McIlroy turns attention to PGA Tour in 2019

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A month ago, Brittany Lincicome happened to be paired with Michelle Wie at the LPGA event in Arkansas. So she tried to pick Wie’s brain about what it was like to play in a PGA TOUR event – which the Hawaiian did eight times as a teenager and Lincicome will do at this week’s Barbasol Championship. Not a lot of good that did her. “She wasn’t very helpful,â€� Lincicome said with a chuckle. “(She) said she couldn’t remember it was so long ago.â€� Ten years, to be exact. When Lincicome steps to the 10th tee at 9:59 a.m. ET on Thursday, she’ll become the sixth woman to play in a TOUR event, joining Wie, who was the last, Annika Sorenstam, Suzy Whaley, Shirley Spork and Babe Didrikson Zaharias. And Lincicome, who is playing with Sam Ryder and Conrad Shindler, plans to soak it all in. “To be playing in the practice round today, hitting on the driving range, it’s kind of surreal,â€� Lincicome said. “I just can’t stop smiling. … I can’t wait until Thursday.â€� Lincicome has won eight times on the LPGA Tour and played in six Solheim Cups. She narrowly missed getting her ninth victory on Sunday, too, when a birdie putt did a 340-degree spin out of the hole and Lincicome ended up losing on the first hole of sudden death. Even with such impressive credentials, Lincicome knows she’ll be nervous. But, hey, Juli Inkster always told her if she wasn’t she wouldn’t be human. “Obviously I’ve heard many times I would be first LPGA or female person to make the cut in a men’s event,â€� Lincicome said. “(I’m) trying to block that all out and just go out and play and have fun and play my own game and not be too tense or uptight about it.

“I think if I can do that and take a few slow breaths and not pass out on the first hole, I’ll be OK.â€� Lincicome, who represents Barbasol’s parent company, Perio, Inc., is one of the LPGA’s biggest hitters. When she was a kid, she remembers working as a standard bearer at the JC Penney Classic, and one of teams she got to see up close and personal was John Daly and Laura Davies. “That’s probably why I like hitting it far now,â€� she said. Lincicome’s average driving distance, measured on two holes each week, is 269.520 yards, which ranks her 10th on the LPGA. That’s just 6 yards out of No. 1 – but outside the top 200 on the PGA TOUR. So Lincicome — who joked that it felt like the Monday qualifier she played with on Tuesday, Dominico Geminiani, was “outdriving me by 100 yards, it felt likeâ€� — knows she’ll be at a disadvantage. Champions Trace, which hosts the Barbasol Championship, measures more than 778 yards longer than the course the LPGA played last week. Even so, in the nine holes Lincicome and Geminiani played on Tuesday, she had one hybrid to a green and otherwise, her longest club was a 5-iron. “It’s really not that bad, and 5-iron is one of my favorite clubs, so that’s OK,â€� Lincicome said with characteristic positivity.

“But, yeah, just the par-5s, won’t be able to get to the par-5s. Have to lay it up to my favorite number, make birdie, and take advantage of those holes for sure. Keep it in the fairway.â€� Geminiani, who saw Lincicome several times when he was working at the Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota, Florida, which is about 50 minutes from her Gulfport home, came away impressed with her game. “I think she’ll be just fine,â€� he said. “A lot of the holes are doglegs. She’s been playing really well, too.â€� Lincicome said she was “speechlessâ€� when she got the invitation to play in the Barbasol Championship. And she has felt nothing but good vibes in the two months since the announcement was made – she hasn’t even had to block anyone on social media, Lincicome said with a grin — as well as during her first day at Keene Trace Golf Club. “All the guys on the putting green, in the lunchroom, everyone has been super supportive, which is great,â€� Lincicome said. “They’re all like, it’s great that you’re here. Thanks for coming. “I was like, thanks for having me, you know.â€� Lincicome, who played on the boys team at her high school, expects to learn things this week that will make her a better player when she returns to normalcy on the LPGA Tour. And as for what the men might learn from her? “Probably more like not so much the golf, but like what kind of snacks do I have in my bag, how many fish have I caught recently.â€� Lincicome said. “Maybe lighten up a little bit on the course. When I hit a bad shot I try to still be chatty and not too uptight about it.

“I don’t know, maybe they can learn that.â€� Lincicome saw a familiar face in her gallery on Tuesday. She met a father and his daughter at the U.S. Women’s Open and they planned to come to the Barbasol Championship but the young girl was ill. Instead, her father brought the photo they took with Lincicome for her to sign. “Playing in this event is just great for stuff like that,â€� she said. “If I can inspire one child to pick up the game of golf and want to play, I feel like my job as a pro has been succeeded. “To influence any child is pretty cool to be in the position we are, so any time I see kids I always try to give them a ball or a glove or make sure I sign their autograph. That might be that one autograph that will bring them back next time, and that’s a pretty cool feeling.â€�

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There are 27 rookies on the PGA TOUR in 2021-22. This page provides a subjective ranking updated weekly. The Arnold Palmer Award winner is determined in a vote by PGA TOUR members who make at least 15 starts. The Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup and the Olympic Games count as one of the 15. Entering The Genesis Invitational, Cameron Young owned the best finish by a rookie this season – a co-runner-up at the Sanderson Farms Championship. You’re forgiven if you don’t remember. It was the just the second event of the season and the United States still was celebrating its Ryder Cup romp at Whistling Straits. Yes, there was that, but you know the old saying about never remembering who finishes second, well, unless it’s the Ryder Cup. (Sam Burns prevailed at the SFC.) Young went relatively quiet after that podium finish, too. In his next six starts, he cashed four times but only once for a top 25 (T20, Farmers). Furthermore, as the only rookie who recorded multiple top 10s in the fall, Hayden Buckley was the rabbit for the Rookie of the Year award. He also opened with a T12 at the Sony Open in Hawaii, so Buckley’s body of work had overshadowed Young’s close call. Sahith Theegala then elevated into the top spot in the Rookie Ranking with a close call of his own at the WM Phoenix Open, where he finished T3. That was just a week ago, but when you look for him below, you’ll see him slotted second … beneath Young. It was another week to remember, not just for Young but also for golf fans. With a field that the Official World Golf Ranking valued stronger than every tournament that wasn’t a major, a FedExCup Playoffs event, a World Golf Championship and THE PLAYERS Championship in 2021, Young belonged among the stars. Boosted by a tournament-low 62 in the second round, the 24-year-old recorded another co-runner-up finish, this time checking up two strokes short of Joaquin Niemann’s wire-to-wire performance. In addition to pacing all rookies in the FedExCup standings and having the top-two finishes of the season, he also co-leads in top 10s and low-rookie performances. Nine rookies competed at Riviera Country Club last week, including Alex Smalley. He was a last-minute last man in for Matt Fitzpatrick, who withdrew due to an illness. Smalley didn’t waste what always is a bonus for any rookie to crash this elite field. He opened with 69 and finished 72nd (of 75 who survived the cut). Elsewhere, six rookies teed it up at the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic in Lakewood Ranch, Florida. Of the four who made the cut, Justin Lower was best with an eight-way T6. It was the first KFT event of 2022 in which any PGA TOUR rookies played. Typically, only those who have started slow want or need the playing time, but Chad Ramey didn’t balk. While it’s mildly unusual given his current FedExCup position of 121st, he made it count with a T28. As the PGA TOUR crosses the country for the start of the Florida Swing, this will be the first time in FedExCup history that every rookie will have gained entry in the field of The Honda Classic on merit. Because the tournament reserves tee times for only 144, the cutoff to play always has fallen in the graduate reshuffle category. Of the 27 rookies only Theegala is choosing to rest. LOW ROOKIE: Cameron Young, T2. Second time (T2=Sanderson Farms). CAREER-BEST FINISHES (AND TIES): Cameron Young, T2. Second time (T2=Sanderson Farms). * – In the field at The Honda Classic as of Feb. 20. NOTE: A player’s rookie season (“Rookie Year”) is defined as the season in which he becomes a PGA TOUR member (including Special Temporary Members) and plays in 10 or more events as a member or finishes in the Top 125 on the Official FedExCup Points List or qualifies as a Top 125 non-member, whichever occurs first. Further, for purposes of this definition, a new member (including Special Temporary Members) shall not be eligible to be a rookie if he has previously played in more than seven (7) Official PGA TOUR Money events as a professional in any prior season.

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Justin Thomas grew up in Kentucky, went to college in Alabama and now lives in Florida, but Malaysia is where it all began for the reigning FedExCup champion. The CIMB Classic is where Thomas picked up his first PGA TOUR win. And his second. Now he’s trying to accomplish the rare three-peat on the PGA TOUR. “It would be an unbelievable achievement,â€� said Thomas, who chose a comfortable setting for the first start of his FedExCup defense. Thomas is 49-under par in eight rounds at TPC Kuala Lumpur, an average of 6.1-under par per round. His scoring average here is 65.9 and he set the course record with a second-round 61 in his 2015 victory. He’s under par in all eight rounds at the CIMB, including seven rounds of 68 or lower. The exception is a third-round 71 last year that taught him a valuable lesson. Thomas had cruised to a two-shot lead after the first two rounds of his title defense but struggled Saturday, playing the first 13 holes in 4 over par. He made birdie on the final five holes, though, to remain in contention. A final-round 64 gave him a three-shot win over Hideki Matsuyama. “The only reason that I won this golf tournament last year was because of my finish on Saturday,â€� Thomas said earlier this week. “If I birdie one of those last five, I’m eight back going into Sunday and I have no chance to win that tournament. … I was just patient and just kind of stayed in the moment and just tried to keep playing and pressing on. Those birdies were the reason I won.â€� Last year’s CIMB Classic was the first of his five wins last season. He preached patience after several of those victories, including the PGA Championship, where he also fought his swing during the third round but managed to keep himself in contention. Thomas admits that he’s tired as he tries to tear up TPC Kuala Lumpur for a third consecutive year. He clinched the FedExCup with a runner-up finish at the TOUR Championship, then went 3-0-1 in his Presidents Cup debut. Last week, he accepted the Jack Nicklaus Award (PGA TOUR Player of the Year) before flying to Asia. “I had all of four days to reflect on (the season),â€� Thomas said. In 2015, he set the tournament scoring record with a 26-under 262, rebounding from a double-bogey at the par-4 14th, where he chunked his approach shot into the water, with birdies on the next three holes. He finished one shot ahead of Adam Scott. Now Thomas will try to become the first player to three-peat since Steve Stricker at the John Deere Classic (2009-2011). Stricker was Thomas’ captain at this year’s Presidents Cup. Thomas’ caddie, Jimmy Johnson, was Stricker’s longtime. “I’m hoping that he is the reason for the three-peat and we can get some good vibes through him,â€� Thomas said. THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER 1. Justin Thomas: The FedExCup champion returns to the site of his first two TOUR victories. He’s 49-under par in eight rounds at TPC Kuala Lumpur with a scoring average of 65.9. 2. Brendan Steele: The Safeway Open champion and FedExCup leader finished third here in 2016. He has three consecutive top-30 finishes at this event (T25-T3-T26). 3. Gavin Green: The 23-year-old is Malaysia’s rising star. He has finished 2nd and 1st in his past two starts on the Asian Tour to lead that circuit’s money list. THE LANDING ZONE The 459-yard, par-4 13th is the toughest hole at TPC Kuala Lumpur, playing to a 4.163 scoring average last year. It was one of just six holes at TPC Kuala Lumpur with an over-par scoring average last year. The hole is uphill, and the elevated green is protected by three bunkers. It was the second-hardest green to hit last year, with only 57 percent of players reaching the putting surface in two shots. Fewer than half the field hit the green in last year’s final round. WEATHER CHECK Hot and humid conditions are forecast throughout the week, with highs around 90 degrees. Scattered showers and thunderstorms will likely develop each afternoon into the evening hours. Conditions should quiet down during the evenings as the temperature decreases. Slightly drier air will decrease the chance of thunderstorms over the weekend. Click here for the latest weather conditions from Kuala Lumpur. SOUND CHECK My dad’s half French, half German. My mom’s Taiwanese, grew up in Japan. It’s cool that golf has allowed me to start here in Malaysia, then Korea, then China. I’m just excited to start the year off kind of on a different foot. SHORT SHOTS 1. Justin Thomas finally revealed his goals for last season after winning the FedExCup. They were listed out in his Notes app on his iPhone. Xander Schauffele – after a rookie season that exceeded even his wildest expectations – was asked if he had created a similar list for the upcoming season. “I still have to come up with a sheet of goals. I was supposed to do it before I left to come here but I didn’t get that paper turned in to my team, so I’m slacking on that part,â€� said Schauffele, who finished third in the FedExCup after winning The Greenbrier Classic and TOUR Championship. He was the first rookie since the inception of the FedExCup to win the TOUR Championship, and was an easy pick for Rookie of the Year. “I think I’m going to try and do something kind of like what JT did, more of a stats approach to goals,â€� Schauffele said. “Obviously winning big tournaments and stuff like that is what we all want to do, but I think if I can kind of focus on small, nitty gritty things in my game, it will pay off.â€� 2. The top 10 players on the Asian Tour Order of Merit are exempt into this week’s field. Players from all around the globe qualified for the CIMB off of the Asian Tour. Here’s a look at the players who qualified behind Green, the local favorite: Scott Hend (Australia), David Lipsky (USA), SSP Chawrasia (India), Poom Saksansin (Thailand), Phachara Khongwatmai (Thailand), Jazz Janewattananond (Thailand), Prayad Marksaeng (Thailand), Juvic Pagunsan (Philippines), Richard T. Lee (Canada). 3. The International Team has SHOWN up for the first international event of the PGA TOUR season. Seven of the 10 members of the International Team from the recent Presidents Cup are in the field this week: Branden Grace, Charl Schwartzel, Emiliano Grillo, Adam Hadwin, Si Woo Kim, Anirban Lahiri and Jhonattan Vegas. Thomas is the lone player from the U.S. squad at TPC Kuala Lumpur.

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