Homa gets 2-shot victory in Wells Fargo Champ.

GREENSBORO, N.C. – K.J. Choi was drenched in sweat after a marathon session on the driving range at the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club on Monday. The range soon filled up with the heavily sponsored (Australian Ryan Ruffels) and the sponsorless (Brian Davis). There were PGA TOUR winners like Smylie Kaufman, who’d been trading texts with pal and PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas; three-time major champion Padraig Harrington; Chad Campbell; Vaughn Taylor; Andres Gonzales; Jason Bohn; and others. It was an unusually busy place for a Monday, and for good reason. Players who are south of the all-important line of demarcation on TOUR, the top 125 in the FedExCup, still have time for one last push. With a solid showing at the Wyndham, they could crack the top 125 and make it to the FedExCup playoffs lid-lifter, THE NORTHERN TRUST next week. Without it—well, it’s hello, Web.com Finals and/or time for some serious soul-searching. “It’s been one of those years, man,� said Kaufman, who at 135 in the FedExCup will have to play his way to New York next week. “I wish I could’ve done a lot of things different. If this week goes well, fine; if not, I’ll be ready and rested for the fall. But if I have a good week this week, who knows, I could be in the TOUR Championship before you know it.� At least Kaufman has job security. He won the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open last season, so he’s exempt on TOUR through the end of 2017-’18. Still, he has said it would be “inexcusable� to miss the playoffs this year, so he’s making his first start as a pro at Sedgefield. Crack the top 125 and players will not only earn a berth in the playoffs, they’ll remain fully exempt on TOUR next season (if they’re not already). Finish this week ranked Nos. 126-150 and they’ll be conditionally exempt. Nos. 126-200 in FedExCup points get into the four-week Web.com Tour Finals, starting with the Nationwide Children’s Championship, Aug. 31. Sam Saunders (127) dedicated a plaque in remembrance of his late grandfather Arnold Palmer at Sedgefield on Tuesday afternoon, then hung around to speak to the media in part about his own game. Saunders needs a good finish here, and he has reason for optimism. He finished T14 at the 2015 Wyndham, and enjoyed a much-needed break last week after a solid eighth-place finish at the Barracuda Championship in Reno—his sixth tournament in a row. “The game’s good,� he said. The 30-year-old from Atlantic Beach, Florida, knows how important it is to move up a few spots this week. Ultimately, though, he admits he has loftier aspirations. “These past few weeks, I’ve really been putting myself in position to where I can win a tournament,� Saunders said of the Barracuda and the RBC Canadian Open (T19) before that. Careers hang in the balance every week, but at the Wyndham that’s especially apparent. Kyle Stanley, who with Shawn Stefani was one of two who pushed into the top 125 at the Wyndham last year, kept going and got his first win since 2012 at the Quicken Loans National in July. The occasion saw Stanley openly weeping at his return to the TOUR’s upper echelon. Five fought their way into the playoffs at the Wyndham two years ago, just one did so in 2014, and no one achieved the feat in 2013. In the history of the FedExCup, no one outside the top 125 at the start of the Wyndham has made it all the way to the TOUR Championship. As usual, there are some big names among those on the outside looking in—or barely hanging on—this week at Sedgefield C.C., a Donald Ross track that dates to 1925. The Bubble Boy at 125 is Geoff Ogilvy, who won the 2006 U.S. Open but at 40 is using a one-time-only exemption (top 50 in career money) to play the TOUR. “I’m not done yet,� he said after his second-round 65 at the Quicken Loans National earlier this summer (T13). Ogilvy will be an assistant to International captain Nick Price at the biennial Presidents Cup at Liberty National, Sept. 28-Oct. 1, but to his point, he certainly doesn’t look done as a player himself. What’s more, he sounds far from worried going into this week. “Worst case scenario; finishing 126th or 127th is usually good for 13 or 14 events next year, as well as a few [sponsor’s] invites I can probably get,� Ogilvy told the Australian AP. Daniel Summerhays (124) was in contention to win the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide, but shot a final-round 78 to finish T10. “I will be back,� he said. And he was. The affable Utahan Summerhays gave himself a chance at the Quicken Loans, only to falter again, this time shooting a final-round 74 to finish T17. Now he’s here at the Wyndham. Spencer Levin, T5 at the Quicken Loans, is also here, looking to move up from 159th. Ben Crane, a 54-hole co-leader at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, faded with a final-round 73 to tie for 10th. He comes to North Carolina looking to move up from 147th in the FedExCup. The players who are furthest down the points list have arguably the most on the line this week. Take Arjun Atwal, 44, who can still play on the Asian Tour by virtue of his victory at the 2014 Dubai Open. As a resident of Orlando, he’d rather play in America, but Atwal, who won the 2010 Wyndham as a Monday qualifier, has little so little status on TOUR he has had to rely on Monday-qualifying (FedEx St. Jude Classic) and sponsor invites (Quicken) this season. “It’s been hard to get into any kind of rhythm,� Atwal said at the Quicken, where he got off to a rousing start but ultimately faded to a T55 finish with rounds of 68-67-75-77. Languishing at 225th in the FedExCup, he would help his career immensely just by moving into the top 200. So would the highly touted Australian teen-ager Ruffels.  There are a handful of major winners in the Wyndham field: Hall of Famer Ernie Els (213) and fellow South African Retief Goosen (161) join Harrington (199), Monday qualifier Y.E. Yang (217), Graeme McDowell (131) and of course Ogilvy (125). Kaufman wouldn’t mind joining that group, but knows he’s got to get going if he wants to join major talents like them and spring break pals Spieth and Thomas. And so—Sedgefield. “I played in two FootJoy Invitationals here, junior events,� Kaufman said. “I finished probably around 20th both times, so not bad. Last time I was here, I was having college coaches watch me, so this will be a little different. I about killed the North Carolina coach, I remember. I hit a snap-hook off the tee.� Kaufman laughed. “He didn’t offer me a scholarship.� Amid the tense atmosphere at the Wyndham, such levity will be rare.

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SAN DIEGO – So what if the TV cameras weren’t there? Someone in J.J. Henry’s group on Monday understood the magnitude of the moment. So, he pulled out his cell phone and recorded the scene as that 14-foot eagle putt slithered into the hole. After all, it’s not every day you shoot a 59. In fact, this was a first for Henry and came after he played the final six holes at the Tradition Golf Club, where Arnold Palmer often spent his winters, in a phenomenal 7 under. “I was pretty nervous,” admits Henry, who had added to the pressure back at the 16th hole when he told the other members of his foursome that a birdie-birdie-eagle finish would do the trick. “I’ve been fortunate to do a lot of things. Ryder Cups, gracious enough to win three times. But it was pretty cool to be able to make that putt. … “At 42 I guess I’ve still got it. (It’s) just matter of doing it when it counts.” Sure, it would have even better if the terrific round of 13 under had come during a PGA TOUR event. But as Henry says, there’s no bad day to shoot a 59. Henry shared the video of the final putt on Tuesday morning as he stood in the shadow of the trees beside the putting green at Torrey Pines. He’ll play in his 502nd event there this week when the Farmers Insurance Open begins on Thursday. That’s a number almost as elusive as a 59. Since Henry played in his first PGA TOUR event in 1988, with his father caddying for the son who had just finished an All-America season at TCU, only five other players have made 500 or more starts. “It’s kind of cool to see (you’re) still tackling milestones and unique things in golf,” says Henry, who joined the TOUR in 2001. “Whether it’s was to play my 500th event at the Sony Open or go out with some buddies and still feel like you can do it. … “Even though it wasn’t in a tournament something like that (59) could really jump-start things. The game’s a bunch of momentum, confidence. So regardless it was just a fun day.” By Henry’s calculations, those 502 starts have probably meant about nine years’ worth of nights spent in a hotel room. He’s averaged 27 starts a year and six times has played more than 30 tournaments, sometimes when he was fighting to keep his card. “That puts it in perspective,” he says. “I don’t know if sacrifice is the right word because we’re out here doing what we love to do. But at the same time, you’re still missing things. “You take for granted sleeping in your own bed. As you get older, I think there’s no question I think it feels more like a job than it does when you were 25 because you want to be there for your wife and your kids.” Before Henry and Lee, the college sweetheart who became his wife, had kids, the two traveled the TOUR together. Ditto for when their children, Connor and Carson, were young. But the kids are now 13 and 9, respectively. They’ve come to understand that their dad’s job sometimes will keep him away from basketball and Little League games and school plays. Thank goodness for Facetime, though. “Last Saturday I’m in a hotel (watching his son’s game),” Henry says. “Of course, my wife puts me on mute because I’m yelling ‘get the ball, be aggressive’ through the phone.” Henry tries to get home for a few days between tournaments whenever he can. After all, in 18 years on TOUR he knows the golf courses and one less practice round won’t make or break things. But there are still moments that tug at his heartstrings. “I am very grateful because my wife is so on top of things and just so great with our kids,” Henry says. “But sometimes you get that, dad, when are you coming home and what do you say? It’s hard.” On the flip side, though, if Henry plays 28 weeks a year, he has another 24 at home – to the point “where my wife is probably saying, when the hell are you going back out on the road? But you get used to that kind of lifestyle.” That’s the glass half full side of life on TOUR. Connor is starting to take a real interest in the game – as well as his dad’s career, which is proving a motivating factor. Recently, after Henry missed two straight cuts, Connor started sending texts — stay positive after a bad hole, just relax, no one can beat you, the mental game wins tournaments. “So here’s my 13-year-old, he’s like my sports psychologist,” Henry says with a grin. While Henry admits there’s “more scar tissue at 42 than 22,” he still feels his best golf is ahead of him. Sure, the game has changed. The players are younger. More fit, too. And they hit the ball a mile. But Henry has persevered. He’s won three tournaments and played on the 2006 Ryder Cup team. Yet, he’s never finished higher than 28th on the money list, and last year he squeaked into the FedExCup Playoffs at No. 125. At the same time, though, Henry only missed the Playoffs twice in the FedExCup’s first decade. He compares himself to a blue-chip stock. “It’s never crazy up or crazy down but you kind of know what you get,” Henry says. As the 500th start approached, many of Henry’s friends contacted him and told him he should appreciate what he’s accomplished. And while he’s still wrapped up in the here-and-now, the unusual longevity of his TOUR career is not lost on Henry. “To be able to play at this elite level for all these years, is something I’m pretty grateful and kind of humbled and still, honored to say,” he says. “And regardless of whatever happens in the next eight years or whether I play out here until I’m 50 and a rookie again, not many people can say they’ve played 500 TOUR events… “So as long as they keep giving me a tee time, I’ll be out here working on my three-footers.”

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AUGUSTA, Ga. – On a star-studded leaderboard, Tiger Woods is firmly in the mix entering Saturday’s third round of the Masters. Tiger begins his weekend chase of his fifth green jacket just one shot back of the five co-leaders at Augusta National. We’ll have hole-by-hole updates after Tiger tees off at 2:05 p.m. ET, so check this file often. MORE MASTERS Leaderboard | Tales of Tiger’s equipment | Rd. 2 recap: Tiger one back entering weekend Pre-round notes TIGER’S PUTTING: Through the first two rounds, Tiger has been great from long range … and horrible from short range. From outside 20 feet, Tiger ranks first in the field, making 5 of 15 attempts for a rate of 33.33%. No other player in the field has made more than three putts from that distance. From inside 5 feet, however, Tiger has missed three of his 29 putts, leaving his conversion rate at 89.66%. Among the 65 players who made that cut, the only player with a worse percentage is amateur Alvaro Ortiz at 89.29%. From 5-10 feet, though, Ortiz leads the field, making all eight of his attempts. Woods has missed four of his eight attempts (50%). Just 12 players have lower percentage rates than Tiger from that distance. FAMILIAR PAIRING: Tiger is paired with Englishman Ian Poulter for the third round at the Masters for the second consecutive year. Both were well off the pace when they played together a year ago, with Tiger shooting an even-par 72 to end the round tied for 40th, while Poulter shot a 74 to drop into a tie for 50th at that point. Saturday will be the sixth round that Woods and Poulter have been in the same group at a PGA TOUR event. The first time was at THE PLAYERS Championship in 2010 when they were in the same threesome for the first two rounds. The last time was at THE NORTHERN TRUST during last season’s FedExCup Playoffs. Four times, Woods has shot the better score, and the other time they recorded the same score. RECENT SATURDAYS AT AUGUSTA: When Tiger won his last green jacket in 2005, he shot a 7-under 65 that moved him from six shots behind to three strokes ahead. That 65 tied for his lowest round in his Masters career – in fact, both of his 65s at Augusta National have happened in the third round. In his 10 starts since 2005, Tiger has shot in the 60s just twice in the third round, a 68 in 2008 and another 68 in 2015.

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