Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – PGA TOUR – HERO WORLD CHALLENGE,
Isleworth Golf & Country Club, Windermere, Florida – After a week off, the PGA
Tour is back in action at the Hero World Challenge, which is hosted by Tiger
Woods.
Last year, Zach Johnson made par on the first playoff hole to defeat Woods and
win this event for the first time. Johnson shot up the leaderboard with a
final-round, 4-under 68 to join Woods (70) at 13-under-par 275 at the end of
regulation.
Both Johnson and Woods are back in the field again this week along with 16
others. The field features 18 players who are all ranked in the top 40 in the
world, including seven of the top 11 and 15 of the top 25.
Woods is back in action after taking time off to get healthy and to get his
game on track. He last played at the PGA Championship at the beginning of
August, where Woods missed the cut. Woods played in just eight events last
season and withdrew from two of them.
Keegan Bradley, Jason Day, Rickie Fowler, Billy Horschel, Chris Kirk, Matt
Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Hideki Matsuyama, Graeme McDowell, Patrick Reed, Justin
Rose, Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson, Steve Stricker, Jimmy Walker and Bubba
Watson are the other 16 players this week.
Golf Channel will have extensive coverage of all four days, including early
coverage on the weekend before handing things off to NBC on Saturday and
Sunday afternoons.
The PGA Tour will be back in Florida again next week for the Franklin
Templeton Shootout, where Matt Kuchar and Harris English defeated Retief
Goosen and Freddie Jacobson by seven last year.
EUROPEAN TOUR
NEDBANK GOLF CHALLENGE, Gary Player Country Club, Sun City, South Africa – The
European Tour kicks off its 2014-15 campaign this week with the Nedbank Golf
Challenge, where Thomas Bjorn emerged victorious by two shots last season.
Bjorn fired a 7-under 65 in his final round last year to finish at 20-under-
par 268, which was two shots better than Sergio Garcia and Jamie Donaldson.
Last year’s win was the last victory Bjorn earned on the European Tour. He has
15 in his career.
Bjorn is back in the field again this week along with 29 others. The 2014 U.S.
Open champion Martin Kaymer will also be in action this week. The field
consists of 25 players ranked between 12th and 86th in the world rankings.
Other notable players participating this week are Luke Donald, Jamie
Donaldson, Stephen Gallacher, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Louis Oosthuizen, Charl
Schwartzel and Lee Westwood.
The golf Channel will have early morning coverage of all four rounds.
The European Tour will be back in South Africa for its second of three
straight events there for the Alfred Dunhill Championship, where Schwartzel
ran away with a 4-shot win over Richard Finch last year.
LPGA TOUR
LPGA FINAL QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT, LPGA International (Arthur Hills Course/Rees
Jones Course), Daytona Beach, Florida – A total of 155 players have reached
the final stage of the LPGA Q School as they attempt to earn a spot on tour
for the upcoming season in 2015.
The top-20 finishers this week will earn category 12 status on the LPGA Tour
priority list, while those finishing between 21 and 45 get category 17 status.
Those who do not earn category 12 or 17 status will still have the opportunity
to play for status on the Symetra Tour priority list.
Last year, Jaye Marie Green ran away with a 10-shot victory at this event.
Green carded five straight rounds in the 60s, including a 10-under 62 in the
first round. Green shot a 4-under 68 on the final day to finish at 29-under-
par 331.
In 2014, Green missed 11 cuts in 22 events and she did not finish inside the
top 10 once. Green’s best finish came at the Marathon Classic, where she tied
for 18th.
There is no television coverage this week. The event lasts five rounds and
begins on Wednesday.
This is the last tournament for the LPGA Tour until the 2015 season kicks off
on Jan. 28 in Florida at the Coates Golf Championship, which is a new event.
