Cut prediction: The Open Championship

Despite a jam-packed leaderboard at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the back nine on Sunday at Pebble Beach Golf Links mostly was about grazed edges, lipped-out putts and missed opportunities. Daniel Berger held his head near the lead throughout most of the day, performing steadily, and remained optimistic that if he stayed patient long enough, the birdies would arrive. RELATED: Final leaderboard | What's in Berger's bag? Stepping to the 18th tee on one of the most photographed holes on the planet, Berger, 27, needed birdie to win, then did one better. Berger has that kind of flair, that boldness, the confidence that makes him relish the big stage, not shy from it. A beautiful drive (Berger had blocked one out-of-bounds at 18 a day earlier) was followed by what he called "the 3-wood of my life" from 253 yards to 30 feet. The putt for eagle-3 was trickier than it looked, downhill and fast, but was struck with perfect weight, and tumbled in for Berger's fourth eagle of the tournament, his second of the round. He stared at the sky. Victory was his. He punched the air with his right fist, his late heroics pushing him to a final-round, 7-under 65 and an 18-under 270 total. All that drama at the end? "It's just as good as it gets for me," Berger said after his fourth PGA TOUR triumph. Stanford grad Maverick McNealy, 25, a son of California seeking his first victory not far from where he was raised, played nicely on Sunday, making five birdies on his second nine in shooting 66, setting the bar high for Berger to clear. McNealy's solo second finish marked his top showing on TOUR, and he said he learned a lot about the way he handled himself down the stretch. Jordan Spieth, who started the round with a two-shot lead over five players, seeking to break a three-plus year winless stretch, struggled with the driver but birdied his final two holes to shoot 70 and share third with Patrick Cantlay (68). Standing out there on that 18th fairway, knowing McNealy had posted 16 under, Berger decided he was all-in. It's his style, something developed from his younger upbringing as a golf teen in South Florida, trying to keep up with the likes of PGA TOUR players such as Steve Marino and Will MacKenzie. "I've been in this situation before, coming down the last hole, having to hit a good shot," Berger said. "Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t, but you really have to be bold, and I feel like did I that today. "I think the biggest thing is playing fearlessly. You can step up there and be concerned with all the different outcomes and all the different places that ball can go, but in the end it’s just golf, it’s just a golf shot and if you can step up there and kind of free your mind and be fearless, then you have such a better opportunity to hit a good shot." The shot actually called for a draw, but with the wind off the right and Stillwater Cove and rocks awaiting everything hit left, Berger was able to rip his comfortable cut and let the breeze bring the ball back. He said the yardage called for a full 3-wood, and that's what Berger gave it, executing precisely. For the longest time, it appeared he and Nate Lashley, the 2019 Rocket Mortgage Classic champion, would be battling over the final holes, as they were the two who held or shared the lead most of the round. Lashley made a rough exit at the par-4 16th though, missing the green from 152 yards, pitching on, and four-putting from 13 feet. He finished with 69 despite the triple-bogey, and tied for fifth. Just as Berger had to be patient all of Sunday - he did start fast, with an eagle at the par-5 second - golf has been patiently waiting for Berger. People sometimes forget the the is part of that loaded 2011 high school class that includes Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Xander Schauffele. Berger is playing catch up, to an extent. He first had to get on the other side of a bad wrist injury, and the time away taught him that he missed the game more than he realized. It took him time to put Pebble on his schedule, but after three top-10 finishes in as many starts, you can count on him being as loyal as Bill Murray. One element to his growth, Berger said, has been his work with teacher Cameron McCormick, best known as Spieth's longtime instructor. Berger said McCormick has helped him develop a new outlook on the game, not doing much to his unique swing but helping him with new perspective on his short game. He encourages him to be an artist. When Berger told him he had one type of chip shot, with pretty much the same trajectory, same spin, McCormick asked, "How many of the best chippers in the world hit the same shot all the time?" Point taken. Berger, a winner twice in 10 months (2020 Charles Schwab Challenge) now can start looking at his career trajectory a little differently, too. He has a good jump on making the U.S. Ryder Cup team, and now sits 10th in FedExCup standings. He is not afraid to say he wants to be the very best player in the world one day. As in No. 1. Sunday's victory moved him to 13th. No. 1? Some players get ridiculed for such brash statements. But Berger isn't afraid to be bold. On Sunday at Pebble Beach, that approach paid off quite handsomely.

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The TOUR says goodbye to Poa annua and welcomes, for some, the return to Bermuda as the four-week Florida Swing kicks off this week in Palm Beach Gardens. The Champion Course at PGA National, host since 2007 has plenty of Bermuda, not to mention sand, water and The Bear Trap, so a soft landing into the Sunshine State this is not. The field of 144 will tackle Tom Fazio’s Par-70 that stretches to 7,125 yards. Jack Nicklaus did some clean-up work and put TifEagle Bermuda on the greens for the 2015 edition. Water will challenge the players on 15 of 18 holes and there are 67 bunkers to avoid as well. The Bear Trap (Holes Nos. 15-17) will test the nerve and precision of everyone, especially late on Sunday. Nicklaus suggests the tournament should be won or lost here! Generous landing areas off the tee and large Bermuda greens suggest the wind is always a factor at PGA National. Missing the fairways and greens comes with over-seeded Bermuda rough at two inches that makes stopping the ball near the pin nearly impossible. On the line is $1.26 million (500 FedExCup Points) to the winner from the $7 million prize pool. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks RECENT WINNERS 2019: Keith Mitchell (-9, 271) Holed a birdie putt at the last to avoid a playoff with Rickie Fowler and Brooks Koepka and claim his first TOUR win in only his second visit. … Fourth consecutive winner to place in the top seven in driving distance (all holes). … Fourth winner in the last five to place in the top three (first) in Strokes-Gained: Tee-to-Green. … T2 in scrambling and bogey avoidance. … Entered the week MC-MC-73-MC-16 for the season. Notables in the field this week: Wyndham Clark (T7) led after 54 holes and played the final group with K. H. Lee (T7). … Mitchell co-led after 36 holes with Sungjae Im, who shot 64 in Round 2, before finishing T51. … Lucas Glover (T4) opened with 66 and closed with 66. … Ryan Palmer (T4) led the field with 20 birdies and posted the low round of the week, 63, on Sunday. … Vijay Singh (T6) joined Mitchell, Fowler and Sergio Garcia (DNS) as the only four players to post all four rounds par-or-better. … Cut was 2 over. 2018: Justin Thomas (-8, 272) Defeated 54-hole leader Luke List on the first playoff hole for his first victory in four tries here. … Led the field in Strokes-Gained: Tee-to-Green, Scrambling and Strokes-Gained: Approach-the-Green. … Fourth consecutive winner T11 or better in proximity. … Second win of the year (CJ CUP). Notables in the field this week: Tommy Fleetwood (fourth) was a quick learner as he posted all four rounds of par-or-better in his first appearance. … Byeong-Hun An (T5) closed 69-65. … Jamie Lovemark (T5) was two off the 54-hole lead. … Sponsor exemption Sam Burns and birdie leader (19) Emiliano Grillo shared eighth. … Only 11 players broke par for the week. … Cut was 5-over. 2017: Rickie Fowler (-12, 268) The eighth time was a charm as he comfortably won by four shots over Gary Woodland. … Set the 54-hole total record (-13) by two shots. … Only three players since 2013 have posted all four rounds in the 60s. … Fowler (second) is the only winner in the last five years to finish inside the top 23 in Strokes-Gained: Putting. … Fowler didn’t miss a putt inside five feet (57 of 57). … Led the field with 21 birdies. Notables in the field this week: Billy Horschel (T4) put all four rounds at par-or-better. … Jhonattan Vegas (T4) made an ace and closed with 64. … Fowler is the only player to finish in double-digits under-par since the 2014 renovation. … Cut was even-par. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2018-19 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. * – previous top 10 finish here since 2017 Strokes-Gained: Tee-to-Green 7 *Byeong-Hun An 9 Corey Conners 12 *Brooks Koepka 13 *Tommy Fleetwood 14 *Jason Kokrak (T9, 2019) 15 *Emiliano Grillo 16 *Gary Woodland 19 Kevin Streelman 23 Joaquin Niemann 25 *Jim Furyk (T9, 2019) 27 *Jhonattan Vegas Proximity 1 Corey Conners 3 *Jim Furyk 4 Ryan Armour 4 Jason Dufner 4 Vaughn Taylor 7 *Russell Knox 8 Chesson Hadley 10 Louis Oosthuizen 10 Joaquin Niemann 10 Keegan Bradley 14 Brian Stuard 15 Talor Gooch 17 Josh Teater 21 *Russell Henley 21 *Lucas Glover 24 Kyle Stanley 24 *Brooks Koepka Scrambling 1 *Tommy Fleetwood 5 *Lucas Glover 6 Matt Jones 7 Sungjae Im 9 Denny McCarthy 9 Brian Stuard 13 *Jim Furyk 14 Bud Cauley 15 Kiradech Aphibarnrat 18 Rory Sabbatini (2011 winner) 19 Ryan Armour 20 CT Pan 21 Vaughn Taylor 22 Si Woo Kim 24 Jimmy Walker Horses Rickie Fowler: All-time leading money winner has learned how to balance winning golf during a home game. T2-MC-WIN-T6 the last four seasons suggests more than balance! Lucas Glover: Hasn’t missed in his last seven attempts and the last three have cashed T4-T17-T21. Billy Horschel: Florida born, bred and living, the former Gator has rattled off T16, MC, T4 and T8 in his last four visits. Russell Henley: The 2014 champ has cashed in six of seven with T20 and T24 in his last two visits. Cut makers at PGA National Lee Westwood: Five straight but first appearance since 2015. Nick Watney: Five straight. Gary Woodland: Seven straight. Stewart Cink: Nine straight. Jason Dufner: 10 straight.

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