Tiger Woods looks to cash in on his return to form, with a $10 million FedEx Cup bonus up for grabs

August and Everything After A bizarre 2020 continues as the PGA Championship will be the new lead-off major championship this week at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco. Moved to May on a permanent basis last year, the PGA Championship this season will be the first of three majors to take place in the next three months as COVID-19 has rearranged the entire 2020 calendar. Believe it or not, after the Wyndham Championships next week, it’s on to the FedExCup Playoffs so there’s plenty on the line this week besides the Wannamaker trophy. The purse of $11 million ($1.98 winner) and the FedExCup points (600 winner) will help clear up the picture for the rest of the month. For the first time since 1998 (Sahalee, outside Seattle) the PGA Championship will be played west of the Rocky Mountains. The event returns to California for the first time since Riviera in 1995 and for just the fifth time overall. Celebrating year 95, TPC Harding Park will host its first major championship and join the small list of municipal courses to enjoy this honor but is no stranger to holding large events. After a massive restoration project involving the City and eventually the TOUR, the 2005 World Golf Championships American Express reintroduced this classic layout to the modern game. Following Tiger Woods’ playoff victory over John Daly in 2005, Woods and his American teammates won the 2009 Presidents Cup on this same track. The world would return again in 2015 after new Bentgrass greens were installed for the WGC Cadillac Match Play. The trophy was lifted by Rory McIlroy as he defeated Gary Woodland 4 & 2 in the final. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks TPC Harding Park was routed and designed by Willie Watson and Sam Whiting, the same pair who put together Olympic Club, site of five U.S. Opens, just across Lake Merced. The Par-70 will stretch 7,234 yards and will feature seven, Par-4 holes playing 460 yards or longer, a Par-5 hole over 600 and a Par-3 250 plus. Tight, Cypress tree-lined fairways will look great on television but the doglegs provided will be difficult to navigate. Over three inches of Bent/Poa/Fescue rough will swallow up errant tee balls but larger than average greens (7,000 square feet) will give glimmers of hope to recovery shots. The good news the green complexes are big targets. Once onboard the slightly sloping 007 Tyee Bentgrass should be prepped to run lightning quick so the premium putters will have a chance to shine this week. Major championship golf should require all 14 clubs plus the six inches between the ears and this week won’t be any different. The last five holes will have Lake Merced on the left so there’s only one bailout. Located just half of a mile from the Pacific Ocean sea breeze, fog and swirling winds will also factor into the decision making process this week. Temperatures can range from the high 40s in the morning to the low 70s in the afternoon but it looks like rain will stay away. Brooks Koepka looks to become the only player in the stroke-play era (1958 and on) to win for the third consecutive year. He leads a field of 156 professionals, including 20 Club Professionals and 92 of the top 100 players in the world. 2015 WGC-Cadillac Match Play (Top finishers below; 43 of 64 in the field this week) 1 *Rory McIlroy 2 *Gary Woodland 3 *Danny Willett 4 *Jim Furyk 5 *Tommy Fleetwood 5 *Louis Oosthuizen 5 *Paul Casey 9 *Hideki Matsuyama 9 *Charl Schwartzel 9 *Rickie Fowler 9 *Gary Woodland 2009 Presidents Cup Participants USA Tiger Woods Phil Mickelson Steve Stricker Zach Johnson Jim Furyk Lucas Glover Internationals Adam Scott Ryo Ishikawa 2005 WGC-American Express Participants 1 *Tiger Woods 3 *Henrik Stenson 3 *Sergio Garcia 6 Graeme McDowell 11 Davis Love III 15 *Jim Furyk 18 *Ian Poulter 18 *Charl Schwartzel 29 *Phil Mickelson 29 *Adam Scott 32 Vaughn Taylor 43 *Zach Johnson 2019 Recap Brooks Koepka (-16) Started his defense opening with 63, a PGA record, and new course record at Bethpage Black. … Backed it up with 65 in Round 2 to set the major championship 36-hole scoring record. … Led by seven, another PGA record, after 54 holes. … Led the field in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green and Approach the Green. … Joined Tiger Woods as the only champion to defend in the stroke play era (1958 to present). … Became the first person since Hal Sutton in 1983 to go wire-to-wire (no ties). Notables: Dustin Johnson (2nd) put all four rounds in the 60s. … Patrick Cantlay shared third with Matt Wallace and Jordan Spieth. … Spieth can complete the career Grand Slam with a win this week. … Luke List (6th), Sung Kang (7th) followed by T8 crowd of Matt Kuchar, Shane Lowry, Rory McIlroy, Erik van Rooyen, Adam Scott and Gary Woodland. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2019-2020 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. Strokes-Gained: Tee to Green (* – previous top 10 at PGA since 2015) 1 *Justin Thomas (2017 winner) 2 *Hideki Matsuyama 3 Sergio Garcia 4 Collin Morikawa 5 *Rory McIlroy 6 Xander Schauffele 7 *Patrick Cantlay 8 *Jon Rahm 9 Bryson DeChambeau 10 *Tony Finau 11 Viktor Hovland 12 Webb Simpson 13 Daniel Berger 14 *Tyrrell Hatton 15 Harold Varner III 16 Harris English 17 Corey Conners 19 Joaquin Niemann 20 Abraham Ancer 21 *Jason Day 22 *Adam Scott 23 Scottie Scheffler 24 *Shane Lowry 25 *Paul Casey Strokes Gained: Putting 1 Denny McCarthy 2 Matthew Fitzpatrick 3 Kevin Na 5 *Matt Kuchar 6 Bryson DeChambeau 7 Andrew Putnam 8 *Tyrrell Hatton 10 *Patrick Reed 11 Christiaan Bezuidenhout 13 JT Poston 14 Daniel Berger 16 Wyndham Clark (first major) 18 Mackenzie Hughes 19 Webb Simpson 20 Richy Werenski (first major) 21 Harris English 22 Billy Horschel 23 Ian Poulter 25 *Gary Woodland 26 *Jon Rahm Bogey Avoidance 1 Harris English 2 Bryson DeChambeau 3 *Tyrrell Hatton 4 *Justin Thomas 5 Webb Simpson 6 Xander Schauffele 8 *Jon Rahm 9 Abraham Ancer 11 Daniel Berger 13 *Rory McIlroy 14 Brendon Todd 15 Cameron Tringale 18 Brandt Snedeker 19 *Adam Scott 20 Bud Cauley 22 *Gary Woodland 23 Brian Harman 24 Kevin Na Major History Tiger Woods: Already has four of these on the shelf and is one of two players to win an event on this track. His record at Pebble Beach and Torrey Pines suggests he doesn’t mind a bit of California coastal golf. It will be interesting to hear what his back/body has to say this week after playing twice in six months. Brooks Koepka: The last 10 majors he’s entered he’s won four, finished second twice, a T4 and a T6. Burst in to life last week in Memphis as he nearly defended his WGC title at TPC Southwind. Rory McIlroy: His history is getting historical in the major championships since he hasn’t picked one off since the PGA Championship at Valhalla in 2014. The following spring he won the WGC Match Play on this track so he’ll have a serious point of reference this week. The final four from 2015 will have the most tournament reps at TPC Harding Park. Gary Woodland: Speaking of, most will remember that he picked up the U.S. Open down Highway 1 last summer at Pebble Beach. Webb Simpson: Last time San Francisco proper hosted a major it was the 2012 U.S. Open at Olympic Club. Simpson closed with 68 to pick up his first, and to this point only, major championship. Shane Lowry: The Northern Irishman won’t have any problems in cool, damp conditions just like he didn’t at Royal Portrush last summer in winning The Open Championship.

Click here to read the full article…

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Rory McIlroy sat back in the chair, took a deep breath, and smiled when asked. He smiled because he recognized a chance to give public credit to some special people in his life. His parents. The 14-time PGA TOUR winner was giving a press conference for his first appearance at this week’s Sentry Tournament of Champions and the question about who he felt was the foundation of his success was a welcome one. Now almost 30, McIlroy has found a greater appreciation for the sacrifices his parents Gerry and Rosie provided for him. “I couldn’t single out one over the other, because my dad worked three jobs at one time and my mom worked night shifts and so they made a lot of sacrifices,â€� McIlroy praised. “All their extra money and time off was put into me to go and play golf tournaments.â€� It’s true. Gerry split time between cleaning and bar work. Rosie would work nights at a factory. It allowed young Rory to follow his passion for golf. It set the base that would lead to a FedExCup title and four majors to this point. It is a theme you can find all over the PGA TOUR. The trip to greatness is not a solo one. It takes help. It takes belief from others. For Jason Day, a joint course record holder at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, the reflection was to his mother, his wife, his agent and his coach. Without these people on his journey Day says he would never have made it to the PGA TOUR. “Everyone on the PGA TOUR has someone or some people who have put us first on multiple occasions,â€� Day says. “While we work hard and sacrifice our time to practice and get in shape it is those behind the scenes who keep things running smoothly. “It started with my mum, then Colin Swatton came into my life as a coach and father figure, then my agent Bud and my wife Ellie … they all do more than I can ever thank them for. They’ve always done right by me. It allows me to be the best golfer I can be.â€� Up and coming star Cameron Champ threw praise on his family, particularly his grandfather, and also renowned coach Sean Foley for taking a chance on a kid with raw talent but little means. Champ is at the beginning of his PGA TOUR journey. He is acutely aware of the assistance needed from others for him to be living out this dream. Foley, who has coached Tiger Woods among others over the years, was happy to take him on board. People would pay huge money for his instruction. Champ obviously could not do so at the time coming from a humble background. “I met Sean at about 15. He was generous enough to teach me even though means was tough for us,â€� Champ says. “And the connection, the relationship, has gone from there until now which has been amazing.â€� The 23-year-old is already a PGA TOUR winner and touted as the next big thing, something that may or may not have happened as quickly without this foundation. Golf Channel analyst Mark Rolfing, who forged his own golf career in the 1970s before becoming a long-time Maui resident and member of the Kapalua golf family, believes these foundations are critical for not only professional athletes, but for all of us. He has seen the cultural idea of Ohana work on the Hawaiian islands for decades – one based on a wider community or “familyâ€� where everyone works together and supports each other. And he is very keen to push the idea onto the general population. “Part of living on Maui and the whole Ohana aspect of what we do has permeated into my soul and I take it everywhere I go around the world with me,â€� Rolfing explains. “It’s maybe easier for me because I’m constantly reminded about how important people were to me and how I had so many people do right by me. “But the average person has just as many people in their lives provide this foundation. People who share advice. People who unselfishly donate time to help others. “It would be good if every person could stop every once in a while and reflect who has been right by them and reflect on who got them to where they are.â€� This is something McIlroy for one can certainly agree on. He admitted it took time for him to truly appreciate what his parents have done for him and continue to do to help him be the person he is. “I didn’t truly realize until maybe when I was out of my teenage years, when I was on my own two feet, and I realized that my childhood wasn’t the norm and that’s not what a lot of parents do for their kids,â€� McIlroy said. “And so it took me a while to realize just the sacrifice and the hard work that they put in to just give me a chance to do what I do. “I always said I can never repay them for what they have done for me … just make sure they’re happy and comfortable for the rest of their days.â€�

Click here to read the full article…

A quick look at the four players who qualified for this week’s Wells Fargo Championship: T.J. VOGEL (65) Age: 27 Hometown: Hollywood, Florida Alma mater: USC/Florida PGA TOUR starts: 7 Best TOUR finish: T16, 2018 Valspar Championship Notes: Vogel, winner of the 2012 U.S. Amateur Public Links, has now qualified for four events this season. He missed his first two cuts before making the first cut of his TOUR career at the Valspar. Vogel finished 10th on last season’s Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada Order of Merit. CARTER JENKINS (65) Age: 22 Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina Alma mater: UNC-Greensboro/North Carolina PGA TOUR starts: 1 Best TOUR finish: MC, 2017 Wells Fargo Championship Notes: Jenkins also played in last year’s Wells Fargo, shooting 75-75 at Eagle Point to miss the cut. Jenkins won three consecutive Carolinas Amateurs (2013-15) and shot a course-record 59 at Wildwood Green Golf Club in 2012. He finished 55th on last year’s Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada Order of Merit after finishing 18th the previous year. J.T. GRIFFIN (66) Age: 30 Hometown: Atlanta Alma mater: Georgia Tech PGA TOUR starts: Debut Notes: This will be Griffin’s first start in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event since missing the cut at the 2016 Rex Hospital Open on the Web.com Tour. He has competed on the Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR Latinoamerica, missing the cut in 15 of 20 starts on those tours. Griffin was a two-time All-American at Georgia Tech, where he was teammates with Chesson Hadley and Cameron Tringale. GUILLERMO PEREIRA (67) Age: 23 Hometown: Santiago, Chile Alma mater: Texas Tech PGA TOUR starts: Debut Notes: Pereira will join countryman Joaquin Niemann, who finished sixth in his pro debut at the Valero Texas Open, in the field at Quail Hollow. Pereira ranked as high as fifth in the World Amateur Golf Ranking before turning pro after his freshman season at Texas Tech. He finished third on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica’s Order of Merit in 2015, then finished No. 64 on the Web.com Tour money list last year. He is 62nd on this season’s Web.com Tour money list. (Pereira grabbed the final spot in a playoff with Scott Strohmeyer, Jordan Niebrugge, D.J. Trahan and Nathan Stamey.) VALERO TEXAS OPEN QUALIFIERS T64. Joshua Creel, 69-72-73-76 MC. Curtis Reed, 74-73 MC. Paul McConnell, 71-78 MC. Troy Matteson, 74-83 THIS SEASON’S QUALIFIERS Qualifiers: 55 Made cut: 19 (34.5%) Top-10s: 3 (Scott Strohmeyer, T4 at Sanderson Farms; Trey Mullinax, T8 at Valspar; Julian Suri, T8 at Houston) Top-25s: 5 Most times qualified: T.J. Vogel (4)

Click here to read the full article…