Golf Digest’s ‘Greatest of All Time Invitational’

The PGA TOUR has left the west coast and begins its eastward trek by crossing the southern border for the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship. This is the first World Golf Championship of the calendar year and second of the season. This is the fourth year that the Golf Club de Chapultepec will host the world’s best players. The 7,345 yard course plays much shorter than advertised because of its high altitude, but long-hitting Dustin Johnson is still the man to beat in Mexico City. Johnson has won two of the three tournaments at Chapultepec, where the thin air allows players to unleash long, straight drives. The course’s main defense is thick trees, which gives pros the chance to display their crazy recovery skills, and small, sloping greens that allow players to take circuitous routes on their short-game shots. Hole-outs seem to be plentiful on these firm putting surfaces. In other words, players from around the globe have gathered to face one of the year’s most unique tests. RELATED: Featured Groups, tee times | Power Rankings | How pros fight through slumps THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER THE FLYOVER The finishing hole is played uphill and has a slight curve to the left. The trees around the tee make the first shot very narrow, and a bunker on the right must be avoided. The fairway is relatively wide, leaving an uphill shot with a mid- or short-iron to an elevated green protected by two deep bunkers. The green has a constant and pronounced slope toward the front and a hill on the right. It’s best known for the wedge that Justin Thomas holed here to eagle the 72nd hole and force a playoff with Phil Mickelson in 2018. Mickelson went on to win. LANDING ZONE The altitude makes the 316-yard, par-4 opening hole easily drivable. The hole turns sharply right at the end, so players must carry a line of trees to reach the green. Players averaged 3.7 strokes on the hole, including 10 eagles. The hole actually has two greens, but the right green is used for the tournament. WEATHER CHECK From meteorologist Wade Stettner: Sunny skies and warm afternoon temperatures are forecast on Wednesday and Thursday. A cold front will reach Mexico City on Friday morning with cooler temperatures and a chance of showers. Temperatures will warm over the weekend with partly cloudy skies. For the latest weather news from Mexico City, check out the PGA TOUR Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK It’s always nice to come to a country where they speak Spanish. The culture, it’s a lot more similar to what it is in Spain. Good food, good hospitality, good golf course. It doesn’t really get much better than this. BY THE NUMBERS 2: Number of Mexican players in the field, the most in the tournament’s history. Because Abraham Ancer was already eligible for this event, Carlos Ortiz earned a spot in the field as the next Mexican in the Official World Golf Ranking. Ortiz is 24th in the FedExCup thanks to a runner-up at the Mayakoba Golf Classic and two T4 finishes. 19: Number of countries represented, with the United States leading the way with 23 players in the field, followed by England and South Africa with seven each. 21: Players making their WGC-Mexico Championship debut this week, with eight making their first start in a World Golf Championships event (Carlos Ortiz, Lucas Herbert, Marcus Kinhult, Lanto Griffin, Collin Morikawa, Sebastian Muñoz, Zach Murray, Scottie Scheffler) SCATTERSHOTS Twelve of the 13 winners of the WGC-Mexico Championship in the FedExCup era have advanced to the season-ending TOUR Championship. That includes a streak of 11 in a row, tied for the most of any tournament on the PGA TOUR. … When Johnson won last year’s WGC-Mexico Championship, he became the 38th player to win 20 or more PGA TOUR titles. Johnson’s six World Golf Championship titles are second only to Tiger Woods’ 18. … Justin Thomas has finished in the top 10 in all three starts at the Golf Club de Chapultepec. He also has shot the course record twice, setting it with a third-round 62 in 2018 and matching it in last year’s final round. No one else has shot 62 at Chapultepec in the WGC-Mexico. … Seven players have made a World Golf Championships event their first PGA TOUR win: Darren Clarke (2000 Dell Technologies Match Play), Craig Parry (2002 FedEx St. Jude Invitational), Kevin Sutherland (2002 Dell Technologies Match Play), Henrik Stenson (2007 Dell Technologies Match Play), Ian Poulter (2010 Dell Technologies Match Play), Shane Lowry (2015 FedEx St. Jude Invitational), Russell Knox (2015 HSBC Champions). … Lee Westwood is making his 58th World Golf Championship start. He’s seeking his first WGC win. Lucas Glover, who qualified for last year’s TOUR Championship, is making his first WGC-Mexico appearance since 2010.

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Byeong Hun An will make his Presidents Cup debut for the International Team at Royal Melbourne after Jason Day has been forced to withdraw with a back injury. Day reaggravated an ongoing back complaint during practice in Palm Springs after returning from the recent Mayakoba Golf Classic, forcing the 12-time PGA TOUR winner to forego his position on Ernie Els’ International Team on Dec. 12-15 and his place in the Australian Open next week. Captain Els moved quickly to name a replacement in An, who was unlucky not to be selected in the first place given a strong start to the 2019-20 PGA TOUR season. “We wish Jason well and hope his back recovers quickly. We were eager to have Jason as part of the team at Royal Melbourne and his experience will be missed,â€� Els said. “The good news is that there were a number of strong and qualified players available to choose from when I made my captain’s selections. To have someone as steady and talented as Ben An puts us in a great position to succeed. Ben played extremely well this fall and throughout the year and he will fit in nicely on this team.â€� An was third at the Sanderson Farms Championship and added top-10s at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES (T6) and ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP (T8). He also finished T14 at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions and sits 16th in the FedExCup after the fall series. While An is winless in his 103 PGA TOUR starts the 28-year-old has three runner ups and has match play pedigree as the youngest ever winner of the U.S. Amateur – taking out the 2009 title as a 17-year-old. “I’m sorry to hear that Jason has been forced to withdraw from the International Team and I wish him a speedy recovery. It was a huge surprise to receive a call from Ernie who told me that I was in the team,â€� An said. “It has been a goal of mine all season to be on the International Team and I am honored to play in my first Presidents Cup. I’m looking forward to joining Ernie and the rest of the team in Melbourne and, more importantly, contribute to the International Team’s goal to win the Cup.â€� An’s selection brings the average age of what was already the youngest Presidents Cup team in the events history further down to just under 29 and gives Els seven rookies in his 12-man squad. Only once before has the International Team had seven newcomers – in 2013 at Muirfield Village. Coincidentally current team members Marc Leishman, Louis Oosthuizen and Hideki Matsuyama were three of those debutants in Ohio and might be able to impart some wisdom to their teammates. With the U.S. team holding a 10-1-1 advantage overall in the biennial contest perhaps new blood is exactly what the Internationals need. “I’m here to try and win enough points to get us over the line, and that’s what the players’ mission is, is to try and get enough points to get the Cup back. If that’s off the back of the rookies, so be it,â€� Els said earlier this month. Meanwhile, the injury is worrisome for Day, who is winless since early 2018 and managed just one top-10 finish after the Masters last season. In his last start in Mexico – which came right after Els plumped for him as a captains pick – Day was out of sorts and missed the cut. The 32-year-old has a history of back problems that have hindered him throughout his career. “I’m quite disappointed I won’t be coming home to play in either the Australian Open in Sydney or the Presidents Cup the following week in Melbourne,â€� Day said via a statement. “I was quite looking forward to both events. I had been prepping all week in Palm Springs when I was injured. Frustratingly, I’ve been through back problems before and my medical team decided it best to shut down all practice and play. “Therefore, I wanted to inform Golf Australia as well as provide Ernie as much time as possible to best prepare our International Team for Royal Melbourne. I look forward to playing at home in the near future. My best to all the competitors in Sydney and my teammates in Melbourne.â€� Day did not elaborate on his recovery period but it is likely he won’t return before the Farmers Insurance Open on Jan. 23-26 where he is a two-time champion.

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OVERVIEW Trying to find weaknesses in Justin Rose’s recent play, and assessing how he might improve in 2019, is like trying to find fault with a rainbow. Still, Rose dealt himself a mild criticism at the World Golf Championship-HSBC Champions in October, when he said, “It would be great to get in the winner’s circle more regularly.â€� Well, OK. But the fact remains, Rose, 38, has won a whole lot lately: A major (2013 U.S. Open), a gold medal (Rio Games, 2016), and most recently the FedExCup in late September, which he secured with a clutch birdie on the 72nd hole at the TOUR Championship at East Lake last season, keeping Tiger Woods from sweeping both the tournament and season-long trophies. Rose has also hit No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking multiple times in recent months What’s next? He finished third at the WGC-HSBC Champions to start his 2018-19 PGA TOUR campaign, when he will try to be the first to successfully defend his FedExCup title. No, he didn’t get into the winner’s circle, but contending goes a long way; in winning the FedExCup, Rose notched seven top-10s, five of those top-fives, in his final nine starts last season. Hard to believe this is the guy who missed 21 straight cuts around the world after turning pro in 1998. He has said it’s kept him from taking anything for granted, and kept him working hard. That hard work is paying huge dividends. — By Cameron Morfit Click here to see who else made the Top 30 list. BY THE NUMBERS FEDEXCUP UPDATE Current 2018-19 position: 30th Playoff appearances: 12 TOUR Championship appearances: 9 Best FedExCup result: Won the FedExCup in the 2017-18 season SHOTLINK FUN FACT With his next PGA TOUR win, Justin Rose will have 10 career PGA TOUR victories, which would be the most by any Englishman since 1945. INSIDER INSIGHTS PGATOUR.COM’s Insiders offer their expert views on what to expect from Justin Rose in 2019. TOUR INSIDER: Rose has 11 top-15 finishes but no wins in the majors and THE PLAYERS Championship since winning the 2013 U.S. Open. Last season he shot up to 17th in Strokes Gained: Putting after ranking 123rd in 2017, a quantum leap that led to his FedExCup title. In addition to putting better, he has also learned to manage occasional back pain. Last summer, as a precaution, he WD’d from the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, then came up big in the Playoffs. Those improvements, should they continue, could net Rose more trophies in ’19, maybe even a green jacket at the Masters, where he’s done everything but win. — By Cameron Morfit FANTASY INSIDER: While he’s made just 18 PGA TOUR starts in each of the last three seasons, gamers still have trouble rationing them in formats in which they’re restricted. And now, he’s coming off a career season at age 38 and giving no reason why he won’t continue to excel. His improved putting serves as the easy explanation for both his ability to capture the FedExCup without winning a Playoffs event – the first to do so – and his ascent to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking, but it was just the final box to check on one of the most fulfilling careers of his generation. Continue to expect a frugal schedule, but he’s announced that he’ll be returning to the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play for the first time in three years. — By Rob Bolton EQUIPMENT INSIDER: Rose has been on staff with TaylorMade for … well, pretty much forever. In 20 years as a professional, TaylorMade is the only equipment company he’s been on staff with. That will likely change in 2019, as reports and rumors are circulating about Rose switching to Honma. And Rose has done more to fuel those rumors than to quell them when discussing the matter. Assuming he does in fact switch to Honma, that leaves a number of questions including, how many Honma clubs will he put into play, which TaylorMade clubs will he leave in the bag, and will he put any clubs in play that aren’t Honma or TaylorMade? Rose’s equipment decisions early in 2019 will be the top equipment story to start the year. — By Andrew Tursky STYLE INSIDER: Rose’s style is a great example of how golf apparel and footwear have evolved. His simple, classic-looking threads have a high tech component as they are crafted from luxurious performance fabrics. Rose pairs his apparel with contemporary trainer-style shoes that feature a spikeless molded outsole for comfort and traction. — By Greg Monteforte

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