Live leaderboard: Round 2 of Safeway Open

It’s one thing to join the sub-60 club – but it is another to parlay it over the next three days into a tournament win. Welcome to the Monday Finish where Brandt Snedeker scorched the Greensboro turf on Thursday with a sublime 59 and then methodically plotted his way to victory. FIVE OBSERVATIONS 1 Brandt Snedeker opened the tournament with a serious bang … posting just the 10th sub-60 score in PGA TOUR history. The feat on its own is seriously awesome. Particularly as he opened the round with a bogey. But what is more impressive is backing it up and turning it into a victory. We often hear people say in golf that it is really hard to back up a really low round with another. And of course his second-round 67 was a good eight shots behind Round 1. But it was good enough to stay ahead. A third-round 68, half of which was played on Sunday, was once again good enough to lead but the challengers were coming … they were breathing down his neck. So in the final round when he was caught on the leaderboard it could obviously have gone one of two ways … run out of gas or get a second wind. Snedeker showed himself as every bit a former FedExCup champion to kick on with a 65 and a three-shot win. Only Al Geiberger (1977 FedEx St. Jude Classic), David Duval (1999 CareerBuilder Challenge), Stuart Appleby (2010 A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier) and Justin Thomas (2017 Sony Open in Hawaii) were previously able to post sub-60 scores on the PGA TOUR and go on to win that week. Signs of a real champion. 2 More on the man known as Sneds – it had been at best a half decent “comeback� before this week from a pesky sternum injury that ended his 2016-17 season early. But really not that great by the standards of a then eight-time PGA TOUR winner and former FedExCup champion. After an MDF finish at the Houston Open in April Snedeker was outside the top 125 on the FedExCup standings and he dipped in and out again by the end of May. This no doubt was a huge source of frustration for someone who had often felt the heights of the sport. But perseverance is a trait Snedeker can be proud of. A couple of top 10s in the last six weeks had him primed to return to the scene of his maiden TOUR win in 2007. And he made it count. Moving from 80th to 30th in the standings makes becoming a dual FedExCup champion like Tiger Woods a serious possibility. 3 Speaking of comebacks of sorts … what about Webb Simpson? Last season was the beginning of his resurrection. This season the former U.S. Open champion has taken it up a few more notches. THE PLAYERS champion closed out the regular season with a runner-up finish and seventh top-10. He enters the Playoffs in seventh position.  The most obvious difference in a visual sense is his confidence. It is clearly back. Simpson knows he’s good again. And with that confidence more could be coming from this special talent. 4 It certainly can be fun watching the FedExCup finale through the prism of the points and who is going to play their way in. And while Sergio Garcia was unable to push home hard enough to keep his Playoffs streak alive there were two guys who stepped up under the gun and got it done. Harris English produced a decent T11 finish to move from 132nd to 124th – clutch. But perhaps more so – Nick Taylor putting up his lowest round of the season Sunday to go from 129 to 119. We are lucky enough to have live projections at our fingertips and it is the embodiment of the saying every shot matters. Just six points separated 125th and 126th. At least those guys 126-150 have conditional status next year (and a place in the Web.com Finals to better their status). Spare a thought for Matt Jones. He missed the cut and watched his number slide from 146 to 151. Just two points, or basically one shot this season, separated him from some status. Now he must fight to regain it. Every. Shot. Matters. 5 C.T. Pan will learn plenty from his 72nd hole performance where he went from the lead to finishing three shots back. No one wants to face that sort of implosion – Pan hit his tee shot well right and out of bounds – but at the very least it will be a serious teaching moment. Afterward, he admitted a voice in his head got the better of him. Just admitting that is a sign he will do better next time. He will recognize it and perhaps be able to harness the nerves and use them to his advantage. The good news – at 63rd in the FedExCup he will have a chance to go deep in the Playoffs and perhaps go one better. FIVE INSIGHTS 1 Snedeker was just the third player to shoot a 59 with a bogey on his card, and the first player to break 60 while being over par at any point during the round (+1 through 3). His Strokes Gained stats were as follows: Total: +9.71 (1st); Off-the-Tee: +0.11 (84th); Approach-the-Green: +5.55 (1st); Around-the-Green: +1.58 (4th); Putting: +2.47 (11th). 2 Snedeker hit 15 of 18 greens on Thursday’s round of 59. He had eight birdie putts within 6 feet, and seven of those came on his back nine (the front nine). Of his 5.55 strokes gained on approach play, 5.4 of them were gained on his back nine. He shot 8-under 27 on that side despite holing just one putt from outside 5 feet: a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth hole (since his ball was on the fringe, the stroke doesn’t count as a putt under PGA TOUR statistics). 3 It was Snedeker’s ninth PGA TOUR win. At 37 years old, he owns the 25th win by a player in his 30s this season. He led after every round becoming the second wire-to-wire winner this season (Brice Garnett at Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship). He has now won the same tournament for a second time on three occasions; Wyndham Championship (2007, 2018), Farmers Insurance Open (2012, 2016) and AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (2013, 2015). Marks his fourth top-10 finish of the season. With the exception of 2014, has collected at least four top-10 finishes a season since joining the PGA TOUR in 2007. Claimed three in 2014. 4 Brandt Snedeker ranked 111th in SG: Approach-the-Green entering the Wyndham Championship and T-121st in Fairway Proximity averaging 31 feet, 9 inches to the hole on approach shots. At the Wyndham Championship, Snedeker was nearly two shots better per round in SG: Approach-the-Green (+1.987 ranked third) and averaged over 10 feet closer on approach shots from the fairway (20 feet, six inches ranked third). 5 By virtue of earning as many or more Non-Member points as No. 125 in the FedExCup standings after the Wyndham Championship, Joaquin Niemann and Kiradech Aphibarnrat earned fully-exempt status to the PGA TOUR for the 2018-19 season.

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The game’s top players tee it up at Wisconsin’s Whistling Straits, for the 43rd playing of the Ryder Cup. The first Ryder Cup was played in 1927 but since 1979 the competition has consisted of two days of four-ball and foursome matches along with one day of singles matches. The 2021 Ryder Cup begins Friday, September 24, here’s what you need to know on the unique team format. WHERE: The location of the Ryder Cup alternates between Europe and the United States. TEAMS: The qualifying criteria for the each team is different. For the U.S a points system has been in place since the 2019 season with players collecting points up until the completion of the 2021 BMW Championship. The top six players on the points list secured spots on the U.S. team with the remaining six players selected by Captain Steve Stricker following the completion of the 2021 PGA TOUR season. U.S. Roster: Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay, Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Harris English, Daniel Berger, Scottie Scheffler. For Europe the qualification is based on two lists. The top four players from the European Points list were selected with the top five players in the World Points list who had not already qualified earning spots. Europe also selected three captain’s picks to complete the roster. Europe Roster: Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Bernd Wiesberger, Rory McIlroy, Viktor Hovland, Paul Casey, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Lee Westwood, Shane Lowry, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter. FOUR-BALL: Each member of a two-man team plays his own ball, so four balls are in play on every hole. Each team counts the lowest of its two scores on each hole, and the team whose player has the lowest score wins the hole. If the low scores are tied, the hole is halved. FOURSOMES: Each two-man team plays one ball per hole with the players taking turns until each hole is complete. Players alternate hitting tee shots, with one leading off on odd-numbered holes, and the other hitting first on even-numbered holes. The team with the low score on each hole wins that hole. If their scores are tied, the hole is halved. SINGLES: each match features one player from each team. The player with the lower score on each hole wins that hole. If their scores are tied, the hole is halved. Unlike stroke play, players don’t have to complete each hole in match play. If a player concedes a stroke – almost always a putt – to his opponent, the opponent picks up his ball, takes the score he would have made on the next stroke and moves on to the next hole. POINTS SYSTEM: Each match is worth one point, with matches ending in a draw worth 1/2 point to each side. The first team to reach 14 ½ points (of the 28 points available) wins the Ryder Cup. If the matches end in a 14-14 draw, the team holding the Ryder Cup retains it. Europe is the defending champion headed into the 2021 Ryder Cup. The three days of the matches consist of 28 total matches, each of which is worth one point. There are no extra holes in Ryder Cup matches. Should the two sides be tied after 18 holes, each side earns a halve (1/2 point).

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Editor’s note: Ernie Els is writing a blog in 2017 and this is his latest installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com. First of all, big congrats to Justin Thomas on his first win in a major. He hit some great shots and holed key putts…when he really needed to. That’s what it takes to win one of these.  Actually, after having played with Hideki Matsuyama in the first two rounds I thought it might be his week. When he’s on, his ball-striking is incredible. There are not really any flaws in his game; he’s got the whole package, as they say. But as we all know, it’s not the easiest thing in the world to win a major. You need a lot of factors to go your way. Hideki has paid his dues now, though, and I believe his time will come.  For me … well, playing in my 100th major championship was obviously a cool milestone and a proud moment, especially when you see the other golfers on the 100 majors list (see stats at the bottom of this report). But for me right now, it’s all about fighting hard to get something going, some momentum rolling. My hunger for competition is as strong as ever. So, with that in mind, we move on now to this week’s Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club. It’s the final stop on the PGA TOUR before the start of the FedExCup Playoffs and my team tells me that I need a win to get into the Playoffs. A runner-up spot would mean we probably just miss out. But I can’t go into the week with math on my mind. Just got to treat it like any other tournament and commit 100 percent to playing my best golf from the get-go.  It’s my seventh appearance here and, as always, it’s a real treat to come and play this beautiful old Donald Ross design. Sedgefield is one of the premier private clubs in America and was host venue for the Greater Greensboro Open. In fact, it was here in 1965 that Sam Snead won his last, and all-time record 82nd PGA TOUR event, at the age of 52. Davis Love III also won this tournament a couple of years ago at the age of 51. So maybe there’s something in the water at Sedgefield for us old guys! Joking aside, this is a course that I’ve enjoyed playing over the years so I’m looking forward to teeing it up and hoping for a strong week. Finally, a quick update on our Els for Autism Golf Challenge, which is enjoying another successful run in the U.S. & Canada this summer. Please click here http://www.ernieelscentre4autism.co.za/events.asp for information on how to take part.  Meanwhile, over in South Africa the Drive to SA Open series paid its first visit to The Els Club Copperleaf on July 27, where the guys there put on another great show. Thank you to Juan Geyser, the new golf director at Copperleaf, and to Jacob Mocherene who I hear worked tirelessly to make this day a success. Thanks also to Carl Manser from EOH who entered 24 players; glad to have you all on board! And congrats to the winners, Branus Viljoen and Johan Steyn. The next stop is at another course that has a special place in my heart, Kempton Park, on Sept. 7. Click here http://e4agolf.com if you’d like to take part in that. Follow me on Twitter @TheBig_Easy. The 100 Majors Club 1. Jack Nicklaus – 164 majors 2. Gary Player – 150 majors 3. Tom Watson – 145 majors 4. Arnold Palmer – 142 majors 5. Raymond Floyd – 127 majors 6. Sam Snead – 119 majors 7. Ben Crenshaw – 118 majors 8. Gene Sarazen – 112 majors 9. Tom Kite – 109 majors .Mark O’Meara – 109 majors 11. Bernhard Langer – 104 majors 12. Sir Nick Faldo – 100 majors Ernie Els – 100 majors Phil Mickelson – 100 majors

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