Masters roundtable: Previewing an unprecedented Masters

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Morgan Hoffmann is playing for more than trophies. Hoffmann hopes to find a cure for muscular dystrophy after being diagnosed with the disease in November 2016. The 28-year-old has started a charity to fund muscular dystrophy research while still chasing the PGA TOUR dreams he’s had since childhood. “I could become a recluse and feel bad for myself, but what’s that going to do?� Hoffmann said Thursday, after shooting a first-round 67 at The Honda Classic. “I love being out here and I love playing on the PGA TOUR and that’s my dream, and to help people ultimately is my goal. I think I can do really special things with this platform.� Contending at the PGA TOUR stop in his adopted hometown will help him spread the word on his mission to end muscular dystrophy. He is back on the leaderboard one year after finishing runner-up here to former Oklahoma State teammate Rickie Fowler. He trails another Oklahoma State alum, Alex Noren, and Webb Simpson by one stroke after the first round of this year’s Honda Classic. Hoffmann announced his diagnosis in a December article on The Players’ Tribune. He has a charity event planned for Aug. 20 in his native New Jersey. “It was tough to hear,� he said about the diagnosis, “but I think we’re going to do a lot of really good things with the charity that I’m starting, hopefully find a cure.� Thursday’s good round came after a difficult stretch. He missed the cut or withdrew in his previous six starts, but he made just one bogey Thursday. The disease has led to a loss of swing speed, but Hoffmann didn’t blame it for his recent struggles. “I’ve lost a lot of speed in my swing but my swing is still there,� he said. “I’m on plane. It’s not like it’s really killing my golf game.� In 2014, when Hoffmann qualified for the TOUR Championship, he ranked 78th in clubhead speed and 48th in driving distance. He’s 184th and 101st in those statistics this season. He’s lost more than 5 mph of clubhead speed in that span, dropping from 114 mph to 108.8. That hasn’t stopped him from trying to win his first PGA TOUR title. He just has other sources of inspiration now. SHOT OF THE DAY  NOTABLES Alex Noren, who’s known for an unceasing work ethic, wasn’t done after his first-round 66 that gave him the lead after morning wave. “I’m going to go and maybe play some holes on another course and try to figure out how to play all these different iron shots because this golf course is an iron paradise,� said Noren, who made five birdies and just one bogey Thursday. He ranks ninth in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green this season, but he wasn’t happy with Thursday’s ball-striking. “I hit a lot of wayward shots,� he said. Noren is playing his first season as a PGA TOUR member. He’s 33rd in the FedExCup, including a playoff loss to Jason Day at the Farmers Insurance Open. Justin Thomas attended the final round of last year’s Honda Classic only to congratulate Rickie Fowler on his win. Thomas had missed the cut, one year after finishing third. He’s back in contention at PGA National once again after shooting 67 in the first round. He’s coming off a T9 finish at the Genesis Open, his best finish since winning THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES in October. Daniel Berger, who grew up in south Florida, shot a bogey-free 67 while playing alongside Thomas and Sergio Garcia (72). Berger lost a playoff to Padraig Harrington at the 2015 Honda Classic during his Rookie of the Year season. “I’m a different golfer now than I was then,� said Berger, a two-time PGA TOUR winner. He missed just three fairways and five greens Thursday. He hit his tee shot at the par-4 sixth hole into the water but was able to save par after hitting his ball out of the water and getting up-and-down. Tiger Woods played the best round of his young comeback, shooting an even-par 70 in Thursday morning’s breezy conditions. He hit 7 of 14 fairways and 10 of 18 greens, but mostly avoided the big misses that have plagued him. For more on his round, click here. CALL OF THE DAY  QUOTABLES It can make you look bad in a heartbeat.You can see the Tiger effect when you come out here. There’s thousands of people.

Click here to read the full article…

The Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort & Golf Club might be the most underrated and highly respected host course on the PGA TOUR. Unscientific polls and rhetoric support it, but the eclectic mix of champions of the Valspar Championship furnishes the evidence. Wily veterans comfortable on tough tracks like Copperhead can define most of the winners and the last five represent as many nations. With the colors on the flags of Australia (John Senden, 2014), the United States (Jordan Spieth, 2015), South Africa (Charl Schwartzel, 2016), Canada (Adam Hadwin, 2017) and England (Paul Casey, 2018), the tournament is positioned properly with its title sponsor. Identifying the connective tissue of the victors is more complicated, or at least not as obvious. From the power of Gary Woodland (2011) and Casey, to the methodical of Retief Goosen (2003, 2009), Jim Furyk (2010) and Schwartzel, to the world-class short games of Luke Donald (2012), Spieth and Hadwin, Copperhead is fair. It’s the highest compliment you can give any test, thus the praise in kind. So, to cast a net over all with the intent of capturing a common characteristic, consider resolve. No doubt all of the aforementioned are tremendous talents and a few are household names among casual fans, but collectively they don’t comprise a Who’s Who as much as a What’s What. Substantive, steadfast and solid all. Now, fine-tuning your selection does require critical and quantitative analysis. A-listers such as Dustin Johnson and Jason Day are scheduled to compete, but they’re not short-listers for One & Doners at Copperhead. The course is an equalizer for which no one is immune. Each will stand out later and often. Sergio Garcia sits atop my Power Rankings and deserves your slot. The only reason you don’t invest is because you already had earlier in the season or, like me, you’re leaning on the consistently strong Patrick Reed, twice a runner-up at Copperhead. Reed’s soft hands check another box of the empirical, while his tenacity and grit complement your confidence in him. Frankly, and simply, the rest of the considerations either make sense another time – Webb Simpson, Ryan Moore, Jon Rahm, Brandt Snedeker and even defending champion Paul Casey among them – or they’re better suited as the tail of the tandem in two-man formats. The latter grouping includes Schwartzel, Hadwin and surging Jim Furyk. Seriously. Steer clear of the youth and under-experienced when the tough gets going. Henrik Stenson, Louis Oosthuizen and my unfortunate pick at THE PLAYERS, Rafa Cabrera Bello, also populate my Power Rankings, but the timing is off for each right now. FUTURE POSSIBILITIES NOTE: Select golfers committed to the tournament are listed alphabetically. Future tournaments are sorted chronologically and reflect previous success on the courses on which the tournaments will be held in 2018-19. The numerical values in parentheses represent the order of relative confidence of where to use each golfer if multiple sites are listed (e.g. 1 for strongest, 2 for next-strongest and so on). To present weighted confidence in real time, numerical values will not change all season no matter how many tournament remain listed for each golfer. All are pending golfer commitment. Keegan Bradley … Memorial (5); Travelers (4) Rafa Cabrera Bello … Wyndham (4) Paul Casey … Valspar (7; defending); WGC-Match Play (8); Masters (2); Wells Fargo (9); Travelers (1); TOUR Championship (3) Jason Day … WGC-Match Play (11); Masters (4); Wells Fargo (6 defending); PGA Championship (3); U.S. Open (10); Open Championship (9) Jason Dufner … Valspar (4); New Orleans (1); Charles Schwab (6); Memorial (5); U.S. Open (2); Wyndham (8); TOUR Championship (10) Sergio Garcia … Valspar (9); Masters (6); Open Championship (5); TOUR Championship (2) Branden Grace … Heritage (1); Valero (3); Byron Nelson (5); U.S. Open (4) Bill Haas … WGC-Match Play (8); Heritage (4); Charles Schwab (2); Wyndham (6) Adam Hadwin … Valspar (2); John Deere (5) Brian Harman … Charles Schwab (1); Travelers (5); John Deere (4) Russell Henley … Masters (3) Charley Hoffman … Masters (4); Heritage (7); Valero (3); Charles Schwab (6); Travelers (1) Dustin Johnson … Masters (8); PGA Championship (11); Memorial (10); U.S. Open (1); WGC-St. Jude (6); TOUR Championship (7) Zach Johnson … Valero (4); Charles Schwab (5); John Deere (1); Open Championship (2); TOUR Championship (8) Chris Kirk … Valero (3); Charles Schwab (2) Kevin Kisner … Heritage (3); New Orleans (5); Charles Schwab (2); Memorial (6) Russell Knox … Heritage (2) Ryan Moore … Valspar (3); Valero (7); Masters (13); Memorial (11); Travelers (6); John Deere (8); Wyndham (2); TOUR Championship (9) Kevin Na … Valspar (6); Charles Schwab (3); Wyndham (5) Louis Oosthuizen … Valspar (3); WGC-Match Play (1); Masters (2); U.S. Open (5); PGA Championship (4) Jon Rahm … Masters (5); Charles Schwab (1); TOUR Championship (7) Patrick Reed … Valspar (1); Masters (5; defending); PGA Championship (4); U.S. Open (3); Travelers (7) Webb Simpson … Heritage (6); Wells Fargo (7); Charles Schwab (8); Travelers (9); Wyndham (1) Brandt Snedeker … Masters (10); Heritage (6); Charles Schwab (7); U.S. Open (5); Travelers (9); Wyndham (1; defending) Brendan Steele … Valero (8); Wells Fargo (9); Travelers (4); Reno-Tahoe (3) Henrik Stenson … Valspar (3); Masters (5); PGA Championship (4); Open Championship (6); Wyndham (8); TOUR Championship (7) Kevin Streelman … Valero (9); Heritage (5); Memorial (4); Travelers (7) Bubba Watson … WGC-Match Play (6; defending); Masters (5); Memorial (7); Travelers (2; defending); TOUR Championship (8) Gary Woodland … Memorial (4)

Click here to read the full article…

Click here to read the full article…