Featured Groups: Wyndham Championship

AUGUSTA, Ga. — A long day in the small window of daylight that comes with a Masters Tournament in November didn’t settle anything except that Dustin Johnson is playing like a top player and Justin Thomas has finally figured out Augusta National. RELATED: Leaderboard | Johnson, Thomas take share of lead | McIlroy bounces back They were among four players atop the leaderboard Friday when the second round was halted by darkness, a product of the most unusual Masters ever trying to catch up from a three-hour weather delay at the start. Among those still on the course was Tiger Woods, stuck in neutral on a day when the greens picked up a little more speed and the autumn leaves shook slightly with some wind. Bryson DeChambeau was struggling to make the cut after a lost ball that led to a triple bogey. Abraham Ancer, one of 26 newcomers to the Masters, ran off six birdies in his round of 5-under 67 that allowed him to join Johnson (70) and Thomas (69) as part of the clubhouse lead at 9-under 135. Also tied was Cameron Smith of Australia, who played his last four holes with an eagle and three straight birdies for a 68. Another Masters rookie, Sungjae Im (70), was in the group another shot behind that included Patrick Cantlay (66), who contended for the green jacket last year. "You have to really throw all the past knowledge out the window this week, as weird as it is," Thomas said. "A lot of the history and things that you know about the golf course, it can sometimes hurt you this week because of what you’re used to. But at the end of the day, it is a lot softer and a lot more scorable." He served up one example from Friday morning when he was among 44 players who had to finish his opening round. Thomas was well left of the 15th green in two with the pin to the right, leaving a pitch that typically is nearly impossible to hit close. He hit a hard, low pitch that hit the brakes at the hole and spun gently to tap-in range for birdie. "I had to trust that I just had to gas it and hit it pretty hard and it was going to spin," Thomas said. "Balls are making pitch marks with chip shots and pitch shots." Johnson was among three players to finish one shot behind Woods at the last Masters, and he appeared to be hitting his stride with four birdies on the back nine to cap off a 65 in the morning. That gave him a share of the 18-hole lead with Dylan Frittelli and Paul Casey. Johnson quickly became the first player this week to reach 10 under with three birdies around Amen Corner. But then he had some mud on his ball — that’s not unusual this week — that sent his ball to an impossible shelf on the 14th green, leading to a three-putt bogey. Next, his 3-iron caught a small gust on the par-5 15th, and that was enough to hit the front of the green and roll back into the water. That led to bogey. Momentum gone? Johnson shrugged. But he followed with 11 straight pars — shots in the bunker cost him good birdie chances on the par 5s on the front nine — until stuffing his last approach to 6 feet for birdie on No. 9. After a wet start, the forecast was shaping up for a nice weekend, and there was a buzz at Augusta National on Friday. It wasn’t from the crowd — no patrons were allowed this year — but from the motors of the sub-air system. "I think it can firm up a little bit, but it’s going to be tough for it to get firm," Johnson said. "I think it’s going to be soft enough to where you're going to have to attack the golf course and play aggressive and keep swinging like I am. I like where I'm at. I like my position." Of those still on the course, Hideki Matsuyama was at 8 under with three holes to play, while Jon Rahm birdied the par-3 12th hole to reach 8 under when play was suspended. Woods left the course on Thursday with only three players ahead of him. He was tied for 10th when the first round ended, and he was tied for 22nd when he left Friday night with two birdies on the par 5s and bogeys on the third and seventh, the latter from a tee shot close enough to the Georgia pines that his only shot was to hit a runner into the front bunker. DeChambeau, the betting favorite coming into the week because of his enormous bulk and power off the tee, took a big swing on No. 3 and never found the ball. With the altitude on his shots, it could have buried under the soft turf. Either way, he went back to the tee and drove in about the same spot, made a mess of his flop shot and took a triple bogey. He followed with two more bogeys but was in good position for a birdie to get back to even par for the tournament. The cut is top 50 and ties, and among those who will be sticking around are young and old — 23-year-old U.S. Amateur runner-up John Augenstein and 63-year-old Bernhard Langer. The two-time Masters champion shot 68 in the morning on a long, soft course. He followed with a 73 and will be the oldest player to make the cut at Augusta National. "It actually makes me feel older when I play with these young guys and I see how far they hit it and how short I hit it," Langer said. "I like this golf course. I think I know how to get around it, even though I hit very long clubs. But it's certainly not easy." It was plenty hard for Rory McIlroy, who opened with a 75 and was in danger of the weekend off until he rallied with a 66 to at least get back in the mix in his pursuit of the final leg of the career Grand Slam.

Click here to read the full article…

Bryson DeChambeau claimed his eighth PGA TOUR victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. Take a look inside his bag. RELATED: Final leaderboard Driver: Cobra King LTD Pro (7.5 degrees) Shaft: LA Golf Tour AXS Blue 6 X 3-wood: Cobra King Prototype B (10.5 degrees) Shaft: LA Golf BAD Prototype 70 TX (43″) 3-wood: Cobra King SZ Tour (14.5 degrees @13.5) Shaft: LA Golf BAD Prototype 80 TX (41″) Irons: Cobra King One Length Utility (4, 5), Cobra King Forged Tour One Length (6-PW) Shafts: LA Golf Rebar Proto (37.5″) Wedges: Artisan Prototype (50 @47, 55 @52, 60 @58) Shafts: LA Golf Rebar Proto Putter: SIK Pro C-Series Armlock Ball: Bridgestone Tour B X Grips: Jumbo Max Light XL

Click here to read the full article…

He didn’t play much, but he still moved the needle. Tiger Woods was No. 1 in the 2022 PGA TOUR Player Impact Program (PIP) for the second straight year, the 82-time TOUR winner earning the top impact bonus of $15 million. Rory McIlroy, who won the FedExCup for an unprecedented third time, returned to world No. 1, and over the weekend captured the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai, finished second ($12 million). A memo with the results went out to players early Tuesday afternoon. Jordan Spieth ($9 million), Justin Thomas ($7.5 million), Jon Rahm ($6 million), Scottie Scheffler ($5.5 million), Xander Schauffele ($5 million), Matt Fitzpatrick ($5 million), Will Zalatoris ($5 million) and Tony Finau ($5 million) rounded out the top 10. The second-year PIP program paid out to the top 20 finishers, double what it did in its first year. However, three additional players who would have made the list under the slightly amended criteria that will go into effect in 2023 were also recognized, bringing the total to 23. The program is designed to reward members who – through objective measurement criteria – are shown to generate the most positive interest in the PGA TOUR. In addition to expanding from 10 to 20 players, payouts were expanded to $100 million. The 2022 PIP ranking was based on objective, third-party data measurement of: 1) Internet Searches: Number of times a player’s name is searched using Google 2) Earned Media: Number of unique news articles that include a player’s name 3) TV Sponsor Exposure: Duration (time) that a player’s sponsor logo(s) appeared on screen during Saturday and Sunday PGA TOUR telecasts 4) Awareness: A player’s general awareness score among broad U.S. population 5) Social Media: Social media score that considers a player’s reach, conversation and engagement metrics Nos. 11-20 on the list were made up of Collin Morikawa ($3 million), Shane Lowry ($3 million), Kevin Kisner ($3 million), Max Homa ($3 million), Billy Horschel ($3 million), Rickie Fowler ($2 million), Adam Scott ($2 million), Jason Day ($2 million), Patrick Cantlay ($2 million) and Viktor Hovland ($2 million). Because the criteria will be slightly modified for 2023, and three additional players – Hideki Matsuyama (11), Cameron Young (15), and Sam Burns (20) – would have qualified with those adjustments, they made this year’s list and will each earn $2 million. Woods, who will be 47 at the end of next month, continues to recover from injury. He has teed it up three times in 2022, making the cut at the Masters Tournament (47th), making the cut again but withdrawing with leg pain after three rounds at the PGA Championship, and missing the cut at The Open Championship. He was not in the field for the BMW Championship in August, but flew to Wilmington, Delaware, for a transformative player meeting prior to the start of the tournament. And his on-course activity is about to get much busier. Woods will play in the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, Dec. 1-4, and will also be tournament host. He will make another appearance in “The Match,” the made-for-TV golf competition he has helped popularize, this time with partner McIlroy as they take on unbeaten Presidents Cup duo Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas in a 12-hole tilt under the lights at Pelican Golf Club in Belleaire, Florida (TNT, 6 p.m.). Woods also could make his third straight appearance with son Charlie at the father-son PNC Championship at Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Orlando, Grande Lakes, Dec. 15-18. McIlroy, 33, is coming off a wildly successful season that returned him to the top of the game. After missing the Valero Texas Open cut in April, he fell to No. 27 in the FedExCup, but was runner-up at the Masters the following week. A long-delayed, successful title defense at the RBC Canadian Open, which hadn’t been played since 2019, further fueled his remarkable season. At the TOUR Championship, he began six behind Scottie Scheffler, and after a terrible start – triple-bogey, bogey – he rallied to beat Scheffler by one for an unprecedented third FedExCup title. McIlroy’s Sunday 66 allowed him to make up a six-shot deficit over the final 18 holes. He ended the year as golf’s No. 1, regaining the top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking with his victory in THE CJ CUP in South Carolina, and then, over the weekend, adding the DP World Tour’s season-long points title to his FedExCup title.

Click here to read the full article…