Marc Leishman thrives in windy first round

When Dylan Frittelli heard the news, he was more than a little impressed. John Deere, the company that sponsors the PGA TOUR event he won last year, had switched gears – quite literally — and started making face shields to protect healthcare workers along with all those iconic green tractors and all that heavy machinery at its flagship factory in Moline, Illinois. So far, John Deere has manufactured more than 200,000 of the shields and plans to double that number in the coming weeks. The first orders went to healthcare workers in areas where Deere employees live, but deliveries have now been made to more than a dozen states and Canadian provinces. “I think it’s awesome,â€� Frittelli says. “And technology-wise, I’m very interested. It’s cool — how did they figure out that they could do it and then cool in the sense that they’re obviously trying to help the cause and protect people and do what they can to speed up the containment and elimination of the virus.â€� Frittelli was in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, at THE PLAYERS Championship when the sports world abruptly shut down after an NBA player tested positive for the coronavirus. First, the TOUR announced its signature event would go on without spectators. Less than 12 hours later, it was canceled. Subsequent announcements, including the postponement of the first three major championships and the cancellation of the Open Championship, meant no tournaments until at least June 11 with the scheduled Charles Schwab Challenge. The first four events will be played without fans. The fifth is the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run, where Frittelli came from two strokes off the pace on Sunday and ended up winning by three after closing with a 64. The tournament is slated for its original July 9-12 dates and could be the first to host spectators, although health and safety issues will be evaluated before a final decision is made. Frittelli says this is the longest break from golf that he’s had since graduating from Texas in 2012 with a degree in geography. While mindful of the reason behind it, the well-traveled South African has made the most of the time he’s had at home. “I’ve enjoyed it to be honest,â€� says Frittelli, currently 50th in the FedExCup standings. “The beginning was a little tough, but after the first week my trainer was back in town and he’d built a gym in his garage. It made it way easier for me to relax and chill because I was actually burning calories and getting stronger in the gym and I had something to do for an hour to two hours a day. That helped a lot.â€� The 29-year-old didn’t start playing golf again until late April. He wanted the work he’d done in the weight room to settle in before working too much on the practice range. “And also, you swing a golf club, it does mess up your back and your neck and you do get out of alignment often,â€� Frittelli explains. “So, I just thought, hey, I’d rather be way more symmetrical and feel more consistent when I stay away from the golf. “So, I’ll balance a bit of that heavy lifting, do some recovery and be ready.â€� Frittelli also took time to decompress. He did some projects around the house, cleaning out closets and drawers and the garage, as well as adding some lights outside. Nothing particularly major — “just made sure the space I was in was a nice, happy, comfortable place,â€� he says. Always searching for that “edge and new techniquesâ€� that can help him with training and on the golf course, Frittelli read several performance-based books. But at the same time, he finished “Where The Crawdads Sing,â€� the best-selling novel by Delia Owens. And of course, there’s been some binge-watching. He knocked out “Tiger Kingâ€� on Netflix in a day and has also watched “WE ARE LAFC,â€� the 10-part all-access documentary series about the inaugural season of the Los Angeles Football Club. And a little “Brooklyn 99â€� for comic relief. “(The LAFC series) was really interesting,â€� he says. “Kind of a bit of research for me because the new Austin team is starting next season. They’ve already built most of the stadium now.â€� While restaurants were open for takeout and delivery in Austin, Frittelli has done most of the cooking for himself. He wants to eat healthy to make sure that the work he’s put in with his trainer to get bigger and stronger doesn’t go by the wayside. An air fryer is a key component of that process. Salmon and chicken are his go-to proteins while he gets his vegetables in salads and carbs from sweet potatoes, potatoes or rice. “Then tons of supplements, protein shakes and all kinds of added in things just to try and build some mass,â€� he says. Now that he’s back playing and practicing, Frittelli can often be found at UT Golf Club. His roommate, Toni Hakula, who was two years behind Frittelli at Texas, plays PGA TOUR LatinoAmerica, and they frequently play with another former Longhorn, Tayler Termeer, who now plays the mini-tours. Austin is home to a lot of other TOUR pros like Andrew Landry, Nick Watney and Sergio Garcia, though. PGA TOUR Champions is also well-represented with Mark Brooks, Omar Uresti, Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw and Bob Estes also in the neighborhood. So, when the urge for competition strikes, there are lots of options. “That’ll be my main focus, just chatting to a few guys on TOUR that are here in town and just getting some money games, playing with them leading into that first event,â€� he says.

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Byeong Hun An has set a target of qualifying for the FedExCup Playoffs finale, the TOUR Championship, in August and hopes to light up the International Team’s chat group along the way as he seeks his first PGA TOUR victory. The 28-year-old Korean rising star tees up at The American Express in California for the first time this week where he hopes to maintain his strong start to the 2019-20 PGA TOUR season. During the fall, he posted three top-10s and a T14 at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions and is currently 20th on the FedExCup points list. As a late inclusion in the Presidents Cup last month in Australia, An played all five sessions and delivered two points in the International Team’s narrow 16-14 loss to the United States “Hopefully I can keep the momentum going from the Asian swing,� said An, who finished T6 at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES in Korea and T8 at the inaugural ZOZO Championship in Japan. Since playing full time on the PGA TOUR in 2017, An has flirted with qualifying for the TOUR Championship, which is exclusive to the top 30 from the FedExCup points list. His best FedExCup finish to date was 42nd in 2017 while he was 53rd last season. A former U.S. Amateur winner, An is hopeful a revised playing schedule will propel him to a first visit to East Lake in August. Over the last few years, he competed in the Middle East on the European Tour to begin a new year, but he will play the West Coast over the next three weeks, including the Farmers Insurance Open and Waste Management Phoenix Open. “It’s nice to have a good start (in fall) compared to the last two years where I didn’t play that many,� he explained. “I’m starting earlier in the West Coast as well and I hope to have a quick start and eventually get into the TOUR Championship … that’s my main goal this year.� An took notice when Rory McIlroy talked about how tweaking his tournament schedule enabled the Irishman to lift the FedExCup for a second time last season. With An’s wife Jamie due to give birth to their first child next month, the Korean made the easy call to swap his travel plans. “In the past, I would only start in Phoenix after the Middle East and I’ll be like in 100th place on the points list and it’s hard to chase the guys,� said An. “That’s why I added this week and the next two. I want to get my FedExCup ranking as high up as possible early on. I’ve been close (to the TOUR Championship) and I feel I need to play more and it seems to be working out.� He is also fired up after watching Australia’s Cameron Smith secure a first individual PGA TOUR title at the Sony Open in Hawaii on Sunday and now dreams of emulating his International Team member. An said the International Team’s Whatsapp group chat has been buzzing recently as Adam Scott won the week after the Presidents Cup, Louis Oosthuizen came close at the South African Open (finishing second to his former International Team partner Branden Grace) and Joaquin Niemann contended at the Sentry Tournament of Champions. “It was incredible to see Cam win. Hopefully I can break through and win one day. Our group chat has been going crazy of late. Hopefully this week someone else can step up, hopefully me or Sungjae (Im) or someone else. It shows the Presidents Cup has helped us. The group chat is still running and it’s great,� An said. Although the International Team came close to toppling the U.S. Team after leading into the final day’s Singles session, An believes the experience of playing for Captain Ernie Els earned him memories to last a lifetime. “It was good because I got a late call from Ernie,� An said. “I wasn’t expecting to play in all five matches which were incredible. I did lose a couple, won one and tied two matches which was fun. It was something I never experienced before and Ernie did a great job. Everyone trusted him and stuck to the game plan. No one had any say on who we wanted to play with and we just had faith in Ernie to pick the pairings. We got the points on Thursday, Friday and Saturday but lost in the end. On paper, the U.S. is a really good team and we were disappointed.� “We just didn’t play well enough in the Singles to beat them. But we showed we could play better in Foursomes and Four-Ball than previously. That’s a great takeaway from the week and it showed Ernie had the right formula. I enjoyed it as it had so much passion as we were playing as a team and not playing for ourselves. When Adam or Sungjae made a putt, I was probably happier than they were! I played for Ernie and I played for the International Team, which was a difference and I guess that was why I showed the passion on the course. “Of course I want to get back into the team … that’s another goal in two years’ time.�

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The Country Club of Jackson opens its doors for the eighth consecutive year to host the Sanderson Farms Championship. A stop-start beginning to the 2022 season has begun again! After taking a week off following the Fortinet Championship to enjoy the Ryder Cup, the PGATOUR is back to work in Jackson, Mississippi. The field of 144 will welcome back 2020 champion Sergio Garcia as he looks to become the first player to defend his title since the event moved here in 2014. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks The Country Club of Jackson was redesigned by John Faught (Detroit Golf Club) in 2008 and emulates a classic Donald Ross feel around the grounds, especially on the greens. The Champion Bermuda greens are quite slick, running between 12 and 13 feet. The putting surfaces will challenge especially inside of 10 feet as the course has one of the highest 3-Putt percentages on TOUR. Rolling the rock will be a major concern this week. Or hit 60 of 72 like Garcia did and take your chances! Stretching to almost 7,500 yards playing Par-72, four Par-5 holes will provide relief as will only two inches of Bermuda/Zoysia rough. Greens are above average in size at 6,200 square feet so hitting them won’t be a problem. Water is in play on just five holes and there are just 56 bunkers to avoid. CCofJ has ranked in the bottom half of easiest courses played the last three years and the average winning score here is almost 19 under since the first event in calendar 2014. On the line is a purse of $7 million with the winner pocketing $1.26 million plus 500 FedExCup points. Also the winner is exempt for the rest of this season and the next two seasons. It’s a huge bonus to lift the LARGE ROOSTER trophy this week! Recent Event Winners Stats Recent Winners 2020 – Sergio Garcia (-19, 269) Stuffed it to three feet on the final hole and made the putt to avoid a playoff with 2016 season winner Peter Malnati. … Co-led after 54 holes (-14). … Closed 66-67. … Sat five back after 36 and four back after 18. … Overpowered and dissected Tee-to-Green. … Hit 60 of 72 GIR. … T2 with 22 birdies. … Only player to post all four rounds in the 60s. … ONLY winner outside of the top seven (28th) SG: Putting. … Became first champion at the event who was NOT a first-time winner on TOUR. … Third international winner and second consecutive. … Picked up 11th victory in 368th start at age 40. … Becomes fifth winner of seven to win in his first attempt at CCofJ. … Entered the week MC-MC. Notables in the field this week: 2015 winner Peter Malnati (2nd) closed with 63, tying the tournament course record and missed the playoff by a shot… JT Poston (3rd) backed up his T11 from 2019 with a share of the 54-hole lead. … Keegan Bradley (T4) led by two after 36 holes thanks to a hot putter. … Henrik Norlander (T4) circled three eagles for the week including two on Sunday when he posted 65. … Cam Davis (T6), who won at Detroit Golf Club earlier this year, matched Malnati’s 63 in Round 3 to also share the 54-hole lead. … Charley Hoffman (T6) was one of four first round leaders to post 64. … Denny McCarthy (T6) circled 22 birdies (T2) to pick up his second top 10 in three years. … Tyler McCumber (T6) went close again after finishing second at Punta Cana the previous week. … Scott Stallings (T6) shot 40 on the back in Round 2. … Brandt Snedeker (T17) was one shot back after 54 holes and circled 22 birdies for the week. … Defending champion Sebastian Munoz (T23) posted 64 in Round 1 before not breaking 70 the rest of the week. … Top 27 players all 10-under or lower. … 62 of 66 players to make the cut finished Even or better. … Cut was 3-under. … 26 bogey-free rounds. … 71.080 scoring average, ranking 31st most difficult of 50 courses played 2020. … The 2020 event followed Corales Punta Cana Club and Resort Championship. 2019 – Sebastian Munoz (-18, 270) Defeated Sungjae Im with a par on the first playoff hole. … Holed a 15-foot putt on the final hole to force playoff. … 54-hole leader by one after tournament best 63 in Round 3. … Sat five back after 36 holes and was six off the pace after 18. … Only squared THREE bogeys for the week. … First international winner since Nick Taylor in 2014. … First win in his 47th start at age 26. … Sixth consecutive first-time TOUR winner at CCofJ. … Won in his third attempt. Notables in the field this week: Sungjae Im (P2) closed with 66 and was the only player to post all four rounds in the 60s. … Carlos Ortiz (T4) played in the final group and was top 10 in both Fairways and GIR. … Kevin Streelman (T4) raced home with 64 for his second top 10 in three years. … Bronson Burgoon (T6) joined Sungjae Im with 24 birdies, most for the week. … Dylan Frittelli (T6) hit the top 10 with two doubles on the card. … JT Poston (T11) shared the first round lead with Tom Hoge (T39) on 64. … Defending champion Cameron Champ did not enter. … Top 27 players all 10-under or lower. … 66 of 68 players to make the cut finished Even or better. … Cut was 3-under. … 31 bogey-free rounds. … 70.787 scoring average, ranking 26st most difficult of 40 courses played 2019-20. … The 2020 edition was the first time played as a stand-alone event on the calendar. 2018 – Cameron Champ (-21, 267 – not entered this week) Led or co-led after every round. … Birdied five of his last six holes to set the tournament scoring record. … 28 birdies is also a record. … Won by four shots. … Posted 64, co-low round of the week in Round 3 to lead by four. … Posted 12-under on Par-5 holes. … Played the Back 9 in 16-under. … Won on debut. … First win on TOUR in his SECOND event with a TOUR card. … Age 23 is the youngest winner. … T25 in Napa Valley the week before. Notables in the field this week: Corey Conners (2nd) made only four bogeys and was top five in both Fairways and GIR. … Sam Burns (T3) closed 66-68 and was T4 GIR. … On Sunday Carlos Ortiz (T3) matched Conners and Champ with the low round of the week, 64. … Denny McCarthy (T7) only needed 104 putts. … Seth Reeves (T7) posted all four rounds at 70 or better. … Adam Schenk (T7) only squared TWO bogeys for the week. … Martin Laird (T7) circled 20 birdies. … Defending champion Ryan Armour (T54) did not break 70. … Top 24 players all 10-under or lower. … 69 of 72 players to make the cut finished Even or better. … Cut was 1-under. … 21 bogey-free rounds. … 71.246 scoring average, ranking 26st most difficult of 49 courses played 2019-20. … The 2019 event was played opposite the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai and played in late October. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2020-2021 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. Horses for Courses Top golfers entered this week and other exceptions

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