Redemption on offer for Steele, Niemann and Na in Hawaii

As the PGA TOUR ramped up preparations for next week’s return to competition at the Charles Schwab Challenge, it identified the implementation of a quick, reliable COVID-19 testing procedure for players, caddies and essential personnel as one of the most critical requirements, one that also could carry over to PGA TOUR Champions and the Korn Ferry Tour for the remainder of the season. It turns out the TOUR had to look no further than an existing partner on PGA TOUR Champions in tournament sponsor Sanford Health. Among the largest health systems in the United States, Sanford Health demonstrated the ability to deliver on-site testing with rapid results through mobile testing units staffed by several lab technicians. So, plans have been finalized whereby Sanford Health will deploy three of the units across the continental U.S., each manned with a driver and three technicians, to cover the three Tours for the remainder of the season. Each unit will arrive the Saturday prior to the tournament to begin processing RT PCR tests. The test itself takes less than five minutes to administer, and test results are returned within several hours. Approximately 400 individuals are expected to be tested on-site each week. “Our ability to provide on-site testing services for the PGA TOUR is the direct result of our early and strategic investment in expanding testing capacity for our own patients, residents and employees,� said Micah Aberson, Executive Vice President of Sanford Health. “We’re all care givers, whether that is in the hospital, long-term care facility or in a mobile testing unit. This service will help players and staff feel safe, and we can play an important part by preventing the spread of the virus and supporting a responsible return to sporting events.� The mobile unit will remain on site through Thursday before traveling to the next closest tournament site, regardless of Tour. The Sanford Health teams, which also will be tested each week, are prepared for extended travel schedules in order to fulfill their mission on the three Tours. “When you’re in health care, you go where you are called,� said Rochelle Odenbrett, Senior Executive Director for Sanford Laboratories. “These groups of Sanford ambassadors will be on the road for weeks at a time doing work that is necessary in order to bring a little normalcy back to our lives and some joy to golf fans around the world – that’s the global impact these people are making. As for planning the schedule for each team, it’s like putting together a puzzle, and every piece has to fit exactly right. Our team has done an incredible job of mapping out where the three mobile units will be utilized during the season.� Andy Levinson, PGA TOUR Senior Vice President Tournament Administration, stresses that health and safety are the No. 1 priority as the TOUR returns to competition. “Not only will Sanford Health’s mobile laboratories enable us to deliver test results in a matter of hours so that our athletes can properly prepare for competition,� Levinson said, “but they also will allow us to implement our testing program without utilizing critical resources from the communities in which we play, which was of upmost importance to us.� Familiarity between the organizations certainly helped in expanding the relationship, with Sanford Health serving as title sponsor of the Sanford International in its hometown of Sioux Falls, South Dakota (September 11-13). So, too, did having two-time U.S. Open winner Andy North on the Sanford Health Board of Trustees as well serving as the official tournament host. “A lot of credit for the foundation of this collaboration goes to Andy North,� Aberson said. “He helped bring us and the PGA TOUR together to make testing at every tournament a reality.� As a result, Sanford Health also becomes a marketing partner with the designation Official COVID-19 On-site Testing Provider of the PGA TOUR. “When we announced our partnership with Sanford Health in 2017, we knew we were going to build one of the premier events on the PGA TOUR Champions calendar, as their commitment to our sport and the Sioux Falls community has allowed the Sanford International to flourish,� said Miller Brady, President of PGA TOUR Champions. “As we look at the world today in the midst of COVID-19, it is tremendous to see Sanford Health’s determination in helping the PGA TOUR safely return to golf the week of June 8 and moving forward. They are a valued member of our PGA TOUR Champions family and it’s inspiring to see this level of leadership when we need it the most.� Aberson views this as another example of Sanford Health taking a leadership role during the pandemic, be it collaborating with state and local leaders to advancing groundbreaking research. Sanford Health includes 44 hospitals, 1,400 physicians and more than 200 Good Samaritan Society senior care locations in 26 states and 10 countries. “Our team has focused on finding answers and meeting the needs of the communities we serve in this unprecedented time,� he said. “We take great pride in taking the lead in helping ensure a safe return to play for professional golf events in the Unites States by offering this testing and are honored to help contribute to getting players back on the course for fans around the world to enjoy.�

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Missing the cut immediately after your first top 10 on the PGA TOUR in 11 months is not usually a recipe for success, but for Rickie Fowler a weekend off in Las Vegas was a blessing in disguise. Fowler was unable to continue his momentum at the Shriners Children’s Open from his season opening T6 at the Fortinet Championship last week but missing out on weekend play at TPC Summerlin allowed the 33-year-old to spend more time with coach Butch Harmon as they rekindle their relationship. The results were on show in Japan as Fowler backed up his opening 67 with a bogey free 7-under 63 in the second round to join a share of the lead at 10 under with Andrew Putnam. It’s the 11th 36-hole lead of his career and first since The American Express in January of 2020. Fowler recently returned to Harmon, the man who helped him from an early age with his swing, after a three-year run with John Tillery. While he was unable to contend for the Shriners title last week, the 2015 PLAYERS champion was able to get some much-needed personal time with the veteran coach in Las Vegas as a result of his free weekend. The two have been working on a steeper left arm plane to get Fowler’s hands higher at the top and the club in a better position which gives him more room and space and makes his swing more efficient. “The last two days I wouldn’t say I had my best swing wise. I kind of did a good job of managing my way around,” Fowler said. “But I’ll get some work in tomorrow before the round and try and exaggerate a few things where I’m a little bit tighter in lines and flights that I want. But I can’t complain about a 63. “I’m very happy with where we’re at. Obviously didn’t have the week we wanted last week, drove it poorly, but with some of the changes we’ve made and to have the finish that we did at Napa and kind of seeing a lot of good things, I’m definitely happy about it and excited to be here and off to a good start.” In Japan on a sponsor invite after missing the FedExCup Playoffs in 2021 and barely scraping in in 2022, Fowler has eaten Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club’s five par 3’s alive, playing them six under par through two rounds with seven birdies and one bogey. While Fowler is popular everywhere around the globe, his Japanese heritage via his grandfather certainly helped elevate his support. “I definitely enjoy myself over here and the people are awesome. It is really cool to play in front of the Japanese fans,” he said. “Hoping we can give them more good golf over the weekend.”

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ORLANDO, Fla. – Perhaps they should call him “Happy” Hatton. As a nickname for English golfer Tyrrell Hatton “Happyâ€� works two-fold. First in the irony category … like calling a redhead “Bluey” or an NBA star “Shorty”. Hatton seems anything but happy on the golf course most weeks. Secondly, particularly for anyone born anytime in the 1970s or 80s, you can’t help but see iconic movie character “Happy Gilmoreâ€� in your mind while watching him. RELATED: Leaderboard | The clubs Hatton used to win at Bay Hill | Who has momentum heading to THE PLAYERS? Hatton has admitted he has some anger issues when it comes to his own golf game and the standards he expects of himself. A blow up or two is never far away much like Gilmore when he first takes up the sport in the iconic 1996 movie. But also like Gilmore, Hatton is able to harness it at times and still find ultimate success. “I’m nice but obviously to myself I give myself a hard time and that’s one thing that I should probably get better at,â€� the 28-year-old says. On Sunday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by Mastercard, the range of emotions was on display once more as he converted a two-shot 54-hole lead into a first PGA TOUR win to go with his four European Tour titles. Through eight holes, Hatton had bounced back from two early bogeys to reestablish a two-shot lead and looked pretty comfortable. But as eventual runner-up Marc Leishman would say after falling a shot short of Hatton, “of all the courses on the PGA TOUR, this is the last one you’d pick to have a two-shot lead with three to go.â€� That is because Bay Hill can turn up a big number at any moment. For the second straight day it played very tough indeed, allowing just one round in the 60s on Saturday and Sunday. No one was immune. Consider Hatton’s 68-69-73-74 made him the first player since Geoff Ogilvy in the 2006 U.S. Open to win with two over-par rounds on the weekend. And just ask Rory McIlroy who had two double bogeys on the front nine to go from tied for the lead to out of the mix. It was almost as if you could hear legendary broadcaster Verne Lundquist saying one of the oft-quoted lines from “Happy Gilmoreâ€� … “uh oh, here comes the putter throw… â€� for each putt Hatton missed. Surely it was only a matter of time before implosion. It was. Despite the fact Hatton led by three when he was on the 11th tee box he strangely pulled out his driver. It meant a water hazard was in reach and sure enough the tee shot bounded into a watery grave. Soon after he was grinding on a six-footer for double bogey. Inside those 15 minutes or so were the trademark over dramatic gestures and negative self-talk … and at one point Hatton wacked himself hard in the back with the handle of his putter a handful of times. “It was really tough out there and obviously I was getting frustrated at times, but nowhere near the blowups that I am capable of. And it’s just one of those days where you just got to stick in there, and patience is one of the hardest things with me,â€� he would say of the episode. “I said yesterday the hardest thing for me will be to manage myself. And over the course of this week I feel like I did a decent job of that.â€� Some would argue he failed to manage it. But if you watch closely enough you come to realize that in fact it seems almost necessary for Hatton to let off steam this way. Like a pressure valve releasing. Gilmore learned to go to his happy place to move on from his anger. Hatton is similar but he goes there after he releases the pressure first. Besides, he managed it well enough to still win. “It was so tough and obviously everyone’s dropping shots quite easily. And after the double on 11, which was pretty tough to take … I did get a bit frustrated,â€� he said while sitting inside the replica Arnold Palmer red cardigan given to the winner with the large trophy also by his side. “That’s always going to happen with me. And as long as it’s not kind of keeping on over to the next shot, then I’ll be okay. I’m just happy that I’ve managed myself well enough this week to be sitting here.â€� His caddie Mick Donaghy is a big part of the blow up and then refocus routine. He is tasked with making sure that nothing dwells past those initial moments. And after 11 would be a critical juncture on this day. “I was just annoyed because my third shot in was actually one of the best swings I made all day. I was just having a little moan, like it’s the grass’s fault and the wind’s fault. It’s never my fault,â€� Hatton continued. “But Mick was really good. He just told me to kind of get focused again, it’s done, move on, and have a few practice swings and just kind of get some good feelings again. And I stood on the 12th tee and that was probably one of the best tee shots, certainly, that I hit today.â€� From that point on, as Leishman and Sungjae Im tried to mount a charge, Hatton ground out seven straight pars. Even when Leishman, the 2017 winner at Bay Hill, got within one with two to play, Hatton remained steady. In fact he played the final two holes with stoicism to claim the win and a three-year exemption on the PGA TOUR in just his second event back from right wrist surgery. “It’s an incredible feeling to win at such an iconic venue and with obviously Arnie’s name to it,â€� he would say after moving to 14th in the FedExCup. “Hopefully I can push on and keep climbing.â€� He has that chance in just a few days from now as the TOUR moves to its flagship PLAYERS Championship. No Englishman has ever won the PLAYERS at TPC Sawgrass. Hatton was asked if he could be the guy. After all no Englishman had won the Arnold Palmer Invitational prior either. But his answer once again conjured up thoughts of Gilmore and his laid back ways. “Time will tell. It’s hard to kind of think about next week at the moment with the sort of potential celebrations we have got later today. I don’t think I’ll be in any fit state at least until Wednesday,â€� Hatton smiled. Yep … “Happy” Hatton indeed.

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