Live blog: Tiger Woods Rd. 1 at Genesis Open

In the final round of the 2018 BMW Championship at rain-soaked Aronimink Golf Club, Keegan Bradley shoots 64, then beats Justin Rose with a par on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff. Welcome to the Monday Finish, where Bradley—who hadn’t won on the PGA TOUR in over six years—notched his fourth win to break into the FedExCup Top 30 and secure a return to the season-ending TOUR Championship. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1. Bradley’s final round was a miracle. At the start of his TOUR career, Bradley won three times, including the PGA Championship, in 2011 and 2012. He hoisted enormous trophies, played in the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup, and was teammates with Phil Mickelson. Then it all went away. Over six years and 160 starts, Bradley didn’t win anything. He fiddled with his swing, and his putting stroke, and had a baby boy, Logan, with his wife, Jillian. The only cups he that remained were sippy cups. Now, though, after acing the BMW Championship’s final round, which was scuttled for rain Sunday and played Monday thanks to what Billy Horschel and others called a miracle, Bradley is sixth in the FedExCup. “It was the weirdest couple of days,â€� said Bradley, who was projected 30th in the FedExCup and into the TOUR Championship after the third round. “I knew in the back of my mind if we didn’t play, I was in Atlanta. It was my goal to start the year. It was difficult to get ready to play because I was like, man, if they call it, I’m good, but then I can go out — I’m only three back. So thankfully we got out here and played, and I made it to Atlanta and more now.â€� Just over two weeks ago, Bradley went into the final round of THE NORTHERN TRUST with an outside chance four back, but shot 78 alongside eventual winner Bryson DeChambeau. Bradley was 14 shots better this time, reigniting his career in the rain. 2. Rose won for losing. Despite running his record to 4/15 at converting 54-hole leads/co-leads into victory, Justin Rose took home a nice consolation prize: he ascended to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. “There will be next week to win tournaments, but to get to world No. 1 is unbelievable,â€� Rose said. “It’s something I can say now in my career I’ve been the best player in the world. I’ve been to the top of the game. That’s definitely some consolation. “I just wish I could have enjoyed the moment maybe,â€� he added after the runner-up finish, which left him second in the FedExCup. “This just slightly dampens it. But tomorrow or the next day, the week after, I’ll look back at this and think it was amazing, an amazing moment in my career.â€� 3. Rain helped Horschel cool it. Billy Horschel (64, T3) is one of many successful TOUR pros who admits he may sometimes burn too hot. He knows what he’s capable of, having won the 2014 BMW, TOUR Championship and FedExCup, and so it’s hard when he sees himself come up short. He had won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with partner Scott Piercy, but hadn’t won an individual event this year. His 19-under total at the BMW was just a shot shy of the playoff. “You know, we’ve done a lot of good work with Todd Anderson, Brett McKay, a sports psychologist, some really good work with me,â€� Horschel said. “My team has done an unbelievable job to stick through some tough times that were bad, not that bad. Not being able to play to my ability I get very frustrated, very easily.â€� The long rain delay, he said, may have helped him cool the fire. “I sort of play well when we have delays and this and that,â€� he said. “Calms me down. I don’t know when we’re going to go play so I can’t get myself worked up.â€� 4. Week off could help Woods. Several players admitted to fatigue after a long BMW week. Then there was Tiger Woods, who already had reason to be tired owing to the fact that with his four back surgeries he hadn’t played this much golf in years. “I’m going to take a long break after the Ryder Cup,â€� said Woods, who won the TOUR Championship at East Lake in 1999 and 2007, and will return for the first time since 2013. “We’re going to evaluate things. But, more importantly, I need to start really lifting and getting after it and getting stronger in certain areas because playing every single week seems like every single day is maintenance at this point, war of attrition. “What you do in the off-season is what allows you to maintain it through the year,â€� he added, “especially on the backside of the year, and I really didn’t train for all this. Because I didn’t know how much I was going to be playing. I was just trying to play. “So, next year I have a better understanding of what I need to do and this off-season will be very different than it was last year.â€� 5. Aronimink was defenseless. The rain-soaked course gave up birdies in bunches. Four players shot 62: Tommy Fleetwood, Rory McIlroy, Kevin Na and Tiger Woods. Fleetwood did it twice, Friday and Saturday, and McIlroy signed for that number despite bogeying two of his last three holes Thursday. Then there was this odd bit of trivia: Amongst the top five guys on the leaderboard through the first three rounds—Rose (-17), McIlroy (-16), Schauffele (-16), Fleetwood (-15) and Fowler (-15)—it represented the career-low 54-hole score for all five. FIVE INSIGHTS 1. Bradley led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting (+1.790); he was 186th in that stat going into the BMW, although he’d had a few good putting weeks here and there. He was one of 10 players to take 100 or fewer putts in a tournament this season, doing so at the RBC Canadian Open (solo 4th). His 28 birdies were the most of his career by five (2012 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational). 2. Xander Schauffele, who came into the week 41st in the FedExCup but played his way to Atlanta with a T3 at the BMW, could impact an obscure stat. Two players, Brendan Steele at the Safeway Open and Brooks Koepka at the U.S. Open, have successfully defended their titles this season. Schauffele is heating up and has just 29 players to beat to become the third. 3. Four rookies made the 70-man BMW Championship: Aaron Wise, Austin Cook, Peter Uihlein and Keith Mitchell. Two of them had already won on TOUR this season and were in the driver’s seat for Rookie of the Year: Wise (AT&T Byron Nelson) and Cook (RSM Classic). But only Wise (67, T16, 21st in FedExCup) advanced to the season-ending TOUR Championship. 4. Tommy Fleetwood’s middle rounds of 62-62 made him just the 10th player with a 36-hole total of 124 or better in consecutive rounds. Troy Matteson tops that list, taking just 122 strokes over consecutive rounds at the 2009 Safeway Open. 5. Monday gave us the 12th playoff this season, and the first since Bryson DeChambeau won the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. It was also the 17th event with a suspension or delay of play, and the third unscheduled Monday finish. (The Dell Technologies Championship always ends on Labor Day.)

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No matter his health, age and competitive rust, if you’ve been predisposed to elevated expectations during any of Tiger Woods’ returns to official competition, you’re probably going to get what you want this week. Never mind the 42-year-old’s otherworldly record at the Farmers Insurance Open and at Torrey Pines overall – although it sure doesn’t hurt – he’s poised to prove that the uncertainty of the condition of his back is in the past. As it concerns what the field of 156 is facing at the Farmers, this is the second edition post-redesign of the North Course at Torrey Pines. Continue reading beneath the ranking for details on how it played last year, what might be a new narrative as it concerns both courses and other relevant nuggets. My goodness. Any concern over his first-time duties as a defending champion is mitigated by his perspective and maturity. He’s the total package performing at his highest level yet. Couldn’t ask for better form as he aims to avenge last year’s T4 after sitting atop the leaderboard at the midpoint. Three wins in the last three months baked into 10 straight top 10s. Essentially built for Torrey Pines where he’s gone T24-T18-T4 since 2015. Eighteen consecutive cuts made, has three top 20s this season and ranks ninth in adjusted scoring. First time in four years he hasn’t jetlagged from Abu Dhabi on eve of Farmers (T61-MC-MC since 2015). Rested since a T4 at Kapalua that chased a Mayakoba runner-up and Hero win. The two-time runner-up at Torrey Pines (2010, 2014) has a win among five top 10s worldwide in his last eight starts. Added a T20 here last year after sitting T5 through 54 holes. Doesn’t have the most inspiring record at the Farmers (2-for-4 with one top 30), but he’s a constant threat. This is evident in his recent form: four top fives in his last five starts. If there’s going to be a best time to push the reset button, it’s right now. First start since a solo fifth in Australia in late November. Went T9-T2-Win at Torrey Pines from 2013-2015. Launched into 2018 with a quietly strong T7 at Waialae that featured a balanced attack. He’s 8-for-8 at the Farmers with top 20s in three of the last four editions. First action since a solo eighth at the Hero World Challenge that capped a strong but winless 2017. One of only five with four red numbers in last year’s Farmers (T14). Fourth straight week on the road, but he’s used to it. Top-10 streak ended with a T20 at CareerBuilder, but he placed a personal-best T9 in is fifth appearance at last year’s Farmers. Making his season debut and probably as eager as ever. Since a T7 at the Wyndham in August, he added four top 15s, including a T2 at the DP World. Also 3-for-3 here with two top 15s. Already the 24-year-old’s fourth appearance; only cut made was a T33 last year. Power and precision off the tee have produced seven straight top 20s, including a win in December. First appearance since his debut in 2013. Has done nothing but impress since returning to action nearly 12 months ago. Has a win and a pair of T15s already this season. Might have some Swiss blood in him because he’s as reliable as the best timepiece. Perfect in 15 trips with three runners-up (2005, 2007, 2017) among seven top 10s. T20 last week. Still has unfinished business at Torrey Pines since the disappointing P2 in 2012, but he’s been performing well of late and where he has in the past. Top 25s here in 2016 and 2017. RANK PLAYER COMMENT POWER RANKINGS: FARMERS INSURANCE OPEN I’ll break from protocol and announce early that Tiger Woods will be the Wild Card. You’ll find my extended analysis on him, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Peter Uihlein, CareerBuilder Challenge runner-up Andrew Landry and other notables in the Fantasy Insider on Tuesday. Tipping at 7,698 yards, Torrey Pines South is the longest course on the PGA TOUR. Not surprisingly, it’s one of the hardest tracks that membership faces. It was the most difficult par 72 just two seasons ago. Tight fairways guarded by tough, rye-kikuyu rough no shorter than three inches inflicts damage on scorecards. However, an interesting thing happened last year. The South Course averaged “just” 72.766 to establish a four-year low. Meanwhile, in its first spin after Tom Weiskopf’s overhaul, the par-72 North Course yielded a stingy 71.277 for an eight-year high. That was in part due to unfamiliarity overall, weather (see below), 206 additional yards (for a total of 7,256) and brand-new bentgrass putting surfaces (albeit 40 percent larger). Torrey South features Poa annua greens. Every golfer plays one round on the North before the 36-hole cut. Only the South is used in the third and final rounds, but the difference of about one-and-a-half strokes between the two is more than two strokes lower than the 2016 Farmers (3.57). In fact, the gap ranged well over three strokes in each of the previous three editions. Gusty winds in the second round that inflated scoring a year ago can’t be ruled out during the first two rounds this week. Furthermore, heavy air created by chilly daytime temperatures will lengthen all 36 holes, so both courses will be well-defended by the elements. Still, the objective for would-be contenders remains to capitalize on the North. Jon Rahm carded a 69 on Torrey North in the second round en route to last year’s title. Interestingly and probably coincidentally, each of the last seven champions rotated to the North for the second round. Brandt Snedeker’s 70 in 2016 is the highest score on the easier test by a winner in any of the last 11 editions. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Columnist Rob Bolton will be filing his usual staples leading up to this week’s event. Look for the following columns this week. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Fantasy Insider, Facebook Live WEDNESDAY: One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.

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