Does Bubba Watson think Bubba Watson can win the U.S. Open?

The opening round at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES provided a stern test to the world’s best. Just 18 of 78 players broke par Thursday, with Chez Reavie leading the way at 4-under 68. The second round begins Friday morning at The Club at Nine Bridges in Jeju Island, South Korea, with United States-based fans able to watch in prime time Thursday evening. Reavie will aim to build his lead, as he chases his second PGA TOUR title, while notables such as South Korea’s Si Woo Kim (3-under) and reigning PGA TOUR Player of the Year Brooks Koepka (1-under) look to establish themselves for the weekend. Here’s how to follow all the action from Jeju Island. Leaderboard Round 2 tee times HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN (ALL TIMES ET) TELEVISION: Wednesday-Saturday, 10 p.m. – 2 a.m. ET (Golf Channel). NOTABLE GROUPINGS 7:05 p.m. ET off No. 10: Marc Leishman, Si Woo Kim, Ernie Els 7:15 p.m. ET off No. 10: Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott 8:15 p.m. ET off No. 1: Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Sungjae Im 8:25 p.m. ET off No. 1: Michael Kim, Ian Poulter, Gary Woodland MUST-READS Chez Reavie takes opening-round lead Win probabilities after Round 1 Six things about Nine Bridges

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South Korea’s Seung-yul Noh, a past winner on the PGA TOUR, announced this week that he will soon begin serving his mandatory two-year military commitment for his country. The CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES, the TOUR’s first regular-season event in Korea, is expected to be Noh’s last TOUR start. The 26-year-old Noh plans to begin his military service in November. The conscription applies to all Korean males between the ages of 18 and 35. Sangmoon Bae, a two-time TOUR winner, recently returned to the PGA TOUR after serving his commitment following the 2015 Presidents Cup. K.J. Choi, winner of THE PLAYERS Championship in 2011 and Korea’s most successful golfer, served at age 22. There are exceptions that eliminate or reduce the commitment time. By winning a gold medal in the men’s team golf competition at the 2006 Asian Games, Sung Kang became exempt from service. Last year, Noh – who won the 2014 Zurich Classic of New Orleans — was hoping to qualify for the Rio Olympics, where he said winning an Olympic medal would reduce his commitment time to just a few weeks. But he did not make the two-man Korean team. Since Noh finished inside the top 125 in FedExCup points during the 2016-17 season (110th), he has membership status secured for this new season. For the 2018-19 season, he will be eligible for a Major Mandatory Obligation extension. Of course, he’ll still be in the military at that point, so that extension will carry over into the 2019-20 season when he returns to competition following the completion of his two-year stint. The Major Mandatory Obligation category, which plays out of the Major Medical category in terms of priority order, will give Noh the opportunity to make an as-yet-undetermined number of PGA TOUR starts in hopes of acquiring enough FedExCup points greater than or equal to No. 125 for this season. The Mandatory Obligation Extension was added to the Major Medical/Family Crisis Extension in July of 2015 to PGA TOUR Regulations by the PGA TOUR Policy Board, when it became official Bae would have to serve his mandatory military obligation following the Presidents Cup. Noh was eliminated from the 2017 FedExCup Playoffs when he missed the cut at THE NORTHERN TRUST, the first Playoffs event. Since then, his only start before this week was the Genesis Championship on the Korean Tour in September. He had reduced his playing schedule while preparing for his commitment and originally was not scheduled to play the CJ CUP. But when Ernie Els withdrew due to the flu, a spot opened up and the tournament extended an invitation to Noh, who was born in Gangwon-do, Korea. He said the lack of practice contributed to his opening 7-over 79, but he bounced back in the second round to shoot a 7-under 65. “I have not played much golf for the past three weeks after the Genesis Championship,â€� Noh said. “I arrived here on Monday and worked very hard to prepare for this Cup on Tuesday and Wednesday. But that three weeks of absence seemed to be quite significant and I just did not know how to swing yesterday. I practiced for about an hour after my round yesterday, and I think I was able to regain my sense of swing, which made the difference.â€� No matter how he finishes, the four rounds at Nine Bridges will be special for him, especially since his dad is also his caddie this week. “When I first became a pro, my dad used to caddie for me for a couple of years and we traveled a lot together,â€� Noh said. “After that, I was traveling alone or my sister was by my side. As you know, since I will be joining the army, I currently do not have a caddie. My dad caddied for me in the last tournament and thought he was still good enough, and that’s why he joined me for THE CJ CUP.â€�

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LEXINGTON, Ky. – David Toms didn’t know exactly what to expect this week. The 52-year-old had entered the Barbasol Championship because he wanted to stay sharp. Toms doesn’t plan to play the Senior Open Championship next week, and he didn’t want to take a four-week break before PGA TOUR Champions returns for its final 11 events of the season. His son Carter was playing in a tournament, too, so there wasn’t really time for a family vacation. So, Tom’s wife Sonya and their daughter Anna said they’d make the four-and-a-half-hour drive to Kentucky from their home in Shreveport with him. So far, it’s been well worth the trip. Toms fired a 64 on Friday that left him tied for third at 12 under, just three strokes off Jim Herman’s lead entering the weekend – with a chance to become the second-oldest winner on the PGA TOUR. Sam Snead, who won the 1965 Greater Greensboro Open at the age of 52 years, 10 months and 8 days, is the first. He has Toms by a matter of four months and nine days. “That would be kind of cool, but I’ve got a long way to go,â€� said Toms, who remembers spending time with Snead at the Masters. “See if we can play well enough tomorrow not to be too far back on Sunday and have a chance.â€� Toms, a 12-time winner on the PGA TOUR, has been his usual patient and steady self during the first two rounds at the Champion Course at Keene Trace Golf Club, a course he’s played several times before in U.S. Open qualifying. The 2001 PGA champion has hit 21 of 28 fairways and 29 of 36 greens in regulation. He’s made one eagle, 14 birdies – pitching in three times Friday from just off the green — and dropped just three shots to par, including on the last hole Saturday that kept him from a share of second. “My first goal was just to play Saturday and Sunday really, and then I started feeling good about it yesterday, the way I was playing, and obviously it carried over to today,â€� Toms said. “So, I’m in good shape. But I’ll have to go really low on the weekend like everybody else is going to have to do. “It’s a longer golf course for me, so it helps that it’s drying up a little bit. So, I don’t have as many scoring opportunities as some of the other players, but if I can take advantage of the ones I do have, I’ll be okay.â€� This is just the third TOUR event he’s played this season, tying for 31st at the Charles Schwab Challenge and missing the cut at the U.S. Open. Toms has three runner-up finishes on the PGA TOUR Champions, though, including in his title defense at the U.S. Senior Open and at another major, the Regions Tradition. “Had opportunities, haven’t been able to get it done,â€� Toms said. “But like I said, everybody out there are champions, all the guys that are playing, so they know how to win. “You have to go out there and do it and I haven’t been able to this year. We still have a lot of tournaments left.  Our fall is pretty important as a player out there, a lot of tournaments. So, I have some opportunities, I just have to get close and see if I can have something go my way.â€� He’s got a prime opportunity this weekend, too.

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