Tag: Brandt Snedeker

Inspired by return of fans, Brandt Snedeker shoots 65 to lead Vivint Houston Open

At the first PGA Tour event in the U.S. to allow fans, Brandt Snedeker gets a lift from their support and shoots 65 to lead in Houston.

HOUSTON — It’s about a 90-minute drive to Houston from Texas A&M, home of the 12th man, but to Brandt Snedeker the 2,500 fans allowed to watch the pros at the Vivint Houston Open on Thursday felt like a Saturday afternoon of SEC football, perhaps even his Vanderbilt Commodores.

Snedeker felt the love from the return of fans to the PGA Tour – the first event permitting fans stateside since the Players Championship in March – and rode that wave to a 5-under 65 and a two-stroke lead over six golfers including Jason Day.

“I think that’s a big reason why I played well today. I love having fans out here, I kind of feed off their energy. It’s great to hear some claps and people excited for good shots and some birdies,” Snedeker said. “I was excited to be out there and been missing them, so glad to have them back.”

Vivint Houston Open: Leaderboard | Photo gallery | Tee times

But did Snedeker expect the fan support to lift him to a 65 at Memorial Park Golf, which made its return as host of the Houston Open for the first time since 1963?

“No, I didn’t,” Snedeker said. “This course is a long, tough golf course, so to play well you need to take advantage of the scoring holes, which I did a great job of today.”

Brandt Snedeker watches his birdie attempt on the 11th hole during the first round of the 2020 Houston Open. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Snedeker made birdie on all three of Memorial Park’s par 5s and canned a 15-foot birdie putt from the fringe on No. 2 to get into red figures early. His ball striking was superb, none better than when he wedged to 3 feet on 13. Snedeker ranked second in Strokes Gained: tee to green and also second in Strokes Gained: around the green. He took just 24 putts, which sounds about right for Snedeker, regarded as one of the best with the flatstick on Tour, but that actually only ranked 31st in Strokes Gained: putting on Thursday. There may be no better sign that his game is turning a corner than shooting the low score of the day without his putter being red hot.

Snedeker is coming off a subpar season, during which he recorded just one top-10 finish, dropped to No. 106 in the FedEx Cup and has slipped to No. 84 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Between the Northern Trust, where he was bounced from the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and his first start of the new season at the Safeway Open, he made a series of changes that included hiring a new caddie – Mike Hicks, who is best known for being on the bag of Payne Stewart when he won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 – and parting with instructor Todd Anderson in favor of Bradley Hughes.

Snedeker, 39, said he was in need of a fresh set of eyes and was impressed with how Hughes has resuscitated the game of Brendon Todd. Despite missing his first two cuts this season, Snedeker leaped into contention at the Sanderson Farms Championship last month. He shot 73 in the final round there and also backed up on Sunday with a 74 in Las Vegas at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, but the seeds of success have him convinced that he’s on the right track to better days and potentially his 10th PGA Tour victory. To do so, he’ll need to bring his ‘A game’ or something close to it for four days, not just three.

“It’s going to be a long week, this golf course is a big, tough golf course and so I’m excited I got a low one in me, which is good,” he said. “The lead means nothing right now, we have a lot of golf to go.”

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Changes paying off for Brandt Snedeker in Las Vegas

PGA Tour player Brandt Snedeker is succeeding at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open after adding an instructor and changing caddies.

LAS VEGAS – There are long odds in the world of gaming, like backing an 80-1 shot to win at the track. Drawing to an inside straight. Taking the 19-point underdog to win outright.

And betting Brandt Snedeker to win the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at the outset of Saturday’s third round at TPC Summerlin.

The odds were stacked against Snedeker, who made the cut on the number with a birdie on his last hole in the second round. He was first off at 7:30 a.m. local time. And at the birdie festival that is the Shriners, he was seven shots behind the lead.

“Pedal to metal,” Snedeker said about his mindset at the start of the round. “I hit it close on one and missed it and felt like I was behind the eight ball already playing one hole not making a birdie. You feel like if I’m not make birdies here I’m losing ground. To be even par through six holes today, I was like, I got to do something.

“This is not going to work.”

SHRINERS: Leaderboard

Then Snedeker got to work. He kick started his round with a chip-in eagle from 85 feet on the ninth, then ripped off five consecutive birdies starting on the 12th to grab the lead. In all, he had eight birdies and an eagle to offset two bogeys and signed for an 8-under-par 63 to move to 15 under.

Still, Snedeker knows the odds won’t be in his favor come Sunday’s final round. In fact, shortly after he finished speaking with the media, Snedeker’s lead was gone as Adam Hadwin took over the top spot on the leaderboard with a 62.

“The course is there for the taking, just like it has been the last two days. I’ll probably be three or four back going into tomorrow, but at least I gave myself a shot after where I started,” Snedeker said. “I’ll go watch some football, get some rest, and be ready to go tomorrow.”

And Snedeker knows he can leave Las Vegas feeling like a winner without having to take hold of the championship hardware.

He’s been in a funk since tying for third in the Farmers Insurance Open in January. In 14 starts since then, he missed eight cuts and finished tied for 41st or worse in four other starts.

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The stretch necessitated some changes and Snedeker brought on instructor Bradley Hughes and switched to longtime caddie Mike Hicks, who was on the bag when Payne Stewart won the 1999 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.

The changes are paying off. He was in contention in last week’s Sanderson Farms Championship before a poor final round dropped him into a tie for 17th.

“Really excited about the team I got around me,” he said. “Hicks on the bag, who has been out here forever, is kind of a calming influence for me a little bit. And Bradley has really given me a lot of confidence in my swing and how I swing it and knowing what I need to do to miss it in certain spots and to let it go.

“I’m driving it way better, more consistent week to week, and feel like I can build off this. I’ve got a lot confidence. I had a lot of confidence last week. Even after I got done playing I knew that what I was doing was putting me on the right path and I felt like I was striking the ball way better and more consistently. Again this week driven it great and given myself lots of opportunities, so excited about tomorrow and seeing if I can improve on what I did last week.

“(Hughes) has given me confidence to let me release the club again. I’m obviously a very handsy player, a very feel player, but he’s given me a couple key things to let me know that if it I do one of these things well I can release it as far as I want to. And that’s comforting, especially under pressure and when you have tough shots, to know you release it and you can kind of get a one-way miss going.”

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Sergio Garcia shares Sanderson Farms lead, seeks first PGA Tour win since 2017 Masters

Don’t look now, but Sergio Garcia may be on the verge of breaking out of his funk.

JACKSON, Miss. – Don’t look now, but Sergio Garcia may be on the verge of breaking out of his funk. The 40-year-old Spaniard posted a bogey-free 6-under 66 at the Country Club of Jackson to claim a share of the 54-hole lead at the Sanderson Farms Championship.

Garcia, who is seeking his first win on the PGA Tour since the 2017 Masters, improved to 14-under 202 and enters the final round tied with Cameron Davis and J.T. Poston.

Garcia is in the midst of a prolonged slump, with just one top-10 finish since February and he had missed three of his last four cuts. He failed to qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs and dropped out of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking this week for the first time in nine years.

“He’s just been really struggling as of late and it’s hard to turn it around 180 and win,” said NBC/Golf Channel analyst Notah Begay III on Sirius XM/PGA Tour Network earlier this week, noting that Garcia is anxious to find form before the Masters in November. “He’s thinking if I can put together a solid week and find something it might jumpstart me into a good segment of weeks going into Augusta. It can happen at any moment.”

It’s happening as Garcia has put on a ballstriking clinic – he ranks first in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee and SG: Tee to Green this week – combined with an improved putting performance using an eyes-closed putting technique. Garcia, who ranked No. 187 in SGP last season, has gained strokes against the field on the greens in each of the first three rounds, and he ranked first in putts and greens in regulation and is 30-for-30 inside 3 feet. His performance with the flatstick on Saturday was his best yet.

“From 1 to 10 I would give myself at least a 9 or 9½,” he said. “And I’m not giving myself a 10 because two or three putts could have gone in and then it would have been even better.”

Count Brandt Snedeker among those who have been impressed with Garcia’s strong showing on the greens with his eye closed. “If he keeps making putts, everybody else will be trying it out here, too,” Snedeker said.

Garcia will face stiff competition if he wants to return to the winner’s circle. Davis went out early and fired a tournament-low 9-under 63. Playing in the last group of the day, Poston drained a 13-foot par putt to maintain his share of the lead and shoot 3-under 69. It marks the first time that Poston, 27, has held or shared a 54-hole lead on the Tour. He came from behind to win the 2019 Wyndham Championship for his lone victory.

“Three guys tied for the lead and a bunch of guys right behind us, so I think you’re going to have to go shoot something pretty low because out of that group somebody is going to shoot probably 6-, 7-under I would guess, maybe even lower,” he said. “I think if I got to 20 (under par) I would feel pretty good.”

Poston isn’t the only wizard with the putter in contention. Brandt Snedeker (67) is tied for fourth with Kristoffer Ventura (68) and trying for his 10th Tour title and first victory since the 2018 Wyndham Championship.

“Probably as excited and confident as I’ve been about my golf game in a long time. I’m talking years,” he said. “I’m really excited to see how it holds up tomorrow. I think it’s going to hold up really well, and I can shoot another low one.”

In all, there are 21 players within five strokes of the lead, including defending champion Sebastian Munoz, who will start five back. There’s a mix of proven winners such as Garcia and Snedeker and 36-hole leader Keegan Bradley, who struggled to shoot 73 and will start two strokes behind, and youngsters Ventura, Denny McCarthy (69), and Davis, who would fit into the tournament’s recent narrative of six straight first-time winners since the tournament began making its home at the Country Club of Jackson.

“I don’t know why it’s come down to every single one being a first-timer,” Davis said, “but hopefully there’s another one.”

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Will Phil Mickelson win on PGA Tour after turning 50?

From the time the calendar flipped to January 1, 1900 – for you history buffs, the first electric bus became operational in New York City that day and the second Olympics Games began in Paris five months later – more than 16,800 players have teed it …

From the time the calendar flipped to January 1, 1900 – for you history buffs, the first electric bus became operational in New York City that day and the second Olympics Games began in Paris five months later – more than 16,800 players have teed it up on the PGA Tour.

In that span, more than 4,300 official PGA Tour events have hit the books, with 914 individual winners grasping championship hardware.

Of those, all of seven were 50 years or older.

Will Phil Mickelson make it eight?

History – and the odds – are against him. The only players to roll through the elderly roadblock on the PGA Tour were Craig Stadler, Fred Funk, John Barnum, James Barnes, Davis Love III, Art Wall, Jr., and Sam Snead, who was 52 years, 10 months and 8 days old when he won the 1965 Greater Greensboro Open, making him the oldest to win on the PGA Tour.

But Mickelson, who turns 50 on June 16 and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame eight years ago, has turned back the clock before in the latter part of his career. His two most recent of 44 wins – ninth on the all-time list – came at the 2018 World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship at age 47 and the 2019 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am at age 48.

Phil Mickelson hits his bunker shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the 2020 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Photo by Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports

Lefty remains confident he can play at the highest level in professional golf and add to his Tour victory total. For now, he’ll hold off on booking passage to the PGA Tour Champions.

Good decision, his fellow PGA Tour brethren said.

“Oh, yeah, he’ll win again,” Brendan Steele said. “He’s hitting it farther probably than he ever has before, and in my opinion, one of the limiting factors if you’re going to win after 50 is length. Well, that’s not a factor for him.

“Now you add his short game, his wedge game, his putting, which is as good as most any player, there’s no reason for him not to think he can play and compete on the PGA Tour for a number of years still.”

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And while Farther Time marches on, Steele said Mickelson remains a big kid.

“He’s always coming up with new shots that he can implement into his game. And that’s part of his charm – he’s always trying to come up with stuff to get better,” Steele said. “Some of it doesn’t work but some of it he’ll be able to pull it off and it’s incredible. He always gets excited about new shots, new clubs, new strategies, all these different things, and I think that’s what keeps him young.

“I definitely think the drive is there, the enthusiasm is there, the skill is there, it’s all there, so he can definitely continue to win. And I think he can win, and I know this could be crazy, but I think he can the Masters in his mid- to late-50s. I know that would be wild but I don’t see any reason why he can’t.”

Others are of the same mindset.

“He will contend in the Masters for another 10 years,” Keegan Bradley said. “He loves that place and knows that place so well. And he loves golf so much and works at it so much. Yeah, he’ll win again. I think he’ll win multiple times.”

Age may be against him, but it won’t get the best of him, his colleagues said.

“I don’t have any doubt in my mind he’ll win again, because he’s still so passionate about it, still practices really hard, plays a ton of golf. And he’s still very, very good,” Brandt Snedeker said. “He loves the game of golf. I can’t think of any guy on Tour who really loves the game of golf more. In that aspect he reminds me of Arnold Palmer. Not just because of the way he is with the fans, but because Arnold literally until his last day on this earth wanted to go out and play golf. He wanted to go practice, tinker with his clubs. Phil is very similar in that regard. Phil is always trying new equipment, he is always out there playing golf, he’s always trying something new.

“I think it’s so cool to see somebody so passionate about it. That’s the one thing I love about Phil; literally every day he’s trying to find a new way to do what he does better. And there are very few people who still do that.”

More on Mickelson’s chase

Colt Knost

“Turning 50 is tough but he’s in the best shape of his life and he’s working hard. He’s a once-in-a-generation talent. He knows he can compete and win out on the Tour. I think he’ll get it done.”

Gary Woodland

“I played with him last year in the Phoenix Open and he played as poorly as I’ve seen him. He hit the golf ball all over the map, played awful, shot a million and missed the cut. And then he won the next week at Pebble Beach. His short game is so good. If he drives the golf ball semi in play, the rest of his game is so good and his confidence is so good, yes, he can win. I would never count him out. I think it would be foolish to count him out.”

Kevin Kisner

“He still has the game to win. If he just wouldn’t try to hit so many bombs and put more balls in the fairway, he’d have a better shot. Phil is the most unbelievable iron player I have ever seen for as bad a driver of the golf ball he is. And he’ll tell you that. It’s not like I’m bashing him. His short game is still phenomenal, his desire is there, he works hard. He’ll win again.”

Charley Hoffman

“Yes, he will win again. It might be on the Champions Tour but he will win again. I’m joking. He can win on the Tour. First of all, the guy is absolutely crushing it with his driver. He’s hitting amazing bombs. If he keeps doing that and gets the other stuff where it should be, I think he’ll win with ease. I think what’s been struggling in his short game has been his putting, which has been a strength throughout his career and he’ll figure it out. He’s figured out the driving part, and he’s killing it, and you have to hit it far. And he has that distance. So there is no question in my mind he will win again on the PGA Tour.”

Phil Mickelson
Phil Mickelson tees off on the eleventh hole during the first round of the 2020 Charles Schwab Challenge. Photo by Raymond Carlin III/USA TODAY Sports

Jim Furyk

“He’s motivate and driven. The talent level is there. His short game and putting are still phenomenal, his iron play is still great. He doesn’t hit a ton of fairways but when he does, look out.”

Zach Johnson

“Yes, he will win again. Because he’s really, really good at golf. He has all the shots. He hits it plenty far. And you have to find the edge and he has the edge. He knows how to win. And his imagination if as good as anyone’s and he can be a really good putter. And he wants to win. He’s starting to take care of himself, too. He’s probably in the best shape he’s been in in years. Absolutely he can win.”

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Brandt Snedeker on his little man’s ace, making a putt for $10 million, Tiger and teachers

Austin Snedeker ended up acing the No. 9 hole at The Little Course at Conner Lane in Franklin, Tennessee.

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While Brandt Snedeker usually rolls with his foot to the pedal and the speedometer at 100 mph, lately he’s been floating on a cloud looking down on cloud nine with a huge grin on his freckled face.

The nine-time PGA Tour winner and 2012 FedExCup champion who swings fast, plays fast and talks fast is reveling in his little man’s first hole-in-one that came earlier this week.

While holding the golf bag, Snedeker was witness as his son, Austin, 7, with a pitching wedge in hand, aced the ninth hole on the Little Course in Franklin, Tennessee. It was a bolt of welcomed lightning in the storm the COVID-19 global pandemic has delivered.

“Our household is pretty jacked up right now,” Snedeker said in a chat with Golfweek. “Absolutely flushed it, right at it, and it went right in the hole. It’s got those little foam things right now because of the COVID-19 stuff, but as a professional golfer, I can attest it would have gone in anywhere. He has me beat. I haven’t had a hole-in-one since he’s been born so he’s 1 up on me right now.”

But there was one slight problem. As is customary, little Austin couldn’t buy drinks to celebrate.

“He was worried about it because he didn’t have any cash on him,” Snedeker said. “I said I’d spot him this time and the next time you’re on your own.”

Snedeker, 39, is gearing up for golf’s scheduled return June 8 at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He is planning to play the first two events of the restart.

“We’re all wondering what it’s going to look like,” Snedeker said, ranked No. 48 in the world. “I think it’s time for us to try. The Tour has done a great job with a plan that it thinks will work. I’m excited about it. The Tour has done everything possible to get us ready to go.”

Snedeker touched on a lot of subjects with Golfweek, including what it’s like to make a putt for $10 million – which he did to win the 2012 FedExCup; how this time away from the game has allowed his oft-injured body to heal; and how impressed he is with teachers.

“I think I can speak for a lot of Americans who have found a new appreciation for teachers in this country and what they do on a daily basis,” he said. “I am not a teacher by any stretch of the imagination but it was a tough couple of months for me being a home-schooling dad. Those teachers put up with a lot of stuff I don’t have the patience for.”

And Snedeker talked at length about Tiger Woods.

“I tell all the young guys all the time, they say they want to see Tiger at his best, and I tell them they don’t,” he said. “You couldn’t beat him. I didn’t see Tiger in 2000, 2001, when he was just beating everybody by 20 shots. I saw him in ’07, ’08 and ’09 when he was beating all of us by 10.”

Brandt Snedeker talks about his son’s first ace, playing with Tiger, and $10M putt

Austin Snedeker ended up acing the No. 9 hole at The Little Course at Conner Lane in Franklin, Tennessee.

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Early in his round Tuesday the conversation 7-year-old Austin Snedeker had with his dad, PGA Tour pro Brandt Snedeker, came around to the possibility of making a hole-in-one.

Austin was hitting the ball particularly well off the tee and wondered if he could make a hole-in-one.

“I was talking about a hole-in-one actually while on my second hole,” Austin said. “I hit the ball really good on my second hole and I was like, it’d be really cool if I hit a hole-in-one.”

Before the round ended Austin got his wish. He continued to strike the ball well and ended up acing the No. 9 hole at The Little Course at Conner Lane in Franklin, Tennessee.

Brandt Snedeker and his son, Austin. (Submitted photo)

Austin has been playing seriously for about a year. He had posted one of his best rounds earlier in the day and finished fourth in his age group in a Sneds Tour Tournament at The Little Course with Brandt caddying for him.

“He played well in that tournament and we went and played another nine in the afternoon because he was so jacked up,” Brandt said.

Even for someone playing well, the odds are stacked against a golfer Austin’s age of sinking a hole-in-one. According to the National Hole-In-One Registry the average golfer makes one hole-in-one every 24 years of playing and the average age group of a player who makes the most holes-in-one is 50-59 (25%).

That’s why Brandt was surprised as he watched his son’s 60-yard tee shot, which he hit with a pitching wedge, leave the tee and sail directly into the hole.

“He hit the ball perfect and I was thinking it’s going to be close,” Brandt said. “Then sure enough, it flew right in. We were all jumping around going crazy. It was great.”

Brandt has made seven holes-in-one and was 12 when he made his first.

“I’ve not made one since Austin was born so he’s got me beat right now,” said Brandt, who is 20th on the PGA Tour career money leaders list with $38,716,559.

Korn Ferry foursome hooks in with Nashville event’s sponsor

Brandt Snedeker had high praise for Simmons Bank, which announced Friday a multiyear player sponsorship agreement with four professional golfers on the Korn Ferry Tour. Simmons Bank became title sponsor earlier this year of the Korn Ferry Tour …

Brandt Snedeker had high praise for Simmons Bank, which announced Friday a multiyear player sponsorship agreement with four professional golfers on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Simmons Bank became title sponsor earlier this year of the Korn Ferry Tour Nashville event, renamed the Simmons Bank Open for The Snedeker Foundation.

The four players, called Team Simmons Bank, are Dawson Armstrong from Brentwood, Kevin Dougherty, Braden Thornberry and Will Zalatoris.

The fifth annual event, with a $600,000 purse at Nashville Golf and Athletic Club, was scheduled for April 30-May 3, but was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Simmons Bank also announced a new initiative — Drive, Putt, Do Good — to help offset the charitable fundraising component for the Snedeker Foundation that was eliminated with the event’s cancellation. The bank will donate $50 to the Snedeker Foundation for every birdie made by Armstrong, Dougherty, Thornberry and Zalatoris make this season.

“Simmons Bank has been an unbelievable partner already in the short time since they joined on,” said Snedeker, a former Vanderbilt star who has won nine times on the PGA Tour. “We’re awfully disappointed we couldn’t showcase them this year in the event, but going forward we couldn’t have a better partner.”

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Armstrong played golf at Lipscomb before turning pro in 2014. He won on the Mackenzie Tour in Canada in 2019 and ended the season No. 8 to earn 2020 Korn Ferry Tour membership. He is ranked 86th on the Korn Ferry Tour, which develops golfers for the PGA Tour.

“These are definitely strange and difficult times, and the fact that Simmons Bank is willing to support my goals as a professional golfer, and help the charity out as well, says a lot about what they are made of,” Armstrong said.

Snedeker said having a local player like Armstrong on Team Simmons Bank will benefit the fundraising effort.

“I couldn’t think of a better ambassador for anybody,” Snedeker said. “He is the perfect guy to kind of lead the charge and help Simmons show their commitment to the Korn Ferry Tour, to our tournament and what golf means to them.”

Dougherty also turned pro in 2014 after graduating from Oklahoma State. He is in his third season on the Korn Ferry Tour and had seven top-10 finishes in the last two years.

Thornberry, who played at Ole Miss, turned pro in 2018 and is 51st on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Zalatoris, who played at Wake Forest, also turned pro in 2018 and is 12th on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter. 

In thin air, Bryson DeChambeau lights up on topic of monster drives

Like Gary Woodland, DeChambeau loves playing at elevation but it isn’t all that easy, the players say.

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MEXICO CITY – Bryson DeChambeau, at the end of his range session Tuesday, unleashed a drive that flew 397 yards before touching down on land.

“It’s completely unrealistic to normal golf,” DeChambeau said.

But it’s fun, he added with a big smile, hitting the ball that proverbial country mile. It makes him happy, especially when he launches a drive that goes so far he can’t track it with his own eyes.

While DeChambeau’s recent addition of 25 pounds of muscle had something to do with his enormous drive, the key ingredient was the air. More specifically, the thin air. Welcome to Elevation Central on the PGA Tour this week here at Club de Golf Chapultepec, home to the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship.

Resting 7,800 feet above sea level, the tree-lined, 7,345-yard, par-71 layout is a field of dreams for the long ball, where drives exceed 400 yards, 6-irons hit the 250-yard sign and 8-irons top two bills.

WGC-MEXICO: Odds, picks | Tee times | Aussies on a roll

Three years ago, this week’s defending champion Dustin Johnson increased his driving distance numbers hitting 2-irons. Think baseball’s Coors Field in Denver – and then place the hitter’s ballpark 2,600 feet higher in the Rocky Mountains.

“I love it,” DeChambeau said of playing in thin air. “It just makes the golf course super short. Which doesn’t mean it makes it easy.”

No, it’s not all wine and roses this week. First of all, players have to get their bodies adjusted to the thin air. One loses their breath here a lot quicker than down by the sea. A rule of thumb? Do not talk while walking uphill. Drink plenty of fluids, especially the night before to allow your body to catch up. And conserve energy as much as possible.

And the players aren’t going all John Daly – just grip it and rip it.

Swinging out of their golf shoes won’t be the norm, for this isn’t a long-drive contest. Instead, it’s a battle to find distance control.

Along with their caddie, the players have to take on the role of mathematician as all variables must be considered. The thin air can play mind games, and Trackman, a launch monitor that examines each shot’s characteristics including ball speed, spin rate and distance, is working overtime as players try and dial in their games.

The ball will travel some 10-18 percent farther than it does at sea level. But how far will the ball fly downwind or into the wind? When it’s cooler in the morning compared to hotter in the afternoon? Shots that draw or fade? A three-quarter shot vs. a full shot?

“You have to make sure you hit it solid every time,” Billy Horschel said. “And no matter what launch you want to hit it, you pick a window to hit it through. Let’s say, if you’re trying to hit 7-iron 212 yards, which is what I’m hitting it here instead of 180 that I regularly hit it, if I launch it too low, it won’t go 212 yards. It will go about 205 and that’s a big difference. If I launch it too high, it will go 220.

“Hit it through the window you want.”

Brandt Snedeker said you have to adjust on the fly.

“There is a lot of feel this week, when you feel the ball will go a lot longer than the numbers say, or you feel it won’t go that far,” he said. “How high you hit it makes a difference. You can’t get stuck on the numbers and the percentages.”

Gary Woodland plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines – North Course. (Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports)

When it comes to numbers, reigning U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland wants to hear just one number – the adjusted number. For instance, he doesn’t want to hear he’s 215 yards from the target, which would make him immediately think he’s hitting 5-iron because that’s what he hits at sea level. So his caddie goes through the equations and comes up with 175. That’s an 8-iron back home.

“The big deal for me is the mental side,” he said. “I just want to hear the adjusted number. Then I know I can make a better swing instead of trying to hit an 8-iron 215 yards and swinging a bit harder when I don’t have to.”

In the past, Woodland, who grew up playing in high winds and loves to hit the ball low, had trouble adjusting to the thin air. Hitting the ball lower in high altitude provides a bigger challenge to adjust numbers. So this week, Woodland and a few others are going with balls that provide more spin, allowing for higher ball flights and more distance control.

And while Woodland said playing in thin air is good for your ego – “I feel like Cameron Champ, I feel like I’m 23 years old again,” he said, referencing Champ, the longest driver in the game – you have to check your ego at the first tee.

Yes, it feels good to hit a 9-iron 195, but is that the proper club to use? Is driver the right club even if you can drive the green? Do you muscle up or muscle down?

“You have to make yourself think, ‘What is the best chance for me to make birdie here?’” DeChambeau said. “It doesn’t always mean driver to the green, which I really want to (hit).”

Yes, he digs the long ball and had a good laugh about wanting to drive a green with a driver. But then he talked about the 319-yard first hole.

“If there’s no wind, I’m hitting hybrid on the first hole to the green,” he said. “It’s going 305.”

A hybrid going 305? Well, it does here in the thin air of Mexico.

[opinary poll=”where-will-tiger-woods-get-win-no-83_gol” customer=”golfweek”]

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AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am odds, predictions, picks and PGA Tour best bets

Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.

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The PGA Tour shifts back to the West Coast for this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Dustin Johnson, ranked fifth by the Official World Golf Ranking, leads the field as he’ll tee it up on the mainland for the first time since August’s Tour Championship.

The key stats for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, which will cycle through Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course and Monterey Peninsula Country Club, are:

  • Strokes Gained: Approach
  • Strokes Gained: Around the Green
  • Strokes Gained: Scrambling
  • Birdies Gained
  • Par 4 Scoring: 350-400 Yards
  • Proximity from 125-150 Yards

My model at Fantasy National looks at the most recent 24 rounds on courses shorter than 7,200 yards.

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am – Tier 1

(Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)

Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 8 p.m. ET.

Dustin Johnson (+650)

Johnson returns to the USA following a runner-up finish at the European Tour’s Saudi International. He’s back in form following a lengthy injury layoff and a T-7 result at the 30-man Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii to open 2020. He’s a two-time winner of this event and leads the week’s stat model. He scores particularly well on the shorter courses and ranks second in birdies gained.

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Brandt Snedeker (+2200)

Snedeker, the 2015 champ, suffered a rare missed cut at least week’s Waste Management Phoenix Open following a T-3 at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. He’s one of the best in the field at putting on the difficult Poa Annua greens, and he’ll benefit from playing the shorter venue.

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am – Tier 2

(Photo Credit: Mark Konezny – USA TODAY Sports)

Kevin Na (+6600)

Na has played this event just one of the last three years when he finished T-20 in 2018. He missed the cut last week to fall to 28th in the OWGR, but he remains a strong value play in a weaker field. He’s an expert scrambler, and his lack of distance will be mitigated here with none of the three courses topping 7,000 yards.

Kurt Kitayama (+6600)

Kitayama, ranked 68th in the world, will play his first PGA Tour event since the WGC-HSBC Champions in early November. The European Tour regular is coming off a T-6 at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic. His last professional victory was last year’s Oman Open after he won twice in 2018.

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AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am – Longshots

(Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)

Matthew NeSmith (+12500)

NeSmith, 26, will make his debut at this event. He sat out last week’s tournament after a three-event stretch composed of a T-32 at the Sony Open, T-17 at The American Express and a T-30 at the Farmers Insurance Open.

Brian Stuard (+17500)

Stuard ranks 10th by the week’s stat model. He has been strong on approach and around the greens. He’s also fourth in the field in three-putt avoidance on Poa Annua greens. He comes into the week ranked 145th in the world following a missed cut in Phoenix, but this event routinely produces longshot champs.

Get some action on this tournament by signing up and betting at BetMGM. If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com.

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Brandt Snedeker shines at Torrey Pines even if it’s not an obvious match

Snedeker is a two-time winner at the Farmers and says he actually likes the Poa Annua greens.

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SAN DIEGO – Tiger Woods owns Torrey Pines.

Brandt Snedeker rents it.

Woods has cashed in more than anyone at Torrey Pines, with seven titles in the Farmers Insurance Open and a victory in the 2008 U.S. Open on a broken leg. He also won a World Junior golf event here as a kid.

But Snedeker’s fortunes aren’t too shabby. He won here in 2012 and 2016. Finished second in 2010 and 2013. Finished third as a rookie in 2007 when an opening-round 61 was his introduction to the seaside resort. Tied for ninth twice. And in the 2008 U.S. Open here, he tied for ninth.

“Puts a smile on my face,” Snedeker said of Torrey Pines. “I love being here. I love the challenge that Torrey Pines brings. I love the greens. The fans kind of adopted me here as one of their own because it’s kind of where my career got started, my rookie year, 2007. So means a lot of stuff to me, so when I come here I’m always in a good mood, which when you get on Poa (Annua greens) is probably half the battle.

MORE: Leaderboard | Tee times, TV info | Updates | Photos

“And I came here playing well. Played really good at Hawaii and just wasn’t able to kind of get the putter going the way I normally do, so came here with a lot of confidence.”

It’s showing. On the South Course, Snedeker tacked on a 67 Friday in the second round of the Farmers Insurance Open to his opening-round 69 and sits at 8 under in second place, two shots behind Ryan Palmer.

Torrey Pines doesn’t seem to be a logical place for Snedeker to excel. After all, he’s a Southern boy who grew up on bermuda greens, which don’t exactly get you ready for the bumpy rides Poa delivers and drives players batty. But since that 61 in 2007, he’s enjoyed Poa. He’s also notched two victories on Poa in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am.

“Because I played here my rookie year and putted unbelievable my first time ever on Poa Annua, I never had a bad feeling about it,” he said. “I think also Poa Annua really tests you to hit solid putts over and over and over again if you get the ball rolling. If you’re kind of off a little bit, it will really find it out.

“So if you’re rolling it great, the ball’s still going to roll good on Poa. If you’re off a little bit, it won’t.”

And while many people believe the South Course – used for the final two rounds of the tournament – is set up for bombers, Snedeker, who isn’t among the elite of the longest, disagrees.

“This golf course, for whatever reason, sets up really well for me,” he said. “I kind of know how you’re supposed to play it. You’ve got to think your way around it. Everybody thinks it’s this huge golf course and you’ve got to overpower it, and that’s not the case. You’ve really got to plot your way around this golf course and I did a good job of it today.

“If you don’t hit the ball in the fairway here, it’s going to be a long day. I’m not a long hitter like some of these guys are out here, so I’ve got to hit the fairway. Did a great job on the front nine, I kind of survived the back nine, so hopefully on the weekend I can kind of tighten up the driver a little bit.

“If I do that, I’ll have a lot of fun, and make some putts.”

[opinary poll=”where-will-tiger-woods-get-career-win-no” customer=”golfweek”]

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