Thomas fires 63, leads CJ Cup in South Korea

Phil Mickelson will play on the PGA TOUR Champions after he turns 50 this June. The only question is how long after he turns 50. For now, Mickelson said as he met with reporters at The American Express tournament in Palm Desert on Wednesday, he wants to keep battling younger players on the PGA TOUR.  “I haven’t thought too much about it,â€� said Mickelson, who won TOUR events the last two years but suffered a marked drop-off after capturing the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am early last season. “And I won’t until I see how the first six months of this year go, because I’ve had this, I’ve had kind of a lot of great things happen that lead me to be encouraged about the year and I’m curious to see how the first six months go. RELATED:  What you need to know for The American Express | Power Rankings “It’s nice to have the option to move over to another tour,â€� he added, “but it’s also nice to have the challenge of competing out here.â€� Mickelson this year steps into the host role of The American Express, a tournament he has won twice and nearly won last year, but what he’s equally excited about is his new diet and fitness regimen that has seen him shed pounds and add clubhead speed. He is curious to see how his new lease on life translates on the scorecard. “When I stop hitting bombs, I’ll play the Champions Tour,â€� he said, “but I’m hitting some crazy bombs right now. No, I still have speed, I still, there’s no reason I couldn’t play out here. “I hit the ball every bit as far,â€� he added. “Usually as guys get in their 40s they regress; I had a five, six mile an hour club head speed increase last year. A little bit of commitment in the gym, a little bit of work ethic and all of a sudden there’s no reason that physically I can’t do today what I did 15, 20 years ago. In fact I’m doing more.â€� Mickelson has enjoyed great success in California, where he is a cumulative 601 under par in TOUR events since 1983, which trails only Fred Couples. “There’s a chance that if I do what I expect then I may end up competing for years out here,â€� Mickelson said. “And there’s a chance that maybe I am misguided in my thinking and that I should move over. But a lot will be decided or seen in the first six months, because I feel like I’m ready to play.â€�

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SAN DIEGO — Jason Day sank an 18-inch birdie putt on the sixth playoff hole to beat Alex Noren and win the Farmers Insurance Open in front of empty grandstands on No. 18 at Torrey Pines. Day and Noren had to return Monday morning after grinding through five playoff holes Sunday before it got too dark to continue. Day teed off at 8:04 a.m. and sank the winning putt 13 minutes later, his fourth birdie on the par-5 hole in the playoff. His victory was accompanied only by the sounds of camera shutters and cheers from Day’s family members. Spectators weren’t allowed in because organizers said they didn’t have time to arrange for security. Noren tried an aggressive second shot from the first cut, but his ball landed short of the green and rolled into a pond. Day, meanwhile, hit his second shot out of the rough and over some trees onto the fairway before hitting a beautiful approach shot that set up the winning putt.

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The PGA TOUR returns to Riviera Country Club for the 2018 Genesis Open where one of the best fields of the season is set to tee it up. Tiger Woods is back in action after a solid performance at the Farmers Insurance Open, while Dustin Johnson attempts to take home the title for the second year in a row. FULL FIELD: Defending champion Dustin Johnson, Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Phil Mickelson and more! Round 1 tee times Round 1 leaderboard HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN TELEVISION: Thursday, 2-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Friday, 3-7 p.m. Saturday, 2-3:30 p.m. (GC), 4-7 p.m. (CBS). Sunday, 1-2:45 p.m. (GC), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. ET (featured groups), 3-6 p.m. (featured holes). Friday, 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. ET (featured groups), 4-8 p.m. ET (featured holes). Saturday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. (featured holes). Sunday, 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m. (featured holes). A free preview of Featured Group coverage will be streaming live on Twitter on Thursday and Friday during the first hour of coverage. RADIO: Thursday, 12-6 p.m. ET. Friday, 2-8 p.m. ET. Saturday, 2-7 p.m. Sunday, 1-6:30 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com) NOTABLE PAIRINGS (All times Eastern) Justin Thomas, Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods 7:22 a.m. off the 10th tee Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Tommy Fleetwood 7:32 a.m. off the 10th tee Marc Leishman, Adam Hadwin, Peter Malnati 11:51 a.m. off the 10th tee Patrick Cantlay, Jordan Spieth, Kevin Chappell 12:02 p.m. off the 1st tee Dustin Johnson, Adam Scott, Bubba Watson 12:12 p.m. off the 1st tee Billy Horschel, Cameron Smith, Vijay Singh 12:23 p.m. off the 1st tee Daniel Berger, Si Woo Kim, Fabian Gomez 12:33 p.m. off the 10th tee More on Featured Groups

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