Na wins a tournament … and gives away a car

Tiger Woods had multiple “open fractures” to his lower right leg, had a rod placed in his tibia, and screws and pins inserted into his ankle, a doctor at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center said Tuesday night.

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Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler and defending champion Justin Thomas – all of whom live minutes from PGA National Resort & Spa – top the marquee at The Honda Classic, which kicks off the PGA TOUR’s revamped Sunshine State schedule. Luke List, who lost a playoff to Thomas a year ago, is back as he continues to pursue his first TOUR victory. Several Europeans are playing The Honda before making the trip to TPC Sawgrass in two weeks, including Alex Noren, who finished one shot out of last year’s Honda playoff, and former PLAYERS champions Sergio Garcia and Martin Kaymer. FIELD NOTES: Two-time Honda champion Padraig Harrington is slated for his first start of 2019 after being sidelined the past 2 1/2 months with a broken bone in his wrist. … PGA National is slated to welcome 12 of the top 30 in the current FedExCup standings. … Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard tees it up for the first time in a regular TOUR event and first on U.S. soil since the 2015 U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. He also played the 2014 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No.2. … At least a dozen Honda entrants keep a home within 45 minutes of PGA National. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 points. STORYLINES: Thomas, who owns three top-3 finishes since the calendar turned to 2019, seeks to become just the second back-to-back winner in the Honda’s 48-year history. Jack Nicklaus pulled it off in 1977-78 at Inverrary, but nobody since. … Koepka returns home for his first start on U.S. soil since the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January. The reigning PGA TOUR Player of the Year grew up in West Palm Beach, but hasn’t finished better than 26th in four Honda starts. … Fowler, the 2017 Honda champion, arrives just four weeks removed from his victory at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. He missed the cut in his title defense last year. … Since last year’s playoff loss, List has notched a trio of top-5 finishes. … In 12 events since The Honda arrived at PGA National, the “Bear Trap� trio of Nos. 15-17 has eaten participants to a tune of 3,571 shots over par. All three were among the TOUR’s 10 toughest holes last year, with the par-3 17th outranked only by two at the U.S. Open. COURSE: PGA National Resort & Spa (Champion), 7,125 yards, par 70. Annually one of the most demanding layouts on the PGA TOUR schedule, the Champion Course stood No. 2 last year even when held up against major venues. Only Shinnecock Hills (U.S. Open) proved tougher in 2018. Even though the original George & Tom Fazio layout hosted a Ryder Cup (1983) and PGA Championship (1987), Jack Nicklaus was brought in for a 1990 remake that introduced golfers to the daunting “Bear Trap� stretch of two often windblown par-3s flanking the stout par-4 16th. The course also staged 19 Senior PGA Championships through 2000, going on tournament hiatus until the Honda arrived in 2007. For those visiting South Florida, must-play courses include Trump National Doral GC (Doral, Fla.) and Crandon Golf at Key Biscayne (Key Biscayne, Fla.). Book your reservations via TeeOff.com. 72-HOLE RECORD: 264, Justin Leonard (2003 at Mirasol). PGA National record: 267, Camilo Villegas (2010). 18-HOLE RECORD: 61, Brian Harman (2nd round, 2012). LAST YEAR: Thomas knocked a wedge stiff on the 18th hole to force a playoff with List. Thomas reached the par-5 18th in two shots in the playoff, two-putting for birdie for the victory. Thomas was there to congratulate Fowler when he won in 2017, and Fowler returned to PGA National to return the favor last year. … A closing 2-under 68 lifted Thomas alongside List (69) after four rounds, though it didn’t come without a few tense moments three holes from the finish. … Both Thomas and List birdied No.18 to end regulation, but List pushed his drive on the replay and was forced to lay up out of the rough. Thomas hit the green in two for a stress-free birdie that capped his eighth career victory. HOW TO FOLLOW   TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 2-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (GC); 3-6 p.m. (NBC). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 7 a.m.-6 p.m. ET (featured groups). Saturday-Sunday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (featured groups), 3-6 p.m. (featured holes). International subscribers (via GOLF.tv): Thursday-Friday, 12:00 to 23:00 GMT. Saturday-Sunday, 14:00 to 23:00. RADIO: Thursday-Friday, noon-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com).

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“To whoever wants to listen, I have so much that I want to say. Matter of fact, I’ve received more messages than ever before, mostly from people who wanted me to speak up immediately because of who I am. I AM BLACK. But it’s not helpful to anyone when impulsive, passionate reaction takes precedence over clear-minded thought. Yes, I’m still angry. But I needed the time to put pen to paper and give y’all a proper message. So let’s go. “Here’s the obvious: George Floyd should still be alive. Absolutely. No doubt. End of story. This was a senseless killing – a murder – and, to me, it was incarnate evil. “There are objective truths in life. I think that’s one of them. But life is more nuanced than just a simple statement, and if there’s one thing that is emblematic of today’s society, I think it’s that we constrict ourselves to single-minded thought. It’s easy to do. But that ain’t life. You can be against a cop savagely killing a man and also have the perspective to say that burning businesses and police stations is wrong. You may say one is more or less severe than the other, but there again we must allow ourselves to go beyond this one-or-the-other mentality. Otherwise, we get stuck. We lost direction. Sadly, I think the media exacerbate the situation – with whatever motives they have – by implicating one side of a complex story. I will never denounce an entire race or group based off of a singular incident. I cannot justify that. Yes, the cop acted in the most horrific of ways. No, not all cops are like that. Yes, people are rightly angry. No. we don’t need to loot to make our point. In my heart, I know we’re a good country filled with good people. It’s time we start recognizing that. “Look, I grew up in Gastonia, N.C. I had nothing. No nice clothes, no lights, and, hell, sometimes no buck-fifty to eat lunch in high school. I bought my first pair of jeans when I was in college. And you know what? The people who pushed me to succeed were old white and black men at my local muni. They were the only ones helping me with clothes, bills and food. The white guys aren’t racists, and the black guys aren’t either. I would call myself lucky, but that’d be undermining everything I believe. I’m not insensitive to reality, I’m realistic about the innate good I see in people. “I know hard it is to build something. I know it, man. Seeing justice for George Floyd turn into destruction and theft of businesses owned by African Americans, Caucasians, Hispanics, and all the other ethnicities is disgusting. I will always be behind all African Americans who are subjected to racism. I will also be behind other ethnicities in the same way. But I will never support an aggressive reaction, especially against those who have poured everything into opening this restaurant or that shop. “Sometimes life is not simple and things don’t make sense. How can we call ourselves the greatest country on earth when our standards fall to senseless killing? That’s a tough and important question. But I still proudly say we aren’t as fractured as it seems. “I see good people. I pray alongside them for George Floyd and his family. And I also pray for our unity. We’re strong. We can go beyond the trap of one-dimensional thinking. Once we do, our eyes will see the righteous, our hearts will feel the love, and we’ll have done more to honor all those subjected to evil and its vile nature.â€� – Harold Varner III

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