Golf Glance: PGA status chase on in Mexico; 10 Champions vie for title


PGA: Wyndham Championship - First RoundAug 9, 2024; Greensboro, North Carolina, USA; Cameron Young hits his tee shot on the 15th hole during the first round of the Wyndham Championship golf tournament at Sedgefield Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Field Level Media’s Golf Glance provides weekly news and storylines from each of the major North American golf tours.

PGA TOUR

LAST TOURNAMENT: Zozo Championship (Nico Echavarria)

THIS WEEK: World Wide Technology Championship, Los Cabos, Mexico, Nov. 7-10

Course: El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas

Purse: $7.2M (Winner: $1.296M)

Defending Champion: Erik van Rooyen

FedEx Cup Champion: Scottie Scheffler

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Thursday-Sunday: 2-5 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)

X: @WWTChampionship

NOTES: This is the sixth of eight tournaments on the FedEx Cup Fall schedule, which finalizes the top 125 players who will retain exempt status for 2025. Nos. 126-150 after the fall will retain conditional status. Players who finished Nos. 51-70 in the FedEx Cup have secured their tour cards, but are competing for spots in the first two signature events after the season-opening The Sentry on Jan. 2-5. … First contested in 2007, this was the first official PGA Tour event played in Mexico in the modern era. It moved to the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal last year, when van Rooyen eagled the final hole to win by two strokes. He’s trying to join Viktor Hovland (2020-21) as the only two-time winners of the event. … Cameron Young, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 33, withdrew Wednesday for an undisclosed reason. He had been set to make his first start since the BMW Championship. … Billy Andrade is playing his first PGA Tour event since 2014. He’s in the field on a sponsors exemption after failing to qualify for the Charles Schwab Championship.

BEST BETS: Max Greyserman (+1600 at DraftKings) has three runner-ups in his past five starts as he seeks his first PGA Tour title. … Doug Ghim (+2200) posted his best career finish on tour two starts ago with a solo second in Las Vegas for his third consecutive T6 or better. … Adam Svensson (+4500) has not been in top form with a T25 his best result in his past four fall starts. He does have a tour title to his credit at the 2022 The RSM Classic and finished T7 at the Wyndham this season. … Echavarria (+5500) is coming off his second win on tour, although it was just his second top-10 finish in 27 starts this season.

NEXT TOURNAMENT: Butterfield Bermuda Championship, Southampton, Bermuda, Nov. 14-17

LPGA TOUR

LAST TOURNAMENT: Toto Japan Classic (Rio Takeda)

THIS WEEK: Lotte Championship, Ewa Beach, Oahu, Hawaii, Nov. 6-9

Course: Hoakalei Country Club (Par 72, 6,536 Yards)

Purse: $3M (Winner: $450,000)

Defending Champion: Grace Kim

Race to the CME Globe leader: Nelly Korda

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Wednesday-Saturday, 5-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel, NBC Sports Digital)

X: @LPGALOTTE

NOTES: The 120-player field will be cut to the top 65 and ties after 36 holes. … World No. 1 Nelly Korda has clinched Player of the Year honors despite withdrawing from two events in Asia due to a neck injury. … Hoakalei is the only course in Hawaii designed by World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els, and has played host to the event since 2022. … Brooke Henderson is the only two-time winner of the event, going back-to-back in 2018-19 when it was held at Ko Olina.

NEXT TOURNAMENT: The Annika, Belleair, Fla., Nov. 14-17

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

LAST TOURNAMENT: Simmons Bank Championship (Padraig Harrington)

THIS WEEK: Charles Schwab Cup Championship, Phoenix, Nov. 7-10

Course: Phoenix Country Club (Par 71, 6,860 Yards)

Purse: $3M

Defending Champion: Steven Alker

Charles Schwab Cup leader: Ernie Els

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV: Thursday-Sunday: 5-8 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)

X: @SchwabCupFinale

NOTES: Thirty-five players qualified for the season-ending event, with 11 entering with a mathematical chance of winning the Charles Schwab Cub. The top six players in the standings will win the title with a victory this week: Els, Alker, Stephen Ames, Padraig Harrington, Y.E. Yang and Richard Green. K.J. Choie, Steve Stricker, Ricardo Gonzalez, Paul Broadhurst and Jerry Kelly can also claim the title with a victory this week combined with needed results from the other top players. … Gonzalez is one of eight first-time qualifiers for the Charles Schwab Championship. He is joined by Stewart Cink, Tim O’Neal, Thomas Bjorn, Greg Chalmers, Hiroyuki Fujita, Jason Caron and Cameron Percy.

NEXT TOURNAMENT: Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai, Ka’upulehu-Kona, Hawaii, Jan. 16-19

LIV GOLF LEAGUE

THIS WEEK: Season Complete

2024 Champions: Individual: Jon Rahm; Team: Ripper GC

NEXT TOURNAMENT: LIV Golf Promotions, Abu Dhabi, Dec. 8-10

–Field Level Media



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