Wolff is certainly a disruptor

SILVIS, Ill. – Parker McLachlin shot his second straight 66 on Friday to get to 10 under and in contention halfway through the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run. If you shot yourself into space or went down for a 10-year nap after watching McLachlin win the 2008 Legends Reno Tahoe Open, now the Barracuda Championship, this would not be very surprising. But there’s been a bit of a gap in the career of the lean, long-hitting Hawaiian. Okay, more than a gap.   “A gaping hole,� McLachlin said with a laugh after making seven birdies and two bogeys to get into position for his best finish in—well, there’s no point in looking too far ahead. “I had a dark period in my golf career,� said McLachlin, who is 1,407th in the Official World Golf Ranking and has a best finish of T26 at the AT&T Byron Nelson in six starts this season. “I couldn’t stand on a tee and know if it was going 50 (yards) left or 50 right. It was really challenging.� After playing a lot of tours you’ve never heard of, McLachlin was brimming with optimism when he got back out on the Web.com Tour last season. He earned just $14,300 in 18 starts. “I just got my ass kicked,� he said. “I was trying so hard, but I was wanting it in the wrong way.� Not for the first time, he considered alternate employment. He had the big talk with his wife, Kristy, but they’d had this talk before; they’d been having it for five-plus years. This time, though, McLachlin phoned fellow Hawaiian golf influencer Mark Rolfing. “That’s when I out there were like five ideas of things I could do within golf in Hawaii, things I would fit perfectly for,� McLachlin said. “And I was like, Wow. I was like, I really don’t care. I’ve got so many other fun things going on. That’s when the putts started going in. I was swinging free.� More than a golfer, McLachlin is an athlete. His dad, Chris, played basketball and volleyball for Stanford and was Barack Obama’s hoops coach at Punahou High in Honolulu. (McLachlin played a pickup game with President-elect Obama in December, 2008.) McLachlin’s mom, Beth, was captain of the 1976 U.S. Olympic volleyball team. At his best, McLachlin possesses an enviable, athletic move that produces a big hit off the tee, with supple hands around the green. Paul Azinger got his first glimpse of that talent when he and a then-16-year-old McLachlin played nine holes at Waialae Country Club. Four years ago, when they reconnected there by chance, both were in very different places. Azinger was retired, and about to dive back into a TV career with new USGA partner Fox. McLachlin had completely forgotten how to play.  “I think I was maybe playing some state open or something like that,� he said. “Paul happened to be doing an outing. And he was friends with the head pro there, who taught me the game originally, Greg Nichols. I was getting ready to quit the game and go do something else, and Greg said, ‘Hey, Paul is in Hawaii, you’re in Hawaii, let’s get together for lunch.’� McLachlin and Azinger spent three hours together. “I was probably near tears for half of it,� McLachlin said. “Paul said, ‘Come back to Tampa, come stay at my house, I feel like I can help navigate you through these dark times. Don’t give up on it yet.’ And so, I went back to Florida, and he and his family opened up his house.� What did they talk about? Some of it was technical; McLachlin said they share “similar grips, similar release patterns.� Mostly, though, it was a chance for McLachlin to unburden himself by shedding years of the accumulated doubts, insecurities and lousy advice. “It was more kind of decluttering and reminding me that I’m an athlete first and a golfer second,� McLachlin said. “I would go back and see him like three times a year for maybe a week at a time. I would stay at his house and we would play 27 holes a day.� The mental uncluttering in search of the raw talent of his youth was a sort of golf version of the old Picasso quote: “It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.� The best times, McLachlin said, were their drives to and from the course. Strangely enough, they would take McLachlin’s rental car to either Gator Greek or Concession in Bradenton. “He owned 12 motorcycles but no car,� McLachlin said of Azinger. “So we’d hop in my rental car and it’s 30 to 35 minutes out, and he just gets to talking, story after story, and I’m asking questions. Those rides were a big part of decluttering everything I had built up from poor instruction, or inaccurate instruction. All that stuff that was still in my head.� At points, McLachlin recalled with a laugh, Azinger was tenacious. “He kept reminding me, ‘Isn’t your goal to be the greatest player to come out of Hawaii?’� McLachlin said. “I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ He’s like, ‘Bro, you’re so close to that!’ [Laughs] ‘You can’t give up!’ “He’s big on making your mark on history, and for me it’s always wanting to be the best golfer to ever come out of Hawaii, and he just continuously reminds me of that.� Kristy continues to do some accounting work for a hedge fund, as well as keeping tabs on their kids, 7 and 4, while Parker is away from their home in Scottsdale, Arizona. Rolfing remains a lifeline, as does Azinger, with whom McLachlin spent 20 minutes on the phone Thursday. What becomes of McLachlin now may depend on how completely he can leave the last five-plus years behind, get out of his own way, and start painting like a child again.

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The PGA TOUR makes its final Texas stop of the season, visiting historic Colonial Country Club for the Charles Schwab Challenge. FedExCup leader – and native Texan – Scottie Scheffler headlines the field that features five of the world’s top 10. FIELD NOTES: After a missed cut at the PGA Championship, Scheffler, who has won four times this season, is back in action… Bryson DeChambeau is listed in the field. He tried to give it a go at the PGA Championship but withdrew on the eve of the tournament because his hand wasn’t fully recovered from surgery in April… Collin Morikawa will tee it up in Fort Worth. He finished T14 a year ago and lost to Daniel Berger in a playoff in 2020… Jason Kokrak returns to defend his title from 2021. Kokrak, a three-time TOUR winner, won twice last year, and both titles came in Texas with former Longhorns finishing runner-up. He beat Jordan Spieth at Colonial and Scottie Scheffler was runner-up (along with Kevin Tway) to Kokrak at the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Houston Open… This year’s Champions Choice selections are Stephan Jaeger and Min Woo Lee… Sponsor exemptions include Erik Compton, John Pak and the past two U.S. Amateur champions, James Piot and Tyler Strafaci. Pak won last year’s Hogan Award, which is awarded at Colonial, as the top player in college and amateur golf. He also finished atop last year’s PGA TOUR University Velocity Global Ranking. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 FedExCup points. COURSE: Colonial Country Club, par 70, 7,209 yards. The PGA TOUR heads to the Perry Maxwell and John Bredemus design in Fort Worth, Texas, for the 77th time. It’s the longest-running non-major on TOUR to be contested on the same course. Many of the TOUR’s best who teed it up at the PGA Championship will be treated to a double dose of Maxwell, as the Oklahoma designer was the chief behind Southern Hills Country Club as well. Shot-making and accuracy will be the keys to success once again at Colonial. The course hosted the U.S. Open in 1941, the U.S. Women’s Open in 1991, and the second edition of THE PLAYERS. Like Southern Hills, Colonial is another Maxwell design that is set to undergo a Gil Hanse renovation. It was scheduled for this year but due to supply chain issues, the process will begin after the 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge. STORYLINES: Jordan Spieth is hoping he’ll continue his fine play around Colonial. Spieth, who moved to eighth in the FedExCup after his win at the RBC Heritage and his runner-up at the AT&T Byron Nelson, has three runners-up in Fort Worth plus a victory in 2016… Only one golfer has ever defended his title in Fort Worth. Ben Hogan did it twice, one reason that Colonial came to be known as Hogan’s Alley… Scottie Scheffler leads the FedExCup by nearly twice as many points as Sam Burns (who is also teeing it up at the Charles Schwab Challenge) but comes to Fort Worth after his first missed cut since last October… K.H. Lee is looking for his own Texas two-step. Lee successfully defended the AT&T Byron Nelson the week prior to the PGA, winning by one over Spieth… Viktor Hovland is the other world top-10 player in the field alongside Scheffler, Morikawa, Spieth, and Justin Thomas… The winner of the Charles Schwab Challenge will once again get a restored sports car (Kevin Na got a 1973 Dodge Challenger in 2019 while Jason Kokrak got a 1946 Schwab Power Wagon). This year’s winner will get a 1979 Pontiac Firebird, which tournament organizers have nicknamed the “Schwab Firebird.” 72-HOLE RECORD: 259, Zach Johnson (2010). 18-HOLE RECORD: 61, Keith Clearwater (2nd round, 1993), Lee Janzen (4th round, 1993), Greg Kraft (3rd round, 1999), Kenny Perry (3rd round, 2003), Justin Leonard (4th round, 2003), Chad Campbell (3rd round, 2004), Kevin Na (4th round, 2018). LAST TIME: Jason Kokrak’s even-par 70 in the final round of last year’s Charles Schwab Challenge was enough, as Jordan Spieth struggled to a 3-over 73 and finished two shots back of Kokrak. It was Kokrak’s second career TOUR title. Spieth, the clear rooting favorite of the partisan Texas crowds, was still in the mix after making the turn on Sunday, but two late bogeys – including one on the 72nd hole after he hit his approach into the water – derailed his chances. Kokrak made five bogeys Sunday but offset each of them with five birdies. For Spieth, it was his third runner-up finish at Colonial. Charley Hoffman’s 5-under 65 was tied for the low round of the day Sunday, and that helped him move into a tie for third alongside Patton Kizzire, Sebastian Munoz, and Ian Poulter. That foursome finished at 10 under, four shots back of Kokrak’s winning score. HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m.-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday, 2 p.m.-5:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 5:30 p.m.-7 p.m. (CBS). Sunday, 1 p.m.-2 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2 p.m.-6:30 p.m. (CBS). Radio: Thursday-Friday, 1 p.m.–7 p.m. ET. Saturday, 2 p.m.-7 p.m. Sunday, 1 p.m.-6:30 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio) For outside of the U.S., click here for GOLFTV powered by the PGA TOUR PGA TOUR LIVE PGA TOUR Live is available exclusively on ESPN+ • Main Feed: primary tournament-coverage featuring the best action from across the course • Marquee Group: new “marquee group” showcasing every shot from each player in the group • Featured Groups: traditional PGA TOUR LIVE coverage of two concurrent featured groups • Featured Holes: a combination of par-3s and iconic or pivotal holes

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2022 Shriners Children’s Open, Round 1 Scoring Conditions: Overall: -2.63 strokes per round Morning wave: -3.11 Afternoon wave: -2.15 Current cutline (top 65 and ties): 82 players at -3 or better (T60) Top 3 projected cutline probabilities: 1. 5 under par: 38.4% 2. 4 under par: 35.3% 3. 6 under par: 13.9% Top 10 win probabilities: 1. Sungjae Im (T2, -8, 10.1%) 2. Charley Hoffman (T2, -8, 8.1%) 3. Louis Oosthuizen (T10, -6, 5.6%) 4. Sam Burns (T17, -5, 4.8%) 5. Hideki Matsuyama (T10, -6, 4.8%) 6. Matthew Wolff (T5, -7, 4.1%) 7. Talor Gooch (T5, -7, 3.9%) 8. Matt Jones (T5, -7, 3.6%) 9. Chad Ramey (T2, -8, 3.4%) 10. Sung Kang (1, -10, 2.8%) NOTE: These reports are based off of the live predictive model run by @DataGolf. The model provides live “Make Cut”, “Top 20”, “Top 5”, and “Win” probabilities every 5 minutes from the opening tee shot to the final putt of every PGA TOUR event. Briefly, the model takes account of the current form of each golfer as well as the difficulty of their remaining holes, and probabilities are calculated from 20K simulations. To follow live finish probabilities throughout the remainder of the Shriners Children’s Open, or to see how each golfer’s probabilities have evolved from the start of the event to the current time, click here for the model’s home page.

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