Morning report: The Open, Round 2

This is the last time that you will forget that the Dell Technologies Championship starts on Friday and ends on Labor Day. We creatures of habit will adapt to a new norm next year when the FedExCup Playoffs already will have ended by now. TPC Boston also will shift into its new position in the rotation for THE NORTHERN TRUST beginning in 2020. Until then, there’s the not-so-insignificant matter of the second leg of this year’s Playoffs. Scroll past the ranking for more about the only course ever to host the Dell Technologies Championship, what to expect from the field of 98 and more. For analysis on Tiger Woods, Henrik Stenson, Webb Simpson, Charley Hoffman, Marc Leishman, Wyndham Championship winner Brandt Snedeker and other notables, read the Fantasy Insider on Tuesday. Francesco Molinari (rest) and Rickie Fowler (oblique) are sitting out this week, but at a respective 13th and 22nd in the FedExCup standings, both will advance to next week’s BMW Championship. The leading 70 in points at the conclusion of the Dell Technologies Championship will qualify for the third event of the Playoffs. Despite a steady evolution of modifications and moderate stretching, TPC Boston has been one of the most predictable tracks on the PGA TOUR. It’s a par 36-35–71 taping off at 7,342 yards. This year’s only noticeable aesthetic change occurred at the par-4 12th hole where the bunker in the middle of the fairway short of the divide has been removed. Whether that eases scoring remains to be determined, but it probably won’t hurt. The longest par 4 on the course (at 510 yards) was the hardest hole in last year’s tournament. Averaging +0.343 strokes to par, it was the 13th-most difficult par 4 of 538 on TOUR last season. Given its familiarity, it comes as no surprise that experience at TPC Boston has helped define most champions. Since Adam Scott claimed the inaugural edition in 2003, Phil Mickelson (2007) is the only winner here who prevailed in his tournament debut. Justin Thomas was only 24 years of age when he recorded a three-stroke victory last year. Not that he profiles as a horse for any course, but he’s still building a stable of reliable sites, so it probably mattered that even the 2016-17 Player of the Year had appeared twice before at TPC Boston. Thomas put his stamp on an extreme week. He led the field in strokes gained: tee-to-green, scrambling and par-4 scoring, but he finished T32 in par-3 scoring and T30 in par-5 scoring. It was merely one way to get the job done during what can’t be ruled out as a shootout. Of the 11 who finished inside the top 10 on the leaderboard, eight ranked inside the top 25 in greens hit (Thomas was T13) and eight completed the week inside the top 20 in scrambling. All 11 left town having landed somewhere inside the top 25 in strokes gained: putting. This week’s field projects to score similarly to last year’s average of 70.781. After favorable conditions during the first two rounds when daytime highs will reach the mid-70s, an increase in both the heat and risk of inclement weather spikes by Monday. The Dell Technologies Championship is the last tournament of the season with a cut of low 70 and ties. (The 54-hole/MDF cut provision does not apply in the Playoffs.) Since the current scoring system was adopted in 2015, all golfers who have recorded a top 20 at TPC Boston have advanced to the BMW Championship. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton reviews and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done, Facebook Live THURSDAY: Champions One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.

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