Leaderboard: Track Tiger’s opening round at Riviera

FORT WORTH, Texas – The worst car that veteran caddie Kenny Harms ever owned was a green 1973 Chevy Camaro. He paid $200 for it and soon nicknamed it the Putty Box because that’s the material he kept using to fix the rust. On Sunday, Harms became the owner of another car built in 1973. This one’s considerably more valuable … and certainly more significant, as it comes courtesy of his man Kevin Na, who romped to a four-shot victory at the Charles Schwab Challenge. Among the perks for winning at Colonial are a plaid jacket, the Texas-sized Leonard trophy, a permanent spot on the Wall of Champions and a hefty check. This year, another perk was added – a 1973 blue Dodge Challenger to commemorate the year the Charles Schwab company was founded. It’s a unique prize, one that Na remembers hearing about months ago. Harms was equally aware of it too, and during a recent promotional piece on the car for the Caddie Network, he had a message for Na: “You wouldn’t really look so great in this but I will. I should I get the car if you win.â€� Then on Tuesday during the practice round, they spotted the Challenger sitting just off the 10th fairway. “Kevin, that’s my car, right?â€� Harms said. “Yeah, if I win, I’ll give it to you,â€� replied Na. “BOOM!â€� Harms said as he retold the story on the 18th green at Colonial, the trophy presentation having just completed. “Pretty smart for a caddie.â€� Said Na: “I don’t know how my caddie convinced me to give him the car, but he’s a good salesman I guess. He sold me into it. But I’m more than happy to give it to him. He deserves it.” “I got something cooler right here.â€� Na then patted the Leonard Trophy, which stands 42 inches tall and weighs 55 pounds, making it one of the biggest trophies on TOUR. It’s one he’s long coveted – and one he long imagined winning, perhaps even expecting to at some point. Colonial is one of the few courses on the PGA TOUR that Na thinks fits his shot-maker’s game. It’s not overly long, it rewards precision, and several of the holes play to his strengths. “I think a lot of my draws work out here,â€� he said. He also called it a second-shot-in golf course, noting that a majority of well-struck tee shots end up in the same spot in the fairway. “It’s about how good you can hit it with the irons and how well you can putt,â€� said Na, whose career-low 61 came here last year, and who shot a 62 on Friday to jump into contention. “I’m a pretty good player fairway in.â€� He was more than good on Sunday, hitting 14 of 18 greens and making several key putts. Starting the day with a two-stroke lead, Na birdied three of his first six holes – including a 33-foot putt at the fourth — then bounced back from his first bogey with another birdie from 20 feet at the par-3 eighth. Na, known for walking in putts, kind of side-walked this one, then pumped his first. A few steps later, he smiled for the first time in his round. No one would catch him on this day. He eventually finished at 13 under, and his 4-under 66 was exceeded by only one player Sunday, Russell Knox’s 65. “A well-deserved win this week,â€� said Tony Finau, his closest pursuer at 9 under. A little less than a year ago, Na won at The Greenbrier. It was his second TOUR win but his first in 158 starts. Na said the drought lasted so long – despite several close calls – that he wondered if he would ever win again. He’s not wondering any more. Although he feels like there are just seven or eight courses he can legitimately contend it – that may explain why he had just one top-10 this season coming into this week — Na is now converting those opportunities. “I feel like this week was the next chance at a win, next time I legitimately could contend – and I won,â€� Na said. “I felt so much more comfortable. Had so much more confidence. I think me winning Greenbrier last year has obviously taken a lot of pressure off.” “There is always pressure, but it’s taken a lot of the load off, weight off my shoulders. I think it helped me today.â€� Harms – who has been on Na’s bag since the end of the 2008 season when he jumped off Hale Irwin’s bag – has noticed the difference. “Ever since his win at Greenbrier, that was the first time I actually saw a calmness to him that all the greats have in golf,â€� Harms said. “I can tell when he’s nervous. I never really saw any nervousness from him today.â€� Until this week, 2019 had not gone all that smoothly. A finger injury forced him to withdraw from the Sentry Tournament of Champions and sidelined him for a month. A neck injury at Valspar also slowed him down. Then there are courses that simply don’t serve him well, like last week at Bethpage Black when he failed to make the cut. But Colonial will always be a special place for him. Just before starting his round Sunday, he looked at the Wall of Champions next to the No. 1 teebox and noted the engraved name of last year’s winner, Justin Rose. Then he looked at the empty spot just below it. “In my head, I engraved my name in it,â€� Na said. He won’t have to visualize any longer. Next time he arrives at Colonial, his name will be there, alongside all the other winners, including four-time champ Ben Hogan. The ’73 Dodge Challenger, though, will not be in his garage. Harms said he has ample room in his own garage, right next to his 911 Porsche Carrera. But don’t feel too bad for Na. Asked if he owned a car that could race the Challenger, he cracked a smile. “I got a Lamborghini at home.â€�

Click here to read the full article…

Because of the format of the 2018-19 season, Segment 1 of PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO sets up like a soft open. Survive the Safeway Open and glide through three consecutive no-cut tournaments before taking stock in what you’ve built. That’s where we’ll be at the conclusion of this week’s World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions. Beginning with next week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, cuts made rises to the top of the list of priorities. Each of the last three events this fall will feature a 36-hole cut, but only the Shriners will include ShotLink. The absence of measurement-based bonuses won’t matter much in real time, especially since we never have to concern ourselves with starts in Segment 1, but it’ll play a role in the long-range scoring since margins and deficits will remain as small as they’ve ever been in the game. As you learn the value of various decisions within the construct of the scoring system, the experience will influence how we’re going to approach Segments 2, 3 and 4. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions (in alphabetical order): Jason Day Tony Finau Dustin Johnson Brooks Koepka Rory McIlroy Justin Rose You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Keegan Bradley; Tommy Fleetwood; Tyrrell Hatton; Hideki Matsuyama; Jon Rahm Driving: n/a Power Rankings Wild Card Xander Schauffele … Easily overlooked during a forgettable T46 at Nine Bridges is that he closed with a 65 that included birdies on half of the holes. For someone of his talent who has proven comfortable on the biggest stages, that’s exactly the momentum all gamers want entering this week’s fast track. Draws Brandt Snedeker … With an elevated premium on short game and the likelihood for low scoring, he presents confidently once again. This is his first trip to Sheshan International since 2014 when he placed T10. Andy Sullivan … One of numerous snubs in Sleepers this week, the former Ryder Cupper is 28th in the Race to Dubai and arrives having improved on his previous outing in each of his last five starts. The surge was last seen in the form of a T9 at the British Masters. He has eight top 10s this year. Ashun Wu … DFS special. Currently 176th in the Official World Golf Ranking but second among the Chinese behind Hao Tong Li. Wu prevailed at the KLM Open last month and he hasn’t missed an edition of the WGC-HSBC Champions. Even better, he’s recorded a trio of top 25s, including in each of the last two. Byeong Hun An Keegan Bradley Emiliano Grillo Thorbjørn Olesen Adrian Otaegui Julian Suri Fades Patrick Reed … It’s been a confounding few weeks for the Masters champ. He didn’t factor in the Playoffs or the Ryder Cup. Now he attempts to tackle Sheshan International where he struggled in the last two editions. In a sense, this is who astute weekly gamers expect, anyway. It’s not a factor this week, but he can be convincing because he makes most cuts. The potential for a boon is omnipresent. Russell Knox … With a win in his debut in 2015, a T9 in his title defense and a scoring average of 68.00 in those eight rounds, course history buffs are sold. However, since his latest victory in Ireland in early July, he’s a mere 4-for-7 without a top-30 finish. That’s not the trajectory he was riding early in 2018 and it doesn’t align with his profile of balance. A calculated non-play. Alex Noren … Finished T18 at Nine Bridges, but it was anything but consistent. He ranked T6 in greens hit but his putting left a lot to be desired. With only one top 30 in the WGC-HSBC Champions, he’s at best a contrarian due to the guarantee of four rounds. Thomas Pieters … Give him a little more time to calibrate his game after an unsuccessful foray as a PGA TOUR member in 2017-18. So many European dual-tour talents before him have made it look easy, but there are just as many if not more casualties. He’ll be fine and he’ll actually make more sense in the WGCs and the majors for which he qualifies, but he’s broken par just once in his last five rounds at Sheshan International. Kiradech Aphibarnrat Branden Grace Billy Horschel Returning to Competition Kevin Stadler … He scattered four starts over as many months on the Web.com Tour this year, but this marks his first appearance on the PGA TOUR since the 2015 John Deere Classic. An injury in his hand thwarted a reasonable expectation to compete, but he had surgery for a stress fracture in his palm last year and has declared himself ready and feeling good. With a full slate of 26 starts afforded on a Major Medical Extension, the 38-year-old is an automatic investment in salary leagues. Notable WDs Sangmoon Bae … After missing the cut at the Safeway Open, he has nine starts on his Major Medical Extension to earn 294.752 FedExCup points and retain status. Of course, as a Web.com Tour grad, he’s fully exempt for the season, so the conversation of the medical no longer is as pressing as it was before he won the Albertsons Boise Open to lock up his card. Power Rankings Recap – THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1  Justin Thomas  T36 2  Hideki Matsuyama  T18 3  Marc Leishman  T18 4  Tyrrell Hatton  T14 5  Brooks Koepka  Win 6  Louis Oosthuizen  T29 7  Paul Casey  T18 8  Gary Woodland  2nd 9  Sungjae Im  T41 10  Jason Day  T5 11  Emiliano Grillo  T55 12  Cameron Smith  T7 13  Byeong Hun An  T41 14  Kyle Stanley  66th 15  Abraham Ancer  T73 Wild Card  Ian Poulter  T10 Sleepers Recap – THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES Golfer  Result Brice Garnett  T41 Whee Kim  72nd Jason Kokrak  T67 Keith Mitchell  T14 Hyun-woo Ryu  T77 Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR October 23 … none October 24 … Marc Leishman (35) October 25 … Troy Merritt (33); Xander Schauffele (25) October 26 … none October 27 … Fabián Gómez (40) October 28 … none October 29 … none

Click here to read the full article…

Click here to read the full article…