Win probabilities: Farmers Insurance Open

ORLANDO, Florida – Today at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, the PGA TOUR announced that as a tribute to the late Arnold Palmer, the PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year – as voted upon by the TOUR’s membership — will now receive the Arnold Palmer Award. The PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year dates back to 1990, with the inaugural winner Robert Gamez compiling a season that included two wins, perhaps most notably the Arnold Palmer Invitational, where he holed out from the fairway on the 72nd hole at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge to defeat Greg Norman by one shot. A marble plaque on the right side of the 18th fairway remains in place today, commemorating one of the PGA TOUR’s most memorable finishes. “Arnold Palmer was golf’s greatest ambassador with his go-for-broke style of play, his charitable endeavors and his true passion and respect for the game and its fans,â€� said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “A thumbs up, a wink, a carefully signed autograph, a thank you – simple gestures like these passed on by Mr. Palmer to countless young players helped shape their character, on and off the golf course. The Arnold Palmer Award will now reflect those contributions in honoring the TOUR’s most outstanding rookie. Our thanks to the Palmer family and the Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation for their support with this initiative.â€� There are 12 former Rookies of the Year scheduled to compete in the 2019 Arnold Palmer Invitational field: Daniel Berger (2015), Keegan Bradley (2011), Ernie Els (1994), Rickie Fowler (2010), Robert Gamez (1990), Chesson Hadley (2014), Charles Howell III (2001), Marc Leishman (2009), Vijay Singh (1993), Brandt Snedeker (2007), Aaron Wise (2018) and Tiger Woods (1996). Five of those players – Els (1998 and 2010), Gamez (1990), Leishman (2017), Singh (2007) and Woods (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013) have also won the Arnold Palmer Invitational during their respective careers. The Arnold Palmer Award, a trophy previously awarded to the PGA TOUR’s season-long money-leader, is among a select group of awards presented annually by the TOUR. The Jack Nicklaus Award is awarded to the PGA TOUR Player of the Year, as voted by the TOUR’s membership, while the Byron Nelson Award recognizes the player with the lowest adjusted scoring average in a season (minimum 50 official rounds). In 2000, the PGA TOUR introduced the Payne Stewart Award presented by Southern Company, honoring a professional golfer who best exemplifies Stewart’s steadfast value of character, charity and sportsmanship. Palmer, Nicklaus and Nelson were the inaugural recipients of the Payne Stewart Award.

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HONOLULU – Entering its 20th year as title sponsor of the Sony Open in Hawaii, Sony Corporation has agreed to extend its partnership with the PGA TOUR by another four years, through 2022, as announced Monday by Sony, the PGA TOUR and tournament host organization Friends of Hawaii Charities. The new agreement will commence following the 2018 tournament in January. The upcoming Sony Open in Hawaii will mark the 20th year of Sony’s sponsorship, tying it for the third-longest tenured title sponsor on the PGA TOUR. “2018 will be the momentous 20th anniversary of the Sony Open in Hawaii,� said Kazuo Hirai, President and CEO, Representative Corporate Executive Officer, Sony Corporation. “I am proud to announce that Sony has decided to renew its sponsorship once again, until 2022. To us, the Sony Open is not just a golf tournament; it has allowed us to provide continuous support to the local Hawaiian community. Together with everyone involved in organizing the tournament and our charitable partners at The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, we hope to continue contributing to the people of Hawaii.�      “As we approach the 20th anniversary of Sony’s sponsorship of the Sony Open in Hawaii, it’s important to recognize the impact Sony has had on the tournament’s stability, success and growth since 1999,� said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “We congratulate Sony for reaching this milestone in 2018 as one of our longest continuous tournament sponsors, and we thank them for extending this outstanding partnership for another four years.� The tournament has been held at Waialae Country Club since its debut in 1965. In 1999, Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc., became the host organization and Sony became title sponsor. The following year, The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc., became the Sony Open’s charity partner. Since 1999, $17 million has been distributed to more than 350 Hawaii not-for-profit organizations. More than $1 million has been raised annually since 2005. “Sony’s support of Hawaii’s PGA TOUR event will continue to be a conduit of blessing to thousands of individuals among Hawaii’s not-for-profit and tourism sectors, as it has for the past 20 years,� said Corbett Kalama, President, Friends of Hawaii Charities. “This generous sponsorship commitment of Sony Corporation and of charity partner The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc., coupled with the steadfast support of Waialae Country Club and over 1,500 world-class volunteers, is the recipe that makes Hawaii charities the biggest winners each year at the Sony Open. “Additionally, the valuable support of the State of Hawaii and Hawaii Tourism Authority for the Sony Open in Hawaii, gives the world a window into our tropical paradise during the winter months, ultimately benefitting the tourism industry,� Kalama continued. “Working together, we are committed to increasing annual charitable giving to over $1.2 million to support Hawaii’s children, women, elderly, and impoverished.� The 2018 Sony Open in Hawaii will be held January 8-14 and will be televised on Golf Channel. Broadcast times are 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and 6 p.m.-10 p.m. ET on Sunday. “Sony Corporation has been a wonderful partner of the PGA TOUR and Friends of Hawaii Charities for two decades,� said Brian Oliver, PGA TOUR Senior Vice President of Sponsorship and Partnership. “Beyond its ongoing support of the Friends of Hawaii’s charitable endeavors, Sony has used the tournament to showcase new products and technologies, as well as adding features such as a movie premier at the Draw Party and an Awards Gala featuring celebrity chefs and musical entertainment to further enhance the overall tournament experience. We are excited to announce the continuation of this special relationship for another four years.� Reigning FedExCup champion Justin Thomas won the 2017 Sony Open in Hawaii, riding an opening 59 to a seven-stroke victory and a PGA TOUR scoring record of 27-under-par 253, breaking the 72-hole record by one. At age 23, Thomas became the youngest TOUR player ever to break 60, and he did so by making eagle-3 on the final hole, his second eagle of the day. The victory followed Thomas’ win the previous week at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and gave him three early wins for the 2016-17 PGA TOUR season. Toward the end of the season, Thomas captured two more titles – his first major at the PGA Championship and the Dell Technologies Championship during the FedExCup Playoffs – to lock up the FedExCup and earn Player of the Year honors.

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Leap years come and go without much fanfare. After all, they’re just astronomical calibrations just once every four years and, except for maybe the roughly five million people on the planet who celebrate their birthday on Feb. 29, they truly can’t be felt. However, a leap year still is as good as any checkpoint to look back on recent history to see what’s transpired and who has achieved what in that short period of time. At this time in 2016, Rory McIlroy hadn’t yet secured his first FedExCup title, Emiliano Grillo was navigating his season en route to the Arnold Palmer Award as the best rookie, and the likes of Tony Finau, Danny Willett, Branden Grace, Daniel Berger, Si Woo Kim and Jon Rahm all were within a year of experiencing their breakthrough victories on the PGA TOUR. This Saturday is February 29. It’ll share its quadrennial existence with Moving Day at The Honda Classic at PGA National’s Champion Course to launch the annual Florida Swing in Palm Beach Gardens. For details on the stern test and how the field of 144 doesn’t need to dive as many as four years into the history books for an understanding of how to succeed, scroll past the projected contenders. POWER RANKINGS: THE HONDA CLASSIC  Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider will include defending champion Keith Mitchell, Justin Rose, Louis Oosthuizen, Ian Poulter and Lucas Glover among other notables. A check of the expected conditions always is a smart decision upon arrival in south Florida. The ubiquitous winds that have come to help govern scoring at PGA National will be sustained from 10-15 mph throughout the tournament, but they’re forecast to come out a generally northwesterly direction. The prevailing breeze is from the east, so experience in the alternative should help. After the threat of overnight rain ends early on Thursday morning, the stage will be set for beautiful weather with sunshine and daytime highs in the upper 60s throughout the tournament. All that stated, even when the air was largely calm last year, PGA National still averaged as the hardest par 70 in non-majors all season at 71.016. It was the most difficult of its kind in four of the last five seasons, five of the last seven, and so on. What’s more, Keith Mitchell’s winning score of 9-under 271 marked the sixth time in seven years that the champion didn’t need to reach double digits under par. Last year also served as the debut for new, larger putting surfaces, but the field still averaged just under 10.5 greens in regulation per round, seventh-fewest of all courses in 2018-19. The putting: birdies-or-better percentage aligned perfectly, also ranking seventh at 27.25 percent. So, connecting for as many as three par breakers per round with a putter meant that a golfer was better the field average of 2.86. Mitchell didn’t relent off the tee last year, but it wasn’t the driver that lifted him to victory. While he ranked fifth in distance of all drives and led the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, he also paced it in par-3 scoring and finished T2 in scrambling. Numerous parts of the practice area were upgraded since last year, but the only significant work done on the course proper occurred on the tee boxes. They are flatter and firmer. The TifEagle bermuda greens may hit 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. The primary rough, which is overseeded, will be trimmed at about two inches. PGA National tips at 7,125 yards. A preview of The Honda Classic wouldn’t be complete without an analysis of The Bear Trap. You’re going to hear a lot about it, so you might as well understand what’s what. Holes 15, 16 and 17 comprise the challenging trio. It’s a par 3-4-3 stretch that demands confidence and precision. In conditions as docile as it gets last year, these holes averaged just 0.319 strokes over par as a set. It was the lowest aggregate since they were just 0.006 strokes lower in 2013. With breezes up, this week’s field will land in between last year’s clip and the 2018 average of 1.186 strokes over par. En route to his first PGA TOUR title, Mitchell scored 2 under on The Bear Trap with three birdies on the 15th. Of all champions since the course debuted in 2007, only Rory McIlroy has gone lower at bogey-free 3 under in 2012. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Fantasy Insider * – 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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