick Flavin (2); Kyle Wilshire (2); Ben Silverman (2) Last event’s qualifier results (The Honda Classic): Martin Contini (T16); Rick Lamb (T30); Sam Stevens (T55); Fabián Gómez (MC) Next PGA TOUR qualifier: Valspar Championship; Southern Hills Plantation Club, March 14

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