PGA featured holes: The Northern Trust

Charley Hoffman leads by three shots heading into Moving Day at the Hero World Challenge. Jordan Spieth, Tiger Woods and defending champ Hideki Matsuyama are all within striking distance. Third round tee times Third round leaderboard HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN Telecast: Golf Channel (12:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. ET) NBC: (2:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. ET) NOTABLE PAIRINGS Dustin Johnson, Henrik Stenson 12:09 p.m. ET Kevin Chappell, Justin Thomas 12:20 p.m. ET Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed 12:31 p.m. ET Hideki Matsuyama, Tiger Woods 12:53 p.m. ET Charley Hoffman, Jordan Spieth 1:15 p.m. ET

Click here to read the full article…

JACKSON, Miss. – Byeong Hun An was born in South Korea but has lived in Florida since he was a teenager, so he’s grown to love hot weather and Bermudagrass. That’s one reason this week’s Sanderson Farms Championship has suited him so well. After shooting back-to-back 66s, An held the lead when he walked off the Country Club of Jackson’s 18th green on Friday afternoon. RELATED: Tee times | Leaderboard He played 25 holes Friday after lightning caused the first round to be suspended for several hours. The second round wasn’t scheduled to be completed until Saturday morning. His good play can only help his Presidents Cup candidacy. An, who finished 15th in the International Team’s final standings, is likely on the short list of candidates for one of Ernie Els’ four picks. Those will be announced in the first week of November. “I hope I’m way up there,â€� An said. “I need to step it up a little bit. It’ll be nice if I make the team. That definitely was my main goal for whole this year and the next couple events. A decent week this week or next couple weeks definitely I think would help.â€� An should earn a pick if he keeps hitting it the way he did over the first 36 holes this week. He missed just five greens and was in the top 10 in average proximity to the hole (25 feet, 4 inches). He’s made just one bogey in two rounds, after hitting his second shot into the water on the par-5 fifth hole in the second round. He’s even par on the par-5s this week, but 11 under on the par-4s. He could have gone even lower. Besides not taking advantage of the par-5s, he’s missed four putts from 4-8 feet this week. He’s also holed three putts from outside 15 feet. “I’ve been putting a lot better the last couple events, so as long as the putts keep dropping, let’s see if I can win this season,â€� said An, who finished 53rd in the FedExCup last season. Ten years ago, An became the youngest U.S. Amateur champion in history. He was 17 years old when he beat Ben Martin in the final at Southern Hills, breaking a record once held by Tiger Woods. An has three worldwide wins, including the 2015 BMW PGA Championship, but is seeking his first on the PGA TOUR. He has three runners-up and one third-place finish in 97 starts on the PGA TOUR. Last month, he held the 54-hole lead at the Wyndham Championship. It was the third time he started Sunday with the lead, and while he has yet to convert, his 67 was his lowest final round after starting the day with the lead. He was passed by J.T. Poston’s final-round 62 at Sedgefield Country Club. Poston became the first player since Lee Trevino to win while going bogey-free over 72 holes. Poston also is in contention at the Sanderson Farms Championship. He shot 64 to take the first-round lead, then shot 70 to sit two behind An.  An finished T47 last week in the season-opening Military Tribute at The Greenbrier. He’s playing more fall events this year after falling too far behind in the FedExCup race last season. “That’s why I decided to play last week, this week, and then these four in a row, to get a fast start,â€� he said. “I’m definitely heading the right way.â€�

Click here to read the full article…

Jordan Spieth carded a 5-under 67 in the first round of the Valero Texas Open on Thursday, good enough for the solo lead amongst the morning-wave finishers. He held a one-shot lead over Scottie Scheffler and Tom Hoge. Related: Full leaderboard "I certainly would have signed up for 5 under starting out," Spieth said. "Felt like I played some really nice golf on our front nine, the back nine. Then just kind of got a little loose off the tee on the front nine, our second nine, and was able to kind of make do. "I hit some decent drives, ended up in iffy spots," he continued. "Overall, just chipped and putted really well, which was the difference maker today. I didn’t quite hit it as good as I have been." Mired in a slump at the start of this year, Spieth has regained his form with the help of longtime coach Cameron McCormick but also an unlikely ally: fellow TOUR pro Jason Dufner. Speaking about the upcoming Masters in a conference call Wednesday, Brandel Chamblee and Rich Lerner suggested that Spieth has been copying some of Dufner's moves. "Well, if you watch him when he rehearses before he hits a shot now, it's weird," Chamblee said. "Even when he's hitting bunker shots, he'll make this very flat golf swing and then in transition, he'll bring his right elbow much closer to his left elbow than I've ever seen him, and then he will round it off and sort of curve the hub. "He'll swing very much around and to the left," he continued. "The only other person I've ever seen make practice swings like that is Jason Dufner. So it would not surprise me in the least if he was not — if he wasn't taking lessons from Jason Dufner, talking to Jason Dufner about the golf swing, or watching Jason Dufner make golf shots. Or Cameron McCormick is." Added Lerner: "He has, Brandel. I spoke to their camp at Bay Hill and he has confided in Dufner, which sort of caught me by surprise." Asked about the Dufner connection after making seven birdies and two bogeys, one of them on his last hole, the par-4 ninth, Spieth said they've been friends, but that's about it. "Yeah, he’s somebody that has a good knowledge of the golf swing," he said. "He’s helped a lot of guys. Just kind of bounce ideas off him. He’s been a good friend of mine for a long time. "He’s been somebody I can always kind of bounce off - ‘Hey, I’m trying to do this, you know, what’s this feel like to you?' - that kind of stuff," Spieth added. "He’s been a good buddy, as I’ve had a lot of different guys over the years that have been offering advice on and off the golf course to the young guys and that’s not out of the ordinary out here."

Click here to read the full article…