Local hero Harry Hall makes waves at Shriners; rookie roundup

The second half of the 2017-18 PGA TOUR season opens with one of the toughest tests on the schedule. The AT&T Oaks Course at TPC San Antonio hosts the Valero Texas Open. Hard-track specialist Kevin Chappell returns to defend his breakthrough title. His 12-under 276 on the stock par 72 is tied for the third-lowest aggregate among the eight champions since the course debuted in 2010. Scroll past the ranking for much more on TPC San Antonio and how Chappell solved, er, survived it. POWER RANKINGS: VALERO TEXAS OPEN RANK PLAYER COMMENT The tournament’s all-time earnings leader is 8-for-8 with a win (2016), a T2 (2011), a T3 (2013) and four more top 15s at TPC San Antonio. Logged top 25s in four of last six starts. The 2011 winner has added three top 15s since that breakthrough. Ranks eighth in GIR, 11th in birdies-or-better and T19 in par-5 scoring. Four top 20s in last seven starts. Look out now. He tends to ride a heater. Found some magic with the flat stick at Harbour Town and finished T5. Recorded top fives at TPC San Antonio in 2013, 2015 and 2016. Cooled in last three months, but only relatively speaking. A force at TPC San Antonio where he’s 4-for-4 with no worse than T22 (2010) and a scoring average of 71.25. First visit since 2015. Converted on converging trends here last year. Experiencing duties as a first-time defending champ this week and enters a bit cold, but his tee-to-green game is too good to ignore. Continues to sizzle. T3 at Harbour Town was fifth top 20 in last nine starts. Making fourth trip to TPC San Antonio. Sixth on TOUR in strokes gained: tee-to-green and T19 in par-5 scoring. The course horse hasn’t missed an edition. He has four top 10s (and a T15), including in each of the last three. The course design rewards the native Texan’s confident tee ball. Top 20s in both prior visits to TPC San Antonio (2012, 2017). Ranked second in both fairways hit and greens in regulation at Harbour Town (T16). Finished T5 at Bay Hill a month ago. Sustaining form that yielded a career-best five top 10s in the first half, including a T7 at Harbour Town. Currently 11th on TOUR in the all-around. Placed T4 here in 2015. Perfect in six appearances with three top 15s and a scoring average of 71.58. Two top 10s and two top 30s in his last four starts. Inside top 30 in proximity and strokes gained: putting. First appearance since the inaugural edition in 2010. Served as player consultant on the design. Prior to his unusual experience in defending the Masters, connected three top 10s. Showcased strong tee-to-green work en route to P2 at Harbour Town. Preceded that with a T9 at Match Play and T24 at Masters. Placed T22 here last year; ranking T3 in par-5 scoring. Elevating. Shook off playoff loss at the Houston Open with a T16 at the RBC Heritage where he led the field in strokes gained: putting. Currently 10th on the PGA TOUR in the stat. Front-loaded at Harbour Town but still finished T23. Inconsistent tee-to-green game hasn’t been an issue at TPC San Antonio where he placed fourth in 2011 and T25 in 2016. In the wind (at times) and on tough tracks, he’s gone T16-T13-T8 from Copperhead to Corales to Houston. It makes sense given his roots in Texas and Oklahoma. T42 here in 2016. Zach Johnson, Xander Schauffele and former champions Adam Scott (2010) and Jimmy Walker (2015) will be among the notables reviewed in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. The annual irony of the Valero Texas Open is that the incredible charity for which the tournament is known – $11 million was raised last year alone – doesn’t extend inside the ropes. Thanks in part to the ubiquitous winds of south Texas, par is a good score at TPC San Antonio, which tips at 7,435 yards. Last year’s field averaged 72.853 and it still didn’t score high enough to rank inside the top half of any of its first eight editions. The tournament’s co-leaders in bogey avoidance (Carl Pettersson and Kevin Tway) squared eight bogeys or worse, most for any pacesetters in the stat in any non-major since the 2016 Farmers Insurance Open (that included one round on an easier Torrey Pines North). The course relents – with due respect – off the tee. The challenge increases multi-fold on approach into greens that average 6,400 square feet. That’s a typical area for putting surfaces on the PGA TOUR, but designer Greg Norman infused undulations that shrink the overseeded bermudagrass landing areas into some of the most difficult targets of the season. Those hills and curves also defend against Stimpmeter readings of approximately 11 feet, which is lower than most other courses due to the winds. The 2017 field averaged 10.43 greens in regulation per round, third-lowest of any host course, so it’s not surprising that seven of the 12 golfers who finished inside the top 10 on the leaderboard ranked inside the top 10 in GIR for the week. The par 5s aren’t pushovers, either. They’re always among the most challenging groupings of any course. This is one of the areas that explains how Chappell prevailed. He went bogey-free 8 under to slot T3 in par-5 scoring average for the week. He also ranked third in greens hit and T10 in proximity, and he capitalized on his chances in finishing fourth in birdie-or-better percentages after hitting GIR. As usual, Mother Nature will play a role this week. Varied threats of rain and boomers are forecast for Friday and Saturday. Sustained winds of 15-20 mph will precede the front and reenter the picture on Sunday, which projects to be beautiful otherwise. Seasonable daytime highs in the upper 70s will assist cutting through humidity. Touring professionals who embrace this kind of experience can look forward to many more years of it. Last October, it was announced an extension of the existing sponsorship through 2028. It includes a shift to a permanent spot in advance of the Masters. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton covers numerous angles in between tournaments. Look for his following contributions this week. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Facebook Live, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done, Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Champions 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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With apologies to the 1991 Marc Cohn hit single, there will be limited “Walking in Memphis” this week. Grinding, hustling and fighting to win and/or advance will be more like it as TPC Southwind hosts a Playoffs event, the FedEx St. Jude Championship, for the first time. Although the course has never kicked off the three-week FedExCup Playoffs, which will continue with the top-70 BMW Championship and finally the top-30 TOUR Championship, its bona fides as a PGA TOUR stop are well established. Here are Five Things to Know about TPC Southwind. 1. RICH HISTORY This week, TPC Southwind accomplishes a rare feat: Host of three PGA TOUR events. The course was designed with tournament golf in mind. With architect Ron Prichard at the wheel and Hubert Green and Fuzzy Zoeller acting as consultants, the course opened in 1988. In 1989, it began hosting the Federal Express St. Jude Classic, and it would continue to do so through 2018. (The tournament’s history in Memphis goes all the way back to 1958.) For the past three years, the course hosted the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. This year, TPC Southwind makes its FedEx Cup Playoffs debut as the FedEx St. Jude Championship, formerly the spot occupied by THE NORTHERN TRUST, won by Tony Finau last year. The low score at par-70 TPC Southwind is 61, shot by three different players in three decades. Jay Delsing set the pace in 1993, Bob Estes tied it en route to victory in 2001 – he also made a hole-in-one at TPC Southwind in 2002 – and Tom Lewis also signed for a 61 in 2020. John Mahaffey was the first player on the PGA TOUR to win at TPC Southwind in 1989, edging a group of four players, including Green. World Golf Hall of Fame members Tom Kite, Fred Couples and Nick Price (twice) are also among those to have won at the storied Memphis course. A statue of World Golf Hall of Famer and 1961 St. Jude Classic winner Cary Middlecoff, who was a dentist before winning 39 times on the PGA TOUR, including two U.S. Opens and the 1955 Masters. He is tied with Tom Watson for 10th on the PGA TOUR’s all-time wins list. Middlecoff was born in Tennessee and won the Tennessee State Amateur four consecutive times. 2. NEW CHALLENGES TPC Southwind’s first big renovation came in 2004 as a means of modernizing and strengthening the course. David Toms had won at 20-under 264 in 2003, after which the course got 11 new tees, 15 new bunkers and three new bridges, while three ponds were enlarged, four creeks stabilized and over 125 trees planted. The fifth hole was adjusted from a par 5 to a par 4 and the par-3 eighth hole was completely altered. The course also went from bentgrass to Champion Bermudagrass on the greens, and when Toms came back in 2004, he shot four strokes higher (16-under 268) but this time won by six strokes. The changes had had their desired effect, and no one has since reached 20 under. The course got another renovation in 2020, when some bunkers were eliminated, some were added, some were enlarged, and some were reduced in size. But above all, every bunker was re-edged and packed with fresh new sand and all-new drainage. Meanwhile, two front-nine holes were lengthened. The par-5 third, which had played at 554 yards, mostly straight, had 25 yards tacked onto it with a new tee box. The first half of the fairway, already near the water, was shifted 15 yards to the right. With water in play on the second shot, this further complicates the decision of whether to go over the lake in two or lay up to the left. The par-4 17th hole was lengthened to a peak of roughly 505 yards. What’s more, players now must recalibrate their distances with a creek splitting the fairway on the downhill hole. The par-4 15th hole got 100 yards of new stone, placed along the creek that runs to the left of the tee shot, but to the right of the green. While aesthetically pleasing and matching other holes on the course, the artistic addition also provides less bail out for shots rolling or flying fast toward the water. “The course has been on kind of a yearly project, reinforcing a lot of the creeks and ponds,” TPC Southwind superintendent Nick Bisanz said in 2020. “Adding retention walls to help shore things up. But there are also three or four projects each year as part of kind of a beautification process, to enhance the look of the course.” What has remained constant are the two grain silos and windmill on the course that serve as reminders of the property’s former identity as a dairy farm. 3. SPLISH SPLASH Memphis may not be known for its beaches, but TPC Southwind is known for its water. Since 2003, TPC Southwind’s 5,989 balls in the water are the most at any PGA TOUR course during that stretch. TPC Sawgrass (4,809), Muirfield Village (4,753) and PGA National (4,730) are the next three. Of the many water holes at TPC Southwind, one that stands out is No. 11, which is similar to Pete Dye’s island 17th at TPC Sawgrass. Like the famed hole at THE PLAYERS Championship, No. 11 in Memphis requires a short iron into an island green with one bunker protecting the front runoff. But while TPC Sawgrass’ 17th hole plays just 137 yards, TPC Southwind’s 11th is listed at 157 yards but can tip at 165. Si Woo Kim recorded a 13 on TPC Southwind’s island hole last year, the highest recorded score on a par-3 in a non-major since the TOUR started keeping such statistics in 1983. The highest score at TPC Sawgrass’ 17th is a 12 by Bob Tway in 2005. The 457-yard ninth is a hard dogleg to the right that requires a precise, long tee shot before an approach shot over water. Players out of position off the tee will likely need to hit a conservative second shot up the right side. The 18th hole has water running along its entire left side, but unlike No. 9, this 453-yard par-4 is a dogleg to the left. The 239-yard, par-3 14th hole can also sneak up on players with water down the right side. Any pin positions on the right side of the green will require players to make a full carry over the water. 4. ZOYSIA AND BERMUDAGRASS TPC Southwind is one of the TOUR stops with zoysia fairways and tee boxes. The grass, hardier than other strains, is beneficial in the Memphis climate that can see cold bursts in the winter and significant heat in the summer. The bermudagrass rough has been known to contaminate the fairways, with the TPC Southwind staff constantly working to preserve the pureness of the zoysia. Recent PGA TOUR zoysia stops include Bellerive Country Club for the 2018 PGA Championship and Trinity Forest Golf Club and TPC Craig Ranch for the AT&T Byron Nelson have shown the potential for low scores. However, at TPC Southwind, especially going back to the 2004 renovation, other elements have given the course some defense. Since 2004, only one winning score – Justin Leonard’s 4 under in 2008 – has been outside the 9-under to 19-under range. TPC Southwind’s pure bermudagrass greens give some respite to the players who avoid the sand and water, however. TPC Southwind had the TOUR’s lowest three-putt percentage (1.44%) and highest percentage of made putts from 5-10 feet (60.5%) and from 15-25 feet (18.8%) last season. 5. 18TH HOLE OF BLUES TPC Southwind saves its most dramatic hole for last. The 18th hole, a 453-yard par 4, is fierce, fair and demands champions attack one final challenge in Grind City. To call it a dogleg left would be an understatement; the hole makes almost a full 90-degree turn around a gaping water hazard. A short tee shot brings bunkers into play on the right, with limited rough and water awaiting left misses off the tee. A longer tee shot can take out the bunkers on the right but requires more carry over the left water if players want to take the chance. Hit it too short off the tee and you face a long-iron approach mostly over water. A longer tee shot brings water into play on the left, while a deep bunker hides behind the green. A year ago, Cameron Smith came to No. 18 tied for the lead at 16 under, but after pumping his tee shot long and right through the fairway, he went for too much and hit his second shot off a tree and into a neighboring backyard. He ultimately made a double-bogey 6 to finish T5. In 2021, No. 18 played as the course’s second-toughest hole with an average score of 4.14. Only No. 5, a 485-yard par 4, played harder at 4.22. However, while players made six double-bogeys or worse at No. 5, they racked up nine such scores at TPC Southwind’s challenging finishing hole. For the leaders of this tournament – and for those trying to make it to the next leg of the FedExCup Playoffs at the BMW Championship – the 18th hole will provide a stern test.

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With the rough up at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Adam Scott used a calculated plan of attack to shoot a 4-under 68 that put him comfortably in the top 10 after the first day at Bay Hill. Instead of using the popular bomb-and-gouge approach, Scott went without a driver Thursday. The driver stayed in his locker, and the longest club in his bag was a 13.5-degree TSi2 fairway wood with a Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 9X shaft (more on the T-Series woods here). “The basic stats are you hit more fairways with a shorter club than you do a longer club, and a 3-wood you hit more fairways than a driver,” Scott said after his round. “I thought it was a premium on hitting fairways here this week. … It’s kind of hard to figure how I’m going to get (the driver) back in the bag for tomorrow. I want to. It’s inspiring to watch Rory (McIlroy) drive it, and I’d like to hit a couple. I’m going to hit a few on the range and see how it feels, but my game plan worked pretty good so far. It’s hard to criticize it.” Scott entered this week fresh off a T4 finish at The Genesis Invitational, where he used a 9-degree Titleist TSi4 driver. But he’s currently ranked 183rd in driving accuracy on the season, hitting just 52.7% of fairways. “I just don’t think anyone is particularly accurate with the driver, myself included,” Scott said. “Once you’re up at these ball speeds, it’s just hard to be relatively accurate. Rory (McIlroy) made it look great today. … (My driver) is far from terrible, but I have to say since the middle of last year the confidence is really improved with the driver. I just didn’t see the advantage with it (this week). I can get home on all the par-5s with the (13.5-degree wood). …I felt like I wasn’t really handicapping myself at all, even though I was watching a guy 50 yards in front of me.” How much distance is Scott really giving up? Well, his playing partner Rory McIlroy averaged 314 yards off the tee and hit 78.6% of the fairways on Thursday, while Scott averaged 276.7 yards and hit the short grass just half the time. Scott estimated that he gives up about 15 yards on average between his gamer driver and the 13.5-degree fairway wood. “Tomorrow it looks a bit windier and I’m going to have to have a serious think, because if it was into a stiff breeze on 18, maybe I’m handicapping myself,” Scott said. “You have to have your head in the right place to do stuff like this. Like if you miss a fairway anyway, you’re chipping out to the same spot whether it’s a 3-wood or a driver … and you have to get it up and down anyway.” Although Scott has admitted his accuracy is an issue with his driver, he asserts the no-driver-strategy was strictly based on the course setup (and windless conditions): “I’m not trying to get away from hitting a driver, I just really felt I’d only hit it a couple times here, and what was the benefit? Nothing. I’d still get home on the par 5s.”

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