Rahm five back of leader Bezuidenhout entering final round of Andalucia Masters

Because of the format of the 2018-19 season, Segment 1 of PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO sets up like a soft open. Survive the Safeway Open and glide through three consecutive no-cut tournaments before taking stock in what you’ve built. That’s where we’ll be at the conclusion of this week’s World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions. Beginning with next week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, cuts made rises to the top of the list of priorities. Each of the last three events this fall will feature a 36-hole cut, but only the Shriners will include ShotLink. The absence of measurement-based bonuses won’t matter much in real time, especially since we never have to concern ourselves with starts in Segment 1, but it’ll play a role in the long-range scoring since margins and deficits will remain as small as they’ve ever been in the game. As you learn the value of various decisions within the construct of the scoring system, the experience will influence how we’re going to approach Segments 2, 3 and 4. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions (in alphabetical order): Jason Day Tony Finau Dustin Johnson Brooks Koepka Rory McIlroy Justin Rose You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Keegan Bradley; Tommy Fleetwood; Tyrrell Hatton; Hideki Matsuyama; Jon Rahm Driving: n/a Power Rankings Wild Card Xander Schauffele … Easily overlooked during a forgettable T46 at Nine Bridges is that he closed with a 65 that included birdies on half of the holes. For someone of his talent who has proven comfortable on the biggest stages, that’s exactly the momentum all gamers want entering this week’s fast track. Draws Brandt Snedeker … With an elevated premium on short game and the likelihood for low scoring, he presents confidently once again. This is his first trip to Sheshan International since 2014 when he placed T10. Andy Sullivan … One of numerous snubs in Sleepers this week, the former Ryder Cupper is 28th in the Race to Dubai and arrives having improved on his previous outing in each of his last five starts. The surge was last seen in the form of a T9 at the British Masters. He has eight top 10s this year. Ashun Wu … DFS special. Currently 176th in the Official World Golf Ranking but second among the Chinese behind Hao Tong Li. Wu prevailed at the KLM Open last month and he hasn’t missed an edition of the WGC-HSBC Champions. Even better, he’s recorded a trio of top 25s, including in each of the last two. Byeong Hun An Keegan Bradley Emiliano Grillo Thorbjørn Olesen Adrian Otaegui Julian Suri Fades Patrick Reed … It’s been a confounding few weeks for the Masters champ. He didn’t factor in the Playoffs or the Ryder Cup. Now he attempts to tackle Sheshan International where he struggled in the last two editions. In a sense, this is who astute weekly gamers expect, anyway. It’s not a factor this week, but he can be convincing because he makes most cuts. The potential for a boon is omnipresent. Russell Knox … With a win in his debut in 2015, a T9 in his title defense and a scoring average of 68.00 in those eight rounds, course history buffs are sold. However, since his latest victory in Ireland in early July, he’s a mere 4-for-7 without a top-30 finish. That’s not the trajectory he was riding early in 2018 and it doesn’t align with his profile of balance. A calculated non-play. Alex Noren … Finished T18 at Nine Bridges, but it was anything but consistent. He ranked T6 in greens hit but his putting left a lot to be desired. With only one top 30 in the WGC-HSBC Champions, he’s at best a contrarian due to the guarantee of four rounds. Thomas Pieters … Give him a little more time to calibrate his game after an unsuccessful foray as a PGA TOUR member in 2017-18. So many European dual-tour talents before him have made it look easy, but there are just as many if not more casualties. He’ll be fine and he’ll actually make more sense in the WGCs and the majors for which he qualifies, but he’s broken par just once in his last five rounds at Sheshan International. Kiradech Aphibarnrat Branden Grace Billy Horschel Returning to Competition Kevin Stadler … He scattered four starts over as many months on the Web.com Tour this year, but this marks his first appearance on the PGA TOUR since the 2015 John Deere Classic. An injury in his hand thwarted a reasonable expectation to compete, but he had surgery for a stress fracture in his palm last year and has declared himself ready and feeling good. With a full slate of 26 starts afforded on a Major Medical Extension, the 38-year-old is an automatic investment in salary leagues. Notable WDs Sangmoon Bae … After missing the cut at the Safeway Open, he has nine starts on his Major Medical Extension to earn 294.752 FedExCup points and retain status. Of course, as a Web.com Tour grad, he’s fully exempt for the season, so the conversation of the medical no longer is as pressing as it was before he won the Albertsons Boise Open to lock up his card. Power Rankings Recap – THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1  Justin Thomas  T36 2  Hideki Matsuyama  T18 3  Marc Leishman  T18 4  Tyrrell Hatton  T14 5  Brooks Koepka  Win 6  Louis Oosthuizen  T29 7  Paul Casey  T18 8  Gary Woodland  2nd 9  Sungjae Im  T41 10  Jason Day  T5 11  Emiliano Grillo  T55 12  Cameron Smith  T7 13  Byeong Hun An  T41 14  Kyle Stanley  66th 15  Abraham Ancer  T73 Wild Card  Ian Poulter  T10 Sleepers Recap – THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES Golfer  Result Brice Garnett  T41 Whee Kim  72nd Jason Kokrak  T67 Keith Mitchell  T14 Hyun-woo Ryu  T77 Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR October 23 … none October 24 … Marc Leishman (35) October 25 … Troy Merritt (33); Xander Schauffele (25) October 26 … none October 27 … Fabián Gómez (40) October 28 … none October 29 … none

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Horschel’s wife reveals her alcoholism battle

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FedExCup leader Hideki Matsuyama is joined by six of the top 10 golfers in the world at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open. Patrick Reed, who won by five shots last season – the widest margin of victory in his career – returns to defend. FIELD NOTES: World No. 1 Jon Rahm returns to his haven that is Torrey Pines. Rahm won the Farmers Insurance Open in 2017, was runner-up in 2020, finished T7 last year and won the U.S. Open at Torrey in 2021… Other golfers inside the top 10 in the world in the field include Justin Thomas, San Diego native Xander Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau, and Hideki Matsuyama, the TOUR’s only two-time winner this season… DeChambeau returns to Torrey Pines for the first time since 2018. He added the Farmers Insurance Open to his schedule after withdrawing from the Sony Open, citing soreness in his left wrist… There’s plenty of firepower at Torrey Pines this year with notables also including two-time Farmers winner Jason Day, Brooks Koepka, and former FedExCup winners Justin Rose (who won at Torrey Pines in 2019), Billy Horschel and Jordan Spieth… Long-time San Diego resident Phil Mickelson – who acted as tournament host at The American Express – is back in the field. He is a three-time Farmers Insurance Open champion… Kamaiu Johnson gets another chance at the Farmers Insurance Open. The APGA Tour star was set to make his TOUR debut in 2021 but tested positive for COVID-19 prior to the event. He’s back as a sponsor exemption this year and is one of two APGA players in the field. Ryan Alford also was given a sponsor’s exemption. … Will Zalatoris, who finished T7 as a sponsor exemption last year, is back at Torrey as a full-fledged TOUR member this year… Other 2022 sponsor exemptions include Taylor Montgomery and former Arizona State standout Kevin Yu, who was fourth in PGA TOUR University’s Class of 2021. He had two top-5 finishes in eight Korn Ferry Tour starts last year. COURSE: Torrey Pines GC (South), 7,765 yards, par-72. Torrey Pines GC (North), 7,258 yards, par-72. Golfers will play one round apiece on the South and North courses before the 36-hole cut. The final two rounds will be played on the South Course. Torrey Pines South has hosted the 2008 and 2021 U.S. Opens, won by Tiger Woods and Jon Rahm, respectively. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 FedExCup points. STORYLINES: This week marks the return of Dustin Johnson. The former FedExCup champion hasn’t teed it up on the PGA TOUR since THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT… The tournament will get started on Wednesday and goes until Saturday. This avoids a conflict with the NFL’s conference championship games… Fans will be permitted at Torrey Pines this year after a fan-less affair in 2021… Reed looks to become just the fourth repeat winner in event history. The last to do it was Tiger Woods, who won four straight at Torrey Pines from 2005-2008. 72-HOLE RECORD: 266, George Burns (1987), Tiger Woods (1999). 18-HOLE RECORD: North Course record: 61, Mark Brooks (2nd round, 1990), Brandt Snedeker (1st round, 2007). Redesigned North Course record: 62, Jon Rahm (1st round, 2019), Ryan Palmer (2nd round, 2020). South Course record: 62, Tiger Woods (3rd round, 1999) LAST TIME: Patrick Reed won for the ninth time on TOUR at the 2021 Farmers Insurance Open, and the margin of victory – five shots – was the biggest in his career. Reed closed with a 4-under 68. He held the 18-hole lead after Thursday and took the victory across the finish line on Sunday. Reed was never challenged on Sunday – especially after co-54-hole leader Carlos Ortiz was 2-over through four holes and finished with a 6-over 78. There was a five-way tie for second between Tony Finau, Henrik Norlander, Ryan Palmer, Schauffele, and Viktor Hovland. HOW TO FOLLOW: Television: Wednesday, 12:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Thursday, 3 p.m.-7 p.m. (Golf Channel). Friday, 3 p.m.-5 p.m. (Golf Channel), 5 p.m.-8 p.m. (CBS). Saturday, 2:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 4:30 p.m.-8 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: PGA TOUR LIVE is available exclusively on ESPN+ • Main Feed: Primary tournament coverage featuring the best action from across the course • Marquee Group: New “marquee group” showcasing every shot from each player in the group • Featured Groups: Traditional PGA TOUR LIVE coverage of two concurrent featured groups • Featured Holes: A combination of par-3s and iconic or pivotal holes

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