European Ryder Cup Europe espionage this week in Switzerland

 DP World Tour: Omega European Masters : Leaderboard

The final spot on the European Points List will come down to six players in the final qualifying event this week..

After finishing in a six-way tie for fourth place at the D+D REAL Czech Masters, Robert MacIntyre will retain a slender lead in the European Points List heading into the final week of Ryder Cup Qualifying after narrowly increasing his lead over closest challenger Yannik Paul.

The Scot birdied his final hole to finish his week on 17 under par, gaining 85.42 points in the Czech Republic to increase his total on the European Points List to 1828.99.

MacIntyre and Paul are two of six players in this week’s field that can end the week in Luke Donald’s European Ryder Cup team. They all have necessary scenarios to make that happen, but Adrian Meronk, Victor Perez, Rasmus Højgaard and Adrian Otaegui all have a mathematical chance of claiming that third and final place.

They will all tee up at Crans-sur-Sierre on Thursday knowing that the fate of their Ryder Cup place is in their hands, whether that is doing enough to qualify, or enough to impress Captain Luke Donald in the last event of the qualifying period.

Tommy Fleetwood, who is currently occupying the third spot on the World's Points List, could have also qualified with a win but is not competing in Switzerland this week.

· MacIntyre could still be caught even if he finishes second, so needs to win to absolutely guarantee his place, but only a top-three finish from fellow contenders will threaten his position.

· Paul will qualify if he wins. He would need to finish at least tied for third with two others, or better, to have a chance.

· Meronk needs to finish in a tie for second with just one player or better to have a chance

· Perez needs to finish in second place alone, or to win to have a chance

· R Højgaard needs to win to have a chance

· Otaegui needs to win to have a chance

After Tyrrell Hatton confirmed himself as the second player to qualify on the World Points List behind Viktor Hovland, one place remains - and it's in the hands of World Number Eight Matt Fitzpatrick.

Fitzpatrick, who became the first person since Seve Ballesteros to defend the title here when he won in 2017 and 2018, has the opportunity to dislodge Tommy Fleetwood on the World Points List is in his hands.

As it stands, the pair are separated by just 3.82 points following the PGA Tour's Tour Championship last week, where Fleetwood finished in a tie for sixth and Fitzpatrick in a tie for ninth.

And with the current World Points breakdown set for this week's event, Matt Fitzpatrick currently needs to finish tied 7th with one other player or better at the Omega European Masters to take the final place in Donald's team.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Aaron Cockerill returns to action in the Swiss Alps...TEE TIMES

 DP World Tour : Omega European Masters Tee Times

The last time Aaron Cockerill played with real bullets was July 22/23 at the Barracuda Championship where he T64.

After a month off, he returns to the most beautiful event on the DP World Tour, the Omega European Masters in Crans-sur-Sierre, Switzerland. He will fly to Ireland next week to play the Horizon Irish Open at the K Club. 

He is currently ranked #249 owgr and #57 in the DP Tour standings.

While it's a critical week for 7 players who have a last chance to make the European Ryder Cup team, for Aaron it's time to get back to ensuring he keeps his card for 2024 and get into the top 30.

There's plenty of golf ahead. 

Sept 14-17  BMW PGA Championship Wentworth, England  (Rolex Series)

Sept 21-24  Cazoo Open de France

Oct 5-8  Alfred Dunhill Links  (he played on a sponsors invite in a gale last year)

Oct 12-15  Spanish Open, Madrid

Oct 19-22  Andalucia Masters, Spain

Oct 26-29  Qatar Masters, Doha 

Bryan Angus

US Ryder Cup selection complete. Here's the team

 I don't think it really mattered that much who captain Zach Johnson selected as his six picks late last night. With the European squad in a rebuild, the US team is stacked, again with much the same squad that hammered the Euros 19-9 in 2021.

However not being a spoil sport, the underdog role is what has fueled Europe forever, and will give this years spectacle in Rome the edge it needs to be the best 3 days in golf, some say in sports.

Rickie Fowler 

Automatics

Scheffler, Wyndham Clark, Brian Harman, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Schauffele

Picks

Sam Burns, Fowler, Koepka, Morikawa, Spieth, Thomas

*(Clark, Harman. Burns and Homa Ryder Cup rookies)

Team Europe

The European Team allows 3 players from the World Points list and 3 from the European Points list

Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy are in from the top 2 places on European Points list while Viktor Hovland and Tyrrell Hatton the top 2 on the World Points list.

Tommy Fleetwood has the 3rd spot on the World list and Robert MacIntyre the 3rd on the European list going into this week's play in Switzerland, where 7 players technically have a chance for the final 2 spots, before captain Luke Donald makes his 6 captain's picks, September 4th.

History

Since 1985 Europe has won 12 of the 18 Cups, their glory years were 1995-2014 where they dominated 8 /11 matches with the likes of Seve, Sergio, Olazábal, Rory, Poults, Westwood, Monty, Faldo, etal

The US has won 2 of the last three, with this current team, and the thinking is the tide has turned with them.

However Europe has 4 of the top 100 ranked players, Rory, Rahm, Hovland and Fitzpatrick the US the other 6 with Scheffler at #1.

Also worth noting is the US Team plays every year together adding the Presidents Cup, while the Europeans only play together bi-annually for what it's worth. Max Homa is an example of an American Ryder Cup rookie who will benefit his 4-0-0 record at the last Presidents Cup.

Bryan Angus

Hot Hovland wraps up the Fed Ex Cup for Norway...Final results

 PGA Tour : Tour Championship Leaderboard

In 2008 when he was an 11 year old living in Oslo, Norway, Viktor's father Harald came home from working as an engineer in St Louis, where he'd taken up the game of golf, with a set of clubs for his skinny young son, and set about teaching him to play.

Norwegian champions abound in all forms of winter sports, skiing at the top of the list, and the game of football (soccer) is passionately followed by the masses.

Golf, not so much with the long Nordic winters. However Viktor had access to an indoor driving range and spent most of his spare time in 2008/09 practicing how to hit the ball correctly.

It's a long story but we fast forward, despite all the odds to becoming the first player from Norway to win the 2018 US Amateur, and the first Norwegian to play in the Masters in 2019.

He turned pro in 2019 after a storied career at Oklahoma State and established himself as one of the game's best ball strikers, a testament to all those hours indoors back in Oslo under the  guidance of his father.

Now 25, 5'9" and 160lbs with 2 wins on the DP World Tour and 6 career wins on the PGA Tour, 3 this year, he is the Fed Ex Cup champion, ranked 5th in the world and an absolute legend back home.

Those who have followed me through my 25 year radio career as producer/host of the Fairways golf show on the Fan590 know how steadily I have followed/ reported on the European Tour, as I do today, and that's where I began touting this Norwegian phenom as an amateur winning the Eisenhower Trophy in 2016 as a 19year old.

In a month's time at the Ryder Cup in Italy, he along with Rory and big Jon Rahm will spearhead the Team Europe challenge against the overwhelming favourites form the USA, however this same David vs Goliath script is what has fueled the Europeans forever, and will again.

Tour Championship

1st  Viktor Hovland 68 64 66 63 -27  ($18,000,000) FedEx Cup champion

25th  Nick Taylor 71 67 69 72 -2  ($550,000)

26th Corey Conners 70 71 66 74 -1 ($540,000)

This ends the PGA Tour regular season with the NFL about to begin. However there are several Fall Series events before Christmas for those guys outside the top 125 who are trying to retain/gain there 2024 cards

Next

My attention switches to the DP World Tour where some great golf stories are about to unfold in the Race to Dubai.

After stops in Switzerland, then  Ireland the next big events :

Sep 14-17          BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth (Rolex Series $9,000,000)

Sep 29-Oct 1     Ryder Cup, Marco Simone GC, Rome Italy

Oct 5-8              Alfred Dunhill Links Championship (Pro-am) St Andrews

Nov 9-12           Nedbank Golf Challenge, Sun City RSA, Gary Player GC.

Nov 16-19        DP World Tour Championship (Race to Dubai) Dubai, UAE

Thanks for reading my daily blogs, I will continue to post what interests me, it's my hobby these days, no longer get paid for my opinions, so please use my comments section and tell your pals.

Best regards,

Bryan Angus

 

Brooke Henderson playing her "6th major" this week in Vancouver

 LPGA Tour : CPKC Women's Open 

• HOME
• LEADERBOARD
• TEE TIMES

It seems like a long time since we've seen Canada's sweetheart Brooke Henderson not only play, but be in contention It has been that sort of year for the now bespectacled 25 year old. Yes that's her wearing glasses for the first time while playing, to compensate for her poor eyesight.

She won the season opener, a limited field Tournament of Champions, and was runner up at the Amundi Evian in France, but she missed 5 cuts and had no other top 10's where she has always been a machine. 

Canada's Brooke Henderson (Lewis Joly AP)

Talking with the media this week she had this to say:  "I haven't had as many top 10's as I'd like this year but I feel like I'm growing up a lot, as a person and in my game. I think that's the main goal, to continue to grow and become better in all the different ways you can."

Well, she is hoping for a good week at what she calls her 6th major, the CPKC Women's Open at the Shaughnessy GC in Vancouver, where she will be as popular as ever, that of course brings with it many demands on her time, which she knows through experience she will have to manage without detriment to her game. She coped well in 2018 when she won in Regina.

Shaughnessy if you have never seen it has narrow fairways winding amongst a forest of trees, accuracy off the tee will be one of the factors in deciding the championship. She has won 3 times on courses like it in the Pacific Northwest, the Cambria Portland Classic in 2016, 2016 and the KPMG Women's PGA Championship in Washington State.

She is in the feature group on Thursday.

1.21 1st tee  Brooke Henderson (CME ranked 11), Nelly Korda (CME ranked 2)), Lilia Vu (CME ranked 2 and world #1.

She will be joined by the other full time regular on the LPGA Tour, Maddie Szeryk. There are 15 Canadians in the field, including Alena Sharp and Shaughnessy member Victoria Lui who accepted an invitation. Team Canada amateurs like Lauren Kim, Katie Cranston, Lauren Zaretsky and Brook Rivers are amongst other non professionals in the field.

Bryan Angus

Tour Championship Thursday Tee Times, prize money

 PGA Tour : Tour Championship Tee Times

The top 30 have arrived at the East Lake GC in suburban Atlanta, each one has ticked that box including Corey Conners making his 4th appearance, his 3rd straight, this time at #19, and first timer Nick Taylor a reward in part for that 75 footer in the playoff to win the RBC Canadian Open. 

USATSI

They use the Staggered Strokes format to reward each player for their play over the season, For example Scottie Scheffler ranked #1 begins play -10, Viktor Hovland ranked #2 begins at -8. Rory #3 -7, Rahm #4 -6 and Glover #5 at -5.

Players #6-10 at -4, players 11-15 at -3, players 16-20 at -2, players 21-25 at -1 and players 26-30 at even par. 

Conners will start at -2, Taylor at -1. Finally their starting times are in reverse order, with Scheffler and Hovland in the final pairing.. See my Tee Times link above.

12.10 1st  Nick Taylor, Taylor Moore

12.21 1st  Corey Conners, Si Woo Kim

Prize Money

First prize is $18,000,000 (official prize money $3,600,000 plus bonus) The bonus pool is $75,000,000, 30th place will receive $500,000.

All players who made the top 150 in the Fed Cup will receive some of that $75m, #150 will get $85,000,

Rory has won it all 3 times, and will defend his title this week. 

Weather

The weather forecast currently calls for fairly benign conditions, only a slight chance of rain Sunday, winds calm, temperatures low 30's *c.

Bryan Angus

Tour Championship top 30 set.. Conners, Taylor will play...

 PGA Tour : BMW Championship Leaderboard

FedEx Cup Standings

Following Norway's Viktor Hovland's record breaking Sunday 61 worth $3,600,000 to win the BMW Championship the final top 30 for the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta (August 24-27) has been settled and Corey Conners at #19 along with Nick Taylor at #22 will be the last Canadians standing.

1.Scheffler  2. Hovland 3. McIlroy 4. Rahm 5. Glover are the top five in the handicapping system that will see Scheffler begin the week at -10.

Taylor had a career year, finishing 2nd at the $20m Waste Management Phoenix Open and of course winning the RBC Canadian Open with that 75 foot putt in a playoff over Tommy Fleetwood to make Canadian golf history.

Conner's year was highlighted back in February with his 2nd Valero Texas Open win and he has been trending at the right time T6 at the St Jude and T10 on the weekend at the BMW.

(Adam Svensson finished 37th and Adam Hadwin 45th in the FedEx standings, thus ending their seasons.)

Canadian scores at BMW Championship

Corey Conners T10  67 70 67 69 -7  ($480,600)

Adam Svensson T15  70 69 66 69 -6  ($332,000)

Adam Hadwin 44th  72 70 72 72 +6  ($84,000)

Nick Taylor 47th  71 72 74 73 +10  ($72,000)

Bryan Angus

Conners, Taylor well placed Sunday at BMW Championship.... Full leaderboard

 PGA Tour : BMW Championship Leaderboard

The business at hand is a $20,000,000 BMW Championship on an increasingly difficult Olympia Fields course with a light wind drying out difficult greens

The leaders Scottie Scheffler 66 69 64 -11 along with Matt Fitzpatrick 66 67 66 -11.

The chasers Brian Harmen -10, Max Homa -9, Rory and Viktor Hovland -8 amongst others

However the big story is the top 30 for the Tour Championship, places in the Ryder Cup squads and divvying up $75,000,000 FedEx cup dollars..

Every player has their own story, some like Jordan Spieth on the bubble at #30 more pressing than others.

Now the Canadians..

Corey Conners T11 67 70 67 -6  (started week 25th now projected to finish 18th)

Nick Taylor  T45 71 72 74 +7  ( started week 16th now projected to finish 24th)

Adam Svensson T11  70 69 66 -5  (started week 39th projected to finish 35th)

Adam Hadwin T40th  72 70 72 +4 (started the week 37th projected to finish 43rd )

Follow all the live scoring on my leaderboard link above.

Bryan Angus

Conners leads Canadians at BMW Championship...full Friday leaderboard

 PGA Tour : BMW Championship Leaderboard

Corey Conners shot up the St Jude Championship last weekend with a brilliant pair of 65's and has brought that form with him to Olympia Fields for this BMW Championship

 

Four birdies and a lone bogey when he couldn't get up and down from a greenside bunker at the par 4 14th see's him T9 -3 67 just 2 shots of the -5 65 lead. held by Open champion Brian Harman and Rory who only hit 6 on the short grass and 3 of those were par 3's. and still managed five under par.

"Hopefully with the sun and some wind, this course will dry out and firm up to play the way I think it should, it certainly is not the way it was in 2020"

Alex Cejka recently won the Senior Open title in a howling gale in Wales at Royal Porthcawl. In his post game he admitted that having moved to America, he'd become spoiled playing in perfect weather on perfectly manicured courses every week.

That was the case at Olympia Fields on Thursday and will be for the rest of the weekend with only a light wind from Mother Nature to add to the par 70 examination that the North Course presents.

After a 2 hour rain delay in the morning the greens were so soft, long irons coming in low and hot on this tree lined course, were hitting the greens and sticking like darts. These guys were left to get the right yardage, load and fire. and should they miscue, at this level that all have great short games to fall back on, out of some tough greenside rough. 

Canadians

Corey Conners T9 -3 67

Adam Svensson T23 E 70 ( steady, 2 birdies, 2 bogey's)

Nick Taylor T30 +1 71  (bogey's 2 of last 3 holes)

Adam Hadwin T40 +2 72 (played the last 5  holes +4 )

Taylor (16th) and Conners (25th) are currently seeded to make the last 30 for the Tour Championship.

Bryan Angus 

TEE TIMES FedEx Cup playoffs: BMW Championship..4 Canadians

 PGA Tour: BMW Championship Tee Times

We're getting down to the short strokes of this 2023 season, these last 50 players have all earned their places at Olympia Fields in Chicago, the names will be more familiar, some of your memories of the year will revolve around them.

The North Course is a par 70, 7366 yards, parkland, tree lined, south of Chicago

Weather

Thursday  Rain 93% wind 16mph W,  Temp 76*f

Friday  Mainly sunny 77*f, wind 6mph W

Saturday  Mainly sunny  81*f  wind 11mph W

Sunday  Mainly sunny  89*f  wind 8mph W

For all of the tee times click on my link above.

There are 4 Canadians left standing (all times EDT), their goal to win or survive this week to make it to the top 30 for the Tour Championship and ultimately the FedEx Cup..

9.37 1st  Adam Svensson, Matt Fitzpatrick

9.48 1st  Adam Hadwin, Ben An

10.43 1st  Nick Taylor, Russell Henley

12.43 1st  Corey Conners, Tyrrell Hatton

Notables

11.10 1st  Rory McIlroy, Lucas Glover

1.38   1st  Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler

Rory won it all last year along with the $18,000,000 that went with it.

Bryan Angus

American Vu wins AIG Women's Open in a romp...Final results

 R&A : AIG Women's Open

In case you missed it American Lilia Vu won the AIG Women's Open at Walton Heath easily by 6 shots with a Sunday -5 67.

Lilia Vu of the United States courtesy Getty Images

It is her 2nd major of the year and her 3rd LPGA Title worth $1,360,000. She also won the Chevron Championship, will become the world's #1 and is an automatic pick for the American Solheim Cup team.

Canadians Brooke Henderson was one of 15 players missing the cut by a shot 75 72 +3 while Maddie Szeryk was no match for the course 11 over par through 36 holes 77,78.

They will look to do much better when the CPKC Women's Open will be played at Shaughnessy CC in Vancouver in 2 weeks. South African Paula Reto won in 2022 at the Ottawa Hunt and CC.

Bryan Angus

New look 2024 DP World Tour Schedule.. Full details

 The DP World Tour today announces its schedule for the 2024 season, one which will feature a minimum of 44 tournaments in 24 countries and across five continents, underlining its status as golf’s global Tour.

Showcasing diverse international players, cultures, countries and venues, the 2024 season also features a host of new enhancements across its entire 13 month global odyssey, with members competing for an overall record prize fund of $148.5 million (excluding the Majors). Click here to view the full schedule.

The 2024 Race to Dubai will feature three new and distinct phases – five innovative ‘Global Swings’ from November 2023 to August 2024; an historic ‘Back 9’ from September 2024 to October 2024; and two ‘DP World Tour Play-Offs’ in November 2024.

As in previous years, the consistent thread throughout the course of the season will be the five Rolex Series events – the premium category of events on the DP World Tour. In 2024 these will be: the Hero Dubai Desert Classic (January), the Genesis Scottish Open (July), the BMW PGA Championship (September), the Abu Dhabi Championship (November) and the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai (November) – tournaments which will continue to showcase the Tour’s leading players and innovation.

The schedule also features two new tournaments - the Dubai Invitational (Jan 11-14) and the Bahrain Championship (Feb 1-4), while the Volvo China Open (May 2-5) returns to the schedule for the first time since 2019. There are also date changes for three existing tournaments – the Danish Golf Championship (which moves to Aug 22-25), the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo, (Aug 29 – Sept 1), and the Abu Dhabi Championship (Nov 7-10). The Nedbank Golf Challenge Hosted by Gary Player moves into December and will be one of the opening events on the Tour’s 2025 schedule.

Keith Pelley, the DP World Tour’s Chief Executive, said: “Our 2024 season will see our members come together to compete across a global schedule, with greater opportunities and rewards than ever before.

“The many new and original enhancements we have introduced will guarantee drama and excitement for our fans, our broadcasters and all our stakeholders across the entire season and means, more than ever, that every week counts on the DP World Tour.

THE 2024 DP WORLD TOUR SCHEDULE – A BREAKDOWN

PHASE ONE – THE ‘GLOBAL SWINGS’.

This phase will comprise five individual ‘Swings’ - the Opening Swing, the International Swing, the Asian Swing, the European Swing and the Closing Swing - and will run from November 2023 to August 2024. Each Swing will have its own individual Swing Rankings.

• The Opening Swing will run from November 2023 (Fortinet Australian PGA Championship) to December 2023 (AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open)
• The International Swing will run from January 2024 (Dubai Invitational) to March 2024 (Jonsson Workwear Open)
• The Asian Swing will run from March 2024 (Singapore Classic) to May 2024 (Volvo China Open) (*)
• The European Swing will run from May 2024 (Soudal Open) to July 2024 (BMW International Open) (*)
• The Closing Swing will run from July 2024 (Genesis Scottish Open) to August 2024 (Danish Golf Championship) (*)

Each Swing will have its own identity and its own Champion who will each earn $200,000 from an overall $1million Bonus Pool. Swing Champions will also qualify for each of the ‘Back 9’ events.

At the conclusion of the Global Swings phase, a further $1million Bonus Pool will then be shared amongst the leading ten players on the Race to Dubai (who have played a minimum of eight ‘regular’ Global Swings events outside the Major Championships and co-sanctioned Genesis Scottish Open).

The International Swing includes a new Pro-Am event - the Dubai Invitational played at Dubai Creek Resort from January 11-14 - as well as the Bahrain Championship, which marks the Tour’s return to the Kingdom of Bahrain for the first time since 2011

PHASE TWO – THE ‘BACK NINE’

This phase will encompass nine of the DP World Tour’s most historic tournaments and national Opens and will run from August 2024 to October 2024.

It will begin with the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo (August 29 – September 1, 2024) and will end with a tournament to be confirmed from October 24-27, 2024.

In addition to exempt DP World Tour members, the leading 15 non-members from the top 70 on the FedEx Cup will be eligible to play in these events and qualify for the DP World Tour Championship.

The top 110 players on the Race to Dubai Rankings at the conclusion of this phase in October will earn their DP World Tour cards for 2025 while the top 70 qualify for Phase Three, the DP World Tour Play-Offs.

PHASE THREE – THE DP WORLD TOUR PLAY-OFFS

This phase, running in November 2024, will comprise the two final Rolex Series events of the season: the Abu Dhabi Championship and the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.

The Abu Dhabi Championship, which moves from its traditional January slot to a new date of November 7-10, will feature the leading 70 players on the Race to Dubai Rankings while the top 50 at the end of that tournament, qualify for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai from November 14-17, where the DP World Tour’s Number One player will be crowned.

At the conclusion of the DP World Tour’s 2024 season, the leading ten players will share a $6million Bonus Pool.

Finally, as per at the end of the current 2023 season, the top ten DP World Tour members on the final 2024 Race to Dubai Rankings (not otherwise exempt) will earn PGA TOUR cards for the 2025 season.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT DP WORLD TOUR EXEMPTIONS ON THE PGA TOUR IN 2024

Also confirmed today, the leading DP World Tour member, who earns a PGA TOUR exemption for 2024 via the current 2023 Race to Dubai Rankings, will also be exempt into THE PLAYERS Championship and the Charles Schwab Challenge in 2024.

Furthermore, the leading finisher from the current 2023 Race to Dubai, not otherwise exempt through the top 50 of the 2022-23 FedEx Cup standings, will earn a spot into two PGA TOUR Signature Events in 2024: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational.

eurpeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Monday wrap: Ames leads a solid weekend for Canadians.

 PGA Tour Champions. Boeing Classic Leaderboard

Stephen Ames loves playing The  Club at Snoqualmie Ridge in Washington State. With rounds of 67 67 he led after 36 holes, then went on a tear playing his final 5 holes in six under par for a closing 63 to beat defending champion Miquel Jimenez by 7 shots to win the 223 Boeing Classic, his 4th title of the season, in just 14 starts.

Stephen Ames 

The win worth $330,000 was his 6th Champions Tour victory and moves him up to #3 in the Charles Schwab standings. He opened and closed in style with eagles.

'' Yeah, it was kinda sweet for sure, I think anyone would take that for sure. Closing like that, sort of freewheeling a bit, I hit the shots I needed to hit coming down the end, everything just clicked, everything came out just the way you usually see it. Not always does it come out like that, but I guess I was in a different time zone playing the last 4 holes.

The way I ended up finishing, I didn't expect that but I came out on top, which is nice."

PGA Tour : FedEx St Jude Championship Leaderboard

After a decade of suffering from the yips, veteran Lucas Glover (who doesn't wear a glove), gave in and changed to the long putter, going from "no control" to playing the best golf of his career, with back to back victories and finishing 6th or better in 5 of his last 6 starts.

This time he beat Patrick Cantlay in a playoff, and held off Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy by a shot in the process. He is now 4th in the FedEx Cup standings and 30th in the world and $3,600,000 richer. He is guaranteed a place in the top 30 for the Tour Championship, automatically qualifies for 2024 high stakes "signature" events, and moves right in contention for a Ryder Cup selection...

"When you're hot your hot, when you're not you're not !"

Canadians

Four of the five Canadians will move on to the BMW Championship top 50 this week at Olympia Fields in Chicago.

Corey Conners had a great 65 65 weekend to finish his week T6, -11 worth $584,285, up to 25th in FedEx standings

Adam Hadwin had a real solid week T16 67 66 69 69 -9 worth $310,000 (ranked 37th)

Nick Taylor improved from an opening 71, with 68 68 66 7 T24 worth $158,285 now ranked 16th in the FedEx standings

Adam Svensson T37 66 69 70 70 5 worth $88,000 (ranked 39th)

Mac Hughes misses out of the top 50 by a spot, ranked 51st. (67 68 75 69 -1 T58th)

Note**

Ben Silverman T14 70 67 67 69 -11 at the Pinnacle Bank Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Wil Bateman MC and Roger Sloan WD after opening 76. 

Bryan Angus

 

Hughes on the "bubble" at St Jude Championship... Sunday leaderboard

 PGA Tour : FedEx St Jude Championship.. Leaderboard

After his win at the Sanderson Farms earlier in the year, Mac Hughes was ranked 6th in Fed Ex Cup points, but after a topsy turvy season he has dropped all the way to 47th after his +5 75 on Saturday.

He is out of contention this week, but will need a much better day today to avoid missing out on the top 50 who will advance to the BMW Championship next week.

With 3 bogey's in his first four holes, he recovered with 2 birdies, but a double at the 10th and a triple at the 12th saw him limp home wit the 75. He can still qualify if the projections are right by finishing 53rd or better after today's play.

With a red hot Lucas Glover who won last week and leads by a shot today at 66 64 66 -14 here are where the Canadians are projected to finish today

Nick Taylor T42  71 68 68 -3   started 12th  projected 22

Corey Conners T23  67 72 65 -6  (30th ,31st)

Adam Hadwin T12 67 66 69 -8  (44th, 37th)

Adam Svensson T32  66 69 70 -5  (38th ,40)

Mac Hughes T55 67 68 75 E  (47th, 51st)

So we can see Taylor, Conners, Hadwin and Svensson are all projected in to play next week, and Hughes would be out.

However as I've been saying all week, it's all about the numbers today, some more so than others like Hughes.

Bryan Angus

Svensson leads 4 Canadians inside T15 at a muggy St Jude Championship.. Friday leaderboard

 PGA Tour: FedEx St Jude Championship Leaderboard  Tee Times

TPC Southwind is no stranger to low scoring, throw in the world's best, hot muggy southern air, and receptive greens at this St Jude Championship in Memphis, well you get the picture.

Jordan Spieth was the best of the bunch after the opening round, tying one of his better scores in a mediocre season at -7 63. The brilliant Korean Tom Kim wearing pedal pushers next -6 64, with Morikawa and Grillo rounding out the top 3 with -5 65's

Players will need to keep pace this week, and Adam Svensson continued his fine recent form leading 4 Canucks inside the top 15 with his T5 -4 66 projecting him inside the top 30 at 28th. 10 players shot 66 to give you some idea of the logjam upcoming.

Mac Hughes, Adam Hadwin and Corey Conners all  T15 with 67's.

The goal if you're not going to win this week's shootout is to make the top 50 for the BMW next week at Olympia Fields, and therein lies all the story's, with all the projections.

The top 10 guys, like Rahm, Rory and Scheffler will all be in Atlanta for the season finale, they don't need the money, but the jockeying for the lower positions can make a lesser financially blessed players like Adam Svensson secure for life.

Weather for Memphis.

Today not much precipitation or wind, just more hot muggy air topping out at 34*c by this afternoon

Saturday prediction, scattered TStorms, hot 33*c

Bryan Angus

TEE TIMES for FedEx St Jude Championship.. weather, hot humid, unsettled..

 PGA Tour : FedEx St Jude Championship Tee Times

With five Canadians in the field, the $75m FedEx Cup playoffs begin tomorrow, in Memphis for the $20,000,000 FedEx St Jude Championship on TPC Southwind, click the link above for all.

Canadians

9.02 1st  Mac Hughes, Tom Hoge, Cameron Young

9.14 1st  Adam Hadwin, Patrick Rodgers, JT Poston

11.44 1st Adam Svensson, Ben An, Brendon Todd

12.08 1st Corey Conners, Chris Kirke, Seamus Power

12.44 1st Nick Taylor, Tony Finau, Jason Day

Feature Group

10.44 1st  Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy

Weather

In general another hot, humid summer's week in Memphis with a lot of unsettled weather mixed in to affect play.

Today : Storm 29*c

Thurs : Scattered Thunderstorms 30*c

Fri : Partly Cloudy 32*c

Sat : Scattered Thunderstorms 33*c

Sun : Mostly cloudy 32*c

Bryan Angus

Roger Sloan wins in Utah.. moves inside top 30 Korn Ferry Tour.. final results

 Korn Ferry Tour : Utah Championship Leaderboard

With his 1st win on the Korn Ferry Tour being 9 years ago (2014) and a demotion after a #160 finish on the 2021-22 PGA Tour, Roger Sloan was winless in 9 years and was without a top 10 in 14 outings this year.

Roger Sloan

All that changed Sunday afternoon in Salt Lake City, when he birdied the last 2 holes of the Utah Championship, both with approach shots within 10 feet for a -5 66 -24, good for the one shot win over a bogey free Christopher Petefish.

" It feels great, to win here is special because it reminds me so much of being back home. Any time you win is very special. This one my family was here, to see my kids run on to the green and hug them is a moment I'll never forget.

I haven't had the greatest of years results wise, that's because I've been working on my game more than usual. I got to keep chipping away at what I've been doing all year, staying committed. The goal is for me to be the best player I can be, and get back on the PGA Tour. Right now Im just taking one day at a time.

While this is great, we'll enjoy it and get back on the grindstone next week"

He wins $180,000 and importantly moves from #92 to #27 on the points list, where the top 30 secure their 2024 PGA Tour cards..

Countryman, Ben Silverman is ranked #3.

Bryan Angus

The Story of the 2023 Majors...

 From a historic Masters triumph to a dominant Open Championship performance, the Major Championships have once again provided us with great intrigue in 2023.

Rahm wins to emulate hero Seve

The first Major of the season returned to Augusta National for the 87th edition of the Masters Tournament from April 6-9.

Jon Rahm followed in the footsteps of his hero Seve Ballesteros as he clinched Masters glory 40 years on from his countryman's second win at Augusta National Golf Club on what would have been his 66th birthday.

Despite starting the week by four-putting the first hole on Thursday, the Spaniard barely put a foot wrong from there, producing a relentless display of huge driving and nerveless putting.

Weather delays on Friday and Saturday meant Rahm – one of the pre-tournament favourites – had to complete 30 holes on Sunday as he started the final day four shots adrift of Brooks Koepka.

But by the time the pair had completed their delayed third rounds Rahm had cut the gap to two shots before he wiped out the deficit entirely inside four holes of the final round.

However, when the 2021 U.S. Open Champion reached the 15th tee, he held a four-shot lead and maintained that advantage through to the finish to seal his second Major triumph and first Green Jacket.

It was his fifth top-ten finish in seven visits to Augusta as he became the fourth Spaniard to win the Masters as he was met by his family – wife Kelley and two sons Kepa and Eneko – by the 18th green.

Before being presented with his Green Jacket by last year's winner Scottie Scheffler, Rahm said: "For me to get it done on the 40th anniversary of his win, his (Ballesteros’) birthday, on Easter Sunday, it's incredibly meaningful."

Koepka claims third US PGA title

A month later saw the second Major of the season – the PGA Championship – held at Oak Hill Country Club.

A three-under 67 in the final round saw Brooks Koepka hold off Viktor Hovland and a fast-finishing Scottie Scheffler to win his third US PGA Championship and fifth Major.

A birdie blitz across the second, third and fourth improved his overnight lead to four shots, but after finding the water off the tee on the sixth hole his lead was down to a single shot.

A fascinating duel ensued between the pair up until the 16th when Hovland struck his second shot into the face of a fairway bunker.

That cost him a double bogey while Koepka hit his approach shot close and holed out for a birdie and a four-stroke lead with two to play.

Meanwhile, Scheffler enjoyed a strong final day as five birdies in eight holes round the turn helped him into a share of second alongside Hovland, who holed a 16-foot birdie putt to record his best ever finish at a Major.

"I’m just so happy right now, I’m kind of at a loss for words,” said Koepka. “This is just the coolest thing.”

“To be with those names (winning five Majors) is incredible, I’m not even sure I dreamed of it as a kid.”

Clark writes remarkable LA story to win U.S. Open

Just 43 days after winning his first professional title at the Wells Fargo Championship, Wyndham Clark claimed his maiden Major Championship at the 123rd U.S. Open.

It was a remarkable rise to prominence for the American who entered the top 100 in the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in March, having been 313th last May.

Clark started the final round in a tie for the lead alongside Rickie Fowler – who along with Xander Schauffele had hit the lowest U.S. Open rounds ever registered with eight-under 62s on the opening day – but it soon became clear the tussle for the trophy was going to be between him and Rory McIlroy.

An opening birdie for the Northern Irishman boosted hopes he could end his nine-year wait for a fifth Major victory.

But on a day when he found the most greens in regulation over the field, McIlroy was unable to capitalize on challenging greens due to them being quick and dried out.

A bogey at the par-five 14th proved costly as Clark, playing in the group behind, made a two-putt birdie to open up a three-shot lead.

But back-to-back bogeys at the 15th and 16th threatened to open the door ajar only for Clark to make a nerveless two-putt from distance on the 72nd hole to win his national championship.

Harman delivers Hoylake masterclass to secure Claret Jug

We didn’t have to wait long for another first-time Major winner as fellow American Brian Harman produce a fine display of links golf to win The 151st Open.

One stroke off the lead after the opening round, the 36-year-old seized control of the tournament with a six-under 64 that earned him a five-stroke advantage heading into the weekend.

Despite a stellar chasing group doing their best to bridge the gap, he maintained that advantage with a 69 on Saturday to put himself on the cusp of victory.

The final round was played in persistent rain but that didn’t dampen Harman’s spirits as he plotted his way round the links with aplomb, whose lead never dropped below three despite bogeys at the second and fifth.

Back-to-back birdies at the sixth and seventh and then later at the 14th and 15th helped him to post a 70 to secure a six-stroke victory.

Remarkably, he ended the week having only found two bunkers – one of which came at the 18th in the final round – while he only missed one putt inside ten feet all week.

"It’s pretty surreal,” he said. “It really hasn't sunk in yet. I’m not going to let (the Claret Jug) out of my sight for the time being.

"To win what I consider the greatest prize in golf is as good as it gets.”

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Five Canadians will play in the FedEx Cup playoffs.

 PGA Tour : Fed Ex Cup Standings

Lucas Glover won the Wyndham Championship by 2 shots at -20 after a 2 hour Sunday rain delay worth $1,368,000 and moving up 63 places from #112 to qualify for the playoffs at #49. 

Canada's Adam Svensson finished T7 63 67 70 68 -12 worth $233,060,000 and #38 in the standings thus wrapping up the 47 events of the regular PGA Tour season.

Michael Gligic will continue to try to keep his card during the Fall Series. He T67 worth $15,884 at the Wyndham 70 68 71 72 +1.

The top 70 players will now proceed to the 3 events that make up the $75,000,000 FedEx Cup playoffs beginning next at the St Jude Championship in Memphis with a prize fund of $20,000,000.

The top 50 from there will compete at Olympia Fields in Chicago August 17-20 with the top 30 qualifying for the Tour Championship in Atlanta at East Lake GC August 24-27.

Five Canadians have qualified

Nick Taylor #12

Corey Conners #30

Adam Svensson #38

Adam Hadwin #44

Mac Hughes #47

For the complete list click on "Standings" above. 

Notables Justin Thomas missed by a shot at #71 and Adam Scott at #72.

Bryan Angus