PGA TOUR champion Brian Gay donates $50,000 to Diamond Resorts International Foundation to Support Military Families

Rahm on a Roll Incredibly, Tuesday marks seven full months since the last time Jon Rahm recorded an over-par round on TOUR. That came in the first round of the 2021 Open Championship, and he still tied for third place. Rahm’s run of 33 consecutive rounds of par or better is the longest active streak on TOUR, with Patrick Cantlay close behind at 31. With an opening 71 or lower on Thursday, Rahm will be the first player in nearly 20 years to have a streak of 34 or longer in this statistic, the last being Charles Howell III in 2002-03. It would also tie the mark for longest such streak by an international player, matching Vijay Singh’s streak of 34 straight from 2000 to 2001. Since 1983, the only player with a streak longer than 38 rounds is – who else – Tiger Woods, who rattled off 52 consecutive rounds at par or better from the 2000 AT&T Byron Nelson to the WM Phoenix Open in February of the following year. Woods had six TOUR wins, including three majors, in that unbelievable stretch. Days removed from hosting a thrilling Super Bowl, Los Angeles is the site of another star-studded competition this week at The Riviera Country Club. For the first time in the history of The Genesis Invitational, the top 10 players in the Official World Golf Ranking will tee it up. It’s the first time since last year’s TOUR Championship that all 10 in the OWGR will compete in the same PGA TOUR event. One of the marquee events on the TOUR schedule, The Genesis Invitational has boasted some extremely strong fields in recent years: 9 of that week’s top 10 played in both 2017 and 2020. Still, it’s rare when all of the world’s best are in the mix at an event that isn’t a major championship, FedExCup Playoffs event, World Golf Championships event, or THE PLAYERS Championship. Historically Speaking To find another field like this on TOUR, you have to go back to the 2007 Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow Club, the last time 10 of the top 10 played in a tournament that wasn’t a major, Playoffs event, WGC, or THE PLAYERS. Tiger Woods would earn his 57th official TOUR title that week, which happened to be the week before THE PLAYERS. The Wells Fargo was the second victory in what would turn out to be a seven-win season for Woods. Another 10-of-10 field happened the week before THE PLAYERS in 1995, when every one of the top 23 players in the world played the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. That week at Bay Hill had an incredibly strong international contingent, including a rare stateside, non-major start for Japanese star Jumbo Ozaki, the 9th-ranked player in the world. Loren Roberts would go on to successfully defend his title that week at Arnie’s place. As for Riviera, it last hosted a major in 1995, when Steve Elkington won the PGA Championship. Not even that week could boast the entire top 10: Bernhard Langer, No. 4, missed the tournament with a back injury. Since 2010, about 12% of all events on TOUR (including the majors, PLAYERS, WGCs and FedExCup Playoffs) have had every member of the world top 10 in the field. But to see it at this particular spot on the schedule – at one of the best venues all year on TOUR – is a rare treat for golf fans. Short Game Significance Riviera has some of the most difficult greens to hit on TOUR. Last season, only Winged Foot (52.1%) and Kiawah Island (53.8%), both major championship venues, yielded a lower G.I.R. percentage than Riviera (54.2%). And while this statistic does highlight the need for precision approach play, it also hints that everyone in the field will, sooner or later, need to get up-and-down to make a key par save. Because of this, Strokes Gained: Around the Green is a more impactful statistic than usual in determining a winner at Riviera. Since 2010, TOUR winners have averaged 0.42 Strokes Gained: Around the Green per round. At Riviera, that number is significantly higher – 0.79 per round for players who take home the trophy. For winners of The Genesis Invitational, shots around the green have accounted for 22.1% of all Strokes Gained since 2010. That is nearly double the TOUR average for winners in that span, 11.6%. Nine of the previous 14 winners at Riviera ranked in the top 10 that week in Strokes Gained: Around the Green, including Max Homa in 2021.

Click here to read the full article…

Rickie Fowler enters Sunday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open with a four-shot lead. Here’s everything you need to know for Round 4. Round 4 tee times Round 4 leaderboard HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 3-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (NBC). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 9:15 a.m.-7 p.m. (Featured Groups). Saturday-Sunday, 10:45 a.m.-3 p.m. (Featured Groups), 3-6 p.m. (Featured Holes). Streaming live on NBC Sports Gold and Prime Video Channels in the U.S., and on GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR in all other countries. Learn more here. PGA TOUR LIVE on Twitter: Thursday-Friday, 9:15 a.m. – approx. 10:30 a.m. Saturday-Sunday, 10:45 a.m. – approx. 12:15 p.m.  GOLFTV: Fans outside the U.S. in select markets can also stream the full world feed, concurrent with Golf Channel and NBC/CBS telecasts via subscription to GOLF.TV. RADIO: Thursday-Friday, 1-7 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com). NOTABLE PAIRINGS (ALL TIMES ET) 11:15 a.m.: Hideki Matsuyama, Bud Cauley, Webb Simpson 11:25 a.m.: Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, Russell Knox 12:45 p.m.: Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar, Justin Thomas MUST READS Rickie Fowler holds 4-shot lead entering Sunday at TPC Scottsdale Pros pay respect to Jarrod Lyle at 16th hole Denny McCarthy rules violation rescinded CALL OF THE DAY

Click here to read the full article…

Here are nine tidbits from the third round of the 79th Wyndham Championship gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. Sedgefield Country Club resumed hosting duties of this event in 2008 and plays 7,127 yards to a Par-70. KNOW THY ENEMY These were the top-10 selected golfers in the PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf game presented by SERVPRO. Play was suspended at 3:27 pm ET and was eventually called for the day just before 7:00 pm. The players will be in position and Round 3 will resume Sunday morning at 8:00 am. Thunderstorms are in the forecast for Sunday afternoon too. WHERE SNEDS STANDS Beginning the day with a two-shot lead over D.A. Points, Brandt Snedeker didn’t show any signs of slowing down in his first seven holes. He’s 16-under and has a three-shot lead over Brian Gay. The 2007 champ at Forest Hills said after Round 2 that keeping it in the fairway will give him more chances to lean on his dialed-in iron game and trusty putter. He only hit two of his first five fairways but found five of seven greens. He’s also holed putts from almost 60 and 10 feet for birdies and is bogey-free, two-under for the day. BEST ROUND ON THE COURSE After eight birdies and 63 (-7) in Round 2, Brian Gay picked up right where he left off in Round 3. He went out in 30 with three birdies and an eagle and added another small bird on No. 12 to get to six-under for the round. He’s the closest to the leader as those 12 birdies over his last 30 holes have closed the gap. He was probably the last person that wanted or needed a delay! HUSBAND AND WIFE C.T. Pan shared through social media that he’s spending Chinese Valentine’s Day with his wife on the bag this week. It’s working! He opened 65-64 and is one-under in Round 3 (T3). He’s only made three bogeys on the week so this partnership is obviously working on and off the course. BEEN HERE, DONE THAT The 2009 champion Ryan Moore knows how to get around Sedgefield and gamers were reminded of that with his 63 in Round 1. Moore’s only other top-10 payday in Greensboro was in 2015 but after five birdies against only one bogey in Round 3, he’s just five back. MOVING DAY Michael Thompson found 13 of 14 fairways and painted all 18 greens to post 63, the round of the day in the clubhouse. His bogey-free effort included 29 putts but he still circled five birdies and an eagle. At the time of the suspension of play he moved up 34 spots to T7. Gamers who haven’t burned Hideki Matsuyama yet were offered more evidence in Round 3 as to why this might be a solid playoff idea. He posted 64 with a bogey at the last as he found 16-of-18 GIR. At the time of the delay he was first in Strokes-Gained: Approach-the-Green and second in proximity. This is his third event running with a round of 67 or better. Jamie Lovemark posted 64 and that’s his best of the year. Better late than never as he has moved up 30 spots to T11 and is safely in the clubhouse. THE MORE, THE MERRIER Gamers who are excited that their investments are at or around double-digits under-par should be: 2015: Top 30 all 10-under or better. 2016: Top 32 all 10-under or better. 2017: Top 27 all 10-under or better. Currently the top 21 cover that requirement. MOVING DAY: WRONG WAY Peter Malnati began Round 3 T4 and No. 164 in FedExCup points so he needed to carry on his momentum. He’s one of only five players on the course with an over-par round brewing (+2 through 8) and has dropped to T39. Sadly, defending champion Henrik Stenson also has one of those rounds brewing (+1 through 14) as he’s dropped from T15 to T47. STUDY HALL Round 3 scoring average at the time of suspension was 67.899 (-2.101). The last time the Wyndham Championship finished on Monday Sergio Garcia took home the title. He’s currently T7. Rory McIlroy (rest) and Patrick Rodgers (wedding) will join Rickie Fowler in skipping THE NORTHERN TRUST leaving the field next week at 122. There are no alternates in ANY events of the FedExCup Playoff events, period.

Click here to read the full article…