Kim becomes youngest Players winner

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico – By his own admission, Rickie Fowler hasn’t played much golf. Maybe that’s a good thing. With no expectations but confident after a season that saw him win The Honda Classic among 10 top-10 finishes, Fowler cruised at El Camaleon. He made six birdies and got up and down five times in five chances to keep a clean card in his first round of the new season. “Touch and feel is a big thing coming off of—I think we’ve had roughly a month off, five weeks or so,â€� Fowler said. “So when the feel is somewhat there, it frees you up to know that you can get away with some missed shots and it allows you to swing a bit freer.â€� The highest ranked player in this week’s field (10th), Fowler hit eight of 14 fairways and 13 greens in regulation. He took 26 putts. The 28-year-old has traditionally started his season in Asia, but he skipped the TOUR’s three-week swing in Malaysia, South Korea and China. That left him looking for a place to play, and he had heard glowing reviews of Mayakoba. He hasn’t been disappointed, soaking up the sun with girlfriend Allison Stokke since Saturday. That Fowler’s game seems so well-suited for the 7,000-yard, par-71 Camaleon course has been a bonus. “I had a really fun pro-am group,â€� he said. “I think they ended up going on to win. My crew started off with a win this week, I might as well finish it for the group on Sunday. “But off to a good start. Definitely want to play well down here being my first showing at Mayakoba. Yeah, I couldn’t really ask for much more today.â€� OBSERVATIONS KIZZIRE CITES DUFNER INFLUENCE. The 6-foot-5, Auburn product Patton Kizzire drove into the bunker and bogeyed 18, but his 62 was still his career low by one. It also continued a torrid early-season run in which Kizzire tied for fourth at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and finished T10 at the Sanderson Farms Championship. One of his best results last season? A T5 with partner Jason Dufner at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. “He’s been a good mentor, a good friend,â€� Kizzire said. “He’s taken me under his wing and shown me a few things. We’ll play practice rounds together occasionally and just hang out. We’ll go to football games together and he’s a good one to pick his brain and to play with because he’s awfully confident.â€� MITCHELL SURPASSES FATHER. Keith Mitchell aced the 200-yard 10th hole with a 6-iron on his first swing of the day. It was only 8:30 a.m., and there were so few people around the green that Mitchell and playing partners Tom Hoge and Rob Oppenheim weren’t sure what had happened. “We heard a small clap,â€� said Mitchell, who went on to shoot 5-under 66. “It was pretty subdued.â€� It was his fourth hole-in-one and first since college, and he wasn’t sure where he stood relative to his dad, Jerry, who had made either three or four in his career. Mitchell, a Web.com Tour grad who missed the cut in his first three starts this season, texted his father in North Carolina and went to lunch. He later texted the PGA TOUR the verdict: “1 up.â€�  GOOSEN TURNS BACK CLOCK. Good results have been few and far between for the two-time U.S. Open winner, who was in a large group at 66 despite making bogey at the par-5 fifth hole. Goosen, 48, opened last season by missing seven straight cuts before finishing T2 at the Puerto Rico Open. He wound up 162nd in the FedExCup, and was 176th in strokes gained: putting (-.425). Thursday saw him hit eight of 14 fairways and 12 greens in regulation. He took 26 putts and looked more like the guy who has won seven times on TOUR. HAPPY NEWS FOR CHINA. Xinjun Zhang eagled the par-5 13th hole to join Goosen in the large group at 5-under 66. Zhang and Marty Dou played their way off the Web.com Tour last season to become the first players from China to earn their cards on the PGA TOUR. Now it’s just a matter of staying there. In three previous starts this season, Zhang had finished T37 at the Safeway Open, T44 at the no-cut World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in Shanghai and missed the cut at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. NOTABLES GARY WOODLAND – A year after finishing second to Pat Perez at El Camaleon, Woodland was at it again, lurking after a 3-under 68 that included an eagle at the par-5 13th hole. KEVIN CHAPPELL – After a season that saw him win for the first time and make a successful Presidents Cup debut, he shot a 4-under 67. It’s been a good time for UCLA golf grads; Patrick Cantlay picked up his first win at last week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. FABIAN GOMEZ – He’s the leading Latin American player after firing a 5-under 66. KEN DUKE – Monday qualifier got off to a solid start with a 68. QUOTABLES “We got here on Saturday, but didn’t touch a club until Tuesday.â€� – Rickie Fowler (65) on how he’s been making the most of the extracurricular activities at Mayakoba. “I knew my game was in good shape.â€� – Keith Mitchell (66), who made a quintuple-bogey 9 in round one of last week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open but missed the cut by just one. SUPERLATIVES Streaks: Kizzire birdied holes 8-13, bogeyed 18, and signed for a 62. Easiest hole: The 532-yard, par-5 13th. Among the leaders, only Martin Piller (66) failed to make at least a birdie there. Xinjun Zhang (66) was one of a handful of players who eagled the hole. Shot of the day: Mitchell’s hole-in-one on his first shot of the day was the eighth in tournament history, and the second time a player has started the OHL Classic at Mayakoba with an ace. Thomas Aiken did the same thing in 2015, also on the 10th hole and also with a 6-iron. CALL OF THE DAY SHOT OF THE DAY BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIA

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Tiger Woods shot a 5-under 65 Saturday at the Tour Championship to take his first 54-hole lead in a tournament since 2013. He holds a three-stroke advantage over Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose heading into Sunday’s final round.

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The Asian Swing ends with the first World Golf Championships event of the 2018-19 PGA TOUR season. It’s a stellar field – 20 of last year’s final 30 in the FedExCup standings are in China, including FedExCup champ (and defending HSBC champ) Justin Rose. Also, 35 of the world’s top 50, including Player of the Year and new No. 1 Brooks Koepka. Call it the Shootout in Shanghai. THE FLYOVER The shortest par-4 on the PGA TOUR last season is the drivable 288-yard 16th at Sheshan International. In fact, just four of the 551 par-4s played on TOUR were less than 300 yards — and yet the shortest hole wasn’t the easiest. The 3.716 stroke average on the 16th last season ranked it as the 14th easiest par-4 on TOUR. LANDING ZONE Based on recent history, it’s likely the 603-yard eighth will be the toughest par-5 on the TOUR this season. In two of the past five seasons, it has ranked as the toughest par 5. A year ago, it ranked second among the 163 par-5s played on TOUR, playing to a stroke average of 5.113. Only the 14th at Pebble Beach was a harder par-5, and just seven par-5s on TOUR played to an over-par score. The eighth generally is not reachable in two, with water potentially impacting tee shots and second shots into a shallow green. WEATHER CHECK From meteorologist Guy Nestor: “Good weather conditions continue into Wednesday and most of Thursday before another frontal system moves through the area. Rain will be likely Friday morning then high pressure follows with great weather setting up for the weekend.â€� For the latest weather news from Shanghai, China, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK I’ve only been world No. 1 for three days. I haven’t found too many challenges in those three days.Love. Hair. And humor. But love first. I’m in a much better place this year than I was this time last year. BY THE NUMBERS 550 – FedExCup points available for this week, 50 more than a regular PGA TOUR stop. 7 – Chinese golfers in the field, including Hao Tong Li. The 23-year-old from Hunan is ranked 54th in the world. 150 – Number of career PGA TOUR starts Rory McIlroy has made, including this week. He’ll be seeking his 15th TOUR win. SCATTERSHOTS A year ago, Justin Rose was playing the pro-am round at Sheshan when he turned to his manager and declared that it was time to put together a run and play “some great golf here.â€� Recalled Rose: “I felt very hungry and motivated to just try and find another level.â€� Rose won the HSBC, the first of four wins in a 15-start stretch that would eventually lead to the FedExCup and a brief stint at world No. 1. “This tournament absolutely did kick-start some great golf for me that’s lasted the best part of the year,â€� he said. Dustin Johnson is making his only appearance in the fall. After this week, he will not play again until the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii the first week of January. And he won’t start practicing again until early December. “That’s when I get excited and fired up and get ready to get back to work,â€� he said. Taiwan’s C.T. Pan has played Sheshan International, but it wasn’t in competition. After missing the cut at the 2007 Volvo China Open at nearby Shanghai Silport, he had a free Saturday, so he made the 15-minute drive to play Sheshan International, which had opened three years earlier. It took him 11 years, but he’s finally back. “I remember it vividly. I told myself, I wish I could be here any time soon, and today I’m here and that means a lot to me,â€� Pan said.

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