Notebook: Tiger aims for No. 9 at Firestone

Casey rejoins European Tour, eyes Ryder return

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas shared the early lead at the Waste Management Phoenix open after shooting matching, 7-under 64s at TPC Scottsdale on Thursday. They’re also sharing a house. “I was really hoping I was going to make that last putt,â€� Fowler said of his birdie try from 24 feet at the par-4 9th hole, his last. “I hit it perfect and it kind of—I thought it was going to break a little more at the end, it didn’t. We’re sharing a house this week, so I wanted bragging rights at dinner tonight.â€� Thomas, playing in the threesome just ahead of Fowler, birdied six of seven holes in the middle of his round. “I was in control of everything from tee to green,â€� Thomas said. With the morning wave through, England’s Tyrrell Hatton was two back after signing for a 5-under 66. Thomas hit 9/14 fairways, Fowler 11/14. Both hit 14 greens in regulation and made roughly 85 feet worth of putts, Thomas a few feet less and Fowler a few feet more. Fowler is still getting used to a new brand of ball; Thomas admitted he hasn’t felt entirely comfortable on the greens. You wouldn’t have known any of that from their play Thursday, when neither made a bogey and Fowler eagled the par-5 13th hole. The co-leaders not only room together on the road, they’re neighbors in South Florida. “We live half a mile down the street at home,â€� Fowler said, “so we spend a lot of time together, practice, play together. We enjoy pushing each other.â€� They’re also Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup teammates, but that’s where the similarities end. Fowler is a four-time TOUR winner who has done everything but win this tournament, finishing second in 2010 and 2016, and giving himself chances to win most every other year. Last year he was in the mix but bogeyed three of his last four holes for a 2-over 73, which broke a streak of 12 straight under-par rounds at TPC Scottsdale. Still, he finished T11. Nine-time TOUR winner and 2017 FedExCup champion Thomas has also done well here. His T17 last year would have been better but for a few uncharacteristic blow-up holes. Suffice it to say the two friends will have plenty to talk about over dinner, if they didn’t already. Fowler’s fiancé, Allison Stokke, is also with him; Thomas’ girlfriend is expected later this week. They’ll enjoy each other’s company while also listening for news about Fowler’s sister, Taylor, who is expecting to deliver twins any day now.    “I wanted to make that putt, and hit it perfect,â€� said Fowler, still ruing his missed opportunity to end with a birdie. “It would just be nice to be able to needle him a little bit tonight.â€� With three rounds remaining, they’ll have plenty of time for that.

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SYDNEY, Australia – There are probably plenty out there wondering why is Jordan Spieth in Australia this week instead of enjoying a Thanksgiving feast in Texas. Why would a player of his stature fly halfway around the world to play in the Australian Open – an event with a fraction of the purse he usually plays for? And why would he do it for now a fourth year in a row? The first time, Spieth was convinced by his Australian-born swing coach Cameron McCormick (who will caddie for him this week) to check out the wonders of down under. Those who had won the Stonehaven Cup before also helped sway the young Texan who has a keen sense of golf history. Any tournament that boasts Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Peter Thomson, Tom Watson, Greg Norman, Adam Scott and Rory McIlroy among countless others as victors is certainly worth adding your name to. From there, a love affair has grown, and while Spieth was always destined for greatness, the former FedExCup champion and three-time major winner has always attributed Australia for helping to shape his stratospheric rise in golf. Over the past three years, Spieth has finished 1-2-1 in the event and is once again the tournament favorite. In 2014, Spieth headed to The Australian Golf Club as a one-time PGA TOUR winner who was starting to get a reputation as a non-closer. He’d come off a season with eight top-10s on TOUR but zero victories. His lone win, the 2013 John Deere Classic, had been helped out by a holed bunker shot that, quite frankly, was lucky to go in and not shoot through towards a potential watery grave. It had some questioning him. Questions Spieth didn’t like, but questions he took and answered astutely. And then he put together a ridiculously sublime final-round 8-under 63 at in brutally tough conditions to obliterate the field and win by six shots. A week later he won the Hero World Challenge. A few months after, the Valspar Championship. Then the Masters and U.S. Open on the way to a five-win season. In the lead up to what would be his first major win at Augusta National, Spieth said this: “The Australian Open may have been the most important tournament that I’ve ever played in because at the time, it had been maybe a year and a half since winning the John Deere in that playoff where I kind of squeaked in, luckily. “Going there to an elite field with the world No.1 player (Rory McIlroy at the time) and obviously with the local favorite Adam (Scott) and with a venue like The Australian, to put myself in a position and just have a level of patience that I had not had when I was in contention prior to that was important.â€� He had realized he was trying too hard during the Regular Season. With the chatter getting louder about his abilities, he was wanting it too much and when things started to slide, he couldn’t arrest it. “But in Australia, we didn’t let anything get to us; the roars in front, the scoreboard changes, and I shot arguably the best round I’ve ever played when tied for the lead,â€� he added. “It was a huge, huge boost for me and it allowed me to close the tournament, close it the right way and feel comfortable with the lead when I had it the next week and since then.â€� In fact, he’s now won nine of the last 10 times he’s held the 54-hole lead on the PGA TOUR, with the only hiccup being his infamous 2016 Sunday crash at Augusta. Funnily enough, it was the bombardment of questioning he faced after that victory that led him to one of the most historic finishes of all time earlier this year at The Open. With his round and tournament slipping away after a wild tee shot on the 13th hole led to a dramatic drop and ultimately a bogey, Spieth went back to his bank. He thought a little of winning in Australia. He thought more of losing in Augusta. “You can’t help but have your mind wander,â€� Spieth said this week. “How is this going to affect the next year? Am I going to be questioned about this and my ability to close in big events again, even though I shouldn’t have been questioned in the first placed by a couple of bad swings -  I felt that. “That comes into play in my mind, and I was almost just so angry at the way that year went after that Masters – the constant questioning even though I had a pretty successful season – that I just refused to go through it again. “I’m going to do everything in my will power, don’t care about how I’m hitting it, how I’m putting it, just do not allow yourself to lose this event and I was able to pull off the shots necessary.â€� Those shots saw him finish birdie, eagle, birdie, birdie, par to win by three. With the Presidents Cup in 2019 slated for Australia, the likelihood is the Australian Open will take the slot the week before. As such, the chances of some of the biggest stars in golf playing it along with Spieth, are very high. “I would certainly encourage players to come play next year and right before in ’19 when we’re over here,â€� Spieth advocates. “It can only help in my mind and they’re going to love it. The guys still talk about the last President’s Cup in Melbourne, the veterans, just how great of a time it was.â€� But until they get down under to join him, Spieth will try to continue riding the momentum into the new season. Chances are pretty high he will. SPIETH’S AUSSIE MOMENTUM 1. Won 2014 Australian Open – Then won 5 PGA TOUR events, including two majors, the FedExCup and PGA TOUR Player of the Year in 2015. 2. Second Place in 2015 Australian Open – Then won 2 PGA TOUR events in 2016. 3. Won 2016 Australian Open – Then won 3 PGA TOUR events including a major.

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