WiretoWire: Expect Monday drama at THE PLAYERS

Arnold Palmer once opined that golf is both “deceptively simple and endlessly complicated.” In Thursday’s opening round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Jon Rahm approached a 10-inch par putt at the par-3 seventh hole at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. After taking the putter back, Rahm decelerated on the follow-through, the ball moving just one inch. It marked the shortest missed putt of his PGA TOUR career. The world No. 1 tapped in for bogey, en route to an opening-round, even-par 72, seven strokes back of early leader Rory McIlroy. Rather than shying away from the situation, Rahm did his best to explain the short miss in his post-round meeting with the media. “I wish I could give you all the excuses in the world,” said Rahm as dusk descended upon central Florida. “It just didn’t feel good in my hands, and I tried to stop, and I didn’t. I just simply didn’t stop. I don’t know. It was very odd.” The bogey dropped Rahm to 2-over for the day. He made the turn at the same score before rallying with three birdies on the back nine, against a bogey at the par-4 18th. “It’s not like it affected my play the rest of the day, because I played really good,” Rahm reflected post-round. “But sitting at 1-under, I feel like, would feel a lot better than even par. “I’ve seen many things. I’ve seen the putter get a little stuck on a blade of grass on the way back and do something funny, hit the ground before because you’re not paying attention. I’ve seen so many things from a foot. I’ve seen some of the best putters in the world miss it because you don’t really take a proper stance. “It sucks to give away a shot like that, to be honest.”

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• COURSE: Montreux G&CC, 7,472 yards, par 72. Framed by the snow-capped mountains of the Sierra Nevadas, the 1997 Jack Nicklaus design meanders among seven lakes and four waterfalls as the summer’s only Western venue for a PGA TOUR stop. The layout features a “Bear Trap� loop at Nos. 6-8, which includes a short par-3 over water followed by a 636-yard par-5 to the largest green on the course. A 2002 renovation introduced three new holes to the card, replacing Nos. 10-12. Though the event’s Modified Stableford scoring format now keeps Montreux out of the course rankings, it has ranked as tough as No.6 in past editions. • FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 300 points. • CHARITY: More than 100 northern Nevada organizations receive money from the Reno-Tahoe Open Foundation, which has raised more than $3.6 million for charity since the tournament’s 1999 debut. Among the recipients: “Each One, Tell One,� devoted to early breast cancer detection and named the PGA TOUR’s Charity of the Year for 2016. • FIELD WATCH: Defending champion Greg Chalmers and two-time winners J.J. Henry and Vaughn Taylor head the roster for the TOUR’s only Modified Stableford event. … With the game’s top players teeing it up at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Luke List is the leading entrant on the FedExCup chart at No.43. … Padraig Harrington is back after a two-year absence, making just his eighth start on U.S. shores this year. The Irish pro tied for fourth in Scotland two weeks ago. … Six other former major champions are in the field, including two-major winners Angel Cabrera and Retief Goosen. … Maverick McNealy, No.2 in the world amateur rankings, makes his fourth start of the year on a sponsor invitation. He’ll make a decision about turning pro after next month’s Walker Cup. • 72-HOLE RECORD: +49, Geoff Ogilvy (2014). Stroke-play record: 267, Vaughn Taylor (2005). • 18-HOLE RECORD: +22, Kyle Reifers (4th round, 2015). Stroke-play record: 61, Scott Piercy (3rd round, 2011). • LAST YEAR: Chalmers finally achieved that elusive first PGA TOUR victory, sealing it in style when he eagled the final hole for a six-point triumph over Gary Woodland. The 42-year-old Aussie carded five bogeys on the final day, but made up for it with his play at No.18. Needing only par to win, Chalmers easily reached the green in two and drained his 8-foot eagle putt to finish off a four-point day and leave him with 43 for the week. Woodland, the 2013 champion playing one group ahead, had been tied until finding a greenside bunker at No.18 and three-putting for bogey. Victory came in Chalmers’ 386th PGA TOUR start, most among active players. The lefty had been playing under conditional status, splitting time between the TOUR and Web.com Tour starts. • STORYLINES: Ollie Schneiderjans, whose four top-10 finishes this season are the most of anyone in the field, tops a group seeking to become the latest first-time winner of 2017. That also includes a pair whose recent attempts fell just shy in Chad Collins (Barbasol Championship) and Sebastian Muñoz (Greenbrier Classic). … It’s the sixth year of the Modified Stableford format, which awards points based on a player’s performance at each hole. Eagles earn five points, birdies are worth two and pars zero, with bogeys deducting a point and double bogeys losing three. … Chalmers seeks to join Taylor (2004-05) as the only back-to-back winners at Reno-Tahoe. His best finish since has been 14th at the Australian Open. … Aaron Baddeley, whose closing 64 at Royal Birkdale was one shot off the day’s best, seeks to build on that momentum after a week’s hiatus. • SHORT CHIPS: Since the Modified Stableford system was adopted at Montreux, all five editions have seen the 54-hole leader finish the task. Moreover, just one of the past 12 winners has come from off the pace, as Matt Bettencourt overtook Scott McCarron in 2010. … Chalmers became the eighth winner at Reno-Tahoe to make it his first PGA TOUR victory, though the first since Scott Piercy’s 2011 triumph. … After three playoffs in the event’s first six editions, just one of the past 12 has gone to extra holes. • TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 6:30-9 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 7-10 p.m. (GC). • PGA TOUR LIVE: None. • RADIO: None.

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Leaderboard: Can Team USA close out Solheim Cup?

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