Monday qualifiers: WM Phoenix Open

The Wyndham Championship isn’t part of the FedExCup Playoffs, but playoffs are as much about who survives and advances as who doesn’t. So, for many at Sedgefield Country Club this week, their personal playoffs begin now. A field of 156 is assembled in Greensboro, North Carolina, for the conclusion of the PGA TOUR’s regular season. Scroll past the projected contenders for a review of what’s at stake, how Sedgefield is expected to test and more. RELATED: How the field qualified | The First Look POWER RANKINGS: WYNDHAM CHAMPIONSHIP Rickie Fowler, Tommy Fleetwood, Lucas Glover, Francesco Molinari, Barracuda Championship winner Erik van Rooyen and defending champion Jim Herman will be among the notables reviewed in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. The Wyndham Championship has served as the anchor of the PGA TOUR regular season throughout the FedExCup era and Sedgefield CC has hosted since 2008. Because statuses for golfers will be subject to change at its conclusion, the gathering in Greensboro presents a little like the last day of high school. Some guys never will see each other again, for even a reunion must be earned. For most, it’ll preface a rebirth that results in a run at the FedExCup during the three-event Playoffs on deck, the Korn Ferry Tour Finals that’s contested concurrently, or perhaps a spot in the second stage of qualifying school to regain status on the KFT in 2022. Churn is the norm in the constant of the meritocracy. Leading the qualifiers for the Playoffs is the Comcast Business TOUR TOP 10. Of the 25 mathematically within reach to be rewarded, four are in the field at Sedgefield – Louis Oosthuizen (eighth in FedExCup points), Jason Kokrak (12th), Hideki Matsuyama (14th) and Patrick Reed (22nd). Of them, only Oosthuizen can stretch to No. 1. He cannot finish lower than 10th. Another impactful bubble hovers over Bo Hoag at 125th in points. From Sepp Straka at 105th through Rafael Campos at 151st, only Charles Howell III (137th) isn’t committed at Sedgefield. (CH3 is fully exempt through the 2021-22 season, so he forfeits only the chance to qualify for the 2021 Playoffs). Sedgefield is a stock par 70 measuring 7,131 yards. With no significant changes and with customarily favorable scoring conditions, it’ll play as the racetrack with which the entrants are familiar. Last year’s scoring average of 68.779 aligned with its recent history. Bermuda greens are ready to touch 12 feet on the Stimpmeter, but the daily threat for rain and increased chance of storms deeper into the tournament could impact that. The two-and-a-half-inch primary rough will be consistent. Wind will not be a factor, so every bit of the daytime highs in the low 90s will be felt before a relative cooling on Sunday. En route to the title last year, Jim Herman showcased the textbook formula for success in a shootout. He led the field in greens hit (63 of 72) and finished third in Strokes Gained: Putting, connecting on 14 tries outside 10 feet, tied for most in the field. He went 10-for-21 from 10-20 feet and ranked second in average distance of putts holed. Because the Wyndham Championship is the final stop before the Playoffs, all top 10s at Sedgefield will be eligible for entry into the Fortinet Championship on Sept. 16-19. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers; Fantasy Insider SUNDAY: Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Rookie Watch * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.

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PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico – Damon Green, caddie for Zach Johnson, went down with illness after 14 holes and could not continue in the first round of the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Sybi Kuchar, wife of Johnson’s playing partner Matt (7-under 64), took the bag for the last four, during which Johnson made an eagle and went 2-under to salvage an even-par 71. “He hadn’t been feeling well the last few days,� Johnson said of Green. “I’m assuming he was dehydrated, but I don’t know. Matt saw Damon struggling, and I did, too. He didn’t look right. PGA TOUR staff brought him in. I’d like to say it was the first time, but it’s happened like four times at Maui, NORTHERN TRUST at Bethpage, and a couple other places.� Green later confirmed he was suffering from dehydration and received an IV. Johnson had a decision to make on who should get the bag when Green exited. Kuchar, who like Johnson lives in St. Simonds Island, Georgia, was happy Sybi could help. “I didn’t talk too much to Damon, but you could tell it was heat fatigue, heat exhaustion, whatever the term is,� Matt Kuchar said. “It was really getting the best of him. I knew Sybi was in the crowd, I knew she had caddied for me before and was friendly with Zach Johnson, and figured she would be good to handle it, and Zach would go easy on her. “She knows the deal of keeping up and staying out of the way,� Kuchar added, “and I knew Zach would be happy to see a friendly face to take over the bag.� Sybi called the situation a first. Billy Horschel, the third player in the group, joked that someone should ask Matt about kissing another player’s caddie on the lips. Kuchar himself worked with a new caddie Thursday. He was a late commit to the tournament, and his usual caddie, John Wood, had planned a reunion that conflicted with Mayakoba. Kuchar gave him the week off and hired a local caddie whose nickname is “Tucan� (real name: David). Tucan was on the bag for 32-year-old Mexican Armando Favela as the former Loyola University golfer won a qualifier at El Camaleon to get into the field. (He shot 67 on Thursday.) And now Tucan is on the bag for the early co-leader Kuchar. (Kramer Hickok also came in with 64.) Still, it was the situation with Johnson, Green and Sybi Kuchar that was more unusual. But not unprecedented. “I’ve had friends fill in, I’ve had my brother in law, I’ve had random individuals I don’t know,� Johnson said. “I would have called a security guy or a rules official to have somebody brought out, but Sybi has done this before and she’s in great shape, so there you go.�

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WILMINGTON, N.C. — Brian Harman made a 30-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win the Wells Fargo Championship and deny Dustin Johnson a fourth straight victory. Harman hit a heavy chip from behind the green on the par-5 18th that barely got onto the putting surface. It appeared certain there would be at least a three-man playoff with Johnson and Pat Perez until Harman holed the putt and broke into a wild celebration. He closed with a 4-under 68 for his second PGA TOUR victory. Johnson, in his return from a freak back injury that knocked him out of the Masters Tournament, went from making the cut on the number to a 67-67 weekend and had the lead until Harman birdied the last two holes. Perez birdied the 18th for a 68.

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