Tag: Tom Hoge

PGA Tour A/PGA Tour B: An in-depth look at the regular events the top 30 played in 2024 and what it means

“I felt like it forced me to put all my eggs in the signature and major basket this year.”

ATLANTA, Ga. — There’s a PGA Tour A and a PGA Tour B schedule these days and it is evident in looking at where the pros who qualified for the Tour Championship by finishing in the top 30 on the FedEx Cup season-long standings teed it up this season.

There’s always been certain tournaments that attracted the best fields – that’s nothing new – but it has never been more pronounced than it is in the era of the signature events, which feature eight limited-field events with jacked up purses and inflated FedEx Cup points and often no cuts. Former longtime Wells Fargo Championship tournament director Kym Hougham once compared how players fill their schedule to college.

“You have your requirements and your electives. For years, there used to be four requirements – the majors – and the rest of the events were electives. You had four that were a given and then had 14 others to choose from.”

Now there’s eight signature events, the Players and three playoff events. That makes 16 requirements.

“The electives are vying for four or five spots,” Hougham said.

Some are electing to play even fewer than that. Viktor Hovland only played one non-major or signature event this season, the Genesis Scottish Open, which counts as a DP World Tour event for his Ryder Cup qualification. Asked if he may play more regular events next season, Hovland explained that this season he didn’t feel confident in his game and preferred to practice at home.

“I might,” Hovland said. “There are plenty of other tournaments I like to play. If I feel like my game is in a good spot I might just keep playing and add some non-Signature events. I’d love to do that, it just didn’t work out that way this year.”

2024 BMW Championship
Viktor Hovland hits his tee shot on the eighth hole during the final round of the 2024 BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club. (Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports)

Rory McIlroy, who said he expects to finish with 27 worldwide starts by the end of the year, said he’ll play fewer events next season.

“I’m going to try to cut it back to like 18 or 20 a year going forward, I think,” he said on Sunday after his round at the Tour Championship.

There are myriad reasons why players skipped tournaments, ranging from births to deaths to just being plain tired. Some players added starts to enhance their chances of making the Olympics, qualifying for a major, making the Aon Swing 5 to get into a signature event or helping their FedEx Cup chances. Sometimes a player has a sponsorship commitment. Some honored a commitment as defending champion. Others like Tom Hoge just like to play a lot of golf.

“Early in the year I played the entire West Coast chasing the top 50 so I could get in the Masters,” said Hoge, who played 11. “If I take a few weeks off, it usually takes me a week or two to get back in the groove so I like to play ahead of big events.”

But others found that the cadence of the schedule limited the number of times they played outside of the biggest tournaments. Justin Thomas, who wasn’t in the top 50 but ended up playing his way in or getting a sponsor exemption into all of the signature events, didn’t play a single tournament outside the majors and signature events after March.

“The way the schedule worked out we had signature event, major, signature event,” said Russell Henley, who played only three regular events. (He would’ve played the Wyndham Championship, where he has a great track record, but was dealing with the passing of his father.) “Just the way it was set up, I felt like it forced me to put all my eggs in the signature and major basket this year.”

The players who competed in the most regular events typically weren’t in the signature events to start the season. Billy Horschel needed to play 13 regular tournaments, including an opposite-field event (which he won), to make his way back to East Lake. Horschel said he would still play many of the regular events next season even though he’s in the signature events.

“It’s hard to get to Atlanta,” Horschel said. “With my record at events like the Wyndham Championship, I’d be crazy not to go there. Guys are going to realize that they need points and there are other places to get them.”

Matthieu Pavon and Robert MacIntyre both earned cards for finishing in the DP World top 10. Pavon played three regular events right out of the gate but after winning the Farmers Insurance Open in late January in his third start, he played just two more the rest of the season as he gained admission to the signature events. In contrast, MacIntyre didn’t notch his first win until June at the RBC Canadian Open (and then skipped his first signature event at the Travelers Championship to fly home to Scotland).

2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship
Robert MacIntyre tees off on the first hole during the third round of the 2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Memphis. (Chris Day/The Memphis Commercial Appeal)

Before that, he even played two opposite-field events. In all, he played 17 regular events, the second most of any player to make the FedEx Cup finale, behind only Aaron Rai, who didn’t win until the regular-season finale at the Wyndham Championship and missed all the signature events.

“I think it will be pretty different,” said Rai, who also is in all the majors next season as well as the signature events. “You can’t really miss the signature events.”

He guessed he’d likely play 18 tournaments before the playoffs next season, which would mean dropping from 18 regular events down to six.

It’s difficult to make definitive statements based on one year of data of having signature events but it sure looks like the top players are taking fewer electives than ever, which makes it a tough time to be a regular tournament.

How many non-signature events and majors the top 30 played in 2024

Player Non-major, non-signature event starts Total number of 2024 starts
Scottie Scheffler (4) AmEx, WM Phoenix, Houston, Schwab 19 plus Olympics
Xander Schauffele (4) AmEx, Farmers, Valspar, Zurich 20 plus Olympics
Hideki Matsuyama (5) Sony, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Valero, Scottish 19 plus Olympics
Keegan Bradley (6) Sony, Farmers, Valspar, Schwab, 3M, Wyndham 22
Ludvig Aberg (4) Sony, Farmers, Valero, Scottish 19 plus Olympics
Rory McIlroy (5) Cognizant, Valero, Zurich, Canadian, Scottish 19 plus Olympics
Collin Morikawa (5) Farmers, Valero, Zurich, Schwab, Scottish 21 plus Olympics
Wyndham Clark (4) AmEx, WM Phoenix, Houston, Scottish 20 plus Olympics
Sam Burns (4) AmEx, WM Phoenix, Valspar, Canadian, 3M 21
Patrick Cantlay (3) AmEx, Farmers, Zurich 19
Sungjae Im (8) AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Cognizant, Schwab, John Deere, Scottish, Wyndham 25
Sahith Theegala (8) Sony, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Houston, Zurich, Canadian, Scottish, 3M 24
Shane Lowry (7) AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Cognizant, Zurich, Canadian, Wyndham 20 plus Olympics
Adam Scott (6) WM Phoenix, Valero, CJ Cup, Schwab, Canadian, Scottish 19
Tony Finau (7) AmEx, Farmers, Mexico, Valspar, Houston, Schwab, 3M 22
Ben An (6) Sony, WM Phoenix, Cognizant, Valero, CJ Cup, Scottish 22 plus Olympics
Viktor Hovland (1) Scottish 16 plus Olympics
Russell Henley (3) Sony, Cognizant, Valero 19
Akshay Bhatia (13) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Cognizant, Valspar, Houston, Valero, Schwab, Canadian, Rocket, 3M, Wyndham 26
Robert MacIntyre (17) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Mexico, Cognizant, Puerto Rico, Valspar, Houston, Zurich, CJ Cup, Myrtle Beach, Schwab, Canadian, Rocket, Scottish, Wyndham 25
Billy Horschel (13) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, Phoenix, Cognizant, Valspar, Houston, Valero, Puntacana, Zurich, Schwab, Scottish, Wyndham 23
Tommy Fleetwood (3) Valero, Canadian, Scottish 19 plus Olympics
Sepp Straka (7) Farmers, Cognizant, Valspar, Zurich, Schwab, John Deere, Scottish 23
Matthieu Pavon (5) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, Cognizant, Scottish 19
Taylor Pendrith (15) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, Mexico, Cognizant, Valspar, Houston, Valero, Puntacana, Zurich, CJ Cup, Canadian, Rocket, Barracuda, 3M 24
Chris Kirk (5) Sony, AmEx, Cognizant, Schwab, Rocket 21
Tom Hoge (11) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, Phoenix, Cognizant, Houston, Zurich, CJ Cup, Schwab, Scottish, 3M 26
Aaron Rai (18) Sony, AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Valspar, Houston, Valero, Corales Puntacana, Zurich, CJ Cup, Schwab, Canadian, Rocket, John Deere, Scottish, Wyndham 25
Christiaan Bezuidenhout (8) AmEx, Farmers, WM Phoenix, Cognizant, Valspar, Valero, Schwab, Wyndham 23 plus Olympics
Justin Thomas (3) AmEx, WM Phoenix, Valspar 19

 

10 of the best players at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am over the last 5 seasons

See their records here.

This week, a loaded 80-man field is on the Monterey Peninsula for the PGA Tour’s second signature event of the year, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The Crosby Clambake will look a bit different this time around, with the celebrity amateurs playing in just the first two rounds. Monterey Peninsula Country Club has been removed from the rotation, so the field will play Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill over the first two days before just the pros take on Pebble over the weekend.

Thanks to its elevated status, this year’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am boasts its best-ever field that includes Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Xander Schaufelle, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas.

Here are 10 of the best performers from the last five AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Ams.

Pebble Pro-Am: Odds, picks to win | Sleepers 

Lexi Thompson among 8 big names to miss cut at 2023 Shriners Children’s Open

Here’s a look at some of the bigger names who were sent packing early.

LAS VEGAS — As part of the FedEx Cup Fall, players either fighting to maintain their PGA Tour cards or looking for entrance into the first two Signature events had plenty to play for at the Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin.

But not everyone will be around for the weekend.

Windy conditions on Thursday morning put some players in a tough spot to make the cut this week and others simply didn’t play well enough to move on.

Although a few players saved their best for when they needed it: Brandt Snedeker, James Hahn and Scott Piercy all made birdie on their final hole of the day to eke out a place on the right side of a cutline that landed at 3 under.

Here’s a look at some of the bigger names who were sent packing early.

2023 Shriners Children’s Open odds, course history and picks to win

Aberg has finished T-10 and T-2 in his last two starts.

The PGA Tour is back in Las Vegas this week for the 2023 Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin.

The defending champion Tom Kim returns to Sin City hoping to go back-to-back. Since finishing tied for 20th at the Tour Championship, Kim has finished T-18 at the BMW PGA Championship and T-6 at the French Open on the DP World Tour.

He’s joined in the field by European Ryder Cupper Ludvig Aberg — T-2 at the Sanderson Farms Championship last week — Si Woo Kim, Cam Davis, J.T. Poston and Chicken Open winner Luke List.

This week’s winner will earn $1.512 million and 500 FedEx Cup points.

Golf course

TPC Summerlin | Par 71 | 7,255 yards

2022 Shriners Children's Open
Patrick Cantlay putts on the 16th green during the final round of the 2022 Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas. (Photo: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Course history

Betting preview

Report: Jay Monahan’s Tuesday meeting with PGA Tour players sparsely attended

Rickie Fowler told the Associated Press: “There really wasn’t that many guys in the meeting.”

[anyclip pubname=”2122″ widgetname=”0016M00002U0B1kQAF_M8171″]

Two major champions from this season voiced support for PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan ahead of the 2023 FedEx St. Jude Championship.

Masters winner Jon Rahm and British Open Champion Golfer of the Year Brian Harman were both asked about Monahan during their pre-tournament news conferences Tuesday.

“I think Jay is a very qualified leader for our organizations,” Harman said.

“I think he should have the opportunity right now to finish this off the way he did,” Rahm said. “I think we’re quickly forgetting how well he managed a lot of things. He did an amazing job in COVID and kept a lot of people employed.”

Tuesday night at TPC Southwind, however, only about 25 PGA Tour pros showed up to a meeting with Monahan, according to Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press.

Rickie Fowler was one of them, according to the report. He told AP:

There’s still a whole lot that no one really knows, and we don’t know. It’s just continuing to trust that leadership and everyone is doing what’s best for all of us and the tour moving forward. Some of that was talked about in calls before this. There really wasn’t that many guys in the meeting, or less than I thought there would have been.

Monahan sent a memo to the Tour membership about a week ago in which he offered some updates on the PGA Tour, including news about the framework agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

Tom Hoge was also in attendance during Tuesday afternoon’s meeting in Memphis, which he said went about 90 minutes, but indicated there were still no definitive answers to many questions.

“It was good just to have Jay there in front of us, see him again and see that he’s doing well,” he said. “Who knows what the path is going forward? I’ll guess we’ll just wait and see.”

Tom Hoge holes out for eagle with Michael Block-like slam dunk at Charles Schwab Challenge

Hoge made the shot of the day, part of an impressive closing stretch that put him near the top of the leaderboard.

FORT WORTH, Texas — Tom Hoge fondly remembers coming back from competing in the NCAA men’s golf tournament and walking from the nearby Texas Christian University campus to take in the final round of the PGA Tour event at Colonial Country Club.

But on Thursday, during the opening round of the Charles Schwab Challenge, Hoge wasn’t watching, but instead making the shot of the day, part of an impressive closing stretch that put him near the top of the leaderboard.

Hoge made birdie at his 15th hole of the day — he started on the back nine — and then went one better on the next hole, dropping a slam-dunk eagle on the par-4 No. 7 as he holed out from 154 yards. The finish was akin to one by feel-good story Michael Block at the PGA Championship.

The eagle moved him to 4 under for the round, and that’s where he finished, sitting second on the board through the early wave of players.

For Hoge, the chance to play well at the storied course — which is due for a major renovation as soon as this week’s event concludes — could help to erase three straight years of failing to miss the cut.

“This is home for me. It has been since 2007 when I came to TCU. It would be awesome,” Hoge said prior to the tournament. “I try to not think about that a whole lot because the last few years I’ve missed the cut. I’ve kind of taken on more responsibilities this week, and I would say a little more pressure to perform here.

“It’s nice sleeping in your own bed first of all, but I guess you get on the road and it’s a little bit easier to kind of get in the routine of tournament weeks,. I find myself doing more stuff around the house and some chores and that sort of stuff this week.”

The 33-year-old is now seeing the entire experience through a different lens since his college coach with the Horned Frogs, Bill Montigel, recently retired after 36 years at the helm of the program. Hoge said the support from TCU faithful was strong on Thursday, something that had him feeling a little extra something to begin his round.

“I would say today on the first tee was probably as nervous as I’ve ever been on the golf course. I certainly feel the pressure to try to play well in front of all my friends that have come out and tried to support me,” Hoge said. “But it’s a lot of fun having them out there. Certainly, moments like that are great.

[lawrence-related id=778357845,778357454,778357457]

2023 Masters leaderboard: Tiger Woods extends cut streak to 23; Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas lead our 8 biggest names to miss the cut

Thomas’s final bogey at 18, the third in his final four holes, meant he was on the wrong side of the cutline.

AUGUSTA, Ga. —Tiger Woods can thank his pal Justin Thomas for booking his weekend plans.

Playing in cold, rainy conditions on Saturday morning after the resumption of the second round of the 87th Masters, Woods finished with back-to-back bogeys to shoot 73 and needed some help to play the final two rounds and make his 23rd consecutive cut at Augusta National Golf Club. He got it from Thomas, who made bogey at 17, to move the cutline from 2-over 146 to 3-over 147. Woods, T-49 at 3 over, tied the record for the most consecutive cuts made at the Masters, joining Fred Couples and Gary Player in the record books (since 1957 when the cut was implemented).

Thomas’s final bogey at 18, his third of his final four holes, meant he was on the wrong side of the cutline by a stroke and was sent packing for the first time in eight career starts at the Masters.

A total of 54 players from 15 different countries made the cut at Augusta National, including 1992 champion Fred Couples, who became the oldest player to make the cut at the Masters at 63 years, 6 months and five days old, or 108 days older than former record-holder Bernhard Langer, the other ageless wonder in the field, when he made the 36-hole cut in 2020.

Masters Leaderboard: Live leaderboard, schedule, tee times

“He’s got enough records,” Couples said of the 65-year-old Langer. “He’ll probably make the cut next year.”

The biggest surprise on the leaderboard? Rory McIlroy, who seemed poised to give chase to the elusive career Grand Slam but didn’t put up much of a fight and headed home on Friday after posting 5-over 149. McIlroy and Thomas missed the cut in the same major championship for the first time (29th time in the same field).

Here are some of the other notables that were on the wrong side of the cutline.

[gambcom-standard rankid=”3413″ ]

Photos: 2023 Masters Par 3 Contest, won by Tom Hoge

Check out the best photos from the Par 3 Contest, one of the best traditions of Masters week.

It’s time for one of the best traditions of Masters week: the Par 3 Contest.

With the first major of the year beginning Thursday morning, many competitors will head to Augusta National Golf Club’s renovated Par 3 Course to enjoy nine holes with family, friends and others Wednesday afternoon.

After the Par 3 Contest was canceled in 2020 and 2021, last year’s edition was shortened because of weather, with Canadians Mike Weir and Mackenzie Hughes splitting the title at 4-under 23. It was the first time since 2012 there were multiple winners because of a suspension of play.

However, the 2023 edition is bound to be thrilling. The new course will be showcased for the first time to the world in one of the most heartwarming events in golf.

Masters 2023 leaderboard: Get the latest news from Augusta

Seamus Power made the first hole-in-one of the day on the eighth hole, and he did it again on the ninth hole. Bubba Watson aced the fourth. After Power aced the ninth, defending Masters champion Scottie Scheffler canned a shot on there, too. Later on, Tom Hoge joined Power with an ace at the eighth.

There are now 107 holes-in-one during the Masters Par 3 Contest. Power’s back-to-back aces are the third time it has happened.

As for the winner, Hoge went 4 under in his last four holes to shoot 6-under 21 and claim the victory. Watson and Kurt Kitayama tied for second at 5-under 22.

Here are the best photos from the afternoon at Augusta National’s short course:

[gambcom-standard rankid=”3413″ ]

Gannett may earn revenue from sports betting operators for audience referrals to betting services. Sports betting operators have no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. Terms apply, see operator site for Terms and Conditions. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call the National Council on Problem Gambling 24/7 at 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, OH), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN). Must be 21 or older to gamble. Sports betting and gambling are not legal in all locations. Be sure to comply with laws applicable where you reside.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=01evcfxp4q8949fs1e image=]

Scottie Scheffler runs away with 2023 Players Championship, returns to world No. 1

“He’s a freak athlete that has this mental capability that he can go into a tunnel vision and shoot low numbers.”

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Scottie Scheffler’s game is made for Pete Dye’s House of Horrors.

One day after he shot 65 to seize control of the tournament, Scheffler withstood a windswept Sunday and shot 3-under 69 at the Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass to win the Players Championship by five strokes over Tyrrell Hatton and returned to World No. 1.

“He an artist,” said Scheffler’s longtime instructor Randy Smith, “and when you give him this canvas he wants to paint on it.”

The 26-year-old reigning Masters champion and PGA Tour Player of the Year crafted a masterpiece after a sluggish start in which he didn’t make a birdie in his first seven holes, but once he did the floodgates opened and he reeled off five in a row to blow the tournament wide open.

Australian Min Woo Lee, whose sister Minjee is the reigning U.S. Women’s Open champion, grabbed a share of the lead with a birdie at the first and a bogey by Scheffler at the third, but it was short-lived. His third shot at the fourth hole spun off the green and into the water and he made triple bogey.

“It happened really quick,” Lee said. “It’s one of those things where it’s Sunday and you just make a couple bad decisions and it all kind of falls down.”

He was hanging around after rolling in a 28-foot birdie putt at the seventh to cut the deficit to two strokes, the same amount he trailed by at the start of the day. The golden trophy was still up for grabs. But then Scheffler chipped in for birdie at the par-3 eighth and low-fived with caddie Ted Scott.

“I knew he was going to chip that in,” Smith said later. “When he gets up on the green, he’s sitting there looking at the break and the landing point and kind of smiling at Ted, there’s a good chance it’s going to go in.”

[affiliatewidget_wineclub title=”Join the Golfweek Wine Club” description=”Get exclusive access to rare, limited-availability wines that are hand-picked by top sommeliers, then shipped directly to your doorstep.” url=”https://wineclub.golfweek.com/” button_text=”JOIN TODAY!”]

Scheffler stood in the bunker left of the green but his ball was sitting pretty on the grass and when it disappeared in the hole, he pumped his right fist.

“He’s got great hands,” said Jordan Spieth.

Max Homa compared Scheffler’s short game wizardry to Spieth.

“It looks just kind of homegrown, which I always feel like works pretty well,” Homa said. “Obviously they have great mechanics, but it feels like they do it a different way, which means they typically own it a bit more. So I feel like he just knows what he’s going to do. He has this stabbing spinner. He’s got the really good kind of soft one out of the rough. I feel like he’s just very artistic in that way. I feel like he sees them going into the hole. I’ve played a lot more with Jordan, and you can just kind of see him painting that picture and making them, and they make a lot of them. So that would be my guess. But he’s obviously just really good at pretty much every aspect of golf.”

It was Scheffler’s 11th hole-out of the season on the PGA Tour, which no less than Spieth, one of the game’s foremost wedge-game wizards, declared “pretty darn good,” considering the calendar says it’s only March. A day earlier Scheffler let it be known that his chip-in for eagle at the second hole won him a season-long bet with Scott.

“I think that Teddy made a very bad bet,” Spieth said. “I had it with Michael (Greller) and we’ve had it at 15 or 16 before. So I think Teddy will probably reevaluate considering we’re not even midway through March. So I don’t know if Scottie – it actually might be a good bet because it’s already over and he’ll make a new one and win the press.”

Scott equated the chip-in birdie to an interception in a football game.

“It shifted the momentum,” he said. “It just felt like good things were about to happen.”

Lee missed a 6-foot par putt at eight, made another seven at the par-5 11th and was out of the picture, tumbling to a share of sixth with a final-round 76.

“It’s funny how yesterday I felt like I had the best swing in the world, and then today I just felt like nothing could go right,” Lee said.

As Lee began to sputter so did Hideki Matsuyama (68), who made a final-round charge until a double bogey at 14 and finished fifth. Hatton was the only one to mount a charge and not run into trouble but he ran out of holes, tying the back-nine scoring record of 29 and signing for 65 and a 12-under total. That was good for second and a check for $2.725 million, with Viktor Hovland (68) and Tom Hoge (70) T-3 at 10 under. But just as Hatton climbed within a stroke of the lead, Scheffler went on the offensive and pulled away for good with his birdie binge to win $4.5 million, the richest prize on the Tour.

“I mean, he hits it long, he hits it high, he’s going to be able to play any golf course,” said Hoge, who set the course record on Saturday with a 62. “There’s no weaknesses.”

Scheffler poured in a 20-foot par putt at 18, lifted his putter to the sky with his left hand and then pumped his fist with his right as he capped off his sixth win in his 27 starts over the last 13 months.

“You can’t limp in on this golf course,” he said. “You’ve got to hit the shots.”

He posted a 72-total of 17-under 271 and joined Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus as the only players to hold both the Masters and Players titles simultaneously.

Scheffler’s former college teammate at Texas Kramer Hickok has watched as Scheffler has blossomed into the best golfer on the planet.

“The best way I can put it is he’s always been so confident,” Hickok said. “I think if you asked him, it’s no surprise that he’s No. 1 in the world.”

Hickock echoed Smith in describing Scheffler’s creativity as one of his super powers.

“Golf courses where he can be creative show off his best attributes because he’s such a great athlete,” Hickok said. “I don’t know if people know this but Scottie’s unbelievable at everything he does. Pickle ball, basketball, he’s a freak athlete that has this mental capability that he can go into a tunnel vision and shoot low numbers.”

And what better place to show his gifts to the world than on the great canvas that is Dye’s TPC Sawgrass.

[pickup_prop id=”32357″]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1375]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=01f5k5vfbhv59szck1 image=]

Scottie Scheffler wins a bet with his caddie, Tom Hoge’s record round and Aaron Rai comes up aces among takeaways from third round at 2023 Players Championship

Scottie Scheffler would move back to No. 1 in the world with a win.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Scottie Scheffler won a year-long bet with his caddie on Saturday. On Sunday, he’s hoping to win the Players Championship, return to World No. 1 and earn the largest check on the PGA Tour.

Scheffler fired a 7-under 65 at TPC Sawgrass on Saturday to grab the 54-hole lead with a total of 14-under 202, two strokes clear of Australian Min Woo Lee.

Scheffler, who had to finish off his second-round 69 in the morning, vaulted into the lead with a birdie-eagle start in the afternoon. After pulling his second shot at the par-5 second hole, he lofted a pitch from the rough and jarred the 62-foot shot and then jawed at caddie Ted Scott having recorded his 10th hole-out…and it’s only March.

“I had a decent lie there in the rough and was able to hit a flop shot pretty much exactly where I wanted to land it,” he said. “I was definitely fortunate to see it go in, and then Teddy and I got a year-long thing going that I just beat him on and he owes me something, but he didn’t have any of it, and so he owes me. It’s an IOU from Teddy.”

Scheffler made his lone bogey at the seventh, but it barely slowed him down as he bounced back with consecutive birdies. He closed with birdies on two of his final three holes as he posted his career low at the Stadium Course and claimed his seventh career 54-hole lead/co-lead on Tour. The reigning Masters champion is seeking to win for the second time this season —he defended his title at the WM Phoenix Open in February — and supplant Jon Rahm as World No. 1. But Scheffler knows that winning will take care of the latter.

“I think the ranking is just an algorithm,” he said. “For me, I would much rather win the tournament than get back to No. 1 in the world. So that will be my focus going into tomorrow is just going out and having a solid round of golf, and the rankings will be the rankings.”

[pickup_prop id=”32353″]