Jim Furyk splits dream team to create another

• COURSE: TPC Sawgrass (PLAYERS Stadium), 7,189 yards, par 72. Already lauded as a course that plays no favorites and deftly tests all parts of a player’s game, the Stadium Course offers two new tests this year for the game’s best players. The narrow water hazard between Nos. 6 and 7 has been expanded into a rectangular lake, removing several trees in the vicinity. More significant is No. 12, which has been turned into a drivable par-4 with both fairway and green sloping toward a new water hazard on the left. What hasn’t changed is the hole that receives the most attention – the iconic 17th, measuring 137 yards over water to a green connected only by narrow rear pathway. • FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 600 points. • CHARITY: More than 300 Northeast Florida charities receive assistance from THE PLAYERS Championship, among them Wolfson Children’s Hospital, American Cancer Society and Epilepsy Foundation of Florida. Last year’s event raised a record $8.5 million for charity, bringing its total to more than $84 million since the event first arrived outside Jacksonville in 1977. • FIELD WATCH: World No. 1 Dustin Johnson and newlywed No. 2 Rory McIlroy join defending champion Jason Day to headline what is annually the year’s strongest roster. The lineup features 24 of the top 25 in the current world rankings and 55 of the top 60. … Bernhard Langer, 59, is the oldest player in THE PLAYERS field for the third consecutive year. The Hall of Famer will make his 26th start at TPC Sawgrass, getting in by virtue of last year’s victory at the Constellation SENIOR PLAYERS Championship. … One additional berth is available for the winner of this week’s Wells Fargo Championship, if he hasn’t already qualified. • 72-HOLE RECORD: 264, Greg Norman (1994). • 18-HOLE RECORD: 63, Fred Couples (3rd round, 1992), Greg Norman (1st round, 1994), Roberto Castro (1st round, 2013), Martin Kaymer (1st round, 2014); Jason Day (1st round, 2016); Colt Knost (2nd round, 2016). • LAST YEAR: Day tied the Stadium Course record with an opening 63 and hardly looked back, becoming just the fifth wire-to-wire winner in the event’s history as he completed a four-shot triumph. Day’s total of 15-under-par 273 was the lowest score at TPC Sawgrass in 10 editions since THE PLAYERS moved to a May date. The chase pack never got closer than two shots in the final round, after Day’s bogey at the par-5 ninth hole. The Aussie birdied two of his next three, though, to post his third victory in a nine-week span, alongside wins at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. Kevin Chappell used late birdies at Nos. 16 and 17 to take runner-up honors, matching their 1-2 finish at Bay Hill. • STORYLINES: Johnson, owner of three straight wins before the Wells Fargo Championship, could use an uptick at TPC Sawgrass. Before last year’s share of 28th, his previous seven starts had yet to yield a top-30 finish. Johnson has broken 70 just once in an opening round – a 68 in 2014. … New Masters champion Sergio Garcia, the 2008 PLAYERS winner, makes his first start since Augusta National. It’s been 14 years since he missed a cut at TPC Sawgrass – but the past two Masters winners (Jordan Spieth, Danny Willett) missed THE PLAYERS cut after slipping on the green jacket. … McIlroy tees it up in competition for the first time as a married man, wedding Erica Stoll in a lavish affair 2 ½ weeks ago at Ashford Castle in Ireland. The reigning FedExCup champion has finished outside the top 10 just once anywhere since East Lake, failing short of knockout play at the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play. • SHORT CHIPS: A total of 36 balls found the water surrounding No. 17 last year, slightly below average (39.5) since the PGA TOUR began keeping count 14 years ago. Two years earlier produced the all-time low of 28 splashdowns. The record is 93, when the event first moved to May in 2007. … Paul Azinger (1987) is the only man to birdie No. 17 in all four regulation rounds. Rickie Fowler birdied it three times in a day, during the final round and playoff of his 2015 triumph. … Day became just the second of the past 10 champions who managed to close the deal after holding the 54-hole lead. Martin Kaymer was the other, holding off Jim Furyk after a rain delay in 2014. • TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 1-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 2-7 p.m. (NBC). • PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.-7 p.m. (featured groups), 9 a.m.-7 p.m. (17th hole). Saturday-Sunday, 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m. (featured groups), noon-7 p.m. (17th hole). • RADIO: Thursday-Friday, noon-7 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-7 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com). For more on all the courses in the TPC network, visit TPC.com.  Play where the pros play. To book your tee time at TPC Sawgrass, visit TeeOff.com.

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Defending FedExCup champion and world No. 1 Dustin Johnson leads 49 of the world's top 50 into THE PLAYERS Championship after a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic. All but one of the current FedExCup top 30 will be in action, and Rory McIlroy will be the defending champion of sorts as he won in 2019, the last time all four rounds were played. PGA TOUR LIVE, which will be free for Thursday's first round, will offer exclusive early-round coverage of the action at TPC Sawgrass (Stadium Course). The field has been expanded from 144 to 154 to accommodate those who finished in the top 125 of last season's FedExCup standings. Johnson, Collin Morikawa, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed are among those who will be in the Featured Groups. To get you ready for LIVE's coverage, we convened our experts for a roundtable discussion on the groups released so far. Enjoy. HOW TO FOLLOW (All times ET) Television: Thursday-Friday, 12 p.m.-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1 p.m.-6 p.m. (NBC) Every Shot Live: Live streaming of every shot hit at THE PLAYERS Championship will get underway Thursday morning from TPC Sawgrass. Nearly 100 cameras will capture roughly 31,000 strokes taken over approximately 430 rounds played. It will be available free through PGA TOUR LIVE on NBC Sports Gold on Thursday. See schedule below. PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 6:30 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Groups), 8 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Holes), 6:40 a.m.-8 p.m. (Every Shot Live). Saturday, 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Groups), 12 p.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Holes), 7:50 a.m.-8 p.m. (Every Shot Live). Sunday, 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Groups), 12 p.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Holes), 7:50 a.m.-6 p.m. (Every Shot Live) Radio: Thursday-Friday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 12 p.m.-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio). TOURCast: Get shot-by-shot info in real time with shot tracks and video with TOURCast. TOUR Pulse: Get the PGA TOUR app to utilize TOUR Pulse, which provides users the ability to experience a mix of content, such as video highlights, written hole summaries and stat graphics on every player after every hole they complete. Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa One of these, Morikawa, is not like the others, Johnson and DeChambeau. What role does distance play at TPC Sawgrass? CAMERON MORFIT: It's certainly not insignificant; Davis Love III won the tournament twice. But I'll go out on a limb and say Morikawa, who comes in hot after winning the World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession, will win this group. He's long enough, and his iron play is just too good. Combine it with his new "saw" putting grip and he's going to be plenty dangerous, even if he does only have one competitive round there. BEN EVERILL: When we moved from May to March in 2019, I remember a bunch of talk about how it would benefit the bombers more than had previously been the case. While there may have been some truth to that with Rory McIlroy winning and Johnson even getting his first PLAYERS top-10 finish, I would be remiss not to point out that 48-year-old Jim Furyk was runner-up. TPC Sawgrass doesn't benefit any specific type - it benefits whoever is on his game across the spectrum. I can certainly see Morikawa winning on this cerebral layout, but part of me thinks Johnson is ready to add another huge title to his resume. JEFF BABINEAU: Distance plays a role on any golf course - long and straight is always a strong mix - but I think it is less of a factor at TPC Sawgrass than other venues. To its credit, THE PLAYERS is one of the most democratic tournaments on the planet, and by that, I mean there is a wide variety of styles and games in its long roster of champions. Power players and shorter-hitting grinders have won the event. For every Rory McIlroy, or Tiger Woods, or Davis Love III, there is a Fred Funk, or Matt Kuchar, or Tim Clark - competitors who won despite giving up length to the field. Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed Rahm looked great through 54 holes of THE PLAYERS before suffering a minor meltdown on the second hole of the final round in 2019, and finishing well back. Does a moment and a day like that make you more or less inclined to put a player on your fantasy team? CAMERON MORFIT: It depends on how old the player is when he has the close call. For a guy in his late 30s or 40s, there can certainly be an element of, "If he hasn't won it by now, he never will." But Rahm is too young for that kind of thinking. He'll be on my fantasy team for sure. BEN EVERILL: One swallow doesn't make a summer. Rahm isn't the only player to have meltdowns in his career - the important thing is he's shown the ability to close strong against quality fields as well. Pretty good chance the Spaniard makes my team... if there is room after I slot in my favorite Aussies! JEFF BABINEAU: Jon Rahm's closing 76 at THE PLAYERS and T12 finish two years ago would seem more an aberration than something to make you shy away from picking him. For three rounds, he played beautifully, shooting 69-68-64 as he headed to Sunday. Rahm is where he is in the World Ranking (No. 2, behind only Dustin Johnson) because he all the tools to win anywhere, at any time.

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Let’s say you were drafting a team of players based on a 10-year time horizon. How long would it take to pick Jon Rahm? Just 27 years old, Rahm is a recent world No. 1 and in June will defend his U.S. Open title at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. He has led the PGA TOUR each of the last two seasons in Strokes Gained: Total and goes into this week’s Mexico Open at Vidanta as the season leader in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (+1.30 per round) and greens in regulation (73.5%). Since Strokes Gained tracking began in 2004, only one player has finished a TOUR season atop both of those statistical categories: Sergio Garcia in 2005. Let’s look at this week’s runaway pre-tournament favorite in Mexico, his statistical road to becoming a TOUR star, and why he’s poised to be one of the best players in the sport for years. RAPID RISE Rahm spent 60 weeks as the top-ranked amateur in the world, a record for the WAGR until earlier this year. As a 20-year-old amateur, he finished tied for fifth at the 2015 WM Phoenix Open, the first amateur to top-five in a TOUR event in seven years. His 11 tournament wins at Arizona State are second-most in program history, trailing only Phil Mickelson (16). Rahm was considered a can’t-miss prospect. He has not missed; to say he adapted quickly to the pro game is an understatement. In his first TOUR start as a pro, the 2016 Quicken Loans National, Rahm held the 36-hole co-lead and tied for third. Had he played enough rounds to officially qualify, Rahm would have finished his 2015-16 season in the top five on TOUR in birdie average, scoring average, Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and Strokes Gained: Putting. Rahm collected his first TOUR victory at the 2017 Farmers Insurance Open, becoming the first player to win his debut at the Farmers since Arnold Palmer in 1957, and the first player to eagle the 72nd hole to win the event since Tiger Woods in 1999. Four years later, Rahm would join Woods as a U.S. Open champion at Torrey Pines, claiming his first major championship win. BALANCED GREATNESS Since the beginning of 2020, Rahm is averaging 1.90 Strokes Gained: Total per round. Not only is that the highest average of any player on TOUR in that span, it’s 0.32 strokes ahead of second-best, Webb Simpson. The difference between Rahm and Simpson – one and two – is the same as the gap between Simpson and Will Zalatoris, who ranks 10th. Strokes Gained: Ball Striking is a statistic that combines the number of shots a player gains per round against the field with his drives and approach play. Rahm leads the TOUR in that statistic since January of 2020, at +1.43 strokes per round. Collin Morikawa is second at +1.41. While some rely on a singular aspect of their game, Rahm can do it all, which separates him from the pack. Since the beginning of 2020, there are more than 230 players with 40 or more rounds measured by ShotLink. Of that group, only three players have averaged 0.4 Strokes Gained or more Off-the-Tee, Approach and in Short Game (Around-the-Green plus Putting): Rahm, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay. Another way to illustrate that balance is through percentage of strokes gained – how much does each discipline (Off-the-Tee, Putting, etc.) factor into a single player’s success? There are 59 players averaging at least 0.50 Strokes Gained: Total per round since January of 2020. Only 11 of them owe at least 15% of that sum to each of Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, Approach and Putting. Rahm is one of them. Let’s go back even further, though – to Rahm’s professional debut. Since June of 2016, there are more than 200 statistically-qualified players on TOUR. Only two of them have gained a quarter of a stroke or more on the field, per round, in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, Strokes Gained: Approach, and Strokes Gained: Putting – Rahm and Schauffele. Since turning pro, Rahm has been elite off the tee, but can attribute his consistency to being well above average in every facet of the game. MAJOR CONSISTENCY That balanced performance has translated nicely at the game’s biggest championships. A brilliant Saturday 65 at the 2018 Masters pushed Rahm into major championship contention for the first time as a pro. He would ultimately finish fourth, his first career top-five in a major, and since then, he has added five more top-five finishes, trailing only four-time major winner Brooks Koepka for most in that span. Since 2018, Rahm is ranked fourth in scoring average in the majors, where he is fifth in Strokes Gained: Total. He’s second in cumulative score to par (-44) and rounds in the 60s (28), again only trailing Koepka during that stretch. Rahm has finished in the top 10 in five of his last six major starts, the only exception coming at the recent Masters (T-27). LOOKING FOR PUTTING REBOUND Rahm has struggled a bit this season on the greens, tumbling 90 spots in the Strokes Gained: Putting ranking – 132nd this season from 42nd in 2021. He has especially struggled from four to eight feet, where he currently ranks 191st on TOUR. Rahm was in the top 30 in that statistic last season. There is reason for optimism on this front, though. At the Masters, Rahm ranked 20th in Strokes Gained: Putting among players to make the cut, gaining one-third of a stroke per round on the field. A return to his old self on the greens could lead to a big summer.

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