Russell, 15, gets invite to make PGA Tour debut

Scotland’s Russell Knox, now residing in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, is a two-time PGA TOUR winner. He turned professional in 2007 and made his mark on the Web.com Tour, shooting a rare 59 at the 2013 Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft Nabisco. On the PGA TOUR, Knox became the first Scottish golfer to claim a World Golf Championships title, defeating Kevin Kisner by two strokes at the 2015 WGC-HSBC Champions. His second PGA TOUR victory came at the 2016 Travelers Championship, where he celebrated with an epic hat toss after holing the winning putt. Knox was named Scottish Player of the Year in front of 650 guests at an awards ceremony in Edinburgh in March 2016, an honor accepted by his radio DJ sister, Diane, who co-hosted the event. Although Knox’s childhood nickname was “Roo,” he recently spent a day with horses when he and wife, Andrea, took their first trip to the Kentucky Derby. We caught up with him at THE PLAYERS Championship two days after the race where he shared some thoughts on the experience. Question: Was this the first time at the Kentucky Derby for you? Russell Knox: “It was the first time. My wife has been at me for a few years now to go. I always wanted to go. I always thought it would be cool to experience it but I wasn’t really in a rush. I’m very fortunate to be associated with Vineyard Vines clothing company and they’re heavily involved with the Kentucky Derby, so we asked them for tickets and we went. It was a blast. We really did have a good time.â€� Q: Was the timing not convenient to attend in the past? Russell Knox: “I’d played the Wells Fargo Championship the last few years which coincides with the Derby and it’s tough to schedule an event like going to the Derby when you know you might be playing golf, but this year I knew I was taking that week off and everything just worked out so it was perfect timing for us.â€� Q: Are you a horse-racing fan? Russell Knox: “Not really. I mean, I started watching the Derby when I was playing on the mini-tours and we used to play a tournament just north of Augusta at a place called Savannah Lakes in South Carolina and the people I stayed with that week were from Louisville. It just so happened it was the week of the Derby. Of course, they had it on television so that was my first introduction to it. Since then, I’ve always tuned in to it on television. I’m not a super-big horse-racing fan but the whole experience was amazing, What a place.â€� Q: Did you place a bet? Who did you back? Russell Knox: “I did. I bet Bolt d’Oro and he was 8-1 and he did not win me any money. The whole experience of the races leading up to the Derby was pretty cool. It’s a giant party with 14 races in the day. It was probably just like I expected it to be. It was awesome.â€� Q: Was there something that stood out? Sights, sounds, smells? Russell Knox: “Unfortunately, it rained all day for us, so that was kind of a bummer. Our experience would have differed slightly if it was sunny. There were concerts and activities happening and we probably would have tripped around a little bit more and experienced some of that, but because it was raining we would have gotten soaked if we’d ventured out from our covered seats. That part of it was a little bit of a downer, but it was busy – a lot of people, a lot of cool outfits. I was dressed brightly and a lot of ladies were ‘dressed to the nines’ as they say.â€� Q: The race occurred on Cinco de Mayo this year. Are you a tequila guy or a bourbon guy? Russell Knox: “I don’t really dabble into that much, but I’ll admit I did have a mint julep or two. I expected it to be a fruity drink, but it wasn’t. You definitely get a good taste of bourbon when you have a mint julep. I had a few, but mostly just to cheer on the horses.â€� Q: Did you run into any celebrities or other PGA TOUR professionals? Russell Knox: “I didn’t run into anyone but a did speak with Justin Thomas a few weeks before the race. He told me we were going to have an amazing time because, being from Kentucky, he’d been to the race in previous years. So, I knew we were going to have a good time before we went.â€� Q: How would you compare the atmosphere of the Kentucky Derby to other major sporting events? Russell Knox: “I saw it similar to two events. I’ve been to Wimbledon once. The Masters at Augusta National is the other. I thought it was kind of on that same level because every year it’s the same location. You know it’s going to be there. They can prepare accordingly, everything’s ready, the hype, and there’s so much history. I mean, it was the 144th running of the race. I think I played in the 144th Open Championship as well, so that was a pretty cool connection for me. The history involved in going back to the same place, the traditions like seeing the owners and all the connections walk down the track with the horses, that was pretty cool. You could sense that aura when you’re there.â€� Q: Last question. Would you rather wear the silks of the winning jockey and claim the Kentucky Derby or lift the FedExCup on the PGA TOUR? Russell Knox: “I’ll take that FedExCup trophy. And the bonus that comes with it. All day.â€�  

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NASSAU, Bahamas — Jon Rahm turned a potential shootout into a Bahamas breeze Sunday, closing with a 7-under 65 for a four-shot victory in the Hero World Challenge. Starting the final round in a three-way tie with Tony Finau and Henrik Stenson, Rahm took the lead when Finau made bogey on the par-3 eighth hole, and the 24-year-old Spaniard never trailed the rest of the day at Albany Golf Club. Finau was the last challenger until the 14th hole, when he went from a sandy area to a bunker and over the green, leading to double bogey. Rahm made birdie on the hole, and suddenly had a five-shot lead without much trouble to get in the way. Rahm ends his year with three victories, just like in 2017, his first full year as a pro. And in some respects, it was a fitting end. Even with his individual trophies, no moment for Rahm will top facing Woods in the Sunday singles at the Ryder Cup and beating him on the 17th hole, putting the first point on the board for Europe that day. And then Rahm ended his year with Woods handing him the trophy from his holiday event. “That Sunday with Tiger is still the most emotionally, most important moment of my golf career,” Rahm said. “It means so much to play against Tiger. A couple months later, to win his event, it’s really special.” Even with a runaway victory, there was a small measure of drama on the final hole. Justin Rose, needing to finish in a three-way tie for second to return to No. 1 in the world, closed with a 65 and was in position to go back to the top of the ranking until Finau rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt for a 69 to finish alone in second. Brooks Koepka, who did not play this week, remains No. 1. Rose has one more event left in two weeks at the Indonesia Masters. Finau, meanwhile, cracked the top 10 for the first time in his career at No. 9. The tournament host was never in the picture until it was time to hand out the trophy. Woods got off to another rough start, rallied on the back nine and had to settle for a 1-over 73 to finish 17th against the 18-man field. He finished 19 shots behind, the biggest gap this year from the winner over 72 holes. “Overall, it was a long week, but one that I hope the players enjoyed,” Woods said. That starts with Rahm, who previously won the CareerBuilder Challenge on the PGA TOUR and the Spanish Open on the European Tour. He fell behind briefly when Finau rolled in a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 second, only to fall back into a share of the lead when a 4-foot par putt lipped out at No. 4. Rahm took a two-shot lead to the back nine with a 4-hybrid to 12 feet on the par-5 ninth that set up a two-putt birdie, and he held his own until Finau’s double bogey. Rahm, making his first trip to the Bahamas for this event, figured out early that the key to scoring at Albany were the five par 5s and two reachable par 4s. He made birdie on all seven of those holes Sunday. Stenson was only one shot behind when he made the turn, but the Swede made only one birdie on the back nine and finished alone in fourth. Patrick Cantlay was 12 shots better than Saturday, closing with a 64 to tie for fifth with defending champion Rickie Fowler.

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Three spots in the WM Phoenix Open were available via Monday’s qualifier, with Ben Silverman leading the way at McCormick Ranch GC – Pine, carding 6-under 66 to secure medalist honors. Six players carded 5-under 67, necessitating a 6-for-2 playoff. Etienne Papineau made birdie on the second playoff hole to secure WM Phoenix Open entry, while Jeffrey Kang earned the final spot on the 10th playoff hole. Derek Oland, Alex Aragon, Patrick Flavin and Nicolo Galletti fell short in extra holes. For all scores from Monday’s WM Phoenix Open qualifier, click here. QUALIFIERS Ben Silverman (6-under 66) Age: 34 College: Florida Atlantic University Turned pro: 2010 PGA TOUR starts: 55 Cuts made: 28 Notes: Will make his second start of the PGA TOUR season … first came at the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Houston Open (MC) … Spent the 2020-21 season on the Korn Ferry Tour, with best finish coming at The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at Baha Mar (T13) … Won the 2017 Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper on the Korn Ferry Tour … Earned first PGA TOUR card via 2017 Korn Ferry Tour Regular Season, and regained status via 2018 Korn Ferry Tour Finals … Best result during those two seasons was T11 at the 2018 Barracuda Championship and Charles Schwab Challenge … Won gold medal for Team Canada by 11 shots at the 2013 Maccabiah Games in Israel (Canada took bronze medal) … Was a walk-on at Johnson and Wales University and Florida Atlantic University … Ranked No. 946 on Official World Golf Ranking. Etienne Papineau (5-under 67; advanced on second playoff hole) Age: 25 College: West Virginia University Turned pro: 2022 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Etienne will make his PGA TOUR debut this week … second Canadian that played for West Virginia to qualify for first PGA TOUR event within last two Monday qualifiers … first was Max Sear in Farmers Insurance Open qualifier … 2022 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica Q-School graduate … finished T58 at the 2018 Mackenzie Investments Open presented by Jaguar Laval as an amateur … set 54-hole program record low at WVU with a 203 at the Old Town Club Collegiate, finishing sixth place overall … Was member of Canadian National Team from 2014-15 … Ranked the No. 13 amateur in Canada before turning pro … Finished top-10 at the 2015 World Junior Championship … Pursuing master’s degree in business administration … Used to compete in figure skating and dance. Jeffrey Kang (5-under 67; advanced on 10th playoff hole) Age: 30 College: University of Southern California Turned pro: 2014 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Kang will make his PGA TOUR debut this week … Was medalist at 2021 PGA TOUR Canada Q-School-USA West 1 … Made five cuts in eight starts, posted one top-10 and finished 51st on the 2021 PGA TOUR Canada Order of Merit … Made one cut in three starts on the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour … Played the 2018 season on PGA TOUR China … Won 2018 Chengdu Championship … Was two-time All-Pac-10 Conference second-team selection while at USC … His dad is a well-known musician in South Korea. 2021-22 Monday qualifier statistics Top-25s: Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship) Best finish: Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship) Most times qualified: Kyle Wilshire, 2 Last event’s qualifier results (Farmers Insurance Open): Jonathan Byrd (MC), Brent Grant (MC), Max Sear (MC), Jared du Toit (MC) Next qualifier: The Honda Classic qualifier; to be contested at Banyan Cay Resort and Golf – West Palm Beach, Florida (February 21, 2022)

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