The PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open shifts to a Wednesday-Saturday schedule this week. Here’s how to watch on ESPN+.
Click here to read the full article…
| Feeling lucky? Try a few spins at IC Wins! Click the link for some bonus codes for this great slot game. |
ALBANY, Bahamas (AP) — As a player, Tiger Woods wasn’t all that happy with his game Wednesday in the Hero World Challenge. As the Presidents Cup captain, he had reason to be pleased. Gary Woodland and Patrick Reed, who will be part of the U.S. Team next week at Royal Melbourne, each managed a tough wind in the Bahamas to post a 6-under 66 and share the lead after the opening round of a tournament that felt more like a Presidents Cup tune-up. Woods used two of his four captain’s picks on Woodland and Reed. He used another on himself, and showed plenty of rust in his first tournament since Woods won the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP in Japan the last week of October. Related: Leaderboard | Hero World Challenge pairings give Presidents Cup hints Woods made sloppy bogeys on both par 5s on the front nine. He hit his stride on the back nine with a five-hole stretch he played in 5-under-par, chipping in for eagle on the par-5 15th. That put him within three of the lead right up until he chopped his way to a bogey-double bogey finish for a 72. “It was not a very good start,” Woods said. “Didn’t play the par 5s well early and then got it going on the back nine a little bit. Got myself right there in the mix and then bad shots on 17, 18.” Woods has 11 of his 12 players for the Presidents Cup at the event, and it was clear what kind of pairings he had in mind for the matches that start Dec. 12 at Royal Melbourne. He played with Justin Thomas, who had a 69. Reed played with Patrick Cantlay, his partner at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans each of the last three years. Woodland played with Xander Schauffele, while Bryson DeChambeau was paired with Webb Simpson and Rickie Fowler played with Tony Finau. Matt Kuchar had a successful partnership with Dustin Johnson in two Ryder Cups. Johnson is not in the Bahamas, withdrawing last week to give his left knee one more week to get ready for the matches. Kuchar instead played with Chez Reavie, who replaced Johnson in the Bahamas. Woods didn’t reveal any insight into his plans for next week, only that he wants open communication. “I want to have all the players comfortable with who they’re playing with,” Woods said. “That’s why we’re communicating the way we are, so every guy has an understanding of when they’re playing, what format they’re playing, who they’re playing with, the different options that could happen based on conditions, based on people’s form. “Got to have all those different contingencies ready to go.” Only 10 players from the 18-man field managed to break par on a course that typically allows for good scoring. The wind was strong and from the opposite direction, so strong that Woodland hit 5-iron into the par-4 18th, which typically is a short iron. He even considered the wind while putting. “Sometimes it’s better to miss the green than be in the middle of the green putting downwind,” Woodland said. “We tried to play into the wind all day today, and we did that. We controlled the golf ball enough where we did that and gave ourselves a lot of chances.” Reed did his damage on the back nine, running off four straight birdies through the 16th. Players experienced this wind during the pro-am, and Reed was stunned to hit wedge into the typically tough par-4 16th. “Today I hit a soft lob wedge,” he said. “The ball is just going forever downwind, and into the wind the ball is going nowhere. You have to be patient and make putts whenever you have opportunity.” Cantlay didn’t fare so well at the end with a bogey on the par-3 17th and closing with a quadruple bogey. He was stoic after signing his card. He’s like that on the golf course. That’s what Reed finds appealing. “I get emotional out there,” Reed said. “And he barely has a heartbeat.”
The last stop in California will take place in Pacific Pallisades for The Genesis Invitational played at the Riviera Country Club. The course will play as a par 71, measuring 7,322 yards and will again be putt on poa annua greens. The field welcomes back top-ranked players like Dustin Johnson (+550, $11,300), Jon Rahm (+1200, $10,400), Bryson DeChambeau (+1700, $10,100) and Collin Morikawa (+3300, $9,500). One notable not in the field is Tiger Woods, who's hosting and will be in attendance but won't be playing as he is still recovering from his back surgery. This week will also have a smaller field at 121 golfers. Similar to Torrey Pines a couple of weeks ago, the chances of getting entire lineups through the cut is higher with fewer players in the field. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1.2M Flop Shot [$300K to 1st] STRATEGY Even with no water hazards on the course, Genesis has played difficult, ranking inside the top 10 in scoring relative to par over the past few seasons. The fairways are tough to hit, recording close to a 7% less hit rate than the TOUR average. These are also tough to hit greens registering about an 8% fewer green hit in regulation rate than the TOUR average due to the smaller than average, undulating greens, which have many runoff areas. Because of this, Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (ARG) becomes more important than usual. We've seen winners here gain an average of 2.41 strokes ARG over the past six years. The par-3 sixth hole is famous for its bunker in the middle of the green, and the par-4 10th hole is arguably the best driveable par 4 on TOUR, but the novelty wears off with how difficult this course has played in years past, especially on the closing eight holes. The closing nine could contribute to why we've only seen eight golfers since 2000 go on to win after leading in the third round. Like Torrey Pines, Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green with a lean toward golfers who have distance off-the-tee are golfers we should be considering. Even though it's not a long course, past winners include Johnson, Bubba Watson (+5000, $8,900) and J.B. Holmes (+27500, $6,500), who all finished inside the top 20 in driving distance at the end of the year they won. GOLFERS TO CONSIDER Xander Schauffele (+1600 to Win, $9,900 on DraftKings) The fact Xander hasn't won since the Sentry Tournament of Champions in 2019 is remarkable given he's finished second seven times from then to now. More recently, he's got four runner-ups in his last eight tournaments, so it's only a matter of time until he wins again. Schauffele routinely plays well in California and putts great on poa annua, ranking top 20 over his previous 50 rounds. Xander's roster percentage could get out of hand this week, per usual, and if it does, we should be going with Patrick Cantlay (+1800, $9,600) as a potential contrarian play. Cantlay has a stellar record in California and has a solid history at similar courses like Augusta National and Muirfield Village. He's also played well at Riviera CC and just finished third last week and second the previous week. The excitement of having the top players in the same field could allow Cantlay to fly under the radar. Cantlay has gained a total of 18.2 strokes tee-to-green in his previous two starts and could be a "steal" if his roster percentage is single-digits at tee-off. Marc Leishman (+7000 to Win, $8,600 on DraftKings) Leishman looks to be back in form with a great start to the season, finishing fourth at the Sony Open and 18th at the Farmers Insurance Open. With two top 5s here since 2016, Leishman will want to follow in in his fellow countryman Adam Scott's footsteps and has the game to do it. Riviera CC is a classical American course that rewards a great tee-to-green game, and Leishman is gaining an average of 1.8 strokes tee-to-green and 2.3 strokes with his approach over his previous five tournaments. Leishman is another player who's historically done well in California and could keep it going this week at a course that should suit him well. Another Australian, Cameron Smith (+10000, $8,400), makes the list this week, and rightfully so. Smith is one of the TOUR's best poa putters, ranking 10th in Strokes Gained: Putting over the previous 50 rounds. A near win at Augusta National proved Smith is ready to take a big step forward this season. Even though he's lost strokes with his irons in three-straight events, they've gotten better losing less each event. A top 10 here in 2019 should help him navigate Riviera CC, but he hasn't played since the Farmers Insurance Open, and we've seen past winners here play at TPC Scottsdale or Pebble Beach, which is something to keep in mind. Talor Gooch (+17500 to Win, $7,200 on DraftKings) Gooch has been a little shaky to start the year but sets up nicely with how well he plays in California with top finishes over his career during the West Coast swing. Like Leishman, Gooch is another player who has done well on the correlated courses. Riviera CC will demand efficiency on long par 4s measuring between 450 to 500 yards, and Gooch has done well over his previous 24 rounds, ranking 37th in the field. Dylan Frittelli (+20000, $7,000) is another player in this range who could do well this week. He missed the cut here last season but finished in 28th place the prior year, gaining 2.7 strokes with his irons and 2.6 on these fast poa annua greens. Frittelli seems to have a knack for these courses with a top 25 at Muirfield Village and Quail Hollow, along with a top 5 last Augusta National back in November. Michael Thompson (+25000 to Win, $6,700 on DraftKings) We shouldn't spend too much time in this range with all the firepower up top, but if you decide to venture into this range, Thompson is someone to consider with how he plays courses similar to Riviera CC. He also finished T7 here back in 2019 and ranks 36th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green over his previous 12 rounds. Thompson played well at Pebble Beach last week, gaining 2.3 strokes off-the-tee and 4.45 with his irons, but lost nearly three strokes around-the-green en route to his T34 finish. His short-game troubles may hurt him here if he's not accurate with his ball-striking, so tread lightly, especially in this range. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1.2M Flop Shot [$300K to 1st] Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. For sports betting, head over to DraftKings Sportsbook or download the DraftKings Sportsbook app. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL). Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER(NJ/WV/PA/MI), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO), 1-800-BETS OFF(IA), 1-888-532-3500 (VA) or call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN). 21+ (18+ NH). CO/IL/IN/IA/NH/NJ/PA/TN/VA/WV/MI only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions. I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is reidtfowler) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
Round 3 of the THE CJ CUP in South Carolina takes place Saturday from Congaree Golf Club. Jon Rahm and Kurt Kitayama lead heading into Saturday with scores of 11-under par. Here’s everything you need to follow the action. Tee times Leaderboard HOW TO FOLLOW: Television: Saturday-Sunday, 3 p.m.-6 p.m. ET. Radio: Saturday, 1 p.m.-6 p.m. ET. Sunday 12 p.m.-5:30 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio) MUST READS Jon Rahm, Kurt Kitayama share lead at THE CJ CUP Bad back and all, Max Homa rides his Presidents Cup momentum Shane Lowry and his unexpected putter spree For Rory McIlroy, chasing No. 1 again, it’s time to ‘go’ The backstory on Tom Kim’s ultra-custom putter Five Things to Know: Congaree Golf Club
