Tag: Country Club of Jackson

Learning from a difficult last year, a happier Matthew Wolff rockets up leaderboard at Sanderson Farms Championship

Wolff went low on Saturday and is beginning to look like world-beater fans thought he’d become.

This time last year Matthew Wolff was cruising.

The rising star on the PGA Tour had put together consecutive runner-up finishes at the U.S. Open and Shriners Hospitals for Children Open before a nagging right hand injury aided a poor run of form– five missed cuts, two WDs and a disqualification for signing an incorrect scorecard in 20 events with just four top-25 finishes – that plagued the rest of his 2020 super-season.

The 22-year-old looked more like the world-beater golf fans thought he’d be on Saturday at Country Club of Jackson, shooting a 7-under 65 from the morning wave to climb into contention at the 2021 Sanderson Farms Championship. In fact, Wolff is using the same set of TaylorMade P7MC irons he used at the U.S. Open and Shriners after he switched to the P750’s in the summer, according to the PGA Tour’s Sean Martin.

“I think that I’m just kind of putting everything in perspective a little bit,” said Wolff, who made a 36-footer on his final hole Friday to make the cut on the number at 5 under.

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

“I’m getting a little older and a little more mature and unfortunately last year was really hard for me and I wasn’t in a happy spot but I think at the end of the day I’m going to learn from that and I already have learned from it and definitely know in the future I think it’s going to make me a better player,” explained Wolff, “because I guarantee you that’s not the last time I’m going to have a little hiccup in my career and having that so young I feel like I’ve already learned so much more than maybe some guys who have had an easier career and stuff, even though it’s not easy to have a good career throughout the entire time.”

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Expectations were high for the Oklahoma State product coming out of school, and rightfully so. Wolff turned pro after a sophomore year in Stillwater that featured a program-record six wins, including the individual national championship. He won on Tour just a month later, outdueling Bryson DeChambeau and fellow rookie Collin Morikawa at the 2019 3M Open with an eagle on the 72nd hole.

The California native who now resides in Jupiter, Florida, added that he’s working on the right things and that’s led his game to make a turn back to the positive side. His happier mental state certainly helps, too.

Wolff took advantage of little-to-no wind during most of his Saturday morning walk, and got into a rhythm alongside Luke List, who shot a 4-under 68. He birdied his opening hole and added two more on Nos. 4 and 6, with his lone bogey of the day sandwiched in-between on the par-5 5th.

Another birdie on the 9th put Wolff at 3-under 33 at the turn, and the train kept rolling with a two on the par-3 10th and a two-putt birdie from 28 feet on the par-5 11th. He added two more on Nos. 14 and 15 to put to bed his lowest score since his Saturday 61 at last year’s Shriners.

“I’m really happy with where I put myself and looking to have fun and just go out there and do my best tomorrow,” said Wolff.

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Sanderson Farms Championship tee times, TV info for Saturday’s third round

From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s what you need to know for the third round of the Sanderson Farms Championship.

A pair of up-and-comers are among a three-way tie for the lead at the Sanderson Farms Championship heading into the weekend. Will Zalatoris, recently named the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, fired a second-round 61 and at 13 under, is tied with another newcomer, Sahith Theegala. Nick Watney is also knotted for the lead at 13 under.

Zalatoris, a former Wake Forest player, isn’t the only Demon Deacon near the top of the leaderboard. Recent graduate Cameron Young is just a shot behind at 12 under.

After two rounds, defending champion Sergio Garcia, a star at last week’s Ryder Cup, is headed home early along with a group of other big names.

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

1st tee

Tee time Players
9:25 a.m. Vincent Whaley, Andrew Novak
9:35 a.m. Brice Garnett, Chad Ramey
9:45 a.m. Luke List, Matthew Wolff
9:55 a.m. Emiliano Grillo, Doc Redman
10:05 a.m. Alex Smalley, Davis Thompson
10:15 a.m. Sung Kang, Lee Hodges
10:25 a.m. Brendan Steele, Adam Long
10:35 a.m. Lucas Glover, Taylor Moore
10:45 a.m. Michael Thompson, Joel Dahmen
11:00 a.m. John Huh, Mackenzie Hughes
11:10 a.m. Mito Pereira, Adam Hadwin
11:20 a.m. Ryan Moore, Chris Kirk
11:30 a.m. J.J. Spaun, Chesson Hadley
11:40 a.m. Austin Cook, Doug Ghim
11:50 a.m. Seth Reeves, Grant Hirschman
12:00 p.m. Brandon Hagy, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra
12:10 p.m. Sam Ryder, William McGirt
12:20 p.m. Joseph Bramlett, Taylor Pendrith
12:35 p.m. Peter Malnati, Kyle Reifers
12:45 p.m. Charley Hoffman, Cameron Tringale
12:55 p.m. Russell Knox, Si Woo Kim
1:05 p.m. Tyler Duncan, Trey Mullinax
1:15 p.m. Sungjae Im, Corey Conners
1:25 p.m. Kevin Streelman, Andrew Landry
1:35 p.m. Nick Hardy, Paul Barjon
1:45 p.m. Jimmy Walker, Nate Lashley
1:55 p.m. Harold Varner III, Dylan Frittelli
2:10 p.m. C.T. Pan, Andy Ogletree
2:20 p.m. Denny McCarthy, Kurt Kitayama
2:30 p.m. Henrik Norlander, Sam Burns
2:40 p.m. Aaron Wise, Stephan Jaeger
2:50 p.m. Hayden Buckley, Roger Sloan
3:00 p.m. Sahith Theegala, Cameron Young
3:10 p.m. Will Zalatoris, Nick Watney

TV, streaming, radio information

All times listed are ET.

Saturday, Oct. 2

TV

Golf Channel: 4-7 p.m.

RADIO

PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-7 p.m.

Sunday, Oct. 3

TV

Golf Channel: 4-7 p.m.

RADIO

PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-7 p.m.

We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.

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Defending champion Sergio Garcia highlights PGA Tour players who missed the cut at the Sanderson Farms Championship

Who’s going home early from the Sanderson Farms?

JACKSON, Miss. — With just one player ranked inside the top 25 of the Official World Golf Ranking in the field at the Sanderson Farms Championship this week, a group of hopeful rising stars on the PGA Tour have taken advantage of the opportunity to reach the leaderboard.

Last season’s Rookie of the Year Will Zalatoris took the early lead at 13 under after setting the course record (and tying the tournament mark) with a bogey-free 11-under 61 on Friday at Country Club of Jackson. Later in the evening he was joined atop the leaderboard by Nick Watney (6-under 66) and Sahith Theegala (5-under 67). Zalatoris’ former teammate at Wake Forest, Cameron Young, sits T-2, one shot back at 12 under alongside Mississippi local Hayden Buckley.

On the flip side, toward the bottom half of the leaderboard, you may be surprised when you see some of the notable players to miss the cut.

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

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Watch: Gators are making the rounds at Sanderson Farms Championship

With the return of the Sanderson Farms Championship comes … the return of roaming alligators at the event.

With the return of the Sanderson Farms Championship to The Country Club of Jackson comes … the return of roaming alligators along The Country Club of Jackson at the Sanderson Farms Championship.

A live alligator was spotted on the sixth hole at The Jackson Country Club on Friday afternoon. The club’s PGA professional Jason Prendergrast said Fuzzy was the name given for the only alligator he had encountered on the course before in 2020. Prendergrast has been with The Country Club since 2004 and came across his first alligator in two years. As of 2020, about 10-known alligators occupy bodies of water at the course.

With the animals on the course, The Country Club’s junior program began with two names: “Crocs,” for ages 3-9 and “Gators” for ages 10-and-up.

Last year, an alligator snacking on a turtle made the rounds during the event.

An alligator is seen eating a turtle on the sixth hole during the second round of the 2020 Sanderson Farms Championship at the Country Club of Jackson on October 02, 2020, in Jackson, Mississippi. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

Sanderson Farms Championship: Winners and losers from Day 1 in Mississippi

Round two of this year’s Sanderson Farms Championship continues through Friday evening. Will Zalatoris was the leader after the early wave of players.

Contact Rashad Milligan at 601-862-6198 or Jmilligan@gannett.com. Follow @RashadMilligan on Twitter.

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Will Zalatoris takes Sanderson Farms Championship lead with 11-under 61, Wake Forest teammate Cameron Young right behind

Zalatoris highlights a group of four players 25-years-old or younger at the top of the Sanderson Farms leaderboard.

JACKSON, Miss. — Will Zalatoris was one of the most engaging storylines of the PGA Tour’s 2020 super season, and the 25-year-old is keeping his name at the top of headlines and leaderboards once again to start the new Tour season.

After earning Rookie of the Year honors last season as a non-member of the Tour – the first to do so since Charles Howell III in 2001 – Zalatoris finished T-11 two weeks ago at the season-opening Fortinet Championship and fired a bogey-free 11-under 61 during Friday’s second round of the Sanderson Farms Championship to take the lead after the morning wave of play at 13 under.

Zalatoris began the round at Country Club of Jackson on the back nine with a pair of birdies on Nos. 10 and 11 and followed suit on 13, 16 and 18 to make the turn at 5 under. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, his second nine was even better. On the front, he made four consecutive birdies on Nos. 2 through 5 and closed his stellar round with two more on 8 and 9. Six of his eleven birdies were from 12 feet or further, the longest being a 26-footer on the par-3 13th.

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

“I think it’s funny that I get given a hard time about my putting and if you add in Augusta last year which didn’t have ShotLink I would have been a positive strokes-gained putter,” said Zalatoris after his round. “Is it the prettiest? No. But am I productive? Yes.”

Zalatoris added that he was a little fired up watching highlights of the Ryder Cup last week, especially seeing players he grew up playing with representing Team USA in its historic 19-9 win over the Europeans at Whistling Straits.

“I’ve got asked a lot what are your goals for this year and besides winning a golf tournament I really don’t have any,” he explained.

The Wake Forest grad is in position to do just that entering the weekend, and he’s got a friendly face right behind him. His Demon Deacon teammate for three years, Cameron Young, sits T-2 at 12 under with local Mississippi talent Hayden Buckley after both shot rounds of 7-under 65. As the afternoon wave began, Aaron Wise and Stephan Jaeger sat T-4 at 10 under.

“Yeah, he’s incredibly stoic. That’s the thing with him is that you’ll never see him be a fireball or anything like that, he’s an incredibly steady player, he hits it a mile and when he drives it straight I mean it’s tough to beat him because he’s got great hands around the greens, too,” Zalatoris said of Young, who made his first PGA Tour cut this week. “We roomed a bunch together at tournaments, so it will be a lot of fun because technically we’ve never played in a tournament together so hopefully this will be our first time.”

“I mean I wanted to beat him as bad as anybody did because he was the best of all of us, especially his first year at college,” Young, 24, said of Zalatoris, “and my first qualifier I think he beat me by 40. I don’t think I’ll forget that one, but hopefully I will keep it a little closer this time.”

Now a Florida resident after growing up near Tupelo, Mississippi, the 25-year-old Buckley had the crowd on his side on Friday and he took full advantage.

“You want to entertain, I know at the end of the day we are entertainers and there’s so many people that came out to watch so it’s nice to give them something to cheer for,” said Buckley. “You can probably hear it from all over the course, I know I had a couple guys that they were yelling a little too loud, but it’s just so nice to see so many people supporting me and see what I’ve been doing for the last few years.

“I moved away,” continued Buckley. “I went off to college in Missouri and didn’t see a lot of friends, I kind of lost connection with a lot of friends and some family and it’s nice to see all my hard work paying off and for them to see it pay off as well.”

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Sanderson Farms Championship tee times, TV info for Friday’s second round

The Country Club of Jackson in Mississippi is where everyone loves to go low.

It’s always tough for the event after a Ryder Cup to live up to the incredible head-to-head play. The emotion, the spectacle, the level of players involved with the event.

Regardless, the PGA Tour returned to Mississippi this week for the Sanderson Farms Championship, where tournament officials say they actually like being the first event after the biennial intercontinental battle.

After a 7-under 65 on Thursday, Harold Varner III is back in contention once again. Off the course, he and his wife, Amanda, are expecting their first child next week.

Birdies and eagles rule in this event, so much so that the average winning score in the past five editions was 19 under. That scoring trend seems likely again this year as players lit up the leaderboards with red numbers in Thursday’s first round.

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

1st tee

Tee time Players
8:05 a.m.
Keegan Bradley, Harold Varner III, Matthew NeSmith
8:16 a.m.
Brian Stuard, Rory Sabbatini, Bronson Burgoon
8:27 a.m.
Camilo Villegas, Tom Hoge, Doug Ghim
8:38 a.m.
Brian Gay, Dylan Frittelli, Adam Long
8:49 a.m.
Kevin Tway, Jimmy Walker, Kevin Stadler
9:00 a.m.
Hudson Swafford, Kevin Chappell, Charley Hoffman
9:11 a.m.
Andrew Putnam, Cameron Tringale, Sepp Straka
9:22 a.m.
Ryan Moore, Chris Kirk, Tyler McCumber
9:33 a.m.
Ben Kohles, Nick Hardy, Lee Hodges
9:44 a.m.
Michael Gligic, Dawie van der Walt, Cameron Young
9:55 a.m.
David Lipsky, Brandon Wu, Kyle Reifers
10:06 a.m.
Taylor Pendrith, Aaron Rai, Davis Thompson
1:00 p.m.
Adam Hadwin, Emiliano Grillo, John Huh
1:11 p.m.
Mackenzie Hughes, Patrick Rodgers, Henrik Norlander
1:22 p.m.
Bill Haas, Kevin Streelman, Roger Sloan
1:33 p.m.
Seamus Power, K.H. Lee, Richy Werenski
1:44 p.m.
Cam Davis, Martin Laird, Zach Johnson
1:55 p.m.
Sam Burns, Sungjae Im, Corey Conners
2:06 p.m.
Joel Dahmen, Carlos Ortiz, Matthew Wolff
2:17 p.m.
Nick Watney, Matt Wallace, Wyndham Clark
2:28 p.m.
Kurt Kitayama, Chad Ramey, Andy Ogletree
2:39 p.m.
Brett Drewitt, Sahith Theegala, Taylor Moore
2:50 p.m.
Davis Riley, Curtis Thompson, Sam Saunders
3:01 p.m.
Lucas Herbert, Seth Reeves, Quade Cummins

10th tee

8:05 a.m.
Brendan Steele, Scott Stallings, Bo Van Pelt
8:16 a.m.
Aaron Wise, Austin Cook, Kramer Hickok
8:27 a.m.
Russell Knox, Anirban Lahiri, J.J. Spaun
8:38 a.m.
Si Woo Kim, Lanto Griffin, Sung Kang
8:49 a.m.
Nick Taylor, Nate Lashley, Martin Trainer
9:00 a.m.
Gary Woodland, Brandt Snedeker, Chesson Hadley
9:11 a.m.
Sergio Garcia, Sebastian Munoz, Peter Malnati
9:22 a.m.
Ryan Armour, Will Zalatoris, Stephan Jaeger
9:33 a.m.
Cody Gribble, Greyson Sigg, Paul Barjon
9:44 a.m.
Mito Pereira, Hayden Buckley, Jared Wolfe
9:55 a.m.
Joseph Bramlett, Alex Smalley, Cohen Trolio
10:06 a.m.
Adam Svensson, Max McGreevy, Greg Sonnier
1:00 p.m.
Seung-Yul Noh, Kelly Kraft, Doc Redman
1:11 p.m.
Jonas Blixt, Luke List, Sam Ryder
1:22 p.m.
Scott Piercy, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Adam Schenk
1:33 p.m.
Andrew Landry, C.T. Pan, Keith Mitchell
1:44 p.m.
Robert Streb, Brendon Todd, Patton Kizzire
1:55 p.m.
Michael Thompson, Chez Reavie, William McGirt
2:06 p.m.
Lucas Glover, Tyler Duncan, J.T. Poston
2:17 p.m.
Brice Garnett, Denny McCarthy, Brandon Hagy
2:28 p.m.
Vincent Whaley, Matthias Schwab, Joshua Creel
2:39 p.m.
Trey Mullinax, Scott Gutschewski, John Augenstein
2:50 p.m.
Andrew Novak, Callum Tarren, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra
3:01 p.m.
Dylan Wu, David Skinns, Grant Hirschman

TV, streaming, radio information

All times listed are ET.

Friday, Oct. 1

TV

Golf Channel: 4-7 p.m.

STREAMING

PGA Tour Live: 8 a.m.-7 p.m.

RADIO

PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-7 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 2

TV

Golf Channel: 4-7 p.m.

RADIO

PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-7 p.m.

Sunday, Oct. 3

TV

Golf Channel: 4-7 p.m.

RADIO

PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 1-7 p.m.

We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.

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Chasing his first PGA Tour win (with a baby on the way), Harold Varner III is cool as ever at Sanderson Farms Championship

The East Carolina grad was the lone player to crack the top five on the leaderboard from the afternoon wave.

JACKSON, Miss. — It’s been a big few months for Harold Varner III.

On the course, the 31-year-old is rolling. Over the last three months on the PGA Tour, he’s earned five top-20 finishes over eight events, including a T-16 two weeks ago at the Fortinet Championship in California, the first event of the new season. After a 7-under 65 on Thursday in the first round of the Sanderson Farms Championship at Country Club of Jackson, Varner is back in contention once again.

“I putted well in Napa and I feel like I’m still doing the same thing. The place is pretty pure right now, if you hit a lot of good golf shots you’re going to get a lot of looks and you just got to be patient,” said Varner of his round. “And the way I’m putting it right now I just need to get it on the green.”

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book | Photos

Off the course, he and his wife, Amanda, are expecting their first child next week. Now you may think that would weigh heavy on a player’s mind or distract their focus on the course. But not for Varner.

“Yeah, I don’t really think about it at all out there because there’s nothing I can do to make that kid come out, that kid’s going to come whenever he has to come,” said Varner. “And the doctor though, she goes to school for a hundred years and still doesn’t know when these kids come. So it is what it is. So nothing we can do. I’ll be prepared.”

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The East Carolina grad was the lone player to crack the top five on the leaderboard from the afternoon wave after Thursday morning’s birdie and eagle fest. Sahith Theegala took the lead with a bogey-free 8-under 64 and holds a one-shot advantage over Varner and Nick Watney entering Friday’s second round. Trailing the trio are Roger Sloan, Kurt Kitayama and Si Woo Kim, who each sit T-4 at 6-under after first-round 66s. Defending champion Sergio Garcia, who compiled a 3-1-0 record last week at the Ryder Cup in a losing effort to the United States, is at 2 under.

Varner qualified for the FedEx Cup Playoffs for the sixth consecutive time last season and earned his best finish on Tour with a runner-up at the RBC Heritage. All that said, he’s still chasing that elusive first win on Tour, and he’ll need to continue to go low to make it happen. The average winning score at the Sanderson Farms the last five years is 19 under. The want to win paired with the need to go low has to add pressure for the North Carolina native, right?

“No, the media’s the only thing that adds pressure because I’m going to answer that question after every day. And it’s just, it is what it is,” explained Varner. “And I’m learning how to deal with it and I hate when people, not ask you, but I hate when people are just always like, ‘When you going to win?’ It’s not like I’m not trying. It’s not easy.

“So it’s a great opportunity, it’s always going to be a challenge I’m just excited for it and I’m not too worried about what anyone else is doing. I used to get caught up in that and I’m just super thankful to be over that step in my life.”

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It’s another par-busting party at Sanderson Farms Championship

Birdies and eagles rule the Sanderson Farms, so much so that the average winning score the past five editions was 19 under.

We all know the familiar adage whenever the U.S. Open is contested.

Par is your friend.

Well, that doesn’t ring true at the Country Club of Jackson, home to the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi.

Birdies and eagles rule in the Sanderson Farms, so much so that the average winning score in the past five editions was 19 under. Here, you go low or go home.

That scoring trend seems likely again this year as players lit up the leaderboards with red numbers in Thursday’s first round. There were 20 scores of 68 or better – and that was just out of the morning wave of players. Defending champion Sergio Garcia was eight shots back when he went to the first tee for his afternoon round.

Par busters were so frequent that Corey Conners, who shot 5-under-par 67, didn’t realize he made five consecutive birdies.

“I really didn’t even know I made five in a row until I was signing my scorecard and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s cool.’” he said. “I just tried to play with freedom, was able to roll in some putts and, yeah, able to string some birdies together.”

Sanderson Farms: Scores | Yardage book

Many others put plenty of circles on the scorecards on a day featuring light winds, overcast skies and warm temperatures. And with pure Bermuda greens, the players had a field day at the Country Club of Jackson.

“The greens are some of the best greens we play on all year,” Conners said. “I think it’s a very underrated golf course; it’s right in front of you, but you got to be really on, or you can have some trouble.”

Sahith Theegala had no trouble in a bogey-free 64 to grab the clubhouse lead. The 2020 winner of the Haskins, Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan awards honoring the best player in college is making his 15th start on the PGA Tour.

“Really stress free,” he said of his round. “Probably the best way I can describe it. Just drove it really well. I was really working it well. I got my slider back. I was hitting a pretty good cut, probably 25 to 30 yard cut out there and this course kind of allows it because the trees around the tee box aren’t that close to the tees, so I was just working my ball flight in there and just felt really comfortable all day.

“Being in the fairway helps so much.”

Having the right attitude, especially when facing the heightened expectations Theegala had to deal with when he turned pro, helps, too.

“I think the main thing is that everyone that’s gotten to this point, they know their game is good enough to at least be out here and I think knowing that in the back of our mind, it sounds cliche, but just really have a good time out there,” Theegala said. “I would like to think pretty much everyone loves the game and that’s why they’re playing it and they just happen to be really good at it, so that’s kind of the mindset I’m going to keep having, just go out and have a good time.

“If the golf is there, fantastic. If it’s not there, there’s more to life and live to play another day kind of thing.”

Nick Watney signed for a 65. Roger Sloan and Kurt Kitayama were each at 66.

A large group at 67 included Conners, Adam Hadwin and Sungjae Im. Sam Burns, the highest ranked player in the world at No. 25, shot 68.

Despite the scoring binges, players said they don’t feel any extra pressure to go low to keep up.

“I’ve never done well if I thought, ‘Oh, I have to shoot X-under. I think I do my best when I go out and try to play the shot in front of me,” Watney said. “I know that’s super cliche, but that’s truly how I play my best. That’s what I was even trying to do today. Just to execute my best on that shot.”

Added Kitayama: “I feel like most tournaments scores are low so you kind of know what you gotta do and if you can get to that 20-under number, you can have a good chance to win any week. And if it’s lower, it just happens.”

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Rising star Mito Pereira’s PGA Tour goals after three-win promotion? Keep his card, go to East Lake, ‘why not get a win’

Get to know a little more about the next under-30 rising star on the PGA Tour.

JACKSON, Miss. — If you’re looking for an up-and-coming player to root for on the PGA Tour, you may want to get familiar with Mito Pereira.

The 26-year-old from Chile is playing his first full season on Tour this year, and the early results are pointing to yet another under-30 star in the making. Pereira became the 12th player on the Korn Ferry Tour to earn a three-win automatic promotion to the PGA Tour back in June, and after some struggles out the gate has found some impressive form.

Pereira made four consecutive cuts between July and September, including a T-5 at the Barbasol Championship and T-6 at the 3M Open. The Texas Tech grad also nearly medaled at the Olympics in Japan, finishing T-4 alongside Collin Morikawa, Sebastian Munoz, Rory McIlroy, Paul Casey and Hideki Matsuyama. How’s that for company?

SANDERSON: Tee times, TV | Fantasy | Yardage book

“Oh, the Olympics was so much fun,” Pereira said two weeks ago during the Fortinet Championship, where he finished solo third in the Tour’s first event of the season. “You play for something bigger, my country. Not everybody knows what the PGA Tour is, but everybody in Chile at least knows what the Olympics are. I got so many texts and people who didn’t even play golf just saying like, ‘Hey, I’m going to support you, I’m from Chile,’ so it was such a good experience.”

His positive results over the summer have given Pereira a strong self confidence as he continues his journey through professional golf, but he’s not letting the big moments get to him. As for goals?

“I’m more of a guy to go like week-to-week, but, yeah, of course we got like keep your PGA Tour card or get to East Lake will be a really big deal for me for the end of the season. Why not get a win?” he said with a laugh.

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Sergio Garcia’s post-Ryder Cup record bodes well for his Sanderson Farms Championship title defense

Expect Garcia to be in contention this week, and not just because he won the Sanderson Farms last year.

JACKSON, Miss. — History has a way of repeating itself, and if it does again this week at the Country Club of Jackson, expect Sergio Garcia to be in contention.

And not just because he won last year.

The 41-year-old Spaniard is back to defend his title at the Sanderson Farms Championship, the second event of the new PGA Tour season, just days after a blowout 19-9 loss to the United States at the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits. But don’t let that result fool you. Garcia went 3-1-0 in Wisconsin, with his lone loss of the week coming to Bryson DeChambeau in Sunday singles. He’s the only Ryder Cup participant teeing it up this week, which believe it or not, bodes well for his success.

When making his first post-Ryder Cup start since 2008, Garcia has finished runner-up (2008), T-9 (2012), T-2 (2014), T-17 (2016) and first (2018). The 10-time member of Team Europe said he feels good this week and last week’s result hasn’t quite hit him yet.

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“The course is in great shape again, like it was last year. Probably even better than it was,” said Garcia on Wednesday after a nine-hole practice round. “So very nice to be back here, obviously defending my title after a fun week last week. A week that kind of takes a lot of energy, but at the same time it was amazing. So I’m excited about it and just wanted to get my season off to a good start and see where we are.”

Garcia’s decision to return to Jackson for a second time was “quite simple.” First, he loves to attempt to defend his wins, and will look to do so for the first time in his PGA Tour career this week. Second, he loves that southern hospitality – and the golf course.

The way everyone treated us here was just amazing. And the golf course is just a great golf course,” explained Garcia. “So it’s the kind of golf course that I enjoy coming back to playing and I wish we would play more courses like this on Tour. They’re the kind of courses that make you think a little bit and if you hit a good shot it’s right there, it’s not like tricked up or anything like that and if you don’t hit a good shot then you’re going to struggle to make your par. So it’s just a solid golf course and a great tournament and I’m excited to be back.”

The tournament is continuing to grow every year, and the 11-time Tour winner hopes that more players will take notice of the gem in Jackson.

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“I think as people come and play and they see the quality of the golf course and the quality of the tournament it just goes from mouth-to-mouth and then probably more of the top guys want to come and play,” he said. “Obviously it’s as simple as that. If the golf course is so-so, then it kind of pushes back some of the guys, but if you know the golf course is a great golf course and it’s a real nice tournament, then people make a little bit more of an effort to try and come and see it and compete in it.”

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