The Honda Classic will move on the 2020-21 PGA Tour schedule as the Tour hopes solves a two-year stretch of underwhelming fields.
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PALM BEACH GARDENS – The Honda Classic will be moving to mid-March next year, a schedule change it hopes solves a two-year stretch of underwhelming fields.
Next year’s Honda will be held on March 18-21 at PGA National, following The Players Championship, and in the spot held by the Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor the last three years.
For the last two years, Honda fell in the middle of an impressive five-week stretch that started with Tiger Woods’ Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles, the WCG-Mexico Championship and ended with the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill and The Players at TPC Sawgrass.
Next year, it will follow Genesis, the WGC event, Bay Hill and The Players. Valspar is moving to late April.
“I have spoken to many players who believe that is a more favorable date for us,” Honda Classic executive director Ken Kennerly said. “While players will continue to play their favorite tournaments, we have been told that might be a better date to get back some of the players that have missed us in the past.”
Sungjae Im is presented the champions trophy by Shinji Aoiama of Honda North America after winning the 2020 Honda Classic at PGA National. (Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports)
Honda can thank the calendar for the change. For the next three years, there will be one less week in the PGA Tour schedule before the Masters, forcing one tournament to be moved. With Valspar being pushed back, Honda was able to slide into the week previously occupied by Valspar.
“We know we’re confirmed for 2021,” Kennerly said. “We believe based on the consistency of the PGA Tour we should be in that date for the next three years.”
The Masters will be April 8-11 in 2021.
Honda has been affected as much as any event by the changes in the schedule the last two years – the primary culprit being the Players moving from May back to March. Many of the top players have opted to play Tiger’s tournament and the WGC event, take off Honda week, then play Bay Hill and Players.
Honda had just three of the top-20 players in the world in 2019 and six of the top 20 this year, but just one in the top 10, Jupiter’s Brooks Koepka, who entered No. 3.
The tournament then lost its three biggest names when it comes to star power for the weekend this year when Koepka, Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler missed the cut.
Rickie Fowler on the 18th green during the second round of the 2020 Honda Classic at PGA National. (Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports)
“Any top 10 player in the world would play in any of those five events,” 2019 Honda champion Keith Mitchell said before the tournament. “But, it’s impossible to play five events in a row and perform your best, physically and mentally. It’s just really tough, especially if your competing and coming down the stretch in contention It’s just very draining.
“It’s just a tough time of year for guys and our schedule because of all the quality fields.”
Next year, Bay Hill will be the middle event of that five-week stretch.
This year’s Honda, won by South Korean Sungjae Im, was notable for the names not in the field.
The disappointment was five of the top-10 golfers in the world who have homes a short distance from the course skipped the tournament: No. 1 Rory McIlroy (Jupiter), No. 4 Justin Thomas (Jupiter), No. 5 Dustin Johnson (Palm Beach Gardens), No. 7 Patrick Cantlay (North Palm Beach) and No. 9 Woods (Jupiter Island). The schedule is the primary reason, although Woods continues to deal with back stiffness (he is not playing this week at Bay Hill) and Cantlay is taking off time for a medical procedure.
Following Honda in the schedule next year will be WGC-Match Play in Austin, Texas, the Texas Open in San Antonio and the Masters.
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Before this week, Jupiter’s Albin Choi had never served as a caddie on the PGA Tour. No problem. The 27-year-old guided South Korea’s Sungjae Im to victory Sunday in the Honda Classic at PGA National. A regular on the Korn …
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PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Before this week, Jupiter’s Albin Choi had never served as a caddie on the PGA Tour. No problem. The 27-year-old guided South Korea’s Sungjae Im to victory Sunday in the Honda Classic at PGA National.
A regular on the Korn Ferry Tour for the last four years, Choi is figuring out what he wants to do next after a disappointing 2019. For the last four months, he’s been working at Old Palm Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens.
So when Im called him after the Genesis Invitational to ask if he could be on his bag for the Honda, Choi accepted.
“I know he’s had some language barriers with other caddies in the past,” Choi said of Im. “I just felt like we communicate better and being a player myself and having played the golf course a lot of times, he wanted someone on the bag with a little bit of experience.”
Although Choi was born in Surrey, British Columbia and grew up in Toronto, he speaks Korean and served as Im’s translator Sunday.
Around the time Choi moved to Jupiter, Florida, three years ago, he got to know Im. At the time, Im was also playing on the Korn Ferry Tour, with the two meeting at the final stage of qualifying in Arizona.
“As the year progressed, we kind of became closer and closer and when he moved on to the PGA Tour, we kind of just kept in touch,” said Choi, who won the 2010 Canadian Men’s Amateur championship.
Choi has appeared in five Tour events, all at the RBC Canadian Open and attended the 2018 Honda Classic as a spectator. He also has played PGA National numerous times; it was actually where Choi earned his Korn Ferry Tour playing card.
“I know how hard it is to kind of navigate your way through this golf course, just with the pressure of the tournament on the line, and just playing here a bunch,” Choi said. “I just felt like the experience kind of helped me out today and just from a player standpoint, I kind of knew what he was feeling at certain times.
“I felt like I could draw upon my experiences to help him out today and kind of keep his head in the right place.”
Im wasn’t the only familiar face Choi saw on the course Sunday. Im’s playing partner was Mackenzie Hughes, the 2011 and 2012 Canadian Men’s Amateur champion.
Choi was a groomsman in Hughes’ wedding and the two roomed together when playing on the Korn Ferry Tour. So Choi was rooting for both players down the stretch Sunday, even when Hughes made a birdie on 17th to temporarily tie Im for the lead at 5 under.
“After he made that putt on 17, I gave him a fist pump,” Choi said. “Him and I are super close.”
Im then made a birdie of his own at 17th to take the lead for good. Still, Hughes finished second Sunday, his best finish on the Tour since March 31, 2019.
“It was nice to see him play well this week,” Choi said.
With Choi sporting a perfect record as a caddie on the Tour, will this relationship continue going forward?
It’s too early to say, though Choi expressed interest.
“I told him as long as (it’s during) this time that I’m not playing, I would love to,” Choi said. “I know he’s been bouncing around doing a few (caddies), so we’ll see. It’s kind of up in the air.”
Choi certainly will cherish Sunday’s experience. While he was the caddie, he learned plenty from watching Im play.
“When you’re watching from the outside, you see a lot more,” Choi said. “When I come here as a player, it’s a little different. I definitely noticed more things from the outside, of how guys compose themselves and certain things here and there, just in general.
“I just thought that was a good learning experience for me, too. Getting a front-row seat to what it takes to win a PGA Tour event. It’s not something you come across every day.”
The 21-year-old Im fired a 4-under 66 and edged Canadian Mackenzie Hughes by one stroke at PGA National.
Sungjae Im finally backed up his reputation as one of the emerging stars of the PGA Tour by earning his maiden victory at the Honda Classic.
Im, the 21-year-old reigning Tour rookie of the year, played the infamous Bear Trap, three consecutive water-laden holes beginning at 15 at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Champion course at PGA National Resort and Spa, in 2 under en route to shooting a final-round 4-under 66. Im had to scramble for par at the par-5 18 to finish at 6-under 274, and edged Canadian Mackenzie Hughes by one stroke.
“I’ve been in this spot many times. I just felt like the experiences really helped, especially on the last few holes. I just wanted to get a little more aggressive [on the last four holes]. I was just happy to finish the way that I did,” Im said through his caddie, Albin Choi, who served as an interpreter.
Im, who turned pro at age 17, played a Tour-high 35 tournaments last season, recording seven top-10 finishes and was the only rookie to qualify for the 30-man Tour Championship last season. His teammates at the Presidents Cup called him “The Weapon,” and his swing has been compared to the USGA ball-testing robot Iron Byron because it is so repeatable. The South Korean, who entered the week ranked No. 34 in the world, also doesn’t have a permanent residence and lives week-to-week at hotels with his parents joining him in a separate room and helping him in his U.S. adventure.
A bold play by Sungjae. 💦💦💦💦💦💦💦💦 179 yards over the water.
On a wild day where no less than four golfers held or shared the lead, Im birdied four of the five first holes to cut into the lead of 54-hole leader Tommy Fleetwood. Im took just 11 putts in his first 10 holes before back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 12 and 13 temporarily slowed his march to victory.
Hughes, 29, nearly went from the cutline to the winner’s circle. After making the cut on the number at 3 over, Hughes shot 66, the low round of the day on Saturday, to improve 51 spots. Playing alongside Im, Hughes holed a bunker shot at 13 on Sunday and played his first 15 holes without a bogey to join the trophy chase.
Fleetwood, No. 12 in the world has won five times on the European Tour but he’s the only player in the top 20 of the world ranking without a victory on the PGA Tour. Fleetwood, runner up at the 2018 U.S. Open and 2019 British Open, raced to a three-stroke lead with birdies on the first two holes, but failed to make another birdie until 17 and hit his second shot at 18 in the water to blow another chance to put an end to the questions of when he will win on the PGA Tour. Fleetwood finished alone in third after a 1-over 71.
Im seized the moment at 15, where water guards both the front and right sides of the green, and a large bunker to the left is a magnet for those who bail out. Im stuck a 5-iron to 8 feet and canned the putt for birdie, and knocked his tee shot to 8 feet again at 17 and rolled the downhill putt in moments after Hughes poured in a 54-foot birdie putt to momentarily tie for the lead. But Hughes, who had missed five cuts in a row and hadn’t recorded a top-10 finish since the Charles Schwab Challenge in May, hooked his second shot into the stands at 18 and failed to make birdie. He finished with a second straight 66.
Im was the 36-hole leader at Honda a year ago, but the moment proved to be too big for him and he ballooned to a Saturday 77 and finished T-51. Not this time. Im became the youngest champion of the Honda Classic and the 14th international player to win the title in the last 27 years.
“Even after winning Rookie of the Year and having a few chances to win, I really wanted to get that win,” Im said. “Had a few good chances that slipped away, but I’m also still very grateful that I could win at such a young age, and to have it happen as fast as it did, I’m very happy and satisfied.”
Sungjae Im made one of the wildest pars you’ll ever see at the WGC-Mexico Championship on Friday.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you one of the wildest pars you will ever see made on the PGA Tour.
If you look at the shot tracker on the Tour’s leaderboard for the WGC-Mexico Championship, you’ll see on the par-3 7th at Club de Golf Chapultepec that Sungjae Im’s tee shot found the center of the green.
Just not on the fly.
Im’s tee shot on the 223-yard par 3 came up just short of the dance floor and landed in the water. The ball then jumped back into the air and landed on the green, 23 feet from the pin with a birdie putt awaiting.
Im left the birdie putt short but tapped in for the splash-and-save par. The 2019 PGA Tour Player of the Year avoided a crucial dropped shot and walked off the green at 3-under, sitting tied for ninth.
Cameron Champ and Matthew Wolff are among the PGA Tour stars making their Masters debut in April at Augusta National Golf Club.
Seventeen-year-old Abel Gallegos of Argentina shot a final-round 67 at Mayakoba’s El Camaleon Golf Club in January to win the Latin America Amateur Championship. With the trophy, Gallegos received a coveted invitation to the 2020 Masters.
In his first time playing the Latin American Amateur Championship, Gallegos finished at 4 under and beat runner-up Aaron Terrazas of Mexico by four strokes.
The teen says watching countryman Angel Cabrera win a green jacket in 2009 is one of his earliest memories of watching the Masters on TV. Cabrera sent Gallegos a congratulatory text after his win in the LAAC.
Here’s a look at the players who will make their Masters debut at Augusta National Golf Club during Round 1 on April 9, 2020.
Abel Gallegos
Abel Gallegos of Argentina poses at the ceremony for the Latin America Amateur Championship at El Camaleon Mayakoba Golf Course on January 19, 2020. (Photo by Enrique Berardi/LAAC)
Check out fantasy golf power rankings for the American Express, where Tony Finau and Phil Mickelson are among stars in the field.
The PGA Tour returns to mainland USA this week for The American Express in La Quinta, California.
The tournament (called the Desert Classic last year) is played over three courses — TPC Stadium Course at PGA West, PGA West Nicklaus Tournament Course and La Quinta Country Club. It runs as a pro-am with a 54-hole cut before the remaining professionals tee it up on the Stadium Course for Sunday’s final round.
The American Express Fantasy Golf Rankings: Top 30
Sungjae Im. (Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)
Here are my top-30 fantasy golf rankings for the 2020 American Express.
30. Jason Dufner
The 2016 champion missed the cut last year, and he has slipped all the way to No. 265 in the Official World Golf Ranking, but he has fared very well on Pete Dye courses over his career.
29. Sebastian Munoz
Munoz missed the cut last week at the Sony Open in Hawaii. It came just two events after his third-place finish at the RSM Classic. He had another strong putting performance last week and his weaker tee-to-green game will be mitigated here with all three courses shorter than 7,200 yards.
28. Brendon Todd
Already a two-time winner in 2019-20, Todd continued his climb in the OWGR with a T-21 result last week and now sits at No. 58. He hasn’t played this event since back-to-back missed cuts in 2015 and ’16.
27. Nick Taylor
Taylor has a strong approach game, as seen in his 1.27 Strokes Gained: Approach per round last week, according to Data Golf. He lost nearly a half-stroke per round putting, and an average performance would allow him to contend.
Cameron Davis. (Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)
26. Cameron Davis
Davis was the 36-hole co-leader last week in Hawaii en route to a T-9 result. His driver was a big part of his performance, but it won’t be as valuable at the shorter courses this week.
25. Brendan Steele
Last week’s runner-up, Steele gained 1.49 strokes per round putting. That sort of success on the greens is rarely replicated week-to-week, but he also gained 1.61 strokes on approach and is worth a shot while he’s hot.
24. Jason Kokrak
Kokrak finished T-8 in 2018 and T-18 last year. The 64th-ranked golfer in the world missed just two cuts in 24 events last year and is a safe pick with a guaranteed 54 holes of play.
23. Alex Noren
Noren has made nine straight cuts in worldwide events. He’s coming off a T-32 finish last week despite losing 0.95 strokes per round with the flat stick.
22. Rory Sabbatini
Sabbatini has made three straight cuts in La Quinta, with last year’s T-57 finish his best result in that span. He missed the cut just once since last July.
21. Bud Cauley
Cauley has averaged 2.01 strokes gained per round on the Stadium Course, more than anyone else in this week’s field. He missed the cut last year, but a T-3 result in 2017 was sandwiched by T-14 showings in 2016 and ’18.
20. Billy Horschel
Horschel hasn’t played here since missing the cut in 2016. He already has two top 10s early in the 2019-20 PGA Tour season and has one of the best resumes in this week’s weaker field.
19. Cameron Champ
Champ took last week off after a T-14 finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions. The Safeway Open champ makes his debut at this event.
18. Brian Harman
Harman ranks second to Cauley in Strokes Gained at the Stadium Course among those in the field with a minimum of six rounds played. He used a well-balanced game to pick up a T-32 finish last week.
17. J.T. Poston
The Postman missed the cut last week, as he lost 1.26 strokes per round on approach. He’ll look to rebound at an event where he finished T-7 in 2019.
16. Kevin Na
Na skipped last year’s tournament, but he hadn’t missed the cut in any of his previous four appearances. He had a top showing of T-3 in 2016. He’s incredibly strong in proximity to the pin on approach shots from 100-125 yards. With many of the par 4s on all three courses ranging between 350-400 yards, he’ll have plenty of his favorite shots.
Russell Knox. (Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)
15. Russell Knox
Knox was third among those to make the cut last week with 1.47 strokes gained per round on approach. He was T-18 here last year following a T-29 in 2018.
14. Lucas Glover
Glover’s a regular contender in La Quinta with three top-20 showings in his last five appearances. His strong approach game sets up plenty of scoring chances at these shorter venues.
13. Phil Mickelson
The new co-host of this event, Lefty was a co-runner-up last year. He has slipped to No. 79 in the world entering this week, but he’s still a safe choice at these familiar courses.
12. Chez Reavie
Reavie had a rare missed cut last week. He has gained 1.45 strokes per round over eight career rounds on the Stadium Course, and he can create scoring chances.
11. Abraham Ancer
Ancer tied for 18th last year after finishing 76th in 2018. He gained 0.93 strokes per round on approach last week on his way to a T-38 finish.
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10. Matthew Wolff
Wolff played just the first of the two events in Hawaii, picking up a T-11 result in his first Tournament of Champions. The PGA Tour sophomore has been struggling on his approach shots, but he’s very strong off the tee and on the greens.
Francesco Molinari. (Photo Credit: Ian Rutherford – USA TODAY Sports)
9. Francesco Molinari
The odds may be stacked against the Italian Stallion, as only five non-Americans have won this event. He strung together a stretch of T-10, T-62 and T-12 from 2015 through ’17 before skipping the event the last two years.
8. Charles Howell III
Howell’s yet another course horse very familiar with all three tracks. He has collected three top-20 showings in his last five appearances, and he’s coming off a solid T-12 result last week.
7. Tony Finau
Finau’s the top golfer in the field from the OWGR (15), but he’s playing his first full-field PGA Tour event since the Mayakoba Golf Classic. He was fifth in last week’s Hong Kong Open on the Asian Tour.
6. Byeong Hun An
An makes his debut at the event formerly known as the Desert Classic and CareerBuilder Challenge. He hasn’t participated in a tournament since early November’s WGC-HSBC Champions, but he already has three top 10s on the 2019-20 season.
5. Paul Casey
Similarly to Molinari, Finau and some of the other top-ranked golfers in the field, Casey may struggle to get up for this event as he looks ahead to next week’s Farmers Insurance Open. He hasn’t played in La Quinta since a T-58 result in 2017.
Scottie Scheffler. (Photo Credit: Ray Carlin – USA TODAY Sports)
4. Scottie Scheffler
We haven’t seen Scheffler, a recent Korn Ferry Tour graduate, since a T-5 showing at the RSM Classic. He has three top 10s and two top 5s early in his PGA Tour season.
3. Rickie Fowler
Fowler skipped last week’s event following a T-5 finish at the TOC. He’s well worth backing ahead of his defense of the Waste Management Phoenix Open during Super Bowl week.
2. Kevin Kisner
Kis made the cut here each of the last three years but with a top showing of just T-25 in 2017. He finished T-4 last week while gaining 1.32 strokes per round on approach and losing 0.23 strokes putting. Nine of the last 10 champions here played in Hawaii the week before.
1. Sungjae Im
Im finished T-21 last week while picking up 0.84 strokes per round on the putting surfaces. He was T-12 in his La Quinta debut last year and is still looking for his first PGA Tour win.
Analyzing the sports betting odds to win the 2020 American Express, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The PGA Tour is in La Quinta, Calif. this week for The American Express. Tony Finau, Paul Casey, Francesco Molinari and Rickie Fowler highlight those in the field for the event hosted by Phil Mickelson.Below, we look at the best PGA Tour bets to win the 2020 American Express
The event is played on three courses and features a 54-hole cut. All three tracks were designed by Pete Dye and play to a par of 72. The key stats for the week are:
Strokes Gained: Approach
Par 4 Efficiency: 350-400 Yards
Opportunities Gained
Proximity: 100-125 Yards
Pay added attention to golfer success on Dye-designed courses with Bermuda greens.
Im debuted at this event with a T-12 result last year. He enters the week 35th in the Official World Golf Ranking following last week’s T-21 finish at the Sony Open in Hawaii. He’s still looking for his first PGA Tour victory and will be one of the more motivated golfers in a rather weak early-season field.
Kevin Kisner (+2800)
Kisner enters the week as the sixth-best golfer in the field by the OWGR measure, but he’s seventh by the odds at BetMGM, representing moderate value for the three-time PGA Tour champ. He made the cut here each of the previous three years, but with a top finish of T-25 (2017). Only four golfers who made the cut last week gained more strokes per round on approach than Kisner’s 0.85.
The American Express – Tier 2
(Photo Credit: Butch Dill – USA TODAY Sports)
Chez Reavie (+6000)
Reavie’s coming off a missed cut last week in Hawaii, but he made the weekend each of the last four years in La Quinta. His best finish was a T-12 in 2017. The 37th-ranked golfer in the world ranks third in the field in Opportunities Gained on Pete Dye courses with Bermuda greens.
Cauley leads this week’s field with 2.01 strokes gained per round over seven rounds played on the Stadium Course in La Quinta, according to Data Golf. He missed the cut last week in his first event since a T-9 finish at the Houston Open. He was T-3 here in 2017 with T-14 finishes in 2016 and 2018 before missing the weekend last year.
The American Express – Longshots
(Photo Credit: Kyle Terada – USA TODAY Sports)
Cameron Davis (+10000)
Davis finished T-9 at 7-under par in Hawaii last week. It was a Saturday round of 71 which was the difference for the 36-hole co-leader. He averaged 0.85 strokes gained per round on approach, but it was his 2.00 SG per round tee-to-green which had him contending. Davis finished T-28 here a year ago.
Doc Redman (+12500)
Redman’s worth a roll of the dice as our deepest shot for the week with a $10 bet returning a profit of $1,250 with a tournament win. He missed the cut last week for his third MC in nine events to begin the 2019-20 PGA Tour season, but his runner-up finish at last year’s Rocket Mortgage Classic was in a much stronger field than the one slated to tee off this week.
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Previewing the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne Golf Club, with golf betting odds and picks for outright winner and the best props.
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The 2019 Presidents Cup takes place this week at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Twelve of the top golfers from the United States tee off against 12 of the best from outside of Europe. Below, we analyze the tournament odds and prop bets, with golf betting picks and tips.
The first round will start Wednesday, Dec. 11, at 5:30 p.m. ET.
Team USA has won the past seven Presidents Cups and leads the all-time series against the International side at 10-1-1. Fortunately for the global squad, which is led by three Australians, its only Presidents Cup victory was at this venue in 1998.
The INTERNATIONALS are getting juicy +250 odds for the tournament victory. Team USA is a -250 favorite. Look for Adam Scott (No. 18), Marc Leishman (No. 28) and Cameron Smith (No. 52) to lead the Internationals to victory on home soil.
Presidents Cup Prop Bets
Internationals +3.5 Points (-125)
After losing 19-11 in 2017, look for the Internationals to keep it closer this time out. Their previous two losses in 2015 and ’13, were decided by one and three points, respectively.
Top Combined Points Scorer: Adam Scott (+1200)
Scott will have the crowd behind him as the top golfer from the host nation. He didn’t play in 1998 (when the Internationals got their lone win in the event, also in Melbourne), but he has won both the Australian Open and Australian PGA Championship and has spoken highly of wanting to win at the famed Royal Melbourne as a potential career highlight.
Who will score the most points for the USA? Patrick Reed (+900)
Expect the best from Reed, who has excelled in the Ryder Cup format against Europe, and in the 2017 Presidents Cup. He’s coming off another controversy at last week’s Hero World Challenge in which he was penalized two strokes for improving his line of play in a waste bunker.
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.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
