Why Lexi Thompson, at 24, is feeling old

AUSTIN, Texas – If the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play had a Moving Day, Thursday would be it. Here’s a look at some of the notable Day 2 matches at Austin Country Club, plus our expert picks for each one. MATCH PLAY: Scores | Group Standings | Bracket NOTABLE MATCHES Phil Mickelson (20) vs. Jim Furyk (52) – The oldest two guys in the field (48 years old each) will go head-to-head, with Furyk fresh off a come-from-behind win over two-time champion Jason Day while Mickelson in a can’t-lose scenario after his loss to Henrik Stenson. With 39 matches apiece in their career at the event, Mickelson now boasts a 24-15-0 record, with Furyk now 20-18-1. Dustin Johnson (1) vs. Branden Grace (40) – The top-seeded Johnson cruised to a 4 and 3 win over Chez Reavie on Wednesday, but he will have his work cut out for him against the South African. Grace took care of International Presidents teammate Hideki Matsuyama 4 and 3. Grace and Johnson met in the 2017 Presidents Cup singles where they halved. “It’s going to be a tough match …. It’s going to be good,â€� Grace said. “If I keep doing the same things that I’ve done today, ball-striking was a big key … I’ll head to the putting green. I missed one or two little short ones. So if I can get that under control, I’ll be there.â€� Rory McIlroy (4) vs. Justin Harding (47) – THE PLAYERS champion made short work of 64th seed Luke List 5 and 4 on Wednesday, but now must face in-form South African Harding. Harding prevailed 1-up over former U.S. Amateur champion Matthew Fitzpatrick. The 33-year-old recently won the Qatar Masters and was runner-up at the Kenya Open in back-to-back European Tour starts. “I’m going to have to improve a little bit to take him on,â€� Harding said. “Rory’s been playing great over the last couple of weeks. It will be a nice opportunity for me to see how it’s done inside the ropes, and maybe learn a little bit as well, and give the boy a little bit of a challenge.â€� CAN’T AFFORD TO LOSE Here are the Thursday matches featuring two players who lost on Friday. It is impossible to advance out of the group stage with two losses. That meansboth players will be desperate. Louis Oosthuizen (19) vs. Byeong Hun An (49) Cameron Smith (25) vs. Abraham Ancer (58) Webb Simpson (21) vs. Satoshi Kodaira (63) Matthew Fitzpatrick (32) vs. Luke List (64) Rafa Cabrera Bello (29) vs. Lee Westwood (62) Patrick Reed (16) vs. Shane Lowry (46) Hideki Matsuyama (24) vs. Chez Reavie (55) CAN TIGER ROAR? Tiger Woods (13) vs. Brandt Snedeker (44) – In his first start at the Dell Technologies Match Play in six years, Woods survived a scrappy round to beat PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year Aaron Wise. Now he meets Snedeker for the first time in the format. Read more on Woods’ win here. BIG GUNS IN TROUBLE Justin Thomas (5) vs. Matt Wallace (33) – Perhaps the biggest shock on Day 1 was former FedExCup champion Thomas falling to 50th seed Lucas Bjerregaard. It puts Thomas under the gun to find form against Wallace, who took down Keegan Bradley. Thomas had just one birdie on Wednesday in a 3 and 2 loss. Of the 64 players to advance out of the group stage since its introduction in 2015 only eight did so with a day one loss. Jason Day (12) vs. Henrik Stenson (37) – The two-time champion Day plays another former champion in Stenson. But the Australian comes off a loss and must rebound or perish. He ended his loss to Jim Furyk by heading for treatment on his troublesome back. ALL-ENGLISH AFFAIR Justin Rose (2) vs. Eddie Pepperell (34) – Outside of the numerous all-American match-ups over the first three days this is the only other countrymen vs. countrymen affair. Pepperell is coming off a loss to Gary Woodland, making his position precarious, while Rose beat Emiliano Grillo on Wednesday. Rose can potentially afford a loss, but he’s not resting on laurels. “It’s a format that maybe takes a day or two to get into the groove of it,â€� the FedExCup champion said. “There’s many permutations, I guess. I can’t remember them all. But just win, win, win is what you need to do.â€� MASTER VS. APPRENTICE? Ian Poulter (30) vs. Keith Mitchell (56) – In an ironic twist, Mitchell sought out Poulter for Match Play advice earlier in the week prior to them being paired together. Read more about it here. Expert Picks for every match PGATOUR.COM staff writers Ben Everill and Mike McAllister are on site in Austin and will predict the winner of every match each day. Here are their Day 2 picks (matches listed in order of playing schedule):

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Good things come to those who wait. That familiar phrase is a nod to the value of patience being rewarded, but it doesn’t come with a guarantee. So, let’s attach one. RELATED: Play Pick ‘Em Live | The First Look | Inside the Field After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the RBC Canadian Open is back in business, and Ontario’s top-rated course returns as the backdrop for the first time in 12 years. St. George’s Golf and Country Club in the municipality of Etobicoke in west Toronto hosts for just the sixth time in the 111 editions of Canada’s national championship. A review of the course, what should be required to succeed and more is detailed below. POWER RANKINGS: RBC CANADIAN OPEN Draws and Fades will include Justin Rose, Sahith Theegala, Chris Kirk and two-time champion Jhonattan Vegas among the notables. Canada endures long, cold winters, but the darkness of the last two years was most unwelcome. Saying nothing of the four-day test straight ahead of the field of 156, the logistics of merely staging the RBC Canadian Open is a challenge. Soon, however, the machinations of the preparation will pay off the fortitude. St. George’s G&CC is 93 years old this year. The Stanley Thompson design opened as Royal York GC and first hosted this tournament in 1933. All subsequent editions have been held under its current name. Its last turn was in 2010. Carl Pettersson prevailed by one stroke over Dean Wilson. The Swede’s week included a tournament-record 60 in the third round. Eight years prior, all bunkers were updated. They were again in 2019. Many are positioned beside what already are elevated greens that average just 4,000 square feet. When you consider that the longest bluegrass rough could extend as high as six inches on the weekend, a sense of claustrophobia settles in. Power takes a backseat to tee-to-green precision and general course management. A sharp short game also will be necessary to emerge as the champion. Putting on the bentgrass surfaces that should touch 12 feet on the Stimpmeter likely won’t be as critical for the simple reason that the course is largely unfamiliar to the field. (As of Monday, 24 golfers in the field pegged it in the 2010 edition.) What’s more, not only are the greens a mystery to most, but there’s also mystery in the greens. Subtle undulations will generate frustration on par putts especially. The course is down 65 yards since it last hosted. Now tipping at just 7,014 yards it’s a par 70 with unequal nines. The front side is a par 34 with three pars and one par 5; the back is a stock par 36. The nines as they will be played, at least for the first two rounds, aren’t traditional, either. Because of the logistics, golfers will be split to tee off on Nos. 1 and 9. Those opening on the modified back side will play par 5s at 9 and 11, so blistering starts are promised. Rain will fall at some point and probably more than once during the tournament. If the course plays soft, hole locations might toughen in defense. Comfortable daytime highs of 70 degrees, give or take a degree or three, will add to the pleasure. Prevailing winds pushing in from the west and north will be moderate on occasion. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Draws and Fades WEDNESDAY: Pick ’Em Preview SUNDAY: Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Rookie Ranking * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.

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Dufner notches fifth PGA Tour title

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