Winner’s Bag: Bryson DeChambeau, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard

It's been a busy couple of days for what already promised to be a busy couple of days. Every PGA TOUR doubleheader presents additional attention, but two significant events on the schedule updated their qualifying criteria immediately before and after the weekend. On Friday, membership was informed that the top 125 in the 2019-20 FedExCup was eligible for THE PLAYERS Championship in two weeks. It's a traditional exemption, but it wasn't extended originally because of the shortened 2019-20 season due to the pandemic. It has been replaced by an exemption to the top 125 in a special points list extending from the beginning of last season through this week's doubleheader. That unique exemption still applies, so both lists will yield automatic qualifiers into what will be a larger field at TPC Sawgrass. Until then, 69 more golfers have been confirmed as exempt. On Monday, the USGA released its qualifying criteria for the U.S. Open in June. As expected, the majority of the traditional criteria remained the same, but a couple of adjustments were made due to the pandemic. The news means that 48 golfers officially are eligible to compete. In time, the field will grow to be 156. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks The Qualifiers page that I maintain is current with both waves of entries and details of the changes to the U.S. Open criteria. It also includes all remaining qualifying criteria for the U.S. Open in its customary position below the alphabetical list of all qualifiers. Turning our attention to PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, the World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession is the penultimate stop of Segment 2. With no cut and a strong helping of international non-members, you shouldn't have any problem juggling it with next week's Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. For any golfers for whom you have only one start remaining and you might not want to burn it at The Concession, the logical approach if to keep one or two of those guys on your bench until the field for the API is released on Friday afternoon. From there, you can decide what to do based on who's committed at Bay Hill and how you're faring in real time this week. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf My roster for the World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession (in alphabetical order): Bryson DeChambeau (+2000) Tony Finau (+1600) Tyrrell Hatton (+2200) Viktor Hovland (+2000) Dustin Johnson (+550) Jon Rahm (+900) You'll find my starters in Expert Picks Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Patrick Cantlay; Tommy Fleetwood; Rory McIlroy; Joaquin Niemann; Patrick Reed; Xander Schauffele; Cameron Smith; Justin Thomas Driving: Daniel Berger; Patrick Cantlay; Tommy Fleetwood; Sungjae Im; Rory McIlroy; Collin Morikawa; Joaquin Niemann; Scottie Scheffler; Webb Simpson POWER RANKINGS WILD CARD Collin Morikawa (+4000) ... He's way ahead of the curve, obviously, so we can dismiss the youth factor from eliminating him from the test presented. He's so proficient tee to green that he's ideal to illustrate the value of ball-striking over putting on greens with which very few in the field are familiar. Yes, touring professionals adapt faster than anyone, but all things being just about equal upon entry, his skill set gives him a fairer chance to contend over a peer with the reverse split. Odds sourced on Tuesday, Feb. 23 at 5 a.m. ET. For live odds visit betmgm. DRAWS Joaquin Niemann ... Inspired to provide a major assist to his cousin, the 22-year-old has been on a heater since a T3 at the BMW Championship in late August. He does everything exceptionally well and he'd be on everyone's short list to pick off a victory in a WGC sooner than later. Sungjae Im ... Set off bells and whistles - and not the preferred varieties - when he, gasp, took two weeks off, but he's locked in. He's also balancing, gasp, rest with what will be the rigors of the Florida Swing and beyond. It includes his first title defense at PGA National in three weeks. Tommy Fleetwood ... Humming along with three top 10s among six top 20s in his last 10 starts worldwide, none of which resulted in a missed cut. Not only is he an automatic in every format but he's here to stay for a while. It's like adding a front-line starter exactly when you need it in the middle of a MLB season. Bernd Wiesberger ... While normally a default Fade when he appears, the tide might be shifting into a positive direction. In what was his 56th career PGA TOUR start at The RSM Classic in November, the 35-year-old from Austria finally recorded his second top 10 on the circuit with a T4. He had been trending on the European Tour, but we've witnessed that trajectory before, and we're always the wiser, but he's since added two top 10s and a T25 in a 5-for-5 bridge over the holiday break. Christiaan Bezuidenhout ... Since a T15 in his native South Africa in mid-November, he's picked off two wins at home and added two top 15s among three top 25s. A DFSer's delight. Abraham Ancer Marc Leishman Scottie Scheffler Adam Scott Lee Westwood FADES Hideki Matsuyama ... Unlike Morikawa above, this ball-striker from Japan has not been playing up to his reputation of late. Yes, he's inside the top 30 on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and par-5 scoring, and he's missed only two cuts in the last seven months, but he hasn't been putting four rounds together with enough regularity to warrant the reach in this field and on this course. Jason Day ... It's harsh but I'm chalking up his T7 at Pebble Beach to the top-heavy field and his massive level of comfort on those courses. Worst case, because his value is low at the moment, stow him on your bench and remain patient for the what-if. Harris English ... Can't say that he's fulfilling the classic case of the freefall occasionally seen after an emotional victory, but it also can't be ruled out. Since returning to the winner's circle at Kapalua, he's gone T32-MC-MC. Obviously, the short skid ends at The Concession, so the guarantee of four rounds elicits hope, just as it did on Maui, but it's his first WGC in five years. Shop elsewhere. Sebastián Muñoz ... Turned the page quickly on the dreadful two days at TPC Scottsdale but it was just a T43 at Riviera that contributes to the rebound. It's not unprecedented for any talent on the rise to bump into the glass barrier of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and even veterans flirt with that bubble regularly, but it can require much more exertion to pierce the bubble than perhaps it seems. Only 28 years of age and having just recently scaled to a career-best 55th - he's since slipped to 62nd - he's within one solid week of breaking through, but gamers needs to respect the inconsistency at the moment. Rafa Cabrera Bello Cameron Champ Matt Kuchar Erik van Rooyen Bubba Watson Matthew Wolff Gary Woodland RETURNING TO COMPETITION None NOTABLE WDs - World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession Tiger Woods ... Already on the mend from his fifth back surgery, he suffered injuries that required surgery after the car was driving near Los Angeles on Tuesday morning rolled over. Paul Casey ... It's rare for him to pass on a WGC but the shakeup of the Florida Swing this season is an adjustment for all. Don't sweat it. He's already 4-for-4 in 2021 with a win in Dubai and no worse than a T12 (in Saudi Arabia). NOTABLE WDs - Puerto Rico Open Scott Harrington, K.H. Lee, Luke List and Scott Stallings ... Each now is eligible for THE PLAYERS Championship via the top 125 in the 2019-20 FedExCup. Kyle Stanley ... Positioned 118th in the special FedExCup points list to determine entry into THE PLAYERS, so he's a virtual lock to qualify. Chesson Hadley and Hank Lebioda ... At a respective 142nd and 143rd on the special points list, either would have to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard to qualify for THE PLAYERS. Kevin Tway ... He'd also need to win the API to get into THE PLAYERS, but gamers would settle for a cut made. In the last 12 months, he's cashed only four times in 22 starts. Chris Stroud ... He's out indefinitely with a back injury. Now that it's been four months since his last start (MC, Sanderson Farms), he's eligible for a medical extension in the graduate reshuffle category if he eventually needs it. Alex Cejka ... Open-qualified for the Cologuard Classic. It's a heckvua way to debut on the PGA TOUR Champions. POWER RANKINGS RECAP - The Genesis Invitational Power Ranking Golfer Result 1 Dustin Johnson T8 2 Xander Schauffele T15 3 Justin Thomas MC 4 Jon Rahm T5 5 Rory McIlroy MC 6 Tony Finau P2 7 Bryson DeChambeau MC 8 Patrick Cantlay T15 9 Joaquin Niemann T43 10 Carlos Ortiz MC 11 Adam Scott T38 12 Collin Morikawa T43 13 Daniel Berger DNP 14 Brooks Koepka T38 15 Max Homa Win Wild Card Jordan Spieth T15 SLEEPERS - The Genesis Invitational Golfer Result Sung Kang 67th K.H. Lee 66th J.T. Poston T43 Chez Reavie MC Brian Stuard MC BIRTHDAYS AMONG ACTIVE GOLFERS ON THE PGA TOUR February 23 ... Steve Stricker (54) February 24 ... Zach Johnson (45); Kristoffer Ventura (26) February 25 ... Hideki Matsuyama (29) February 26 ... none February 27 ... Ryan Armour (45); Abraham Ancer (30) February 28 ... none (February 29 ... none) March 1 ... Pat Perez (45); Chris Baker (35) Visit BetMGM.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ years of age or older to wager. CO, IA, IN,MI, NJ, NV,PA, TN, VA or WV only. Excludes Michigan Disassociated Persons. Please Gamble Responsibly. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-522-4700 (CO, NV, VA), 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI), 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA & WV), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), Call or Text the Tennessee REDLINE: 800-889-9789 (TN), or call 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN).

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SAN DIEGO – Tiger Woods lit up the front nine of Torrey Pines on Saturday, allowing the raucous Southern California crowd to dream of an 83rd PGA TOUR win at the Farmers Insurance Open. RELATED: Leaderboard | Tiger’s chase for 83 | Morales relishes the time he took down Tiger at Torrey Pines The 44-year-old – who already has eight career wins at Torrey – had pulled within two of the lead and the fog that had delayed play earlier on the coastal course had no chance of returning such was the collective wind coming from the thunderous applause and thousands of cheers. The two hour delay to the start of play was not ideal for Woods who has undergone four back surgeries but he killed the time by sitting in his car with the heater dialed up. It seemed to do the trick. Woods started with revenge on the opening hole with a 13-foot birdie – the same hole he four-putted from 25 feet a day earlier for double bogey. He could’ve easily converted from a similar distance on the second but settled for par before hitting it stiff on the par-3 third to move to two under on the round. An important chip-in for par on the fourth kept the momentum and further birdies on the two par-5s on the front side had Woods rolling and the rest of the field taking notice. But then things stalled. Woods would make a sloppy bogey on the par-3 11th and then fail to make any birdies coming home. He did make an important par save on the last after a sloppy drive and wedge, leaving him with a respectable but not incredible 3-under 69. He now sits in a tie for 14th, five shots back of the lead held by 2017 champion Jon Rahm. If Woods is to take himself out of a tie with Sam Snead for the most TOUR wins of all time he will need to replicate his front nine heroics, but also continue the march down the stretch come Sunday. “The goal was to get to double digits at the end of the day. I figured that would be within maybe the last couple groups going out tomorrow,â€� Woods said. “Wasn’t quite able to get there, but hopefully tomorrow I can get off to another quick start and keep it going.â€� To do so Woods said he needs to get his approach game back to his lofty standards. After ranking 14th in Strokes Gained: Approach in round two, gaining +1.278 shots on the field, Woods dropped to 39th in the third round gaining just +0.231 strokes. “I missed my numbers a few times out there the last couple days and need to clean that up,â€� Woods said. “There were a couple times that we were talking about earlier with a new ball, it was going through the wind a little bit better and trying to get a feel for that. “You’re not going to win them all, and I’ve put myself there in the position to win a lot of events. I’ve lost my share of events, but in order to win them, you’ve got to be there a lot. Over the course of 20‑plus years out here, I’ve been pretty consistent.â€� Woods will have a chance to get out a little ahead of the lead pack and apply some pressure if he can start hot but he’s under no illusions it will be tough to reel in Rahm and the likes of FedExCup champion Rory McIlroy. TOUR winners Ryan Palmer, Sung Kang, Cameron Champ, Tony Finau, Patrick Reed, Marc Leishman, Brandt Snedeker and J.B. Holmes are also amongst those who will start above him. “I still got to go out there and post a low one tomorrow, still got to make a bunch of birdies tomorrow and move up that board,â€� he said. “No doubt it was important to make that putt (on 18). It was important to have some kind of positive momentum going into tomorrow.â€�

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NAPA, Calif. - If the Safeway Open had spectators on Sunday they wouldn't know where to look. As it stands, the PGA TOUR season opener is set for a Sunday sprint as an incredible 35 players sit within six shots of the lead, with 32 of those within five. And it is an eclectic group at that. RELATED: Full leaderboard | Higgs’ walk-off albatross From 18-year-old teenage star Akshay Bhatia to 47-year-old wily veteran major winning Stewart Cink those in contention span almost three decades. Of the 35 players, 22 of them have yet to win on the PGA TOUR making Sunday one full of potential. One of those players is Cameron Percy, the Australian journeyman who at 46 is one of the veterans in the mix. Percy sits tied for the lead a 16 under with Brian Stuard and James Hahn. Stuard has one win from 2016 on his resume, Hahn is a two-time winner but the last of his triumphs also came in 2016. Percy had a chance to win just shy of a decade ago at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas. He found himself in a playoff with Jonathan Byrd and Martin Laird only to watch as Byrd made an ace in the playoff for a heartbreaking loss. In eight seasons on the TOUR, Percy has never made the FedExCup Playoffs but a win here would see him leading the FedExCup given it's the season opener. "Winning would mean the world to me. It would be fantastic. I've got a bit more focus and set a few goals and it’s amazing what happens when you set some goals. You’re not just out here running in circles," Percy said. Hahn is returning from an elbow injury and has 14 starts to make 305 FedExCup points. A win is worth 500. "It’s the same as trying to win a golf tournament, I can tell you that, because you’ve heard it before, winning takes care of itself. It takes care of a lot of problems," Hahn said of the battle to regain his status. "The medical is just something in the back of my mind, to be honest with you. I come out every week trying to win a golf tournament, so if I can keep my focus there, I think I’m doing things right." While the three on top have a combined 590 starts on TOUR the three one shot behind have just 105 starts between them and not a win to speak of yet. Harry Higgs, Sam Burns and Kristoffer Ventura are all 20-somethings looking to kickstart their careers with a bang at Silverado on Sunday. Higgs and Burns have been close with a runner-up and third place finish respectively in their young careers but Ventura's previous 20 starts on the TOUR have yet to yield a single top 10 finish. On Saturday though, the former college teammate of Matthew Wolff and Viktor Hovland spent some time in the lead. "On nine after I made that chip for eagle, I saw that I took the lead and I told my brother, ‘Hey, like it’s pretty cool, that’s the first time I ever led in a PGA TOUR tournament’ and kind of marked that off, I guess if you want to call it that. It’s just cool," Ventura said. With Hovland and Wolff already winners on TOUR, Ventura is ready to add himself to the list. "It’s just more motivation," he said about his friends success. "Obviously they’ve proven they can win out here and hopefully I’ll get the next one, but if anything, there’s no jealousy or anything, it’s just motivation." Cink sits just two shots back of the lead after a sublime 30 on the front nine on Saturday. The six-time TOUR winner is one of three major winners in the mix. Jason Dufner and Charl Schwartzel are four shots back. "I don’t get in these positions every time I play anymore. I would like to," Cink said. The veteran is in the midst of his 596th TOUR start and hasn't won since his Open Championship triumph in 2009. "My son, Reagan’s on the bag, it’s a really special week," he added. "We’re having a great time and he’s doing an awesome job. I’m just going to enjoy tomorrow and keep on pushing." With Cink in the 14-under crowd are fellow TOUR winners Emiliano Grillo, D.J. Trahan and Russell Knox. Grillo won the Safeway Open five years ago while Knox's has two wins, the last of which came just over four years ago. The last of Trahan's two wins was in 2008. Scattered throughout the rest of the contenders are youngsters Sahith Theegala (seventh start), who shot 64 on Saturday to move within three shots of the lead, and Bhatia who is just four behind. Neither has banked a top 25 finish on TOUR yet with this marking the first made cut for Bhatia in his eighth start. Ben Taylor (21st start, 0 Top 25s, three back), Nelson Ledesma (19th start, 0 top 25s, four back), Vincent Whaley (16th start, five back) and Michael Gligic (23rd start, 0 Top 10s, five back) also have the chance to change their lives early in their careers. Joining Percy as veterans still searching for the difficult breakthrough are Kiwi Tim Wilkinson (179th start, three back) and Canadian David Hearn (288th start, four back). Both have been runner up before on TOUR but failed to clear the final hurdle. Ricky Barnes (311th start, four back), Tom Hoge (158th start, four back) and Bud Cauley (185th start, five back) also fit this category. Whoever comes out on top one thing is certain. They will have well and truly earned it.

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