Monday Qualifiers: RBC Canadian Open

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. –  We’ve already witnessed one former anchorer have a career resurgence. Now Keegan Bradley is trying to follow in his footsteps. Webb Simpson qualified for last season’s TOUR Championship after a two-year absence from East Lake, then won this year’s THE PLAYERS Championship for his first victory in more than four years. Bradley is in position for his first TOUR Championship berth in five years after a strong start to the BMW Championship. He opened with rounds of 66-64 at Aronimink and is in third place, just three shots behind leader Xander Schauffele. “The opportunity is right in front of me. I have to go take it,â€� Bradley said. “That’s what’s great about the FedExCup Playoffs.â€� He is projected to leap from 52nd to 28th in the FedExCup standings if he can maintain his position on the leaderboard. The PGA TOUR’s projections estimate that he needs a fifth-place finish to advance to East Lake for the first time in five years. Bradley made it to the TOUR Championship in each of his first three seasons (2011-13) but hasn’t been back since. He hasn’t won since the 2012 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. Bradley, who has four top-10s this season, is still an elite ball-striker. He leads the TOUR in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green. The putter often determines his fate, though. He’s 186th in Strokes Gained: Putting this season. He’s had multiple opportunities in the Playoffs to leap up the FedExCup standings. After shooting 62 in the third round at Ridgewood, Bradley played alongside Bryson DeChambeau in THE NORTHERN TRUST’s final group. Bradley fired 78 on Sunday to drop into 34th place, though. Last week, in his native Massachusetts, he shot 67-69 to sit in the top 10 at the halfway point of the Dell Technologies Championship. He didn’t break par in either of the final two rounds, though, and fell to 49th. “I’m excited for the opportunity again. I put myself here now the last couple of weeks, it’s time to go out and play well,â€� he said. Bradley ranks 10th in both Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green and Strokes Gained: Putting this week. He holed a 38-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole in the first round and sank four putts from outside 10 feet today. “This course rewards good ball striking,â€� he said. “That’s what I’ve been doing all year. I mix in some good putting and here I am 10 under. That’s the key.â€� BIG NAMES ON THE BUBBLE Jordan Spieth may need a good weekend if he wants to avoid missing the TOUR Championship for the first time in his career. Spieth, the 2015 FedExCup champion, is 32nd in the projected standings. He’s fallen five spots since the start of the week because of a poor start at Aronimink. While he watched playing partners Tiger Woods (62-70) and Rickie Fowler (65-65) go low, Spieth has struggled with his putting. Spieth shot 67-71 and is tied for 48th place. Spieth is 95 points behind No. 30 Gary Woodland in the projected FedExCup standings. He was 0 for 3 on putts from 5-10 feet on Friday, losing 2.75 strokes on the greens in the BMW’s second round. This was his third-worst performance in Strokes Gained: Putting of the season. In 10 rounds spanning from the weekend of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational through THE NORTHERN TRUST, Spieth gained strokes with his putting nine times. He’s had a negative Strokes Gained: Putting in four of his past six rounds, though. Spieth made three birdies Friday, but also had two bogeys and a double. He played Nos. 11 and 12 in 3 over after pulling his tee shot left of the fairway on both par-4s. Marc Leishman was fourth in the FedExCup standings when he arrived at East Lake on the heels of last year’s win in the BMW Championship. Now he’s on the dreaded 31st position in the standings. He’s in 62nd place in the 69-man BMW field after shooting even par over the first 36 holes. He shot 74 on Thursday and opened Friday’s round with nine consecutive pars. He shot 31 on his final nine holes, though. Five of the top six names on the leaderboard were behind Leishman in the FedExCup standings at the start of the week, so he will move up if any of them slide down the leaderboard on the weekend. Leishman is just 16 points behind Woodland in the projected standings. MOVING IN/OUT After the second round of the BMW Championship, the following players are projected to move into the top 30 in the FedExCup standings and qualify for the season-ending TOUR Championship. Xander Schauffele (1st): From 41st to 6th Alex Noren (T3): From 50th to 25th Keegan Bradley (T3): From 52nd to 28th These are the players projected to fall out of the top 30. Marc Leishman (T62): From 22nd to 31st Jordan Spieth (T48): From 27th to 32nd Emiliano Grillo (T38): From 29th to 33rd BIGGEST MOVERS Biggest moves made in the projected FedExCup standings after the second round of the BMW Championship. Up 35 spots: Xander Schauffele (From 41 to 6) Up 25 spots: Alex Noren (From 50 to 25) Up 24 spots: Keegan Bradley (From 52 to 28) BUBBLE BOYS Gary Woodland, winner of the Waste Management Phoenix Open, started this week clinging to the final berth in the TOUR Championship. After opening with consecutive 66s, Woodland still holds onto the 30th spot in the projected standings. He is in 12th place, five shots behind leader Xander Schauffele. Woodland is 16 points ahead of No. 31 Marc Leishman in the projected standings. TOP 5 WATCH The top five players in FedExCup points after the BMW Championship will control their own destiny entering the TOUR Championship. A win at East Lake would guarantee any of the top five the FedExCup title. Here’s how the current Top Five fared Friday: 1. Bryson DeChambeau (still 1st): After winning the first two events of the FedExCup Playoffs, DeChambeau is guaranteed to take the top spot into East Lake. He is in 38th place after shooting 67-70 in the first two rounds at Aronimink. 2. Dustin Johnson (now 5th): Johnson, winner of three events this season, is clinging to the fifth and final spot in the projected standings. He moved up one spot in the projected standings after shooting 68 on Friday. He is in 48th place at Aronimink, though. 3. Justin Rose (now 2nd): Rose, who won the 2010 Quicken Loans National at Aronimink, played like someone with good memories at this week’s venue. He shot 63 to move into second place, just two shots behind Schauffele. 4. Tony Finau (still 4th): Finau jumped 18 spots on the leaderboard with a 6-under 64 on Friday. He is 8 under par. 5. Justin Thomas (now 3rd): The reigning FedExCup champion has a good chance to remain in the top 5 entering East Lake after getting off to a solid start at Aronimink. He followed Thursday’s 64 with a 67. He’s in seventh place, four shots off the lead.

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Montreal, QC, Canada — An object in motion generally stays in motion, and just one event removed from his first professional victory at the ATB Financial Classic, Corey Pereira seems to have maintained his momentum through the off-week and into this week’s Mackenzie Investments Open presented by Jaguar Laval. With a staggering nine birdies on his round, the Mission Viejo, CA native played a bogey-free round for the seventh time this season and matched his lowest score relative-to-par as a professional golfer in the form of a 9-under 63 to set the Elm Ridge Country Club course record. “It was awesome, I really got it going out there,� said Pereira. “Tee-to-green, it was mediocre, but I haven’t putt that well in a long time; I seemed to make everything out there and golf is fun when it’s like that.� While a hot putter was the case in Montreal, just under a month ago in Calgary, the Washington University alum proved he could do it by striking the ball as well, firing rounds of 64-65-62-67. While Pereira self-admittedly struggled with the flat stick during his second round at the ATB Financial Classic, it was how he turned it around that won him the title. “I know how difficult it is to win; one warm day doesn’t mean it’s the summer,� said the second-year pro. “I can go out tomorrow and struggle, but I have to be prepared for anything, and there’s some things I need to tighten up if I want to win this tournament.� Currently in the No. 6 position on the Order of Merit, a win would solidify Pereira’s spot among The Five that gain Web.com Tour status at season’s end, and while Pereira knows this, it’s not something he is actively going to think about as the week goes on. “It’s huge being in that top-5, I know that,� said Pereira, who finished last season at No. 39 on the Order of Merit. “I can only control my game, take it one shot at a time, try to shoot the lowest score I can and see where the numbers stack up.� Two Canadians currently sit in a tie for 13th at 4-under, Luke Moser, who Monday qualified into the event, and Sebastian Szirmak, a Quebec native playing this week on a Sponsor’s Exemption. The duo leads the charge for the Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Week award, while Mackenzie Tour regulars this season Taylor Penrith and Michael Gligic sit in a tie for 42nd at 2-under. Key Information  When asked about his ability to take rounds way under-par, Corey Pereira made reference to his closest call to a 59 at Cameron Park Country Club, his home club in California. Playing with his course-record holding friend, Pereira had a putt for 59 on the final hole that would not only get him to the elusive number for the first time but would also break his pal’s record by one. While Pereira left the putt on the lip, he says it’s rounds like those back home that taught him how to play freely when under par.  Entering the week at No. 65 on the Order of Merit, Theo Humphrey played his best round since the Windsor Championship in July, avoiding any bogeys to fire a 66 to put him in a tie for third place.  With his spot in the Freedom 55 Financial Championship secured, Blake Olson has his sights set on more as he comes into the Mackenzie Investments Open presented by Jaguar Laval in spot No. 42 on the Order of Merit. In search of his third top-10 of the season, Olson made eight birdies, including two to close out his round, to shoot 65.  While Paul McConnell opened the season strongly with back-to-back top-15 finishes to start the year, he has struggled since, missing three cuts. However, on Thursday at Elm Ridge the University of Texas-Arlington alum was back in form, making five birdies in a row from hole Nos. 13-17 before closing with a par to fire a 66.  Last season, JD Tomlinson finished the season as the odd-man out in spot No. 61 on the Order of Merit, giving him no status on the Mackenzie Tour. Working his way back onto the Tour, Tomlinson comes into Montreal in a similar position, currently at number 59. The Gainesville, FL native did himself a favour on Thursday, making six birdies to fire a 67 to sit comfortable in a tie for sixth.  Zach Wright, who, while playing consistently, has cooled slightly since his dominant start to the season, looks to solidify his spot at No. 2 on the Order of Merit with a good finish this week at Elm Ridge. The Louisiana State product got off on the right foot on Thursday, carding a bogey-free 67 to sit in a tie for sixth.  Order of Merit leader Tyler McCumber, winner of three of the past four Mackenzie Tour events, played his worst first round since the season-opening Freedom 55 Financial Open, making four birdies and two bogeys to shoot 70. Quotable “I just tried to shoot 59 when I had that going, and my home course is like that, it plays pretty easy and we shoot some low rounds out there, so I try to go as low as I can, and I feel like I’m comfortable under-par and I’m comfortable going more under par. My background helped me today.� – Corey Pereira “I just played pretty solid, hit the driver really well, gave myself some short irons and then just made a couple putts, so it was an easy day overall. The wind was starting to pick up towards the end of the day, so it was a bit more difficult for the guys in the afternoon, but overall I played really good.� – Blake Olson “I’ve got other goals, like, trying to get into the top-10 and we’ve got two weeks to do it, so I’m trying to do all I can and just play well each day. Being aggressive off the tees and being patient coming in is just really a priority, so that’s what I’m going to try to do all week.� – Blake Olson “I started off hitting a snap hook on the first hole and thought, ‘oh boy, this might not be good,’ but I ended up making a great par putt, about an eight-footer, on one of the easiest holes on the golf course. To make that save to start the day allowed me to have a good round, and I hit the ball really well after that and ended up shooting a good score.� – Theo Humphrey “I think I’ve been too focused most of this year on end results, trying to do this or trying to do that, I just need to go out there and play good golf and that usually adds up pretty well.� – Theo Humphrey First-Round Weather: Warm and sunny, 23 degrees Celsius with minimal wind.

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Here are nine tidbits from the third round of the 118th United States Open that gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., is hosting for the fifth time in history and plays 7,440 yards to a Par-70. PAIN OR GAIN These were the top-10 picked golfers in the PGA TOUR Fantasy One & Done presented by SERVPRO:   The course won. It always does in a U.S. Open. The cut was 148 (+8) and that score at the end of play on Saturday will begin the final round T16 and just five shots behind the quartet of leaders. Sunday should provide fantastic theatre as the pretenders will be separated from the contenders. Par should be celebrated as it has become increasingly difficult to find as the week rolls on. The heavy hitters at the top of the leaderboard need to be in your lineup tomorrow. They dealt with the conditions all day on Saturday and will be familiar with them tomorrow. First In, Last Out Daniel Berger’s attempted three-peat in Memphis last week left gamers with a bad taste after he MC. Those who faded him were saving him for NEXT WEEK at the Travelers where he’s posted T5 and lost in a playoff in his only two appearances. His 66 on Saturday was co-low round of the week. … Joining him in the final group will be Tony Finau who also posted 66. At one point, Finau was nine-over par ON SATURDAY before joining Berger in blistering Shinnecock. Both players circled six birdies against two bogeys (no others) and will play for their first major championship from the final group on Sunday. They both began the day 7-over-par, one shot clear of the cut line, and moved up 44 spots to the final pairing. Flip Flopped Dustin Johnson’s four-shot lead was something to behold in its creation. His 77 from the final group Saturday was just as something. The great news is his bogey on the final hole didn’t knock him out of the lead. It did knock him out of the final group but the upside is he’ll play with his training partner and defending champion Brooks Koepka. That will be nothing short of interesting as the last two U.S. Open champions duke it out. Who said this was a bad deal?? Europe 72, 73, 74 The veteran major champions Justin Rose (73) and Henrik Stenson (74) did just enough to stay within touching distance of the four leaders while Tyrrell Hatton’s 72 snuck him into the top 10 (T10). Rose chased down and caught Phil Mickelson at Merion in 2013 while Stenson defeated him heads-up at Royal Troon to win the Open. These folks won’t be bothered by a bit of class just in front of them on the leaderboard Sunday. Grand Slam Patrick Reed is a proper grinder and has improved 73-72-71 to reach T7. The Masters champion also finished T2 at the PGA Championship last summer so don’t be surprised if he’s in the fight again tomorrow. His best payday in a U.S. Open was T13 last year at Erin Hills so he’s starting to figure this out. Eject Rickie Fowler began the day Round 3 T9 and just six shots off the lead at four-over. He shot 84 and any criticism that comes his way from gamers will be hard to defend as it was the worst of the day. … Phil Mickelson is still in the tournament after hitting a putt while his ball was in motion. I’m not going to get into a rules discussion here but he added 10 of them to his card on No. 13 en route to an inward 44 and a total of 81. He was one-under thru five. I’m interested to see what tomorrow brings for both. Moving Day: Non-Top Five Category The 66’s of Berger and Finau get plenty of attention and rightfully so. I’ll point out that Kiradech Aphibarnrat needed just 68 of them to get around and he’ll begin Sunday T7 after moving up 51 spots. … Former Illinois golfer Dylan Meyer is making his pro debut this week. The decorated collegian that played for Mike Small shot 69 on Friday and 71 on Saturday and his T10. Gamers, make a note. … Gary Woodland is coming around again. He was T23 at Memorial two weeks ago and after opening with 79 has fought back with 69 and 70 the last two rounds. Moving Day: Wrong Way Tommy Fleetwood began the day T4 before 78 knocked him back 19 spots to T23. Is this the clue gamers are looking for in regards to Berger and Finau tomorrow? Fleetwood was T4 at Erin Hills last year. … Scott Piercy, T2 at Oakmont behind Johnson, had the 2016 champ all to himself in the final pairing. He only lost by two shots but I’ll point out that Johnson had a four-shot advantage in the last tee time on Saturday. Piercy is now T23 after 79. Study Hall Round 1 scoring average was 76.47 (+6.47) and Round 2 was 73.595 (+3.95). Saturday checked in at 75.327 (+5.327) and aggregate over the three rounds is now 75.088. … There were three rounds in the red on Saturday, that’s it. … The last player to win a tournament with an over-par total was Justin Rose at Merion in 2013. … Jim Furyk is as old as Mickelson and is T7. The oldest player to win this event was the excellent Hale Irwin at 45 in 1990

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