It’s Dustin Johnson’s tournament to lose

How the field qualified for The American Express as of 1/10/2020: Check here for updates. Winner – THE PLAYERS Championship – Last 5 years Rickie Fowler Si Woo Kim Winner – PGA Championship – Last 5 years Jimmy Walker Winner – The Open Championship – Last 5 years Zach Johnson Francesco Molinari Winner – World Golf Championships Event Kevin Kisner Phil Mickelson U.S. Ryder Cup Team Tony Finau Member of Last Named European Ryder Cup Team Paul Casey Alex Noren Member of Last Named International Presidents Cup Team Byeong Hun An Abraham Ancer Sungjae Im Career Money Exemption Steve Stricker Bo Van Pelt Past Champion of The American Express Jason Dufner Brian Gay Bill Haas Adam Long Hudson Swafford Jhonattan Vegas Mark Wilson PGA Section Champion Brian Smock Sponsors Exemptions – Members not otherwise exempt Ricky Barnes Ben Crane Sponsors Exemption – Unrestricted Akshay Bhatia Harris English Isaiah Salinda Josh Teater Current Tournament Winners Ryan Armour Cameron Champ Austin Cook Tyler Duncan Brice Garnett Max Homa Billy Horschel Charles Howell III Patton Kizzire Russell Knox Andrew Landry Nate Lashley Troy Merritt Sebastián Muñoz Kevin Na Pat Perez Scott Piercy J.T. Poston Ted Potter, Jr. Andrew Putnam Chez Reavie Brendan Steele Brendon Todd Martin Trainer Aaron Wise Matthew Wolff Top 125 on Prior Season’s FedExCup Points List Jason Kokrak Lucas Glover Rory Sabbatini Harold Varner III Ryan Moore Vaughn Taylor Joel Dahmen Wyndham Clark Adam Schenk Danny Lee Kevin Streelman Charley Hoffman Chesson Hadley Brian Stuard Matt Every Russell Henley Brian Harman Michael Thompson Luke List Roger Sloan Sam Burns Bud Cauley Nick Watney Mackenzie Hughes J.J. Spaun Talor Gooch Chris Stroud Kyle Stanley Patrick Rodgers Cameron Tringale Sam Ryder Kyoung-Hoon Lee Scott Stallings Denny McCarthy Scott Brown Carlos Ortiz Sepp Straka Aaron Baddeley Peter Malnati Nick Taylor Martin Laird Top 125 (Nonmember) Doc Redman Lucas Bjerregaard Major Medical Extension Daniel Berger Bronson Burgoon Kevin Chappell Kevin Stadler James Hahn Ben Martin Grayson Murray John Huh Seung-Yul Noh Brandon Hagy Greg Chalmers Leading Money Winner from Korn Ferry Tour Prior Year Scottie Scheffler Top Finishers for Korn Ferry Tour Prior Season (reordered) Mark Hubbard Scott Harrington Tom Hoge Harry Higgs Xinjun Zhang Robby Shelton Zac Blair Richy Werenski Cameron Percy Fabián Gómez Henrik Norlander David Hearn D.J. Trahan Hank Lebioda Robert Streb Maverick McNealy Beau Hossler Bo Hoag Matthew NeSmith Rob Oppenheim Kramer Hickok Joseph Bramlett Rafael Campos Chase Seiffert Mark Anderson Kristoffer Ventura Rhein Gibson Ben Taylor Tyler McCumber Chris Baker Michael Gligic Tim Wilkinson Sebastian Cappelen Doug Ghim Cameron Davis Ryan Brehm Michael Gellerman Nelson Ledesma Anirban Lahiri Vincent Whaley Vince Covello John Senden Minor Medical Extension Stewart Cink Hunter Mahan

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HISTORY MADE IN HAWAII WITH MATSUYAMA WIN Thirty-nine years ago, Isao Aoki became Japan’s first PGA TOUR winner at the Sony Open in Hawaii, holing out for eagle on the 72nd hole to earn a one-stroke victory over Jack Renner. Sunday afternoon at Waialae CC, Aoki’s countryman Hideki Matsuyama became Japan’s second Sony Open winner in perhaps not as theatrical fashion, but with a memorable closing stretch nonetheless. Matsuyama trailed playing partner Russell Henley by five strokes as they made the turn Sunday afternoon in Honolulu, and the reigning Masters champion methodically chipped away at the deficit, authoring a 4-under 31 including a closing birdie to match Henley’s 23-under total and force a playoff. Matsuyama, 29, then hit 3-wood from 277 yards to 3 feet on the first playoff hole – Waialae’s par-5 18th – en route to a winning eagle, sending the lively Honolulu crowd into a frenzy. With the victory, Matsuyama matches 2008 Sony Open winner K.J. Choi for his eighth PGA TOUR title, most by an Asian-born player on TOUR. He earns 500 FedExCup points and overtakes Talor Gooch for the No. 1 spot in the season-long standings, well positioned to chase his first FedExCup title. He’ll cherish the piece of history that he now shares with Aoki, as well. “This is the first tournament that a Japanese won on the PGA TOUR when Isao Aoki won here,” Matsuyama said shortly after putting out for the winning eagle. “And to follow him up, I’m over the moon.” EXPRESS TRIP TO PGA WEST Last season’s FedExCup champion, Patrick Cantlay, world No. 1 Jon Rahm and tournament host Phil Mickelson lead the field to La Quinta, California, for The American Express. Si Woo Kim returns to defend the title he won over Cantlay, who shot a course-record 61 in the final round a year ago to finish runner-up. A number of top players will make their 2022 debut including reigning Rookie of the Year Will Zalatoris, Francesco Molinari, Gary Woodland, Alex Noren and Rickie Fowler who tees it up for the first time since becoming a father in November. The American Express will once again be played over three courses – PGA West (Stadium Course), La Quinta Country Club and PGA West (Nicklaus Tournament Course) – after utilizing just two last year for the first time in tournament history. There are 500 FedExCup points up for grabs as well as a spot in THE PLAYERS and majors for the week’s champion. NEW NETFLIX DOC TO FOCUS ON TOUR PLAYERS Two dozen PGA TOUR players have signed on to participate in a new Netflix series from the producers of the super popular “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” documentary. The PGA TOUR and the organizers of the four major championships will allow unprecedented access inside the ropes and behind the scenes through this season’s TOUR Championship. The series will capture the intensity of training, travel, victory, and defeat through the lens of a diverse group of players and their support teams. VIDEO OF THE WEEK Jim Furyk makes an incredible ace in the first round of the Sony Open in Hawaii. MIC CHECK “A true professional, Tim always treated our organization and our athletes fairly,” PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan on the passing of respected golf journalist Tim Rosaforte. “Writing and speaking with an opinion but without an agenda. He never stopped working the phones, ensuring that he not only got the story first, he got the story right. Those phone calls – and Tim’s gentle spirit – will be missed tremendously by all of us lucky enough to be part of the greater golf community. BY THE NUMBERS 4 – PGA TOUR LIVE on ESPN+ kicks off in earnest this week at The American Express, with four streams available for fans from Featured Groups to Featured Holes. 5 – Five things to know about top-ranked amateur Keita Nakajima who contended over the weekend at Waialae. 10 – The new Korn Ferry Tour season began on Sunday with The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic. Check out ten players to watch over the next three rounds. COMCAST BUSINESS TOUR TOP 10 The Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10 highlights and rewards the extraordinary level of play required to earn a spot in the TOP 10 at the conclusion of the FedExCup Regular Season as determined by the FedExCup standings. The competition recognizes and awards the most elite in golf.

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The first time Adam Hadwin met Mike Weir was not at a junior clinic or Canadian amateur event – when an up-and-coming star would usually connect with a country’s legend – but while they were sitting out a fog delay. It was 2013 at the Farmers Insurance Open and Hadwin had Monday-qualified. It was just the eighth PGA TOUR start of his fledgling pro career, and the first of three that season. By shooting 66-74 in the first two rounds at Torrey Pines, he was one shot ahead of Weir. Both made the cut but were well off the lead, as they were in the first two groups on Saturday. Due to the weather, the pair of Canadians had to keep retreating off the course. It was the perfect opportunity for them to finally meet and chat. Hadwin was in the midst of an up-and-down year on the Korn Ferry Tour and he’d go on to finish 74th on the money list, just barely earning his TOUR card again for the next season. Although Hadwin says he can’t remember exactly what was said that morning – he would eventually shoot 69 before withdrawing after feeling a twinge in his wrist, while Weir shot 73-76 to finish T-68 — perhaps the good vibes of meeting Canada’s winningest PGA TOUR golfer was the spark he needed. The next season, Hadwin won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour, gained his card and has been a fixture ever since. Hadwin, from Abbotsford, British Columbia, and Weir, from Brights Grove, Ontario, had never crossed paths before then. Hadwin knew of Weir of course, and respected what Weir had done for golf in Canada and the state of the game after his three wins in 2003, including the Masters. “He was playing some good golf for such a long time,â€� Hadwin said, “but I didn’t really know anything about him.â€� Being from different sides of the country – Abbotsford is roughly 2,500 miles from Brights Grove — and with Weir and Hadwin’s schedules being totally opposite at that time, there wasn’t much of an opportunity to become friendly. But after Hadwin himself qualified for the Masters in 2017 and made the International Presidents Cup team, a connection was made. The Presidents Cup continues to be the catalyst for their growing relationship. Just like in 2017 at Liberty National, Hadwin will play and Weir will be an assistant captain for the Internationals next month at Royal Melbourne. “As we’ve gotten closer to the Presidents Cup, we’ve texted a little more, been in touch some more. I’m a big advocate for all the Canadian guys, and will be for Adam especially that week,â€� Weir said. Every time Weir played the Presidents Cup, he was the lone Canadian. It was easy, he recalls now, to feel out of the pack. He looked around the team room and saw multiple Australians or South Africans having their own bonds. The Canadian contingent now is small, but mighty. Hadwin had to rely on a captain’s pick this year after making the team on merit in 2017. The team nearly had two Canadians, Weir noted, as he was pushing for Corey Conners to make the squad as well. Weir says he was hoping International Captain Ernie Els would have chosen both Corey Conners and Hadwin for this year’s team – it would have been the first time two Canadians would have made it. While Conners should be a stalwart for Presidents Cups in the future, (“He didn’t get the call this time but his game is certainly capable,â€� Weir explained.) Hadwin’s short-game skill and his year of experience eventually won him the spot. Weir was part of Nick Price’s staff at Liberty National and Els pegged him, alongside K.J. Choi, Geoff Ogilvy and Trevor Immelman, to join the team at Royal Melbourne. “We have great players in Canada. Adam, when it was on the line, played well when he needed to and had some good finishes,â€� Weir said. “That was important to Ernie – that our guys were playing well at the right time. He proved that he earned his spot on the team.â€� There have been just three Canadians to play the Presidents Cup, and Hadwin and Weir are the only two to play more than once (Graham DeLaet in 2013 is the other). Hadwin admits that it’s a “pretty incredibleâ€� feeling to be part of such a small group. “To represent that group on the international stage and represent golf in Canada as a whole is really special and something I take a lot of pride in,â€� he said. Hadwin says he’ll be more comfortable going into the Presidents Cup this time around, and some of that comfort can be attributed to his Presidents Cup connection to Weir – who knows a thing or two about representing golf in Canada on a big stage. Hadwin first leaned on Weir for specific advice when he qualified for the Masters after his maiden PGA TOUR victory at the Valspar Championship in 2017. Hadwin said Weir was very helpful in showing him around the spots at Augusta National and how the Masters week works. Weir was also there for him with any support he might need or questions he needed answered when Hadwin made his Presidents Cup debut later that year. Hadwin expects it to be more of the same this December. Hadwin had no preconceived notions of Weir or how he operated prior to them getting closer in 2017. Instead he found a helpful countryman, and a Canadian icon that did a “terrificâ€� job as an assistant captain in New York. Two years ago, Weir said he tried to make sure he brought Hadwin a level of confidence he needed to play well. Weir wanted to clear Hadwin’s path so then he could just concentrate on golf. Weir brings with him a myriad of experiences guys like Hadwin can lean on. He played in five Presidents Cups and complied a 13-9-2 record. In his five appearances, he never had a losing record. His 1-up win against Tiger Woods in Singles at the 2007 Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal remains one of the top golfing highlights on Canadian soil. And, perhaps one day, those experiences will lead him to the captain’s seat. “If that opportunity comes up, I’d love that. I would be phenomenal. The Presidents Cup has been a big part of my career – some of my greatest memories in golf have come from it,â€� Weir said. And he’s got a supporter in Hadwin, who said Weir, from a personality standpoint and getting along with players, would “absolutelyâ€� make a good captain. But Weir potentially getting called on as captain is in the future. Both men acknowledge it’ll be a stern test in the present for the Internationals to take down the mighty Americans in December. The team will have a Canadian playing and a Canadian as an assistant captain once again, and their bond will grow over the biennial competition. Such is the spirit of the Presidents Cup. But they want to win, too. Hadwin says it’ll be on him to ask Weir a few more questions this time around – the conversations will pick up now that the fall portion of the PGA TOUR schedule has concluded – but he feels confident in how his game would travel to Royal Melbourne. “I think it could really suit my game,â€� Hadwin said of the course. The 31-year-old has had some success playing in Australia before, finishing T11 and T4 at the 2016 and 2018 ISPS Handa World Cup of Golf, respectively, at two Australian sand belt layouts. “This could be a pretty good opportunity for a guy with my type of game to do some damage.â€� And he’s got the support of his countryman once again this year. They’ll have their own growing bond, thanks to the Presidents Cup. “I’ll be on his side,â€� Weir said of his connection to Hadwin, “and whatever he needs, we’ll do the best we can to have him in a position to succeed.â€�

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