Two rounds of the 2023 Sanderson Farms Championship at The Country Club of Jackson in Mississippi are in the books and the top of the leaderboard is crowded.
Ben Griffin is alone in first at 14 under after shooting a 9-under 63 on Friday afternoon. His round included a 65-foot eagle putt on the 14th hole.
Four players are tied for second at 12 under including Luke List, winner of the 2022 Farmers Insurance Open. Four players are tied for sixth, including Harry Higgs, at 11 under.
On the flip side, several notable names are leaving Jackson a few days early, including the defending champion Mackenzie Hughes.
Here are eight big names who missed the cut — which came in at 5-under 139— at the 2023 Sanderson Farms Championship.
Beau Hossler has found his game over his last six starts.
Although many fans are still suffering from a Ryder Cup hangover, the PGA Tour returns to action this week in Jackson, Mississippi, for the Sanderson Farms Championship at The Country Club of Jackson.
The field is, well, let’s say not the strongest, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try to win a little cash over the weekend.
European Ryder Cupper Ludvig Aberg will be teeing it up come Thursday, as will Emiliano Grillo, Keith Mitchell, Beau Hossler and Davis Riley.
One of the betting favorites is Eric Cole, who finished solo fourth in his last start at the Fortinet Championship in Napa.
Golf course
The CC of Jackson | Par 72 | 7,461 yards
The 2022 Sanderson Farms Championship trophy sits at the 9th green during the second round at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Mississippi.
“Once you get a taste of (winning), you want to get back there as soon as possible.” — Davis Riley
DUBLIN, Ohio – When former U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover pulled up to the front gate at Jack Nicklaus’s Muirfield Village Golf Club this week, he asked the attendant how he was doing.
“He said, ‘If I was any happier, I’d be dancing.’ I’d never heard that one before,” Glover said. “And then he followed that up by saying, ‘And nobody wants that, trust me.’ ”
On a warm, sunny Thursday at the Memorial, Davis Riley danced around Jack’s Place to the tune of 5-under 67, to lead Englishman Matt Wallace by a stroke.
Riley, 26, made birdie on three of the final four holes to vault to the top of the leaderboard. But it was a par save at the second hole that jump-started his round after an errant tee shot left stopped behind a tree. Riley pitched out sideways and then wedged inside 3 feet and holed the putt.
“I felt like that was kind of a momentum-keeper shot and hole and, yeah, that kind of kept the round going,” he said.
He made a birdie at the third and finished with a flurry of birdies including a 13-footer at the ninth.
“I thought that I left the last one short and thankfully it fell in on the last roll and it was a good way to end the day,” he said.
A year ago, he shot an opening-round 67, too, and was part of a six-way tie for the lead before finishing T-13. Riley, who claimed his first PGA Tour win last month at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, entered the week having missed four straight cuts.
“I hit a really hard reset at the beginning of this week and said to my caddie James (Edmonston) – he helped me out a lot with that and he’s like, ‘Look, you just need to keep doing your thing, good golf is right around the corner.’ I know it’s weird saying that when you win, six, seven weeks ago, but it’s just one of those things to try to kind of get that consistency part, I feel like I need to be a little easier on myself and just keep playing my golf,” he said. “Once you get a taste of (winning), you want to get back there as soon as possible, and I feel like I’ve been getting in my own way a little bit.”
Asked if he would treat himself to one of Muirfield’s trademark milkshakes after his strong start, Riley said he’d hold off because it would keep him up all night and he’s got an early wake-up call for his 8:12 a.m. tee time. “If tomorrow goes well I’ll probably have to have one,” he said.
It’s time for the weekend at the AT&T Byron Nelson in McKinney, Texas, and that means some in the field are packing their bags.
The 36-hole cut at TPC Craig Ranch came in at 4 under, which makes sense due to its score-ability. K.H. Lee won the last two Byron Nelsons with scores of 26 under and 25 under. Lee made the cut right on the number this time around.
Through the first two days, Texas local Scottie Scheffler holds the lead at 14 under after consecutive 64s. He leads Ryan Palmer and Mackenzie Hughes by a shot.
Here are seven players who missed the 4-under cut at the 2023 AT&T Byron Nelson.
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GRIPS: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord (full swing) / SuperStroke Pistol Tour (putter)
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Get an early look at what players like Jon Rahm, Max Homa and Jordan Spieth will be wearing at TPC Sawgrass.
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Check out the list below to get an early glimpse at what Tour favorites like Jon Rahm, Max Homa, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and more are scheduled to wear at the 2023 Players Championship.
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Keep an eye on this mix of veterans and rising stars in 2023.
After taking a nearly two-month holiday hiatus, the PGA Tour will return to action the first week of January with the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
The last time we saw the boys in action, Adam Svensson earned his first win on Tour at the RSM Classic in November. Tom Kim earned his second career win a month before at the Shriners Children’s Open.
There were 12 first-time winners on Tour in 2022. Golfweek predicted two of them, while four won on other tours. So who do we have our eyes on for next year? From veterans to rising stars from the amateur ranks, here are 10 players who we predict will hoist a trophy on Tour for the first time in 2023.
JACKSON, Miss. – The first time Brandon Wu went to The Country Club of Jackson last year, he was scared of the greens.
When he arrived at the Sanderson Farms Championship, he’d heard plenty about the putting surfaces. How fast they were. How punishing they could be if you were in the wrong spot. Making only his second start as a PGA Tour member, Wu was intimidated.
A year later, his thoughts on the greens have changed. They have also gained his respect.
“I think they’re just perfect,” Wu said. “They’re super pure, so if you are hitting good putts, they’re going to break the way you think they are and they’ll go in. These are some of the best on Tour, for sure.”
The Sanderson Farms Championship is the second event of the PGA Tour’s 2022-23 schedule. Hosted at The Country Club of Jackson since 2014, the tournament has a knack for producing first-time winners, but it has also built a reputation for having tremendous greens. As many players put it, arguably the best on the PGA Tour.
When thinking of courses known for their greens, Augusta National comes to mind. Other venues get thrown out there, too. But The Country Club of Jackson has earned the respect of the best players in the world, and it’s one of the reasons many enjoy playing Mississippi’s lone Tour event.
“I’ll bet you could walk across that whole putting green and ask guys about this course, and they’ll tell you some of the best greens all year,” said Davis Riley, who grew up in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. “It’s an awesome place.”
Golfers play the ninth green during the Sanderson Farms Championship at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Miss., Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. (Photo: Barbara Gauntt/Clarion Ledger)
So, what makes a good green for the best players in the world?
Stanley Reedy has been the golf course superintendent at The Country Club of Jackson since 1997. He has been in charge of play and course conditions for not only the Tour event but also day-to-day outings for members.
There are numerous things that it takes to make the course’s greens as popular as they are, but Reedy said it’s all about his team’s attention to detail.
“They have to be built right,” Reedy said. “And then it’s the weekly maintenance. We may do things a little bit different, but our membership also has to let you do those things. And ours does.”
Monday is the normal maintenance day for the course, but if it happens to rain, Reedy said he will push it back to later in the week. It takes away a day of play for members, but it allows him and his staff to properly manage the course.
The greens are Champion bermuda grass, and many players say they’re so good because of how true putts roll.
“The greens are obviously really fast, but I think if you get in the right spots, you can make a lot of putts,” defending champion Sam Burns said. “The greens roll so pure.”
Part of the reason for the pureness is how they’re cut. Reedy said The Country Club of Jackson doesn’t use a vertical mower, instead using a groomer, which has tighter blades. When mowing, Reedy and his crew will never cut in the same pattern twice, which helps eliminate a noticeable grain pattern. After using the groomer mower, they use a walk mower that also has a groomer.
The green complexes for the Sanderson Farms Championship are fairly flat, so the strong, quick greens are the course’s natural defense. Reedy said someone who is a strong putter or has a good week on the greens is more likely to raise the trophy come Sunday.
The greens at The Country Club of Jackson reward good shots and penalize bad ones. They roll pure, require a good read and a solid strike, but those who manage the tricky complexes will find their way to the top of the leaderboard.
Every year, more and more of the best players in the world come to agree on one thing: the greens at the Sanderson Farms Championship are some of, if not, the best on the PGA Tour. And it brings a smile to Reedy’s face for each compliment he gets.
“It’s gratifying,” Reedy said. “You work your butt off all summer long. For your members, too, but when the best players in the world tell you your greens are in the top three or whatever, with Augusta National and U.S. Opens, it’s good.”
There’s still plenty of golf to be played, but Riley has positioned himself to have a run at it in his home state.
JACKSON, Miss. – Hattiesburg native Davis Riley left the course Friday afternoon at the Sanderson Farms Championship frustrated with his driver and flummoxed by his putting.
And yet, Riley resides near the top of the leaderboard at The Country Club of Jackson and will enter play this weekend in the mix for his first win on the PGA Tour. Sitting tied for third at 7-under for the tournament through the second round’s morning wave, Riley trailed Thomas Detry by three strokes.
“I drove it terribly today,” Riley said. “Yesterday, I didn’t drive it great. One of the worst driving weeks I’ve had so far in a long time. But yeah, when I’ve had an opportunity I’ve just taken advantage of it.”
Riley sat tied for the lead after the first day of play at the Sanderson Farms, shooting a six-under 66. He followed that up with a one-under 71 Friday, this time dealing with the chill that has come along with the morning tee times in Jackson this week.
Riley’s critical evaluation of his play inherently paves the way for weekend optimism. Already in a strong position on the leaderboard, Riley can truly lift off if he can sort out his drives and catch some consistency on the greens.
“I’m optimistic because there’s a lot of things I’m doing well,” he said. “When I have hit the fairway or put myself in a good position, I’ve taken advantage of it. I think it’s a pretty simple fix, just getting some good start lines and going from there.”
Riley, beginning his second full season on tour, is hunting for his first victory. He almost had it in March at the Valspar Championship but fell in a playoff to defending Sanderson Farms champion Sam Burns.
Davis Riley hits off the 9th fairway during Round 2 of tournament play of the Sanderson Farms Championship at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Miss., Friday, Sept. 30, 2022.
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There’s still plenty of golf to be played, but Riley has positioned himself to have another run at it this weekend in his home state.
“It would mean the world to have a chance to win this golf tournament,” he said. “But … there’s a lot of work to be done. The game is in a good spot. I didn’t score and do things quite as well as I did yesterday, but I’m still doing a lot of things good. I just need to make a tweak or two here or there and get ready to go again tomorrow.”
Riley, who graduated from Presbyterian Christian School in Hattiesburg and played collegiately at Alabama, said he took notice of the local support gathering for him in the crowd.
Riley welcomes the boost but also acknowledges the pressure that can accompany it. In three previous starts at the Sanderson Farms Championship, he has missed the cut twice and finished 39th.
Well on pace for his best showing in Jackson, Riley is hoping to approach the weekend with a clear mind.
“I love the golf course, and obviously you want to do well close to home,” he said. “But that’s something that I think I’ve struggled with in the past is maybe putting a little too much pressure on myself to perform, instead of treating it like any other week and feeding off the hometown feel.”
David Eckert is a sports reporter for The Hattiesburg American, part of the USA Today Network. Contact him at deckert@gannett.com or on Twitter @davideckert98.
There are nine players within a shot of the lead after the first round of the 2022 Sanderson Farms Championship at The Country Club of Jackson. Davis Riley, from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and Will Gordon lead at 6 under, but there are seven golfers who are tied for third a shot behind.
