Opening Drive 2025 – The Sentry

January 1, 2025January 1, 2025 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

The Sentry

The Plantation Course at Kapalua

Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii

Welcome to 2025

For those of you who are just arriving for the first time, here’s what’s going on:

This column is me. My thoughts, my humor, my fun, my opinions.

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Chalk

My thoughts on the top 10 players for betting purposes:

Xander Schauffele: Slides into the role of the favorite with Scottie Scheffler missing out due to a Christmas Day accident. If you haven’t heard Scheffler is hurt, you might want to donate your money to charity or bet College Football games instead. The two-time major winner from 2024 is a former winner here and rakes on Maui.

Justin Thomas: Podium finishes before and after the birth of his first child suggests an explosive 2025. Bet. Only two-time winner in the field (2020, 2017).

Collin Morikawa: Five starts at Kapalua, T7 is the worst payday. Nobody can match that over the last five years. The next step is finding a hot putter on the weekend.

Ludvig Aberg: Knee surgery in September will be tested walking up and down the mountain this week. How important is it to go low this week? Making his debut last year, he posted 10-under 63 in Round 4 and yet only cashed T47.

Patrick Cantlay: Two top-five paydays from six starts are the highlights. Has not won on TOUR since the 2022 BMW Championship.

Sungjae Im: Super comfortable on the Pacific Rim and super-comfortable making a boatload of birdies, including a PGA TOUR record 34 at this event last year. Four starts, three top-10 paydays, and T13.

Hideki Matsuyama: His first three visits all cashed in the top five. His next four = nothing better than T13.

Sahith Theegala: I’m trying to talk myself off the ledge after leaving him off my PGA TOUR Fantasy Lineup. I’m having a terrible time rationalizing that decision. Fell one shot short of a playoff here last year after opening with 64 and closing with 63.

Viktor Hovland: Broken toe and parted ways with his swing coach made for a hectic final week of 2024.

Akshay Bhatia: Lovely outsider. Handles big ballparks and ocean breezes. T14 debut last year and fourth in The Bahamas, where he previously won an event on the KFT, in the Hero World Challenge.

Sam Burns: Joins Nick Taylor as the only two players with three starts and never hit the top 25.

Corey Conners: Never better than T18 in three visits. Putting matters in Maui.

NOW PLAYING:

Host Course:	The Plantation Course at Kapalua
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,596
Par:	73 (36-37)
Greens:	TifEagle Bermuda; 8,722 square feet on average; LARGEST on TOUR.
Stimpmeter:	11 feet.
Rough:	Celebration Bermuda at 2.5 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	93/0/0.
Architect(s):	Coore and Crenshaw (1999).
Defending Champion (event):	Chris Kirk was listed at +12500, posted 29-under, and won by a shot (Theegala).
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	Justin Thomas (2020, 2017).
Course Record (last):	61; Justin Thomas is the only player in the field who has posted this number. Three others are not entered/did not qualify.
72 Hole Tournament Record (last):	258 (-34); Cam Smith 2022 (no longer a member on TOUR).
Fact of the Week:	72 holes, no cut.
Fact of the Week II:	19 players making their debut this week. The last player to win on their first attempt at Kapalua was Daniel Chopra in 2008.

Notes:

Field of 60.
Winners in calendar year 2024 and/or qualifiers for the 2024 BMW Championship are eligible.
The OWGR is represented by 15 of the top 20.
First of eight SIGNATURE EVENTS of 2024.
$20 million – $3.6 million – 700 FedExCup points – Sentry and Masters ticket punched.

Season Winners

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray (Rest in Peace)
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)
Black Desert Championship	Matt McCarty (first time)
Shriners Children’s Open	JT Poston
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Nico Echavarria
World Wide Technology Champ	Austin Eckroat (2)
Butterfield Bermuda Champ	Rafa Campos (first time)
The RSM Classic	Maverick McNealy (first time)

Recent Winners – The Sentry

Italics – not entered this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2024	Chris Kirk (-29)	Only squared ONE BOGEY; won for the sixth time on TOUR.
2023	Jon Rahm (-25)	Won by two, no longer a member on TOUR.
2022	Cam Smith (-34)	Set the tournament scoring record, no longer a member on TOUR.
2021	Harris English (-25)	Won in a playoff on his second visit.
2020	Justin Thomas (-14)	Won a three-man playoff over Schauffele and Reed in breezy conditions.
2019	Xander Schauffele (-23)	Closed with 62, tying the course record at the time, to win in his second try.
2018	Dustin Johnson (-24)	Winning by eight shots, he tied the margin of victory standard.

Angles

The Plantation Course tips at 7,596 yards, the third longest course used in 2023, and plays to Par-73.

The Plantation Course ranked as the easiest course on TOUR the last four seasons, playing more than three shots under par per round annually. Weather is the only deterrent to scoring.

The resort course features generous fairways and the largest greens complexes on TOUR.

Elevation changes and uneven lies will challenge players on second shots.

TifEagle Bermuda greens running at 11 feet will allow players to be aggressive on the short grass.

The last 10 winners finished in the top 16 in SG: Putting.

Kirk is the only winner from the last 10 to rank outside the top 10 in SG: Off the tee.

Kirk and English (not entered) are the only two non-major championship winners in the last decade.

Diving Deeper

Players for top 10 and top 20 action, reason to avoid, or OAD questions and answers.

Ben An: Wasn’t bothered on debut last year (solo fourth) and won in October.

Russell Henley: Save him for next week.

Tony Finau: Off-season knee surgery will keep me on the sidelines until I see evidence.

Adam Scott: Only Justin Thomas has made as many starts. Only Morikawa and JT have more top 10s (5) than the Australian (4).

Robert MacIntyre: One of 19 first-time participants. Careful.

Wyndham Clark: Closed with 63 for T29 on debut in 2024. I didn’t see any inspiration in Napa Valley (mc) or at the Hero World Challenge (T17 of 20 players).

Davis Thompson: First-timer. The Birdie machine hits it a mile. Nibble.

J.T. Poston: Likes it here. Bigger bite.

Max Greyserman: Shit-fire hot minus that elusive first win. Water is deeper in this field.

Brian Harman: Turing 38 in three weeks, his Georgia teammate won here at 38 last year. Making his fifth start, he’s hit the top five twice and never worse than T17. Interesting.

Cameron Young: Here we go again. Make a putt already.

Jason Day: Veteran loves the extra room to move it off the tee and has no problem on these greens.

Keegan Bradley: The Ryder Cup captain for 2025 at Bethpage Black has a very busy eight months in front of him. TGL, his game, and selecting his team makes a full plate.

Maverick McNealy: FINALLY. One of my favorites over the years is now healthy. Grew up on Pebble Beach.

Max Homa: The finishes might not scream PICK ME PICK ME, but he’s never posted less than 20-under in his last three visits. He likes it here. Now, about that current form…

Si Woo Kim: My buddy Jay always bets the Korean on Bermuda. A winner at Sony at The American Express in the last five years, I will let him get loose this week.

Taylor Pendrith: Another who can smash it and make a ton of birdies, the Canadian hopes to be more Hadwin than Nick Taylor.

Matt Fitzpatrick: T14 and T7 in his first two visits but has not hit the top 10 since the Memorial last June. I wonder if the problem with dialing in his new irons is still bothering him. Lovely risk-reward in a no-cut field.

Alex Noren: Debutant.

Will Zalatoris: I doubt he would fly halfway around the world to South Africa if his back was bothering him. T11 with four rounds in the 60s on his debut in 2023. Value here.

Aaron Rai: 2 gloves and zero problems tee to green. First appearance on the massive greens.

Denny McCarthy: Not sure he has enough ammo, but the large targets will create more chances to wield his INCREDIBLE flat stick.

Sepp Straka: T9 at the Hero plus T12-T21 here the last two years.

Billy Horschel: Only eight rounds in the 60s here in seven previous visits.

Eric Cole: T16 or better in three of his four last starts plus T14 on debut last year. What am I missing?

Nick Dunlap: Maker or breaker!?!? Remember, Castle Pines was a level playing field (most guys had never seen the place before the event). That’s not true this week.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout: Opened his season solo second at The American Express last year. Big ask this year.

Nico Echavarria: Love it. Top 10 just in case.

One and Done – Spotter’s Game

1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy gets kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee Thursday).

1 use per year.

With EIGHT Signature Events spread over the season, player management becomes a major issue. These events do NOT include the four majors or THE PLAYERS Championship. These events do NOT include the FedExCup Playoffs. This game ends with the BMW Championship.

This is a bonus week as there is NO CUT. Everyone gets a paycheck!

MY CHOICE: Sungjae Im

Just Missed: Sahith Theegala, Justin Thomas, Akshay Bhatia, Jason Day

Butterfield Bermuda Championship

November 13, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 7

Butterfield Bermuda Championship

Port Royal Golf Course

Southampton, Bermuda

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Butterfield Bermuda Championship tips

Win Tickets

Justin Lower (25/1): Looking for his first win on TOUR, only one of the five previous winners broke their maiden at Port Royal. Lower’s recent heat and course form pushed him to the top of my list. The co-leader after 54 holes in Cabo San Lucas last week, the 35-year-old ranked in the top 10 in Fairways, Greens in Regulation, and Putting. Earning a share of second place racked up his third top-10 payday this season on foreign soil (T3 Vidanta Vallarta; T4 Corales Puntacana). The Ohio native, making his fourth consecutive start in Bermuda, has never missed the cut. In 12 rounds, he posted 11 loops in the 60s and owns a 67.75 scoring average. Cashing T17 on debut in 2021, he added T8 in 2022 and T20 in 2023 for an aggregate of 39-under-par. Camilo Villegas, the 2023 champion, also finished as a co-runner-up at the World Wide Technology Championship before his victory.

Nico Echavarria (35/1): The champion three weeks ago in Japan at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP decided he was too hot to forego the rest of the FedExCup Fall. After the bye week, he returned with the rest of the TOUR to Cabo San Lucas and added another top-10 payday (T6). The 2023 Puerto Rico Open champion won for the first time navigating similar gusty conditions forecast for this week. The strength of his game is finding fairways (31^st) and Greens in Regulation (33^rd). With confidence at a sky-high level, the 30-year-old also has no problem making birdies (28^th).

Top 10 Tickets

Lucas Glover (13/5): Four of the five previous winners were over the age of 32. The six-time winner on TOUR is the highest-ranked player in the Official World Golf Rankings entered. The forecast suggests the wind will blow all weekend so I will hitch my wagon to a proven tee-to-green player experienced feast or famine on the Port Royal layout. Half of his eight rounds are 67 or better but the other half are 70 or worse, including three rounds above par. After collecting checks of T24-T3-T3-T13 in his last four starts, I’ll gladly wade in.

Patrick Rodgers (7/2): Returning to Southampton for the first time since cashing T3 and solo fourth in 2022 and 2021, the Stanford man will not miss another chance to pad his bank account in the Atlantic Ocean. Sitting at No. 55 in the FedExCup Fall, he is comfortably in the Aon Next 10 and can turn his attention to winning in his 280th start on TOUR. The familiarity of the venue, plus he’s on form, cashing in 11 of his last 12 starts, including T24 in Cabo San Lucas, suggests he is ready to contend, and win.

Top 20 Tickets

Ryan McCormick (6/1): Veteran investors notice that the rank-and-file blow hot for patches each year. The New Jersey native withdrew from the Black Desert Championship after missing the cut in his five previous events. Flipping the switch the following week in Las Vegas, the 33-year-old rookie found something in the desert dirt of TPC Summerlin and posted T16, his first top 25 since T4 at the Myrtle Beach Classic in early May. After not making the trip to Japan, he continued his solid play at the World Wide Technology Championship. Cashing T24, he posted back-to-back top-25 paydays for the first time this season. Get hot, stay hot!

Alex Smalley (9/5): I find it impossible to ignore that the former Duke Blue Devil has never posted a round worse than 70 in three visits to Bermuda. The 12 rounds on his record show 11 have posted 69 or better, but he’s never cashed a check in the top 10. Over the last three years, the 28-year-old posted an aggregate of 33-under with finishes of T30, T11, and T12. Playing the weekend over in four consecutive events entering the week, his best result, T5 at the Sanderson Farms Championship, was also on Bermudagrass.

Port Royal Golf Course

One of only three courses on the PGA TOUR schedule that does not reach 7,000 yards, Port Royal is the shortest of the trio and remains the exact yardage and Par for the sixth consecutive year.

The standard Par-71 includes a pair of Par-3 holes on each of the nine holes, including two stretching 235 yards on the loop back to the clubhouse. The front nine duo, playing 148 and 213 yards, provides a warm-up before the meatier challenges. As a group, they rank annually in the top third of Par-3 groupings on TOUR.

The massive Bermuda greens provide ample room for recovery shots that do not find the tight fairways. Four of the five winners ranked in the top 15 GIR, and all five registered in the top 11 in Putting. Port Royal is the first event on Bermudagrass greens since the Sanderson Farms Championship at the end of September.

When the wind lies down, birdies will fill the scorecards. In 2022, Seamus Power set the tournament record for birdies with 28. Inaugural winner Brendon Todd and 2023 champion Camilo Villegas both circled 27.

Only the 2020 event played over par (71.151).

Yards (per official scorecard):	6,828.
Par:	71 (36-35).
Greens:	TifEagle Bermuda; 8,000 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	11.5 feet and up.
Rough:	419 Bermudagrass at 2 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	87/4/7.
Architect(s):	Robert Trent Jones, Sr., (1971); Roger Rulewich (2008).
Defending Champion:	Camilo Villegas (-24; 260).
Multiple Champions Entered:	None.
Course Record:	61; Alex Noren (2023); Taylor Pendrith (2021).
Tournament Record:	260; Villegas and Brendon Todd (2019).

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)
Black Desert Championship	Matt McCarty (first time)
Shriners Children’s Open	JT Poston
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Nico Echavarria
World Wide Technology Champ	Austin Eckroat (2)

Recent Winners – Butterfield Bermuda Championship

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Camilo Villegas (-24)	Picked up his first win in NINE YEARS on TOUR and matched the tournament scoring record.
2022	Seamus Power (-19)	Set the tournament record by circling 28 birdies; won by a shot
2021	Lucas Herbert (-15)	Won for the first time on TOUR in just his 20^th start. Only champion under 32 years of age.
2020	Brian Gay (-15)	Oldest winner at 48 years old.
2019	Brendon Todd (-24)	Won the inaugural event by four shots.

Butterfield Bermuda Championship

Internationals have won the last three tournaments after Americans won the first two editions.

Four of the five winners were 33 or older and were previous winners on TOUR. Lucas Herbert was 25 and making just his 20th start when he won for the first time on TOUR.

Every winning total has been 15-under par or lower. Making birdies and avoiding bogeys is the classic formula to contend in a shootout.

No player has won this event more than once.

The weather will play a major role in determining the champion again this year.

On the line this week for the field of 120 is a purse of $6.9 million with the winner taking home $1.242 million plus 500 FedExCup points.

The field will be cut to the top 65 and ties after 36 holes.

After four rounds in Bermuda, the TOUR wraps up the FedExCup Fall next week at The RSM Classic at Sea Island, Georgia.

World Wide Technology Championship

November 6, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

The second edition features a field of 120 led by reigning champion Erik van Rooyen,

https://twitter.com/PGATOUR/status/1853544901926912503

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 6

World Wide Technology Championship

El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas

Los Cabos, Mexico

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Quick Links:

Odds Outlook – DFS Report – Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – Expert Picks

World Wide Technology Championship tips

Tip to win

Harris English 27/1 – The veteran, already a previous winner at this event on a different course in 2013, rolls into town with back-to-back top-10 paydays in the deserts of Utah and Las Vegas. Possessing plenty of power, I’m more interested in his patience and putter to pick up his first win since the 2021 Travelers Championship, another shootout.

Matti Schmid 30/1 – Representing Germany at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Munich native has hit his stride in the FedExCup Fall. Cashing T3 at the Shriners Open after solo fifth at the Black Desert Championship, his trend of beating the previous result has reached five starts in a row.

Tips to finish top 10

Nate Lashley 5/1 – Veterans tend to gravitate to the top of the leaderboard this time of year. Lashley, 41, has a win and a top-five result at Corales Puntacana on Paspalum, plus three top-10 paychecks on the same grass at the Puerto Rico Open.

Sam Stevens 3/1 – A big boy ball striker, the Texan can handle a coastal breeze. His partner from the Zurich Classic (T4) in late April, Nico Echavarria, won two weeks ago in Japan. Big fairways will produce more chances to pepper flags. He makes tons of birdies as well.

Tips to finish top 20

Joe Highsmith 2/1 – Producing three T16 or better finishes from four made cuts in the FedExCup Fall, the lefthander needs another big finish, or two, to maintain the dream of keeping his card. Cashing T6 at Puerto Rico on the same Paspalum grass produced his best payday of the year.

Vince Whaley 12/5 – The runner-up, one of four at the ISCO Championship in July in a playoff, has also cashed T16 twice in his last three starts. A big hitter who makes plenty of birdies, the 28-year-old should enjoy the WIDE-OPEN layout.

El Cardonal at Diamante

The TGR Design opened in 2014 and hosted a PGA TOUR event for the first time in 2023.

Tipping at 7,452 yards for the second consecutive year, the stock Par-72 played as one of the easiest resort courses on TOUR last season (68.993).

With only one water penalty area and no rough, tee balls should find the Platinum Paspalum fairways. Last year players averaged hitting 90 percent of the fairways.

The Paspalum putting surfaces, managed to run between 11 and 12 feet, provide enormous targets. Averaging 8,700 square feet, the greens are difficult to miss and easy to putt.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)
Black Desert Championship	Matt McCarty (first time)
Shriners Children’s Open	JT Poston
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Nico Echavarria

Recent Winners – World Wide Technology Championship

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Erik van Rooyen (-27)	Inaugural winner led the field with 3 eagles, including one on the 72^nd hole to win by two shots.

World Wide Technology Championship

Moving to Cabo San Lucas for the 2023 edition, the event was previously held at Mayakoba on the Yucatan Peninsula. Both events featured Paspalum grass from the parking lot to the 19^th hole.

The first event featured nine players posting 20-under or better.

Of the 73 players who made the cut, 68 posted 10-under or better.

There were only 13 rounds above par for the week from the players who made the cut.

The field of 120 contains just two players from the OWGR top 50 after Cameron Young withdrew Wednesday morning upon arrival.

The winner will pocket $1.296 million of the $7.2 million prize pool, plus 500 FedExCup points.

The sixth of eight events in the FedExCup Fall, the TOUR continues its fall world tour in Bermuda next week before returning to the U.S.A. for the final event on Sea Island in two weeks. Read more about the final eight events of the season here.

Others to consider

Max Greyserman 19/1 – The favorite has yet to win on the PGA TOUR, but he has finished second or T2 in three of his last five starts. A big hitter, he’s also a deft putter and is in the form of his life.

Cameron Young 22/1 – The theme at the top of the board is players who have not won on TOUR. The seven-time runner-up has not played since the BMW Championship in late August and has not posted a top-10 result since Detroit at the end of June.

Doug Ghim 24/1 – Only two top-10 paydays on the season include solo second, a career-best in Las Vegas three weeks ago, and T8 at Vidanta Vallarta in Mexico on Paspalum in late February.

J.J. Spaun 27/1 – Another veteran infiltrating the top of the board, the Californian is one of the few favorites with a trophy on the mantle. Three top-10 finishes in his last seven events, including T6 in Japan two weeks ago, demands attention.

Nico Echavarria

Chad Ramey

Patton Kizzire

Nick Hardy

Patrick Fishburn

Henrik Norlander

Austin Cook

ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

October 23, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

Tee times begin TONIGHT AT 745 ET

Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club is ready to shine 🤩 pic.twitter.com/xUiUi3zvJP
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 23, 2024

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 5

ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

ACCORDIA GOLF Narashino Country Club

Chiba, Japan

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Quick Links:

Odds Outlook – DFS Report – Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – Expert Picks

Mike Glasscott: ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP tips

Win: Hideki Matsuyama (8/1)

Top 10: Beau Hossler (3/1), Will Zalatoris (3/1), Doug Ghim (3/1)

Top 20: Ryo Hisatsune (2/1), Satoshi Kodaira (11/2)

Bet365: Top of the Board

Xander Schauffele (9/2): The Number Two player in the Official World Golf Rankings headlines the field of 78. The winner of HALF of the major championship events in 2024, the PGA Championship victory, and Champion Golfer of the Year will look to add to his collection. A record of 4-1 in the Presidents Cup, plus five consecutive finishes on TOUR in the top 10 makes him the man to beat.

Collin Morikawa (7/1): The previous time the two-time major champion was in the winner’s circle was last year at Narashino Country Club. Nobody made more birdies (24) and only one player had fewer putts. The last time he played his own ball, he won the GROSS division at the TOUR Championship in late August.

Hideki Matsuyama (8/1): The local legend is the only player to hit the podium twice. Posting 16-under-par, he finished second to Woods in 2019. Returning to Japan for the 2021 edition, his total of 15-under-par was good enough for a victory. Making two eagles en route to victory in 2021, he is the only champion to put two double circles on the card. The 2021 Masters champion has two wins on the ledger in 2024 already.

Sungjae Im (12/1): The Korean won in his native land in April for the second time in two years and racked up eight top-10 paydays on TOUR. Cashing T3 on debut in 2019, he’s added T12 and T29 in the last two years.

Sahith Theegala (16/1): Making his third start in Japan, the 2023 Procore Championship winner has already cashed T19 and T5 in two previous visits. Steady throughout the bag, the 26-year-old sits ninth in SG: Total.

Justin Thomas (20/1): The ebbs and flows of 2024 find the two-time PGA Championship winner on a run of five straight without a top-10 payday. Making his first appearance since the inaugural event, he has had plenty of big finishes in the Pacific Rim during his career.

Kurt Kitayama (25/1): Ranking 11th in SG: Tee to Green and ninth in SG: Approach, finding fairways and greens won’t hurt this week.

Others to consider:

Last year, four Japanese players cashed in the top 12, led by Ryo Ishikawa (400/1) at T4. Kensei Hirata (100/1), a 23-year-old, six-time winner in Asia, finished one shot further back on T6 with 22-year-old Ryo Hisatsune (75/1). Sponsor’s exemption Satoshi Kodaira, the 2018 winner at the RBC Heritage over Si Woo Kim (28/1), cashed T12, his second consecutive season inside T16.

Beau Hossler (33/1) will be boom or bust this week, but without a cut, I’ll gamble. Losing a playoff at the Sanderson Farms Championship, he added T11 and T23 and is playing for the fourth week in a row. Never signing for a round above 70 in eight career loops, I’m on board.

Will Zalatoris (35/1) has also been riding the roller coaster following back surgery. Some days are better than others, including T13 at the BMW Championship and T12 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship the week before. Well rested, I don’t think he would have made the trip if he was “iffy”.

Doug Ghim (35/1) is riding high after a career-best solo second in Las Vegas last week. The ball-striker makes his money from tee to green and that’s the formula this week.

Eric Cole (45/1) showed great putters can also contend outside Tokyo. The birdie machine cashed T2 on debut in 2023.

Gary Woodland (50/1) has persevered after brain surgery and continues to stack rounds together. I am not a fan of this number, but, I am following his progress.

Narashino Country Club

The composite course, made of up holes from the Kings and Queens nines, was designed by Japanese legend Kinya Fujita and opened in 1965.

The 34-36 Par-70 layout stretches to 7,079 yards for the third consecutive season.

The front nine consists of three of the five Par-3 holes and just one of the three Par-5 chances.

With 10 Par-4 chances on the card, exactly half will stretch 480 yards or longer. The Par-5 holes stretch 587 and 605 yards before closing with 562 yards on No. 18. Only quality shots are rewarded.

The Par-3 holes feature one challenge over 183 yards and present scoring opportunities.

Rough approaching four inches and greens running upwards of 12 feet will mitigate scoring opportunities.

There have only been 24 tournament totals posted in double figures in four events. Morikawa, on 14-under in 2023, was the only one last year.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)
Black Desert Championship	Matt McCarty (first time)
Shriners Children’s Open	JT Poston

Recent Winners – ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Collin Morikawa (-14)	Only player to post double digits under par; won by six.
2022	Keegan Bradley (-15)	Won by a shot over Rickie Fowler and Andrew Putnam.
2021	Hideki Matsuyama (-15)	Won by five shots after winning the Masters earlier in the year.
2020	Patrick Cantlay	Event was held at Sherwood Country Club in Los Angeles.
2019	Tiger Woods (-19)	Defeated Matsuyama by three shots to win the inaugural event and set the tournament scoring record.

ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

Last week, the Shriners Children’s Open was the site of the first PGA TOUR win in the career of Tiger Woods. This week, the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP was the site of the 82^nd, and to this day, final victory for Tiger Woods.

The event was contested for the first time in 2019 at the Narashino Country Club in Chiba, Japan. Woods was victorious, defeating Hideki Matsuyama by three shots, and owns the tournament scoring record on 19-under-par 261.

The fifth edition contested in Japan features defending champion Collin Morikawa and 2021 winner Hideki Matsuyama.

The course record, 61, was last posted by John Huh (not entered) in the 2022 event.

The winning total has been 14-under or lower in every tournament.

The 2022 event is the only tournament to play under par for the week.

Morikawa is the youngest winner at 26. Woods earned his victory at 43, the oldest champion.

Morikawa, a winner by six shots in the 2023 edition, owns the largest margin of victory.

No tournaments have required a playoff to determine the champion.

All four previous winners at Narashino Country Club in Chiba are major champions.

The field of 78 players includes 18 from the Japan Tour. There is no 36-hole cut.

The winner will pocket $1.53 million of the $8.5. million prize pool, plus 500 FedExCup points.

The fifth of eight events in the FedExCup Fall, the TOUR is off next week before stopping in Cabo San Lucas for the World Wide Technology Championship. Read more about the final eight events of the season here.

Shriners Children’s Open

October 16, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

https://twitter.com/PGATOUR/status/1846240357320978598

Sittin’ plush with a royal flush, aces back to back!

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 4

Shriners Children’s Open

TPC Summerlin

Las Vegas, Nevada

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Quick Links:

Odds Outlook – DFS Report – Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – Expert Picks

Mike Glasscott: Shriners Children’s Open tips

Win: Harry Hall (50/1); Nick Hardy (100/1)

Top 10: Henrik Norlander (15/2), Matti Schmid (11/2), Adam Hadwin (4/1)

Top 20: Taylor Montgomery (7/1), Matt NeSmith (4/1), Will Gordon (7/1), Doug Ghim (13/5)

Bet365: Top of the Board

Tom Kim (13/1): Posting 44-under over 144 holes, the Korean has posted just seven bogeys and has won both times he has entered. Making his first start on his own ball since the FedExCup Playoffs, he will join PGA TOUR history if he wins for the third consecutive season.

Taylor Pendrith (27/1): The second half of the Presidents Cup daily double, the Canadian won a shootout at TPC Craig Ranch in early May for his first victory on the PGA TOUR. Ranking in the top 10 of Strokes Gained: Putting, he will look to improve on his solo third finish on 18-under-par in 2023.

Davis Thompson (30/1): Posting 28-under at the John Deere Classic in July, the former Georgia Bulldog set the tournament record and won for the first time on TOUR. Already secure inside the FedExCup top 50, there’s only one focus this week: win.

Beau Hossler (30/1): Losing in a playoff at the Sanderson Farms Championship, the former Texas Longhorn is still yearning for his first PGA TOUR victory. The California native has never missed the cut in six starts at TPC Summerlin and has posted 38-under-par in his last two starts on TOUR.

Kurt Kitayama (30/1): Never making the cut from three previous attempts at TPC Summerlin, the local showed signs of form last week in Utah. Posting rounds of 65 to open and 64 on Saturday could not cancel two rounds in the 70s in a shootout. Investors can make the case for or against. Volatile.

Tom Hoge (32/1): Returning to action for the first time since cashing T7 at Silverado to kick off the FedExCup Fall. Since his last appearance, he’s been inducted into his college alma mater’s Hall of Fame. The North Dakota native cashed T24 or better four times in his last six at TPC Summerlin, including two paydays inside the top 10.

Stephan Jaeger (32/1): Already a winner this season in Houston, the German posted 20-under last week in Utah to cash solo second. The bright lights of The Strip and expectations will not bother the veteran.

Seamus Power (32/1): Posting a run of T10, T11, and T11 in his last three, the Irishman becomes impossible to ignore.

Eric Cole (32/1): Anytime birdies are required to contend, the Florida resident should be on the radar. Ranking second on the TOUR in total birdies, a shootout is his area of expertise.

Others to consider:

If you prefer the local angle, there are plenty of Las Vegas residents and those with ties to UNLV in the field this week including Kitayama, Maverick McNealy, Taylor Montgomery, Doug Ghim, Charley Hoffman, and Ryan Moore, to name a few.

Adam Hadwin (37/10): Making his eighth start, the Canadian has cashed inside the top 10 in the last three editions and five times from seven weekends. Minus a victory, he’s the course horse.

Harry Hall (50/1): Playing golf at UNLV, the Englishman has racked up three consecutive paydays of T26 or better at TPC Summerlin. Already a shootout winner in 2024, his excellent short game allows him to hang around.

Matti Schmid (55/1): The 2019 and 2020 European amateur champion has yet to crack the code at the highest level. Registering his second top 10 in 25 events last week, it’s time to gamble on the hot streak.

Doug Ghim (65/1): One of the many residents in the field, the tee-to-green expert will rely on sleeping in his own bed to push him into contention this week.

Henrik Norlander (90/1): Sitting at 119^th in the top 125, another week with a big finish will go a long way for the Swede. Opening last week with 62 in the Utah desert led to T8, his best payday of 2024.

Nick Hardy (100/1): I’ll take a ride with a guy who found 53 of 56 fairways, painted 63 of 72 GIR, and cashed T8 in the Utah desert last week.

Matt NeSmith (140/1): Hitting the top 10 twice in five visits, the South Carolina native has posted 19 of 20 rounds in the red.

Will Gordon (325/1): Posting 23-under over the last two events comes with three rounds in the 70s and five rounds of 68 or bbetter. Let’s gamble!

NOW PLAYING: Shriners Children’s Open

Host Course	TPC Summerlin
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,255.
Par:	71 (35-36).
Greens:	Dominator Bentgrass; 7,400 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	11.5 feet and up.
Rough:	419 Bermudagrass at 2.25 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	92/4/4
Architect(s):	Bobby Weed (1991).
Defending Champion (event):	Tom Kim
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	Tom Kim (2022, 2023), Martin Laird (2009, 2020).
Fact of the Week:	Koreans have won four of the last five events.

TPC Summerlin

Sitting northwest of downtown Las Vegas and The Strip, TPC Summerlin was opened for play in 1991 and joined the rotation for the Shriners Children’s Open for the 1992 tournament.

Gone are the days of five rounds spread over three courses, but there have been plenty of changes in the last 30 years in this part of the world. Starting with the 2008 tournament, TPC Summerlin served as the exclusive host.

The 2009 edition was the first played at Par-71, one shot fewer than the Par-72.

The 2014 event tipped at 7,255 yards and is the yardage from the back tees on the 2024 scorecard.

Located at 2,700 feet above sea level, the Bobby Weed design does not require players to overpower the layout. The large landing areas and putting surfaces reward accuracy over power and allow play when the desert gusts blow.

Keeping the ball out of the desert and the four water penalty areas will ensure birdie chances follow. The quartet of Par-3 holes provides the greatest challenges, but the rest of the track affords birdie opportunities.

The 7,400-square-foot targets are carpeted with Dominator Bentgrass, new as of the 2022 tournament. Two and two-quarter inches of 419 Bermudagrass provide the border before the desert. Closely mown areas around the greens allow creativity to get up and down or to hole out.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)
Black Desert Championship	Matt McCarty (first time)

Recent Winners – Shriners Children’s Open

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Tom Kim (-20)	Holding off Adam Hadwin by a shot, the Korean became the first player to successfully defend the title at TPC Summerlin.
2022	Tom Kim (-24)	Winning by four, Kim did not square or bogey or worse on his card.
2021	Sungjae Im (-24)	Matched the tournament scoring record and won by four shots.
2020	Martin Laird (-23)	Victorious in the three-man playoff, the Scot won for the second time at TPC Summerlin.
2019	Kevin Na (-23)	Defeated Patrick Cantlay in a playoff to win for the second time at TPC Summerlin.
2018	Bryson DeChambeau (-21)	Defeated Patrick Cantlay by one.
2017	Patrick Cantlay (-9)	Winning for the first time on TOUR, Cantlay outlasted the wind and a three-man playoff.
2016	Rod Pampling (-20)	The Australian became the oldest winner at age 47.
2015	Smylie Kaufman (-16)	Closing with 61, the LSU grad won for the first time on TOUR.
2014	Ben Martin	Defeated Kevin Streelman by two shots to become the first winner at 7,255 yards.

Black Desert Championship

October 9, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

https://twitter.com/PGATOUR/status/1843297735631573019

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 3

Black Desert Championship

Black Desert Resort Golf Club

Ivins, Utah

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Quick Links:

Odds Outlook – DFS Report – Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – Expert Picks

Mike Glasscott: Black Desert Championship tips

Win: Kurt Kitayama (28/1), Ryan Fox (33/1)

Top 10: Erik van Rooyen (33/10), Matti Schmid (5/1)

Top 20: Zac Blair (7/2), Peter Kuest (11/2)

Bet365: Top of the Board

Keith Mitchell (20/1): For the second consecutive week the former Georgia Bulldog sits at the top of the Bet365.com board. Last week, he missed a four-foot putt on the 72^nd hole to miss out on a playoff. The leader after 36 and 54 holes could not pick up his second win and settled for T3, his third consecutive T12 or better on TOUR. He will need another big week from his putter to replicate the low scores produced in Mississippi.

Seamus Power (25/1): A quick glance shows a payday of T11 last week for the Irishman. A deeper inspection reveals four rounds in the 60s. Twice a winner on TOUR, the 37-year-old relies on Par 5 scoring and his short game to contend.

Kurt Kitayama (28/1): The more I dug into his stats this week, the more I’m interested! The Las Vegas resident will not be bothered with desert golf, regardless of the venue. Cashing T8 at TPC Scottsdale in February, another Weiskopf design, he has finished on the podium four times in the last two years on courses he’s never played.

Beau Hossler (30/1): Half of the top four players at Bet365.com had heartbreaking moments on Sunday. Searching for his first win on TOUR, he found himself behind a tree after his tee shot on the final hole. Unable to make a birdie and win the event, he lost in the first hole of the playoff to Kevin Yu (not entered). The good news is that, like Mitchell, he circled 27 par breakers to co-lead the field.

Ryan Fox (33/1): The Kiwi, snubbed by Mike Weir for the Presidents Cup last month, played two non-descript events in Great Britain before cashing T11 in Mississippi. The big hitter possesses a hot putter and should thrive in a birdie fest.

Chan Kim (33/1): The last time the Korean found the top 10 was at the ISCO Championship in July. Before that result, he cashed T8 at the Mexico Open at Vidanta, another wide-open track from the tee box with enormous greens.

Patrick Fishburn (33/1): Teaming up with fellow Utahn Zac Blair at the Zurich Classic, the Ogden resident is no longer an unknown quantity. Taking home a paycheck for T48 in Mississippi, he broke his streak of eight consecutive paydays of T25 or better. Posting 11-under, he didn’t play poorly, but two rounds in the 70s on the weekend didn’t help and will not help this week either. The pressure of being one of the favorites plus one of the crowd favorites creates a complex cocktail.

Black Desert Championship

The PGA TOUR returns to the Beehive State for the first time since the 1963 Utah Open Invitational.

The field of 132 players in the inaugural event will play 36 holes before being cut to the top 65 and ties for the final 36 holes.

The winner will pocket $1.350 million of the $7.5 million prize pool plus 500 FedExCup points.

This is the third of eight events in the FedExCup Fall. Read more about the final eight events of the season here.

Others to consider:

The Utah contingent entered this week includes a range of players highlighted by 65-year-old Jay Don Blake, who is making his 500thPGA TOUR start, and 18-year-old Kihei Akina, who is making his PGA TOUR debut.

Erik van Rooyen (35/1): The winner in his first start at Old Greenwood (2021 Barracuda Championship), the 34-year-old South African also won a shootout at Vidanta Vallarta on 27-under last November.

Andrew Novak (35/1): Grinding along in his best season on TOUR, he has cashed a paycheck in his last eight starts and cashed T8 at TPC Scottsdale earlier in 2024.

Daniel Berger (45/1): The five-time winner on TOUR opened 65-65 last week and sat one off the halfway lead. Cashing solo seventh, a round of 71 on Saturday muted his challenge.

Harry Hall (55/1): The Englishman calls Las Vegas home and already has won a shootout this season. The winner of a five-man playoff at the ISCO Championship in July, his super short game results in plenty of birdies, and that will play in the desert of Utah.

Matti Schmid (66/1): The German international cashed in 11 of his last 12 starts worldwide and has been steady regardless of the postcode of the event. Last week, he secured T16 after posting just one bogey in his last 54 holes.

Zac Blair (110/1): One of five me to fall to Hall in the ISCO Championship playoff, the Orem resident will embrace the home-state advantage. Blowing hot and cold, his missed cut last week came on four-under. Not all missed cuts are created equal.

Austin Smotherman (125/1): Cashing T7 at the Procore Championship after the first event of the FedExCup Fall, combined with T5 at Vidanta Vallarta last November, allows me to connect a longshot dot.

Peter Kuest (200/1): The BYU grad has played three PGA TOUR events this year and hit the top 10 twice. When the stars align!

NOW PLAYING: Black Desert Championship

Host Course	Black Desert Resort Golf Club
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,371.
Par:	72 (36-36).
Greens:	XL007 Bentgrass; 7,000 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	12 feet or less (wind dependent).
Rough:	Kentucky Bluegrass at two inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	44/3/2
Architect(s):	Tom Weiskopf & Neil Smith (2022).
Defending Champion (event):	Inaugural event.
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	None.
Multiple Champions (course):	None.
Fact of the Week:	The last event held in Utah was the 1963 Utah Open Invitational.

Black Desert Resort Golf Club

Sitting 3,100 feet above sea level, Black Desert Resort Golf Club opened in late 2022. Designed by Tom Weiskopf and Neil Smith, the course was built on, through, and around the black lava in the valley of Greater Zion in the southwestern part of the state.

Tipping at 7,371 yards, the Par 71 will not play that long due to the altitude. Three Par-5 holes range between 571 and 589 yards. The quartet of Par-3 holes features an homage to the “Postage Stamp” at Royal Troon, the site of Weiskopf’s only major championship. Adding to the scoring drama will be two risk-reward Par 4 holes that measure less than 325 yards, one on each nine.

The risk-reward from the tee box offers fairways 30 yards wide in places. Framed by two inches of Kentucky Bluegrass, players pushing the edge of where the grass meets the lava will provide the best angles of attack. If the wind in the desert decides to blow, there is plenty of room to navigate off the tee and into the greens.

The 7,000-square-foot targets are carpeted with Bentgrass. The green complexes, above average in size by TOUR standards, will run true and roll just a click under 12 feet. The complexes have plenty of room for different styles of hole locations.

Only two holes have water penalty areas, while 44 bunkers litter the lava fields just 120 miles north of Las Vegas. Closely mown areas repel approaches that do not reach the intended targets. Two inches of Kentucky Bluegrass keep wayward tee shots from being swallowed by the ancient rocks.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire
Sanderson Farms Championship	Kevin Yu (first time)

Recent Winners – Black Desert Championship

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2024	Inaugural Event

Sanderson Farms Championship

October 2, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

Look at the size of that chicken!

FedExCup Fall – Event No. 2

Sanderson Farms Championship

Country Club of Jackson

Jackson, Mississippi

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Odds Outlook – DFS Report – Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – Expert Picks

Mike Glasscott: Sanderson Farms Championship tips

Win: Nick Dunlap (25/1), Matt McCarty (45/1)

Top 10: Mark Hubbard (11/2), Ben Griffin (33/10)

Top 20: Wilson Furr (17/4), Greyson Sigg (33/10)

Top 40: Tyler Duncan (12/5), Chad Ramey (29/20)

Bet365: Top of the Board

Keith Mitchell (22/1): Ranking in the top 10 of most ball-striking categories, the Tennessee native has cashed solo 12^th and T12 in his last two events on TOUR. A previous winner on TOUR, the former Georgia Bulldog has never made the cut in four previous visits.

Seamus Power (22/1): The Irishman hit the top 10 for the first time in 2024 on TOUR in his last outing at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Cashing T10, he extended his streak of play on the weekends to six straight and four registered T28 or better. Making his seventh start at the Country Club of Jackson, the two-time TOUR winner has never been better than T18 but has four paychecks inside the top 30.

Mackenzie Hughes (25/1): The only player entered this week who played in the Presidents Cup, the Canadian enjoys the Bermudagrass of Mississippi. The 2022 champion posted 70-70 (-4) in defense last year, but that wasn’t low enough to play the weekend. Coming off T4 at the Procore Championship, I would expect him to pop right into contention again.

Nick Dunlap (25/1): The Alabama native began the season as an amateur and ended the season in the Top 50 at the BMW Championship. The winner at The American Express in January as an amateur also won and event as a professional at the Barracuda Championship in July. Playing in the final group at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, he couldn’t keep up with eventual champion Hideki Matsuyama but cashed T5 to secure top 50 playing privileges for 2025. I’m not sure anything is going to bother him!

Maverick McNealy (28/1): Still on the hunt for his first victory on TOUR, my choice to win in this column at the Procore Championship, missed the cut. Playing for the first time since the 2021 edition, his best finish in Jackson is T17 on his last visit. Outstanding throughout the bag, a sharp week on approach will be necessary to contend.

Ben Griffin (30/1): The 18-hole, 36-hole, and 54-hole leader last year could not close the deal in regulation and fell short in the five-man playoff. Posting a career scoring average of 68.63, he owns five rounds from eight of 68 or better at the Country Club of Jackson.

J.J. Spaun (30/1): Rolling into town with T29 or better in five of his last six events on TOUR, the Californian is hoping the sixth time in Mississippi is the charm. His best finish in five starts is T34. Recent top-10 paydays at the 3M Open and Wyndham Championship are hard to ignore.

Others to consider:

Patrick Fishburn (33/1): The run of form is third, missed cut, T6, third, and T15 for the GIR machine.

Mark Hubbard (50/1): The leader after 54 holes two years ago, the Californian posted 74 in the final round and shared fifth. Last year, he posted 17-under and missed the playoff by a shot (T6). He’s 30-under over the last eight rounds.

Andrew Novak (55/1): Making the cut in 15 of 20 events in 2024, the Sea Island resident cashed in the top 10 four times and nine times in the top 25. Sitting 20^th in SG: Total, he’s quietly under the radar.

Cameron Champ (45/1): The 2018 winner in just his second event with a PGA TOUR card ran T9 here last year. Owns a 68.17 scoring average here over 12 rounds.

Matt McCarty (45/1): Bypassing the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, the three-time winner has cashed in the top 10 seven times in his last nine starts. He won’t be lacking confidence or form.

Chad Ramey (125/1): The Mississippi native, already a winner on TOUR, arrives with five consecutive paychecks deposited on TOUR. Davis Riley (100/1), a two-time winner on TOUR, is also a Mississippi native and in the field.

Greyson Sigg (90/1): T4 at the Procore Championship broke a streak of six missed cuts. Stay hot!

Tyler Duncan (275/1): Cashing T16 and T14 in two of the last three years, the man from Indiana has found something in Mississippi.

Wilson Furr (125/1): The winnerb of the Gator Invitational at the Country Club of Jackson in 2018, the Jackson native calls this his home course.

NOW PLAYING: Sanderson Farms Championship

Host Course	Country Club of Jackson
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,461.
Par:	72 (36-36).
Greens:	Champion Bermudagrass; 6,200 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	11.5 feet and up.
Rough:	419 Bermudagrass/Zoysia at 2.5 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	54/7/5.
Architect(s):	John Fought (2008).
Defending Champion (event):	Luke List.
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	None.
Multiple Champions (course):	None.
Fact of the Week:	The last five tournaments have been decided by a playoff or one shot.

Sanderson Farms Championship

Golf in Mississippi has been on the PGA TOUR schedule since 1968, but the Country Club of Jackson and the Sanderson Farms Championship both debuted in October of 2014 as part of the 2014-15 season.

An opposite-field event until the 2019-20 season, the 2019 edition was awarded full FedExCup points and benefits.

Luke List, currently listed at 90/1 at Bet365.com will defend the title and look to become the first player to win in back-to-back years.

No player has won this event at the Country Club of Jackson more than once.

The first six events produced first-time winners on the PGA TOUR.

The last four events have crowned previous champions.

The winning total has been 18-under or better in eight of ten events.

All ten champions have ranked in the top 15 of Putting: Birdie or Better Percentage.

Winners have ranked in the top 15 in Ball-Striking in seven of ten events.

Former champions in the field also include Mackenzie Hughes, Cameron Champ, the youngest winner at 23, Ryan Armour, the oldest winner at 43, Cody Gribble, and Peter Malnati.

The field of 132 players includes four open qualifiers and will play 36 holes before being cut to the top 65 and ties.

The winner will pocket $1.368 million of the $7.6 million prize pool plus 500 FedExCup points.

This is the second of eight events in the FedExCup Fall. Read more about the final eight events of the season here.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

FedEx Cup Fall
Procore Championship	Patton Kizzire

The Country Club of Jackson

Founded in 1914, the course presently has 27 holes, but the Dogwood and Azalea nines are used for the Sanderson Farms Championship.

In 2008, architect John Faught, with the help of Mike Gogel, renovated the property for PGA TOUR play.

Hosting for the 11^th year in a row, the Par-72 will play 7,461 yards for the fifth consecutive season.

The Bermudagrass fairways are framed by two-and-a-half inches of Bermuda/Zoysia rough, a half an inch increase over 2023. Strategically placed bunkers, 56 total, plus seven water penalty areas scattered across five holes, will provide deterrence.

Champion Bermudagrass, tricky and grainy, covers the putting surfaces, which range to 6,200 square feet on average, and run at 11.5 feet and up.

The Par-5 holes rank in the top 15 of most difficult faced on TOUR.

Finding fairways this week will be the first challenge.

Holing putts and keeping the card clean is also necessary. The last five winners have not squared more than five bogeys for the week.

The winning score range includes 22-under in 2021, the tournament scoring record set by Sam Burns (not entered), and 16-under in the inaugural event in the fall of 2014.

Will Zalatoris (not entered) posted 61 (11-under-par), also in the 2021 edition, and owns the course record.

The 36-hole cut has been under par in each edition, including a record 5-under last year and in 2021.

Recent Winners – Sanderson Farms Championship

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Luke List (-18)	Won a five-man playoff for his second TOUR win.
2022	Mackenzie Hughes (-17)	Defeated Sepp Straka in a playoff for his second TOUR victory.
2021	Sam Burns (-22)	Set the tournament scoring record.
2020	Sergio Garcia (-19)	Held off 2015 champion Peter Malnati by a shot.
2019	Sebastian Munoz (-18)	Knocked out Sungjae Im in a playoff for his first win on TOUR.
2018	Cameron Champ (-21)	The youngest winner at 23, the Californian won for the first time on TOUR.
2017	Ryan Armour (-19)	The oldest winner at 43, the veteran picked up his first victory on TOUR.
2016	Cody Gribble (-20)	Became the first winner to reach 20-under; Won for the first time on TOUR.
2015	Peter Malnati (-18)	First-time winner was victorious by a shot.
2014	Nick Taylor (-15)	The first-time winner was victorious by a shot.

FedExCup Fall – Procore Championship

September 11, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

After attending the 2023 event, I’m bummed I am not there for 2024!

FedExCup Fall – Procore Championship

Silverado Resort

North Course

Napa, California

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Quick Links:

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Mike Glasscott: Procore Championship tips

Win: Maverick McNealy (22/1), Rico Hoey (70/1)

Top 10: Matt Kuchar (11/2), Brendon Todd (17/4), J.J. Spaun (16/5)

Top 20: Charley Hoffman (33/10), Justin Lower (7/2)

Top 40: Martin Laird (11/5)

Bet365: Top of the Board

Sahith Theegala (11/1): Only Collin Morikawa (not entered) posted a lower gross total at The TOUR Championship three weeks ago in Atlanta. Defending a title for the first time comes with extra duties, but the 2024 Presidents Cup team player will not be searching for any answers in the dirt in Wine Country. Making his fifth appearance, along with his victory, he cashed T6 and T14 in three previous starts.

Wyndham Clark (12/1): Wins in California at the 2023 U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club and the Pebble Beach Pro-Am last February, golf in the Golden State suits his eye. Cashing T14 or better in six of his last seven tournaments on TOUR suggests his game travels.

Corey Conners (16/1): Peppering Fairways and GIR, the Canadian will look to repay the trust shown to him by International Captain Mike Weir. A Captain’s pick, the Ontario native has not missed a cut on TOUR since the 2023 U.S. Open.

Maverick McNealy (22/1): The Stanford, California, native will look to follow in Theegala’s footsteps as a first-time winner on TOUR from the Golden State. Posting T3 at the 3M Open, the last tournament for the rank and file with Bent/Poa annua greens, he just missed advancing to the BMW Championship with T12 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in August. The Stanford grad posted 18-under here in 2021 finishing second by a shot to Homa.

Max Homa (22/1): In his last three visits he’s won twice and cashed T7. His previous visit to the top 10 on TOUR came at Quail Hollow, another course where he’s won. Selected to the Presidents Cup by USA Captain Jim Furyk, I couldn’t think of a better landing spot to dial in his game for Royal Montreal in two weeks.

Min Woo Lee (25/1): The Australian, a runner-up twice this season on TOUR, is still looking for his first victory on U.S. soil. The big hitter from Perth will look to overpower the 7,123-yard resort course on debut.

Luke Clanton (25/1): The amateur from Florida State University, the No. 1 ranked amateur in the world, exploded onto the radar after making the cut at the U.S. Open (T41). Cashing T10 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in his TOUR debut, the following week he posted 24-under to share second at the John Deere Classic. Returning to Earth with T37 and a missed cut, his final attempt of the 2024 season resulted in solo fifth at the Wyndham Championship.

J.J. Spaun (28/1): A slow start to 2024 kept the San Diego native out of the FedExCup Playoffs but a fantastic regular season finish keeps him on my radar. The Californian did not pick up his first top 25 until T10 in Detroit began a streak of six straight. Closing with T9 at 3M and T3 at Wyndham suggests he’s not satisfied with being ranked 97th.

Players to consider for Top 10 or Top 20 action:

Matt Kuchar (55/1): In the last two regular season events he was in the fight on Sunday. Same with the last two years at Silverado.

Charley Hoffman (90/1): A victory would match Stewart Cink as the oldest champion. A top-20 finish would be his third in his last four starts on TOUR.

Brendon Todd (40/1): Another top-10 result this season would make it three consecutive years in the top 10 in Napa Valley. Possessing a driver that finds fairways, the four-time winner on TOUR also has a deft short game.

Eric Cole (40/1): Rolled in 23 birdies on debut last year and collected money for solo fourth. The Florida native has cashed in eight straight events on TOUR.

Nick Taylor (75/1): Snubbed for the Presidents Cup in his native Canada, there is plenty of motivation this week.

Justin Lower (100/1): Two years ago, he played from the lead in the final group before finishing T4.

Rico Hoey (66/1): In five of his last six events, he’s cashed T26 or better, including three inside the top 10.

Martin Laird (225/1): The TOUR veteran shines this time of year and has played well recently here and at Lake Tahoe.

NOW PLAYING: Procore Championship

Host Course	Silverado Resort – North Course
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,123.
Par:	72 (35-37).
Greens:	Bentgrass/Poa annua; 5,400 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	11.5 feet and up.
Rough:	Bluegrass/Rye at 2.5 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	55/2/2
Architect(s):	Ben Harmon (1955); Robert Trent Jones, Sr., (1966); Johnny Miller (2011).
Defending Champion (event):	Sahith Theegala
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	Max Homa (2022, 2021).
Multiple Champions (course):	Max Homa, Brendan Steele (not entered).
Fact of the Week:	5 of the 8 winners in the previous 10 events at Silverado are native Californians.

Procore Championship

Procore becomes the third sponsor in 11 tournaments in Napa Valley.

The opening event to the wrap-around season from years past transitioned into the opening event for the FedExCup Fall in 2023.

Sahith Theegala, the betting favorite at Bet365.com, returns to defend the title at the site of his first win on the PGA TOUR.

Max Homa, the 2021 and 2022 winner, finished T7 last year as he attempted to join Steve Stricker (John Deere Classic) as the last player to win an event in three consecutive seasons.

The first 10 events produced eight unique winners and five were native Californians.

The last five winners have posted 16-under or better, and three of the previous four champions have posted the lowest winning totals.

Theegala is the only winner in the last six editions not to register in the top three in SG: Tee to Green (T6).

In his first victory in 2021, Max Homa is the only winner in the last six years to finish outside the top seven in Scrambling (T42).

Former champions in the field this week also include Cameron Champ (2019), Kevin Tway (2018), and Monday Qualifier Sangmoon Bae (2014).

The field of 144 players includes four open qualifiers and will play 36 holes before being cut to the top 65 and ties.

The winner will pocket $1.080 million of the $6 million prize pool plus 500 FedExCup points.

Recent PGA TOUR Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)
124^th United States Open	Bryson DeChambeau
Travelers Championship	Scottie Scheffler (6)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Cam Davis
John Deere Classic	Davis Thompson (first time)
Genesis Scottish Open	Robert MacIntyre (2)
152^nd Open Championship	Xander Schauffele (2)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
2024 Paris Olympics	Scottie Scheffler (7)
3M Open	Jhonattan Vegas
Wyndham Championship	Aaron Rai (first time)
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Hideki Matsuyama (2)
BMW Championship	Keegan Bradley
The TOUR Championship	Scottie Scheffler (8)

Recent Winners – Procore Championship

Italics – not entered/qualified this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Sahith Theegala (-21)	California native won for the first time on TOUR and tied the tournament scoring record.
2022	Max Homa (-16)	Successfully defended his 2021 title by defeating 2016 Masters champion Danny Willett by a shot.
2021	Max Homa (-19)	Closing with 65, he beat Maverick McNealy by a shot to pick up his first top 10 since June.
2020	Stewart Cink (-21)	Became the oldest winner at 47 while setting the tournament scoring record.
2019	Cameron Champ (-17)	Sacramento native held off Adam Hadwin to win by one.
2018	Kevin Tway (-14)	Posting the highest winning total, Tway needed a playoff to win for the first time on TOUR.

124th United States Open

June 12, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

Picturesque Pinehurst ⛳️ pic.twitter.com/5idmZvH80Q
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 11, 2024

124^th United States Open

Pinehurst Golf and Country Club

Course No. 2

Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina

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Mike Glasscott: 124^th United States Open tips

Tony Finau (-138) v Wyndham Clark

This matchup is a story of two players going in two different directions. Finau has rattled off seven consecutive cuts, including five paydays of T18 or better. After watching his on-course interview during the round on Saturday, he seems at peace with his life and game.

Clark became the first player since 2009 (Lucas Glover) to win the U.S. Open the first time he made the cut (third attempt). The defending champion has a win this season at Pebble Beach but has missed the cut in three of his last five events, including both majors and last week at Memorial. Tossing in the responsibilities of being the defending champion and the extra duties that come with all the requests before the event starts doesn’t leave much time to tune up the golf game.

Sepp Straka (-110) v Jason Day

If this was Jason Day circa 2014, I would be all over the Australian and his chances. Cashing five times in the top 10 from his first six attempts, the 2015 PGA Champion has only made two cuts in his last five starts at this major. His fantastic short game will get plenty of opportunities this week.

Straka is hotter than a match. Back-to-back T5 paydays at two of the most demanding tracks on TOUR, Muirfield Village and Colonial added to his streak of T16 or better finishes since St. Patrick’s Day. The Austrian has not been bothered by big fields or difficult tracks and has a more well-rounded bag.

Matt Fitzpatrick (-125) v Max Homa

I’m keeping this one simple: I’m riding with the 2022 champion at The Country Club because he’s the better driver of the golf ball and it’s not close. Ranking ninth in Total Driving to Homa’s 90^th, I’ll lean on the guy who can reduce stress off the tee. The U.S. Open is not an event to spray the ball everywhere off the tee is conducive to contending. In nine previous attempts, the Englishman has played the weekend. Homa, making his fifth start, has played the weekend once (T47) and owns at 73.92 scoring average.

Bet365: Top of the Board

Scottie Scheffler (3/1): I’m running out of things to write. Picking up his fifth win of the season last week, he’s now lifted the trophy at Jack’s Place, Arnold’s Place, Harbour Town, TPC Sawgrass, and Augusta National. That’s a great CAREER. As my buddy Jay suggests, if you’re not paying 3-1, bet your guy in the market WITHOUT SCHEFFLER. Safety first.

Xander Schauffele (10/1): The PGA Champion worked the kinks out last week at Memorial and still hit the top 10 for the 10^th time in 14 events. I would give him the nod this week because of his short game and putting, but winning two major championships on the bounce is unlikely. Posting his eighth consecutive T14 or better at the U.S. Open is.

Rory McIlroy (11/1): Tuesday was a big news day at Pinehurst. Jon Rahm withdrew with an infected foot and McIlroy reconciled with his wife. The Hollywood ending for the man from Holywood, Northern Ireland, would be to win a major for the first time in almost a decade. Remember, the divorce papers were filed the Monday before the PGA Championship? Odd timing to say the least to have this all surround the middle two major championships.

Collin Morikawa (16/1): This time last week I thought he was ready to knock off Scheffler. He had a six-footer late in the round to tie the lead, but his putt went begging. I have seen nothing in his last three events that suggests smoke and mirrors. I’m playing another win ticket with and without Scheffler on him this week.

Viktor Hovland (16/1): The short-game numbers surrounding the 2023 FedExCup winner scare me to death this week. The greens here are visited, not held very often, and getting up and down is required. 2014 champion Martin Kaymer showed the way by using the “Texas Wedge” in his eight-shot victory. The Norwegian is starting to simmer.

Bryson DeChambeau (20/1): Placing in the top 10 in the first two majors, the 2020 U.S. Open winner is one of four players to accomplish that feat in 2024. My biggest concern THIS WEEK is his errant drives will not find four inches of Bluegrass where he can muscle up recovery shots. Bunkers and sandy, waste areas filled with wire grass will be too many variables to run through his computer. Unlucky bounces, perfectly struck irons that miss their target by a yard, and super-slick BERMUDA will cause him to overheat.

Ludvig Aberg (20/1): Playing in just his third major championship, the Swede has already solved Augusta National (2nd) but did not play the weekend at Valhalla. Making his first appearance at the U.S. Open, only Francis Ouimet (1913) won on debut.

Brooks Koepka (22/1): Time to flip his favorite switch. Making his 11^th start, he already has two championships and three additional finishes T5 or better. A quiet Masters (T45) and T26 and a less-than-demanding Valhalla should have his chili running hot. Pinehurst No. 2 is difficult and he should be in the mix Sunday afternoon.

Tommy Fleetwood (28/1): Over his career, he has found the top 10 three times from eight starts and has posted 63 twice. Write a top 20 ticket and get Dad something nice for Father’s Day.

Players to consider for Top 10 or Top 20 action:

Matt Fitzpatrick and Hideki Matsuyama each at 40/1 catch my eye. Both are excellent around the greens which will be a major factor in determining the champion this week. Both finished in the top 10 last week at Memorial and come into this week flying.

Cameron Smith (45/1): The Sandhills of North Carolina should remind him of the Sand Belt in his native Australia. Big landing areas off the tee will suit the weakest part of his game.

Sam Burns (66/1): Bermuda greens and a grind make for a lovely combination.

Denny McCarthy (110/1): The return to Bermuda will fit his eye. His super short game should move him up the leaderboard this week.

Harris English (125/1): Never missed in eight tries and has hit the top 10 in three of the last four.

Nick Dunlap (175/1): Won the North and South Amateur on Pinehurst No. 2 last summer. Top 25 in his last two starts on TOUR that were not majors.

JT Poston (200/1): The North Carolina native should feel at home on Bermuda. Firm and fast conditions will help the hyper-accurate driver keep up off the tee. The super putter will hole a few.

Gordon Sargent (500/1): The low amateur from 2023 returns for another crack.

Frankie Capan III (1000/1): Won the USGA Amateur Four-Ball here in 2017.

NOW PLAYING:

Host Course	Pinehurst No. 2
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,548.
Par:	70 (35-35).
Greens:	Champion UltraDwarf Bermuda at 6,500 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	Championship speed. 13 feet plus.
Rough:	None.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	117/1/1 (water is 200 yards off the tee; not in play).
Architect(s):	Donald Ross (1907); Rees Jones (1999); Coore & Crenshaw (2011).
Defending Champion (event):	Wyndham Clark (LACC).
Defending Champion (course):	Martin Kaymer (-9).
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	Tiger Woods (2000, 2005, 2008) & Brooks Koepka (2017, 2018).
Course Record	65; Martin Kaymer (Rounds 1 and 2, 2014).
72 Hole Tournament Record:	271, 9-under; Martin Kaymer (2014).
Facts of the Week:	Martin Kaymer has not won anywhere in the world since winning the 2014 U.S. Open.

Pinehurst No. 2

The Village of Pinehurst, set in the Sandhills of North Carolina east of Charlotte and southwest of Raleigh-Durham, is the home of the famous No. 2 course.

Completed by legendary architect and resident Donald Ross in 1907, No. 2 has hosted every major USGA event dating back to the 1936 PGA Championship, plus the annual North and South Amateur.

Hosting the United States Open for the fourth time in history and the first since 2014, the Par-70 will play two yards longer, 7,548 yards, than the last edition when Martin Kaymer steamrolled the field.

The 2024 edition will feature Champion UltraDwarf Bermudagrass greens for the first time in the 124-year history of the event. Sturdier and more heat tolerant than Bentgrass, UltraDwarf thrives in the summer.

The green complexes, tilting slightly from back to front, have not changed and are the signature of Ross’s design. The pushed-up putting surfaces, resembling a turtle’s shell, repel shots that are not struck soundly or have the proper spin. After finding the fairways, getting a decent lie or making clean contact from the sandy waste areas littered with wire grass is the second challenge.

Bogeys will be prevalent, but short-game experts can save shots around and on the greens. There is no rough, just closely mown areas that will test the patience, putting, and chipping from shots that do not find the greenside bunkers.

The course has one water penalty area, but it is not in play for the best in the game, and there is no out of bounds.

After 21-under par was the winning score at the PGA Championship, I would be surprised if there were 21 people at par or better this week.

The post-2011 restoration course record is 65, set in Rounds 1 and 2 by 2014 winner Martin Kaymer.

Kaymer also owns the tournament scoring record on this routing and is just one of four contestants to play 72 holes under par. The other three are Rickie Fowler and Erik Compton (-1) in 2014 and 1999 winner Payne Stewart (-1).

Recent Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express	Nick Dunlap (a)
Farmers Insurance Open	Matthieu Pavon (rookie)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Wyndham Clark (54 holes)
WM Phoenix Open	Nick Taylor
The Genesis Invitational	Hideki Matsuyama
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Jake Knapp (rookie)
Cognizant Classic	Austin Eckroat (first time)
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Peter Malnati
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Stephan Jaeger (first time)
Valero Texas Open	Akshay Bhatia
88^th Masters Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (3)
RBC Heritage	Scottie Scheffler (4)
Zurich Classic	Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Taylor Pendrith (first time)
Wells Fargo Championship	Rory McIlroy (2)
106^th PGA Championship	Xander Schauffele
Charles Schwab Challenge	Davis Riley
RBC Canadian Open	Robert MacIntyre (first time)
The 49^th Memorial Tournament	Scottie Scheffler (5)

The 124^th United States Open

The first event, held in 1895, consisted of ten professionals and one amateur and was held at the Newport Golf and Country Club in Rhode Island.

The previous 123 editions have seen four players win the event four times. Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, and Jack Nicklaus are the members of this exclusive club.

Tiger Woods, winner of three titles, and Brooks Koepka, winner of two championships, are both in the field. Koepka is the last player who successfully defended the title.

The loaded field of 156 players includes every golfer in the top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings, 13 previous event winners, and 28 major champions.

The top 60 and ties after two rounds, will play the final 36 holes.

There will be a two-hole aggregate playoff, if necessary, to determine a champion if there is a tie after 72 holes.

John J. McDermott, 19 in 1911, is the youngest champion.

Hale Irwin won his third title at 45 in 1990, becoming the oldest winner.

Only Francis Ouimet (1913) has won on debut and no player has ever made this event their first win on TOUR.

Wyndham Clark (2023) became the fifth consecutive champion to win their first major at this event.

Since 2010, every winner has ranked inside the top 40 in the OWGR.

The last four champions were 20-somethings.

In 1999, Payne Stewart became the last 40-year-old or older to win.

Jon Rahm, the 2021 winner at Torrey Pines, withdrew Tuesday afternoon.

The winner will take home 750 FedExCup points, the Jack Nicklaus Medal, and $3.9 million of the $20 million prize purse.

Recent Winners – U.S. Open

Italics – not entered this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Wyndham Clark (-10)	At 29, he became the fourth consecutive winner in the 20s and just second winner since Lucas Glover to be victorious the first time making the cut.
2022	Matt Fitzpatrick (-6)	At 29, he became the fourth consecutive winner in the 20s and just the second winner since Lucas Glover to be victorious the first time making the cut.
2021	Jon Rahm (-6)	Won his first major championship at Torrey Pines.
2020	Bryson DeChambeau (-6)	Won his first major championship at Winged Foot and was the only player to break par.
2019	Gary Woodland (-13)	The last player in their 30s to win the event. Defeated Brooks Koepka by three shots at Pebble Beach.

One and Done

I’ll be joining Spotter’s game again this season. Now, where did I put my checkbook…

35 events.

1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy gets kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee Thursday).

1 use per year.

Add up the total money and Spotter is yer uncle!

Event	Selection	Earnings
The Sentry	Collin Morikawa	690,500
Sony Open in Hawaii	Corey Conners	18,592
The American Express	Adam Hadwin	310,800
Farmers Insurance Open	Jason Day	0
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am	Jordan Spieth	70,125
WM Phoenix Open	Matt Fitzpatrick	156,200
The Genesis Invitational	Max Homa	329,000
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau	145,125
Cognizant Classic	Russell Henley	32,850
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Scottie Scheffler	4,000,000
THE PLAYERS Championship	Will Zalatoris	0
Valspar Championship	Sam Burns	0
Texas Children’s Houston Open	Wyndham Clark	54,418
Valero Texas Open	C Bezuidenhout	67,735
88^th Masters Tournament	Rory McIlroy	175,500
RBC Heritage	Patrick Cantlay	1,160,000
Zurich Classic	Nick Taylor	122,375
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson	Stephan Jaeger	112,100
Myrtle Beach Classic	Daniel Berger	20,350
Wells Fargo Championship	Sahith Theegala	47,000
106^th PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka	113,962
Charles Schwab Challenge	Taylor Moore	0
RBC Canadian Open	Mackenzie Hughes	295,316
49^th Memorial Tournament	Ben An	200,200

Total Winnings:		8,122,148

His game has more fun stuff to it. Reach out @A340Spotter on Twitter or A340Spotter@frontier.com for more details and to join.

Recapping Last Week – 49^th Memorial Tournament

I’m done overthinking everything.

So I’m not thinking, PERIOD!

MY CHOICE: Ben An – T22

Too much heat! Too much power tee-to-green!

Too many players already used!

I didn’t have the winner or solo second to choose from. I guess Adam Hadwin was making up for lost time after missing the cut at his national open the week prior.

Others to Consider:

Patrick Cantlay: The course horse this week. Giddy up, if you can. And by giddy up, I meant RUN AWAY AS FAST AS YOU CAN. MC.

Viktor Hovland: I’m never a fan of following in Tiger’s footsteps, but he isn’t concerned about that history. The 2023 FedExCup winner entered the weekend 6-under but shot 77-75 to drift to T15. He’s close.

Si Woo Kim: Risky, rewardy, but he’s rocked here since the renovation. Another top 15 (T15) payday.

Justin Thomas: If you believe he’s really, really close then fire away. I’m not crazy about any of these plays with a major championship next week. After closing with three straight bogeys, he settled for T33.

This Week – 124^th United States Open

No need to save guys anymore.

MY CHOICE: Xander Schauffele

The plan from the start of the season was to use him at Pinehurst and here we are.

With a win already under his belt and a MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP on the mantle, he should be free to go about his business and run down Scheffler.

Others to Consider:

Scottie Scheffler

Collin Morikawa

Brooks Koepka

Matt Fitzpatrick

Hideki Matsuyama

Tommy Fleetwood

Good luck! You’ll need it!

The American Express 2024 Preview

January 17, 2024 / mikeglasscott / Leave a comment

Never leave home without it!

The American Express

The Stadium Course at PGA West (Host)

Nicklaus Tournament Course

La Quinta Country Club

La Quinta, CA

Weekly Readers:

Odds Outlook – click here

Horses for Courses/Stats Suggest – click here

Expert Picks – click here

DFS Angles – click here

Bet365.com – click here

Golfbet articles from the entire crew – click here

Welcome to 2024 and the new season.

For those of you who are just arriving for the first time, here’s what’s going on:

Please read the stuff above for the total experience.

Information changes from Sunday to Wednesday morning. If there is anything new/exciting/pertinent, I’ll add it here.

This column is me. My thoughts, my humor, my fun, my opinions. I’m not here for grammar lessons, suggestions, or to charge you.

So shut up, keep up, and enjoy it.

If you have any questions, reach out.

Chalk (via Bet365.com)

My thoughts on the top players for betting purposes:

Scottie Scheffler (11/2): Go on, take the money, and run, goes the song. As Scheffler’s putter goes, his weekly paycheck increases. Nobody hits it better, but when 25-under or better is required, I’m not sure he has enough makes in the flat stick. Take the top 10 and carry on.

Patrick Cantlay (9/1): Don’t forget he used to dominate in the desert outside Las Vegas! The California desert hasn’t been as profitable, but the Californian has racked up three top-10 paydays, including solo second in 2021, in his last four starts. Owning the course record, 61, at the Stadium Course, he’s also produced 62 at La Quinta. He’s my first name on the team sheet this week.

Xander Schauffele (11/1): Returning for the first time since 2017, the Las Vegas resident closed with 62 at the Stadium Course last year to steal a spot on the podium at T3. The last time we saw him in the winner’s circle was in the summer of 2022 in Scotland before The Open Championship. Sitting in the top five in SG: Approach AND Putting, that’s an incredible streak without a win.

Sungjae Im (20/1): Setting the PGA TOUR record for most birdies in a tournament (34) and cashing T5 at Kapalua, the spotlight shines brightly on him this week. Never finishing better than T10 and never worse than T18, it’s not surprising he’s in the field for the sixth consecutive season. This week will be the first time in six seasons he’s not coming directly from Waialae. The Korean posted 20-under last year, his best total, yet it was only good enough for T18.

Tom Kim (20/1): Once Cantlay left the Las Vegas desert, Kim picked up the ball and ran with it. Winning the event the last two seasons, his first two times in the field, he’s proven he can fill it up in perfect scoring conditions. Cashing T6 here last January, the 21-year-old circled 26 birdies and an eagle, plus signed for 62 at the NT. With plenty of options from Korea in the field, he stands out.

Justin Thomas (22/1): Qualifying for Signature Events in 2024 is the carrot for the two-time major winner. Missing out on the playoffs last season, 2024 will require additional concentration, especially with the PGA Championship in his backyard of Louisville coming up in May. The last time he played The American Express was 2015 (T7). A fresh start to a fresh year. All aboard!

NOW PLAYING:

Host Course	Stadium Course at PGA West
Yards (per official scorecard):	7,187
Par:	72 (36-36).
Greens:	Overseeded Poa annua; 5,000 square feet on average.
Stimpmeter:	11 feet.
Rough:	Overseed at 1 inch. Dormant Tifgreen Bermuda at 2 inches.
Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play	Over 90 bunkers, seven holes with water in play.
Architect(s):	Pete Dye (1986).
Defending Champion (event):	Jon Rahm (-27; not entered).
Multiple Champion(s) Entered:	Bill Haas (not on this rotation).
Course Record (last):	61; Patrick Cantlay (Round 4, 2021).
72 Hole Tournament Record (2016-current rotation):	261 (-27); Jon Rahm (2023).
Fact of the Week:	Only six international winners from the previous 64 events.
Fact of the Week II:	Johnny Miller is the only player to defend the title (1975-76).

Notes:

Field of 156.
First multi-course event of 2024 and first pro-am.
The OWGR is represented by 21 of the top 50.
Top 65 and ties will make the cut and play the weekend after 54 holes (play each course once).
$8.4 million – $1.512 million – 500 FedExCup points – Sentry and Masters ticket punched.

Season Winners

2023 Season Winners

Event	Winner
Sentry Tournament of Champions	Jon Rahm
Sony Open in Hawaii	Si Woo Kim
The AMERICAN EXPRESS	Jon Rahm (2)
Farmers Insurance Open	Max Homa (2)
AT&T Pebble Beach	Justin Rose
WM Phoenix Open	Scottie Scheffler
The Genesis Invitational	Jon Rahm (3)
The Honda Classic	Chris Kirk
Arnold Palmer Invitational	Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win)
THE PLAYERS Championship	Scottie Scheffler (2)
Valspar Championship	Taylor Moore (first TOUR win)
Corales Puntacana	Matt Wallace (first TOUR win)
WGC – Dell Technologies MP	Sam Burns
Valero Texas Open	Corey Conners
Masters	Jon Rahm (4)
RBC Heritage	Matt Fitzpatrick
Zurich Classic of New Orleans	Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each)
Mexico Open at Vidanta	Tony Finau (2)
Wells Fargo Championship	Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win)
AT&T Byron Nelson	Jason Day
PGA Championship	Brooks Koepka
Charles Schwab Challenge	Emiliano Grillo
Memorial	Viktor Hovland
RBC Canadian Open	Nick Taylor
U.S. Open	Wyndham Clark (2)
Travelers Championship	Keegan Bradley (2)
Rocket Mortgage Classic	Rickie Fowler
John Deere Classic	Sepp Straka
Genesis Scottish Open	Rory McIlroy (2)
The Open Championship	Brian Harman
3M Open	Lee Hodges (first TOUR win)
Wyndham Championship	Lucas Glover
FedEx St. Jude Championship	Lucas Glover (2)
BMW Championship	Viktor Hovland (2)
TOUR Championship	Viktor Hovland (3)
Fortinet Championship	Sahith Theegala
Sanderson Farms Championship	Luke List
Shriners Children’s Open	Tom Kim
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP	Collin Morikawa
World Wide Technology	Erik van Rooyen
Butterfield Bermuda	Camilo Villegas
The RSM Classic	Ludvig Aberg

2024 Season Winners

Event	Winner
The Sentry	Chris Kirk
Sony Open in Hawaii	Grayson Murray
The American Express
Farmers Insurance Open

Recent Winners – The American Express

Italics – not entered this week.

Year	Winner	Notes
2023	Jon Rahm (-27)	Played the final group with Davis Thompson and beat him by a shot to win for the second time.
2022	Hudson Swafford (-23)	Defeated Tom Hoge by two shots to win for the second time.
2021	Si Woo Kim (-23)	Only made two bogeys for the week on the SC/NT rotation to win by one.
2020	Andrew Landry (-26)	Tied the tournament scoring record winning by two.
2019	Adam Long (-26)	Became the first rookie to win since Jhonattan Vegas (2011).
2018	Jon Rahm (-22)	Needed a playoff to knock off Andrew Landry.
2017	Hudson Swafford (-20)	Wet, windy weekend produced the highest winning total to date in the new rota.
2016	Jason Dufner (-25)	Saw off David Lingmerth in a playoff in the first iteration of Stadium Course, Nicklaus Tournament Course, and LQCC

Angles

The Nicklaus Tournament Course plays to Par-72 and 7,147 yards. Playing 7,000 square feet on average, the Overseeded Poa annua greens are the largest of the three courses. Dylan Wu (2023) and Will Zalatoris (2022) have posted 61 here.

La Quinta Country Club is known for premium putting surfaces and usually plays the easiest of the trio. All three courses have minimal rough and green speeds that won’t broach 11 feet. Playing to Par-72 and 7,060 yards, it plays as one of the easiest on TOUR annually. Adam Hadwin posted 59 in Round 3 in 2017.

All eight winners have posted 20-under or better to win and have ranked in the top 10 in Par-4 and Par-5 scoring.

The HIGHEST cut in this rotation in the last three editions was 7-under. The 2021 edition used only the Stadium Course and NT and was a 36-hole chop.

First tournament with Poa annua Greens.

Players to consider for Top 10, Top 20, or Top 40 action from Bet365.com:

JT Poston (30/1): Making his third start in three events to start the season, he posted T3 in Las Vegas in the fall, T5 at Sentry, and solo sixth last week. Circling 29 birdies in 2023, he cashed T6 here last season. When trends converge, I jump.

Taylor Montgomery (50/1): Solo fifth on debut last year included three rounds of 66 or better. This desert doesn’t have the distraction of his home tournament in Las Vegas.

Adam Hadwin (60/1): One of the course horses this week, he’s never missed in seven visits and owns four top-10 paydays. Running second to Kim at Shriners in the fall, a missed cut last week at Sony will not deter me.

Taylor Pendrith (80/1): I might add every Canadian to my ticket. In his last five events, he’s posted T15 in four of his last five, including three in the top 10. Buy all you can get.

Grayson Murray (125/1): In six visits he’s posted T14 or better three times. I’ll ride the bounce from last week.

Patton Kizzire (125/1): Second consecutive week as a sponsor’s exemption. Cashing T13 last week, he’ll look to add to T11 and T22 in his previous two visits to La Quinta.

Sam Ryder (150/1): T13 and T10 in his last two appearances during his streak of nine consecutive made cuts.

Chesson Hadley (200/1): Cashing his last eight on TOUR includes T7 twice in two of his last four, including one in Las Vegas. He’s missed the weekend here on his last three trips so something has to give!

Jacob Bridgeman/Adrian Dumont de Chassart (300/1): The kids are all right. After both missed the cut last week, it’s time to put their heads down and make a bunch of birdies, just like they did all last season on the KFT.

One and Done

I’ll be joining Spotter’s game again this season. Now, where did I put my checkbook…

35 events.

1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy gets kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee Thursday).

1 use per year.

Add up the total money and Spotter is yer uncle!

Event	Selection	Earnings
The Sentry	Collin Morikawa	690,500
Sony Open in Hawaii	Corey Conners	18,592
The American Express
Farmers Insurance Open

Total Winnings:		709,092

His game has more fun stuff to it so reach out @A340Spotter on Twitter or A340Spotter@frontier.com for more details and to join.

Back to the mainland and the West Coast swing. Poa annua (except for the North Course at Torrey) for this week, Farmers, and Pebble Beach.

Two major differences this week:

Poa
Three courses

The American Express has produced six different winners over eight editions. Sadly, for gamers and gamblers, the bingo card of conquerors in the desert is quite full.

As I wrote last week, winning $1.5 million this week is great, but that’s almost third place for a major, FedExCup Playoff event, THE PLAYERS or seven more Signature Events.

This is a week where I’m going to take a chance with an angle, consequences be damned!

Recapping Last Week – Sony Open in Hawaii

MY CHOICE: Corey Conners – T57

The Canadian finished the week T80 of 81 players in Putting, needing 126 of them. Right, there were just 72 holes, got it.

Considerations

Eric Cole: Tough laydown this week as his form and function have been firing for months. Just a matter of preference. T13.

Russell Henley: I won’t talk you out of him this week, but I prefer him on a tougher ball-striking layout. Hairs split. Closed with 63 for T4. Sigh.

J.T. Poston: It shouldn’t be a surprise that this is most of my lineup in Expert Picks. Closed with 61 for 6^th. Sigh.

Matt Kuchar: Nobody in the field this week has done it better at Waialae. It’s here or Harbour Town if you’re gonna ride. #ShorterTheBetter. MC. Careful with 40-somethings…

Hideki Matsuyama: Dead last in putting last week. Needed the best putting numbers of his life to win this (his only top 10) two years ago. Careful. T30. If you didn’t use him this week he’s live for TPC Scottsdale or Memorial.

Will Zalatoris: Hard to saddle a guy after 81 and 79 in his last official outing. Be patient. 76-69. See you down the road.

Longshots

J.J. Spaun: I prefer him on Poa, but he’s been super consistent recently. MC

Chan Kim: Hawaiian native lit up the KFT late and has plenty of experience in the Pacific Rim. Ahhhhhhhhhhh, the ol’ 75-64…

This Week: The American Express

MY CHOICE: Adam Hadwin

Nobody is more comfortable on these three courses, and he has the scar tissues to prove it. The Canadian will look to make it eight from eight and add to his three finishes on the podium.

Others to Consider

Tom Kim: Tough laydown, especially after 66 to close at Kapalua to kick-start his 2024. His desert record is making me reconsider this pick until the first tee time on Thursday. Stay tuned.

Chris Kirk: T18-WIN in the last two weeks, plus he closed 63-64 here last year for T3.

J.T. Poston: Copied, pasted.

Justin Thomas: He’s not in any Signature Events until he qualifies. One leads to another. Saving him for the PGA Championship in his native state of Kentucky outside his birth city of Louisville is understood.

Patrick Cantlay: If you believe a big 2024 is brewing, I would not be surprised to see it start this week on these three tracks.

Longshots

Taylor Montgomery: When form meets course history…

Patton Kizzire: Probably not in THIS format. Probably everywhere else.

Glass Houses

Fantasy Golf Only

#Golf

Opening Drive 2025 – The Sentry

Butterfield Bermuda Championship

World Wide Technology Championship

ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

Shriners Children’s Open

Black Desert Championship

Sanderson Farms Championship

FedExCup Fall – Procore Championship

124th United States Open

124^th United States Open

The American Express 2024 Preview

One and Done

This Week: The American Express