Leaderboard: Round 3 of Safeway Open

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Welcome to the Monday Finish where the lights haven’t gone out in Vegas or at Patrick Cantlay’s celebration party. Here’s some observations and insights from the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open where Cantlay joined the youth movement after a gritty win at TPC Summerlin. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1. They said it was only a matter of time for Patrick Cantlay. They were right. Five years after turning professional as the hottest thing in youth golf Cantlay hit the jackpot in Las Vegas. The story on why this took as long as it did is well documented, check out the upshot from last night here, or Mike McAllister’s impressive deep dive on him from earlier in the year here. He went through hell both on course and off it. And while his contemporaries like Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas have created a new era in golf he was forced to watch from the sidelines. But no more. Cantlay is clearly the real deal. What impressed me most was perhaps the fact he should’ve blown his chances, but kept fighting. He double bogeyed the 18th on Saturday to fall four back of the lead. He bogeyed his final two holes Sunday to seemingly give up his chance at the title and then when given the chance in the playoff he found a bunker on approach and almost hit that shot into the water before flubbing the following chip. BUT, he continued to dig deep. He made a clutch 8-foot putt to stay alive and then after a wide drive put him in tree trouble he didn’t take the soft option – he went for it. Threading the needle through the trees to the back of the green. A great lag putt and a tap in later and he was your champion. Gritty stuff despite adversity. Cantlay is the real deal. 2. While we have been pushing the youth movement on the PGA TOUR for the last year or so given the incredible success of those in their 20s we cannot forget those on the other end of the scale. The 40-somethings. Alex Cejka, at 46, almost stole the tournament yesterday after an incredible final round 63. Despite giving up some length advantage to Cantlay and Whee Kim in the playoff he had a good look at victory on the first playoff hole just slide by. Last season a 47-year-old Rod Pampling won in Las Vegas. This week’s defending champion at the OHL Classic in Mayakoba is Pat Perez, who has already won again this season in Malaysia. The great thing about golf is you can play it from when you are about 2 to 102. Keep an eye out for tomorrows big Tuesday story from colleague Cameron Morfit where he dives into the 40-somethings and how they remain more relevant than ever in this great game. 3. Whee Kim looks like a future winner. One bad swing cost the South Korean on Sunday when his tee ball on the second playoff hole sailed left into the desert but prior to that he’d been gutsy. His opening round 65 was impressive and came in his first start after contending heavily in his home country at THE CJ CUP @NINE BRIDGES. He then ground out a couple of 72s in tougher conditions and without a cooperative putter. He started Sunday five back and not really in the discussion and with just one birdie on the front nine Sunday it looked like just a decent result was on the cards. Instead he then produced five birdies in seven holes after the turn to catapult into contention. Nerves took hold a little with a bogey on the last and then bogey / double bogey on the playoff holes but he will be better for it. With Shane Joel on his bag he has great experience to work with. Joel caddied for Mark O’Meara for a long time. Perhaps Kim is one to watch in Mexico this week although Joel won’t be on this trip as he completes some immigration paperwork. 4. The wild winds in Las Vegas weren’t everybody’s cup of tea but to be fair it is the defense of the TPC Summerlin layout. The 30mph gusts over the weekend made it extremely difficult to navigate, forcing players into guesswork with clubs and into creativity with ball flight. It might be a little macabre of me but I like to see the best players on the PGA TOUR face this sort of adversity once in a while. The game of golf is not easy and so often our stars make it look like it is so it’s okay that occasionally we see them squirm a little. Patrick Cantlay’s winning score of 9-under 275 is the highest by seven shots (2015) since becoming a single-course event in 2008. It’s just the third time the winning total has been higher than 20-under-par. Last year Rod Pampling led at 11- under after the first round! 5. Congratulations to everyone involved at Shriners Hospitals and also those involved in the whole Vegas Strong movement. The Shriners Hospitals do so much amazing work and this was evident all week as I was lucky enough to meet some of the patients and hear their stories. The tournament is a huge part of growing awareness and support for the great work they do. Of course their graciousness in sharing the light with those affected by the recent massacre in Las Vegas was never in question and both causes were looked after well. Sponsor Invite A.J. McInerney, who was a survivor of the shootings, played incredibly well to a T10 finish and had enthusiastic support from the crowds. UNLV graduate and former national champion Charley Hoffman donated his prizemoney to the victims ($98,600). It was just great to be amongst a strong community. If you are looking for a cause to get behind, by all means check out what Shriners Hospitals for Children do. FIVE INSIGHTS 1. Patrick Cantlay moves to 3rd position in the FedExCup standings with his first career victory. It is his fifth top-15 finish in his last six starts on TOUR. 2. Cantlay led the field in Strokes Gained: Off-the-tee, outperforming the field by +1.256 strokes per round. This marked the second time Cantlay has led in this category and fourth time gaining more than a stroke per round in an event from the tee. He was T8 in Driving Distance – All Drives (305.6yards) and T5 in Driving Accuracy at 64.29percent (36 of 56). 3. Cantlay’s performance on the back nine at TPC Summerlin was phenomenal. He played the back nine holes in 8-under par, hit 23 of 28 fairways and outperformed the field by +3.70 in SG: Off-the-Tee. He equaled his career best consecutive birdies streak of four birdies twice on route to victory (Rd 1 & Rd 4). 4. Since 1995, there have now been 11 winners of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in their 20s, tying the record for most winners in their 20s with the BMW Championship. 5. Chesson Hadley, the front-runner for 2017 Web.com Tour Player of the Year and former PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year, finished T4. This marks his third-consecutive top-5 finish in three starts this season. In his first two starts, he finished T3 at the Safeway Open and runner-up at the Sanderson Farms Championship. TOP THREE VIDEOS 1. Patrick Cantlay’s no lay-up attitude in the playoff helped him to this recovery shot from behind trees. It would effectively be the clincher. 2. Kyle Miller hosts Shriners patients in a special golf clinic. 3. We love hole in ones… how about two in one day? (Kelly Kraft’s ace not pictured here.)

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As predicted in this space a week ago, fantasy scoring exploded at the AT&T Byron Nelson because Driving is weighted in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. This was due to the absence of intermediate and primary rough at Trinity Forest. The entry, Undercover, won the tournament with a whopping 1,922 points, easily a season-high total by any gamer. Entering the week, Grodo’s 1,668 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open was atop the charts. Only four other weekly leaders eclipsed 1,600 points. Trinity Forest yielded a fairways-hit percentage of 79.50. That’s the highest since SilverRock’s 81.37 percent as a co-host of the CareerBuilder Challenge in 2011. Of the 1,386 courses measured since the statistic was first maintained in 1992, Trinity Forest’s clip ranks 21st-highest. (SilverRock’s 85.32 percent in 2010 is the record.) Don’t count on a similar output at the Fort Worth Invitational. Last year, the weekly winner amassed “only” 1,317 points. Meanwhile, we’re encroaching on that time of year that gamers covet as decorated amateurs joins the ranks of the play-for-pay contingent. For example, Joaquin Niemann cannonballed into the pool with a solo sixth at the Valero Texas Open. Next week, 2017 U.S. Amateur champion Doc Redman will turn professional for the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. As a result, he forfeits exemptions into the U.S. Open and The Open Championship. Currently 22nd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, the sophomore at Clemson will lead the Tigers into the NCAA Championship in Stillwater, Oklahoma, later this week. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the Fort Worth Invitational (in alphabetical order): Jason Dufner Zach Johnson Kevin Kisner Adam Scott Webb Simpson Jordan Spieth You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Patrick Cantlay; Bryson DeChambeau; Rickie Fowler; Chesson Hadley; Pat Perez; Jon Rahm; Justin Rose; Jimmy Walker Driving: Patrick Cantlay; Bryson DeChambeau; Rickie Fowler; Emiliano Grillo; Pat Perez; Jon Rahm; Justin Rose Approach: Bryson DeChambeau; Rickie Fowler; Emiliano Grillo; Chesson Hadley; David Hearn; Matt Kuchar; Pat Perez; Nick Watney Short: Emiliano Grillo; Chesson Hadley; Brian Harman; Matt Kuchar; Kevin Na; Justin Rose; Jimmy Walker; Nick Watney Power Rankings Wild Card Brooks Koepka … Lands here almost by default because of who he is, not because he’s a shrewd investment. He’s making his tournament debut, which automatically eliminates him as a favorite at Colonial. However, there’s reason to be hopeful after a T11 at THE PLAYERS where he ranked 10th in strokes gained: tee-to-green, eighth in proximity and second in scrambling. The Fort Worth Invitational is just his fourth start since returning from injury, so he’s also more refreshed and recharged than just about everyone else in the field. That bodes well with his title defense at the U.S. Open looming on the horizon. Draws Kevin Na … He’s as much of a moving target as any talent on the board, but with a sturdy record at Colonial (9-for-11 with three top 10s and another three top 25s) and a T6 at Trinity Forest fueling the feels, this sets up as a good time to pounce. Xander Schauffele … On a lesser scale, he’s executing with the kind of mold-breaking form with which Jon Rahm crashed onto the PGA TOUR. Schauffele’s latest example occurred at TPC Sawgrass where he pieced together four good rounds for a share of second place. That’s the kind of thing that’s not supposed to happen for debutants on that course. The rise has been remarkable, too. At this time last year, the then-PGA TOUR rookie was outside the top 335 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Today, he’s 23rd. Adam Hadwin … The 30-year-old Canuck was the last man cut from the Power Rankings. He’s in his fourth consecutive start at Colonial with a T5 (2015) and T22 (2016) already on the books. He’s properly skilled to navigate the relatively short track; in fact, his tee-to-green work is vastly improved over previous seasons. And he’s connected 17 straight paydays to share the lead on TOUR in that quantifiable measurement of confidence. Steve Stricker … Think he made a wise choice to stick with his commitment to the PGA TOUR Champions’ first major of the year? To wit, he shared runner-up honors at the Regions Tradition after opting for that event over the AT&T Byron Nelson. Now the PGA TOUR wins his appearance over the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship this week. Expect another smart decision to play out. The 2009 champ at Colonial padded a sparkling record here with a T7 last year. Emiliano Grillo (all) Charley Hoffman (all) Si Woo Kim (DFS) Pat Perez (SERVPRO) Scott Piercy (DFS) Rory Sabbatini (DFS) Kevin Streelman (DFS) Fades Aaron Wise … This is by rule times two. For one, he’s a first-timer at Colonial. The learning curve must be respected. He’s also fresh off his breakthrough victory. The predictable letdown deserves time and space. Ryan Palmer … If you polled the locals asking who they wanted to see win the Fort Worth Invitational, he’d probably garner an overwhelming majority of votes. You already know that he’s a member at Colonial, but this is his 15th consecutive appearance since his rookie season of 2004. He’s contended and even came within a whiff of victory two years ago, but he’s yet to pose for pictures wearing the plaid jacket. Alas, if it happens this year, it would be a surprise given lackluster form upon arrival. In the vacuum of last week, he set up wonderfully yet missed the cut by three shots. Louis Oosthuizen … For a major champion as consistently strong as he’s been (when healthy), he has not connected with success at Colonial. Since a personal-best T19 in 2012, he’s gone T38-WD-MC. He also missed the cut in his last two starts entering this week. Cameron Smith … In due time, he’ll be a weapon almost everywhere, but the Aussie’s profile doesn’t match up well to Colonial. Not yet, at least. The brush stroke is that he prefers to hit it long and salvage what he can around and on greens. Colonial requires finesse and course management. Trap. Brandt Snedeker … Puts to test the value of success at Colonial. He’s perfect in seven trips with a T2 (2015) and another pair of top 20s, but he arrives having missed three straight cuts. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the Snedeker Foundation is the benefactor of this week’s Nashville Golf Open on the Web.com Tour for the second straight year. So, even if he doesn’t win in Texas, his charity wins in Tennessee. Sam Burns … With potentially only two more PGA TOUR starts this season, the pressure is on to perform at Colonial where he’s making his debut. His better fit will be at next week’s Memorial where his game off the tee and putting should pay dividends. Austin Cook Bill Haas Russell Henley Martin Laird Andrew Landry William McGirt Trey Mullinax Joaquin Niemann Returning to Competition Sean O’Hair … Presents as an intriguing option given his T2 at Colonial last year but coming off a withdrawal during THE PLAYERS. He called it quits after one round. An explanation wasn’t released. The 35-year-old is worth the plunge, however. His form for most of 2018 has been solid and he knows Colonial well. Sneak him into a lineup in DFS. Grayson Murray … Walked off Trinity Forest during his second round with a sore back. The good news is that he’s ready to return this quickly. The bad news, at least relatively for our purposes, is that he’s a first-timer at Colonial. Paul Casey … Poised to compete in this week’s BMW PGA Championship. The Englishman last made headlines as a pre-tournament withdrawal from THE PLAYERS due to discomfort in his back. The following day (Wednesday, May 9), he wrote the following description of his condition on Instagram: “I’ve got sacroiliitis (inflammation of the SI joint) with a sprain of the ligament. Also muscle spasms and leg pain, possible due to the sciatic nerve getting trapped.” Given his value in every format, gamers are forced to remain patient. Notable WDs Charl Schwartzel … Broke the tape on his mad dash to qualify for the U.S. Open with a T2 at THE PLAYERS, so he can enjoy a respite. His long-term investors also have been given the freedom to exhale. Currently 61st in FedExCup points. Peter Uihlein … With a T5 at Wells Fargo, the rookie positioned himself to qualify for the U.S. Open, which he did with a T21 at Trinity Forest after which he fell only two spots to 59th in the Official World Golf Ranking. He’s already exempt into The Open Championship and will eventually gain entry into the PGA Championship. Despite his worldly experience, it’s still an impressive membership debut for the 28-year-old. For many, his season has done nothing more than fulfill the baseline of expectations, but like all PGA TOUR rookies, he’s still had to execute on several courses he’s never seen or still learning all the while juggling all of the other challenges that go with navigating this circuit. Keith Mitchell … Figuring it out quickly. Since his runner-up performance at Corales, he’s 6-for-7 with a trio of top-fix finishes. The rookie’s T3 at Trinity Forest vaulted him to 57th in the FedExCup standings. Power Rankings Recap – AT&T Byron Nelson Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1  Jordan Spieth  T21 2  Jimmy Walker  T6 3  Marc Leishman  2nd 4  Billy Horschel  T21 5  Matt Kuchar  MC 6  Beau Hossler  T32 7  Adam Scott  T9 8  Martin Laird  MC 9  Charles Howell III  T9 10  Ryan Palmer  MC 11  Branden Grace  T3 12  Daniel Summerhays  MC 13  Peter Uihlein  T21 14  Andrew Putnam  T42 15  Stephan Jaeger  MC Wild Card  Sergio Garcia  MC Sleepers Recap – AT&T Byron Nelson Golfer  Result Joel Dahmen  T16 Russell Knox  T16 Keith Mitchell  T3 Johnson Wagner  T32 Richy Werenski  MC Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR May 22 … Scott Brown (35); Jason Kokrak (33); Dominic Bozzelli (27) May 23 … none May 24 … Bill Haas (36) May 25 … Rafa Cabrera Bello (34); Tom Hoge (29) May 26 … none May 27 … none May 28 … Jeff Overton (35)

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