THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Justin Thomas went from a fast finish one day to a fast start the next, and it carried him to a 7-under 65 on Friday and a one-shot lead in the Zozo Championship at Sherwood.

Thomas wasn’t particularly thrilled, except for his position, mainly because the final stretch of holes was still fresh on his mind and he closed with six consecutive pars on a day when the field made birdie or better just over 33% of the time.

Richy Werenski led the way with 12 birdies for a 61, the lowest score in a tour-sanctioned competition at Sherwood. The average score was 67.87.

Tiger Woods managed to beat that, making eight birdies in is round of 66, and he still didn’t pick up any shots against the lead. The defending champion at the Zozo Championship — he won last year in Japan — was still 12 shots behind.

“Got off to a much better start and kept rolling,” Woods said.

Thomas finished late Thursday afternoon with a 29 on the back nine at Sherwood for a 65. He began the second round on the back nine and ran off four straight birdies, chipping in on the par-3 12th, and played it in 31.

But after two birdies in three holes to start the front nine — he hit into the water on the par-5 second hole and still managed to escape with par — he didn’t convert any birdie chances.

Thomas was at 14-under 130, one stroke clear of Lanto Griffin and Dylan Frittelli, who each had a 65 and each made bogey on the final hole.

Griffin tied Thomas with a 5-foot birdie on the seventh hole and then a 5-iron that didn’t turn out the way he had envisioned — he aimed 25 feet left and hit it right at the flag, 15 feet behind it.

“Pushed it right at the flag and it lands a foot from the hole,” Griffin said. “Then Rickie (Fowler) hit right where I was trying to hit it and his caddie said, `Good shot.’ And I said, `Yeah, that’s where I was trying to hit it.”’

It worked out fine, but he dropped back with a clunky 9-iron on the ninth hole that came up nearly 30 yards short of the hole and he missed a 10-foot par putt.

Patrick Cantlay found his putting touch and and shot 65. He was two shots behind, along with Scottie Scheffler, who also had a 65.

Low scores were everywhere on a course that is short by PGA Tour standards and has five par 5s that are reachable in two, even without hitting driver off the tee. There has been little wind, pleasant weather. And different from the days of the Woods’ holiday event in December, a 78-man field makes it likely more players are going low, especially when they see what everyone else is doing.

Woods couldn’t be much worse from Thursday, especially on the par 5s. He played them in 3 over in the opening round of 76, his highest score in his 13th year playing Sherwood. He played them in 4 under on Friday.

Phil Mickelson played them in 3 over Friday, but it was really just a couple of par 5s that ate him up.

He sent his tee shot off the property to the left on the 11th hole and made bogey. And on the 13th, he sent two shots into what amounts to a jungle left of the fairway and made a quadruple-bogey 9. He shot 74 and was near the bottom of the pack, one week after winning for the second straight time on the 50-and-older PGA Tour Champions.

Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., is the top Canadian after firing a 5-under 67 to reach 8 under heading into the weekend. Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., (68) is 6 under, Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., (72) is 5 under, while Abbotsford’s Adam Hadwin (67) is 2 under.

Making birdies is not a problem for Rory McIlroy — he’s just not getting much out of them. McIlroy made seven birdies in the opening round, but he had three bogeys, two double bogeys and one club snapped over his knee on the back nine. On Friday, he made eight birdies and still only managed a 67.

“So I’ve made 15 birdies in the first two days, which usually would put you right up at the top of the leaderboard. I just made too many mistakes,” McIlroy said. “It was the same story last week, sort of the same story at Winged Foot. Just one of those stretches where the good stuff’s there, but the bad stuff is sort of taking away from the fact that I’m hitting good shots and making birdies.”

Thomas has won the last four times he had a 36-hole lead, though this is different. Twenty players were within four shots of the lead, all of them at 10 under or better. He is playing well, making birdies and it was no time to let up.

“I played well. I’m not very pleased with the finish,” he said. “The last six holes, I would have liked to at least have got something. Having a 5-iron and a 5-wood out of the fairway into two par 5s and making two pars is not good. I just wasn’t near as tight and tidy those last four holes.”

Canada’s next crop of junior golfers will soon learn that they may be alone out on the course, but they’re part of a team off of it.

Jennifer Greggain was announced as the newest member of the coaching staff for Golf Canada’s junior teams last Thursday, working with head coach Robert Ratcliffe. She said that instilling a sense of camaraderie among her pupils is a priority for the 2021 squad.

“When you bring this talent together and bring them to one place, this opportunity to train together and help each other get better, that’s really unique and one of the biggest opportunities for this program and our juniors,” said Greggain, who added that when she was a high-level amateur she would loved to have been around other elite golfers her age.

Greggain has a wealth of experience to draw from, having played on the LPGA and Symetra Tours for 10 years before becoming a coach.

“When I retired from tour, I realized pretty quickly that what I wanted to do when I grew up was to coach,” said Greggain with a laugh.

Greggain was the director of instruction at Chilliwack Golf Club, the assistant coach for the University of the Fraser Valley, and led the B.C. Summer Games Squad on numerous occasions.

First round of the @thegolfcanada Junior Selection Camp underway at Bear Mountain Resort, Victoria. ?? ? #dragons pic.twitter.com/VW46VWkGqf

— Jennifer Greggain ?? (@jengreggaingolf) October 16, 2020

In January she joined the national team program as assistant coach of the women’s amateur and young pro squads with Tristan Mullally before she transitioned into her new role.

Greggain will help guide mental performance, physiotherapy, biomechanics and nutrition for the Canada’s top golfers while she continues her studies at the University of British Columbia’s Master of High Performance and Technical Leadership program.

The junior teams – boys and girls will train together – will be based at the national training centre at Bear Mountain Golf Resort in Victoria, which going forward will have a centralized component from March through June. Athletes will stay at the national training centre during their second semester at high school.

“I really like the model of the junior program because we have this centralized component which gives you a little more consistent contact,” said Greggain.

My wife and I have played together in many events over the years but this summer we tried a new one: the RBC PGA Scramble presented by The Lincoln Motor Company.

Now in its fifth year, the national series survived myriad challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, it experienced its most successful year to date.

“There was so much uncertainty at the start of the season,” says Adam LeBrun, managing director of championships and foundation for the PGA of Canada. “The pandemic affected everything and we were reacting to new developments every day it seemed. At one point early on, we thought we would be happy if we had 3,000 participants.”

As it turned out, my wife and I were two of about 11,000 participants who signed up to play in one of the team scramble’s 140 local qualifiers. We might not have won to advance to the regional final (OK, so we finished second last) but we had a great day and were impressed by the meticulous organizational framework.

“Unexpectedly, golf as a whole boomed this season,” LeBrun says. “As a result, our participation increased by about 40 per cent over 2019 and we had more venues sign up, many for the first time.”

That’s not to say it was all good news. For the past three years, the national final has taken place at renowned Cabot Links on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. In August, due to travel restrictions imposed in response to COVID-19, that was cancelled. (A return to Cabot is in the plans for 2021, COVID-dependent, of course.)

To compensate, the regional events were enhanced with more than $150,000 worth of gifting and prizing. The second- and third-place teams won a pro shop gift certificate at their regional venue.

The overall winning team was announced Sept. 21. Cole Bryant, Lee Bryant, Mike Hughston, Joe Saunders and PGA of Canada professional Nathan Grieve from Talking Rock Golf Course in Chase, B.C., edged Team Crimson Ridge from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., by a mere 0.91 score differential.*

In recognition of their accomplishment, the Talking Rock team was awarded a VIP experience at next year’s RBC Canadian Open at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in Etobicoke, Ont., including airfare, accommodations and tickets.

As well, a charitable donation option resulted in $4,350 being contributed to The Frontline Fund which supports Canadian healthcare workers in the fight against COVID-19.

The RBC PGA Scramble is nothing if not inclusive. Female participation grew 73 per cent year-over-year thanks to the creation of an all-female spot at each regional final. LeBrun says the age of participants ranged from 20 to 80 and the handicaps varied from the plus side to the mid-30s. “We even had one new golfer with the maximum Handicap Index of 54.”

But one demographic is not welcome. Sandbaggers need not apply and, if they do, they get booted out. With prejudice.

Again due to the pandemic, the usual format of eightsomes was not practicable so foursomes were the norm this time around, thus potentially opening the door for unscrupulous, unethical players.

“We had some instances,” says LeBrun, “but we reached out to Golf Canada in order to check scoring record details and it’s pretty easy to determine if something is fishy.

“In order to maintain the integrity and credibility of the program, we handed out a few suspensions and, as a committee, decided to make them pretty substantial.” That means a five-year ban from the event plus the miscreant’s home club and provincial association are notified.

“We designed the program with the intention of creating a fun, professional-like competition accessible to golfers of all skill levels,” the PGA of Canada emphasizes.

If the experience my wife and I had is any indication of what occurred nationally, they achieved that goal. We’ll try again next year. Who knows? Maybe third-last is possible…

For more information on the RBC PGA Scramble, visit www.rbcpgascramble.com

*Score differentials were used to compare results across 11 regional finals and calculated using the following formula: (113/course Slope) x (net score – course rating).

LAS VEGAS – In his 10th season, in his 233rd tournament, Jason Kokrak can finally call himself a PGA Tour winner.

Kokrak earned every bit of it Sunday in the CJ Cup at Shadow Creek. He matched the best round of the tournament with an 8-under 64 to overcome a three-shot deficit at the start and win a duel on the back nine with Xander Schauffele.

“Couldn’t be happier,” said Kokrak, who was born in North Bay, Ont.

The timing couldn’t be better. The CJ Cup moved from South Korea this year to Shadow Creek because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kokrak is an ambassador for MGM Resorts, which owns the prestigious Tom Fazio design.

“It feels like home,” Kokrak said. “I’ve played this golf course enough that I should know it by now.”

Kokrak began to pull away with four straight birdies on the front nine, and birdie putts from 20 feet and 18 feet to start the back nine stretched his lead to two shots.

Schauffele answered with three straight birdies, the last one a 45-footer by using his putter from the thick collar of the 13th green to catch him. Then, it was a matter of who blinked first.

That turned out to be Schauffele on the par-5 16th, when he only managed to advance his shot from deep rough left of the fairway some 85 yards into more rough. Swinging with all his might, his third shot peeled off to the right into more rough well below the green, and he made his only bogey in his round of 66.

Kokrak also was in the left rough, hacked out to the right rough and put his third shot in the bunker. But he splashed it out to just inside 4 feet and made par for a one-shot lead, and Schauffele couldn’t catch up.

Kokrak, a 35-year-old from Ohio, all but clinched it when he drilled his drive into the fairway on the par-5 18th, leaving only a short iron to 25 feet. He two-putted for his final birdie of a round he won’t soon forget.

Russell Henley, who began the final round with a three-shot lead, never got anything going early and fell behind when he bogeyed the par-5 seventh and Kokrak was on his early run of birdies.

Henley’s hopes ended on the reachable par-4 11th when he drove over the green into thick rough and, facing a downhill chip, left it in the rough short of the green and made bogey on the second-easiest scoring hole at Shadow Creek. That put him four shots behind, and a late push of birdies was never going to be enough.

He closed with a 70 and tied for third with Tyrrell Hatton, who was coming off a victory last week in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. Hatton closed with a 65.

Kokrak played bogey-free on a course where trouble was never too far away. Justin Thomas, within five shots of the lead, has two straight bogeys on the front nine and three more in a four-hole stretch on the back for a 74. Rory McIlroy was at least headed for a good finish until he had a pair of bogeys and two double bogeys over the last five holes for a 74.

Making it even tougher on Kokrak and Schauffele was Jason Day, the third in their group, withdrew with a neck injury on the second hole. That meant a twosome amidst a course filled with threesomes, and a lot of waiting. They still played at the highest level, with Kokrak delivering all the key putts.

Kokrak earned a spot in the Masters next month from reaching the Tour Championship a year ago in August. Now he can plan on two trips to Augusta National, qualifying for the 2021 tournament by winning.

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C. finished in a tie for 28th place with a score of 5-under. He shot a 2-under 70 in final round Sunday. Another Abbotsford native, Nick Taylor finished in a three-way tie for 61st place with Nick Taylor of Listowel, Ont., and American Andrew Landry at 3-over.

RICHMOND, Va. – Phil Mickelson likes to play aggressively and found the PGA Tour Champions’ stop at The Country Club of Virginia the perfect place to begin his preparations for the Masters.

Bombing drives like he will have to do against the younger set on the PGA Tour, Mickelson shot a 7-under 65 and became the third player – and second this year – to win his first two starts on the tour for players 50 and older. He slammed the door on Canada’s Mike Weir with a back-nine surge Sunday in the Dominion Energy Charity Classic.

“It’s fun for me to come out here and play well and this is a good start for me as I try to build a little bit of momentum heading to Augusta in about a month,” Mickelson said.

He finished at 17-under 199, one off the event record set by Miguel Angel Jimenez last year.

“I put a new driver into play this week, trying to get a little more pop, a little more carry. It was a little wayward at times, but it was also effective in allowing me to play this course the way I wanted to, which was aggressively,” Mickelson said.

Mickelson beat fellow left-hander and second-round leader Weir, from Brights Grove, Ont., by three strokes. The fellow rookie closed with a 71 and said he would have contended had he putted better.

“I haven’t been in this position in a while, but I felt very confident,” Weir said. “I hit one poor tee shot on No. 7. Outside of that, I played really well and just didn’t get anything really out of it.”

The winner in late August at Ozarks National in Missouri in his first start on the tour, Mickelson joined Bruce Fleischer and Jim Furyk as the only players to win in their first two senior events. Fleischer accomplished the feat in 1999 and Furyk did it this year with victories at The Ally Challenge and Pure Insurance Championship.

Mickelson said earlier in the week he came to Virginia to work on accurate driving and competitive fitness, and was hoping to still be in contention for the closing holes.

“I felt like the last six holes I had an opportunity with the two short par 4s and two par 5s to make something happen,” he said, noting the advantage of his length. “… I was able to have two putt birdies on three of those holes and that was very helpful.”

He got the lead when Weir three-putted the par-3 14th green, doubled his edge with a birdie on the next hole, then highlighted his distance advantage over the 2003 Masters champion by driving the green on the 274-yard, par-4 15th. He two-putted from 30 feet, then reached the par-5 16th in two and made birdie, cancelling out Weir’s birdie.

Mickelson’s chance to work on his competitive side came right away. He erased a three-shot deficit with birdies on three of the first six holes while Weir made a string of pars, but it was on the back nine that he was really tested, and delighted with his response.

After going a shot behind on the 12th hole, he pulled even at No. 13 and kept pushing.

Mickelson, who hasn’t won on the PGA Tour since early 2019 at Pebble Beach, plans to return to the PGA Tour next week for the Zozo Championship in California. After a week off, he’ll play in the Houston Open as his final preparation for the Masters on Nov. 12-15.

Weir three-putted the par-5 18th, but still hung on to beat Paul Goydos (65) by a shot. Bernhard Langer (67) and Brandt Jobe (68) shared fifth, five behind Mickelson.

It was Weir’s third top-10 finish in eight starts on the tour.

“I was low right hander this week,” Goydos quipped.

Robert Karlsson, another rookie on the tour, closed with a 64 including an albatross 2 on the final hole. The ball bounced twice, then found the bottom of the cup.

RICHMOND, Va. – The other left-handed, 50-year-old former Masters champion was on top after a long Saturday at The Country Club of Virginia.

While Phil Mickelson got most of the attention going into the Dominion Energy Charity Classic as he tries to open his senior career with consecutive victories, Mike Weir was a little better on a 36-hole day after rain washed out play Friday. The Canadian shot 68-63 to reach 13 under and take a three-stroke lead over Mickelson.

“I’m super happy with the way I played today,” said Weir. “My mindset going into today knowing we had 36, I wanted to get in a nice rhythm for the day because there’s so many holes. If you get in a nice rhythm, you can kind of ride it and I did that, I got in a nice rhythm.”

Mickelson shot 68-66. He won his PGA Tour Champions debut at Ozarks National in August.

Weir won the 2003 Masters for the biggest of his eight PGA Tour titles.

Fellow major champion Retief Goosen was third at 8 under with Brandt Jobe. They each shot 68-68.

Bernhard Langer, the first-round leader after a 67, was 7 under with Wes Short Jr. (69-68) after a second-round 70.

And here’s @mweirsy to take the lead on the @ChampionsTour ?? pic.twitter.com/yxdgse2yIC

— Golf Canada (@GolfCanada) October 17, 2020

Ernie Els, the 50-year-old former major champion coming off his second victory of the season last week in North Carolina, shot 72-66 to get to 6 under.

Jim Furyk, another 50-year-old former major champion who won in his first two senior starts, was 5 under after rounds of 71 and 68 alongside Mickelson and defending champion Miguel Angel Jimenez.

Jimenez was 1 under, shooting 74-69.

PGA of Canada member Jennifer Greggain has been named coach of the National Junior Squads by Golf Canada.

Working alongside head coach Robert Ratcliffe, Greggain will help guide mental performance, physiotherapy, biomechanics and nutrition for the Canada’s top athletes. Coaching will be based at the national training centre at Bear Mountain in Victoria, B.C., featuring a centralized component from March through June which provides accommodation and education for athletes during their high school second semester.

Greggain, a resident of Chilliwack, B.C., transitions into the role after joining the national team program as assistant coach of the Women’s Amateur and Young Pro Squads in January of 2020.

Prior to joining Golf Canada, Greggain was the director of instruction at Chilliwack Golf Club, the assistant coach for the University of the Fraser Valley, and led the B.C. Summer Games Squad on numerous occasions. Before her coaching career, she was an accomplished player for more than 10 years on the LPGA and Symetra Tours.

“Jennifer brings a strong background in competitive golf to compliment a wealth of coaching knowledge that will continue to fill the pipeline with high performance athletes,” said head coach Robert Ratcliffe.

She’s both TPI and K-Vest certified and last June she enrolled in the University of British Columbia’s Master of High Performance and Technical Leadership program. Greggain is the recipient of the 2018 PGA of Canada Jack McLaughlin Junior Leader of the Year.

The PGA of Canada Class ‘A’ member was also instrumental in guiding Golf Canada’s Women in Coaching program.

Greggain is a mother of two and lives in B.C. with her husband.

The Canadian golf community is saddened to learn of the passing of former Golf Canada President and Honorary Life Governor Findlay Young of Prince George, B.C., who passed away suddenly on Friday, October 9, 2020 at the age of 92.

Young was born in 1928 in Glasgow, Scotland, where he met his wife Nancy. They married in 1955 and emigrated to Canada in 1957.

He served as a director at B.C. Golf from 1961-1999 and was an honourary life director. He also served as president of the Royal Canadian Golf Association (now Golf Canada) in 1993 where he was also named an honourary life governor.

In total, Young won 53 golf competitions, including 11 Prince George Golf and Curling Club championships between 1959 and 1970. He recorded eight holes-in-one.

Among his many accomplishments off the golf course, Young was a director for the Prince George Mohawks senior hockey team for 10 years and was inducted into the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.

For many in the golf community, Findlay was a great friend and mentor whose passion for golf and contributions to the game left a lasting impact. His mark on our organization and our sport will not soon be forgotten.

Below is a message that was shared by the Prince George Golf & Curling Club and here is a link to the bio that was included with his induction into the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame.

Always prioritizing junior golf, he successfully mentored many skilled amateurs locally, provincially, and nationally, including captaining the Pacific Northwest and Canadian Junior Teams. Findlay’s rules proficiency and diplomatic skills eventually led to the presidency of Golf Canada as the first ever elected from Northern BC.

As president he attended the World rules conference and served as Canada’s golf ambassador to the 1994 Masters and Canadian, U.S., and British Opens. A lethal wedge player and scratch golfer for many years, Findlay dominated golf in the Northern interior, holding 11 club championships at the Prince George Golf & Country Club, a record that will never be equaled.

“Fin” significantly influenced all aspects of our club’s development, and on behalf of the board, our condolences and best wishes go out to the Young family.

“scíth a ligean”

Respectfully,
Don McDermid
General Manager On Behalf of the Prince George Golf and Country Club Board of Directors

Mackenzie Hughes started the 2021 PGA Tour season with the highest ranking of his career and he’s already reaping the benefits.

Hughes, from Dundas, Ont., will be in the field at this week’s CJ Cup, which has moved South Korea to Shadow Creek Golf Course in Las Vegas.

He said that getting to set his own calendar is one of the advantages of finishing last season 14th on the FedExCup standings.

“These are the kinds of tournaments and fields you want to be a part of it. It’s a reward for having a good year the prior year,” said Hughes from his home in North Carolina.

“You want to build your schedule around the biggest tournaments and you want to play the best players in the world.”

Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor, both from Abbotsford, B.C., as well as Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., are also in the 78-player field at the no-cut event.

The first three editions of the CJ Cup were played at the Nine Bridges Golf Club on Jeju Island, South Korea, but was moved to the Vegas swing of the PGA Tour schedule this year.

Hughes said that being able to set his own schedule is especially helpful as he and his wife Jenna are expecting their second son the last week of November.

He will play at next week’s ZOZO Championship at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, Calif. – moved from Tokyo because of travel restrictions related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Houston Open and the Masters will follow but the RSM Classic on Nov. 19 is a maybe for him as Jenna’s due date approaches.

“That’s what I’ll keep doing going into next year,” said Hughes. “I’ll probably end up playing a bit less but keep my attention around the bigger tournaments and layer in some other tournaments around that to get ready for those.”

Families were not allowed to travel with golfers for most of the 2020 PGA Tour season as the top men’s golf tour tried to maintain a bubble during the pandemic. That was tough for a family man like Hughes, who skipped the Sanderson Farms Championship and the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open so he could be at home.

“I’ve enjoyed being home for a couple of weeks, I don’t get too many of those breaks,” said Hughes. “It’s nice to be with them and hang out have some fun but also provide my wife with some help, provide some support as we raise out child.”

This is no ordinary road to the Masters.

Instead of the tropical warmth of Florida in the spring, it starts in the hot desert air of Nevada in October.

Instead of a series of PGA Tour events some 500 miles south of Augusta National with an occasional detour into Texas, this road starts 2,000 to the west, heads out to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and then back over to Houston.

What hasn’t changed is the top players are back in action with Georgia on their minds.

It starts Thursday with the CJ Cup at Shadow Creek, typically held in South Korea and now part of an Asia swing that moved this year to the western U.S. because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Four of the top five players in the world are at Shadow Creek, with top-ranked Dustin Johnson pulling out after his positive test for the coronavirus.

It’s different, just like the entire year in just about every sport.

Rory McIlroy thinks Shadow Creek might be even better than what Florida offers because of the bentgrass greens that are fast with big slopes.

“It’s not a bad place to prepare for Augusta,” McIlroy said Wednesday. “Climate’s going to be a bit different, but it’s not bad preparation. Obviously, it’s on the other side of the country. But when you think about the courses that we play leading up to Augusta, they’re all Bermuda for the most part. It’s Florida. It’s a different test and a different setup.

“I think here this week and Sherwood next week, I think that’s going to be a lot of guys’ last event before Augusta.”

Most of them are happy to have the opportunity.

The CJ Cup (South Korea) and the Zozo Championship (Japan) likely would not have attracted top players unwilling to travel that far during a pandemic, especially with the Masters having been pushed back to November. Both tournaments have limited fields with no cuts and big money.

The Zozo Championship next week is at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, California. That will be followed by the Bermuda Championship and Houston Open ahead of the Masters on Nov. 12-15.

“I think a lot of guys are really happy that they’ve got these two events to play and see where their game is,” McIlroy said. “These are obviously big events in their own right, but looking ahead for a few week’s time.”

Shadow Creek adds to the prestige as the elite club in Las Vegas, a Tom Fazio-design with a list of members that range from former U.S. presidents to Michael Jordan and Derek Jeter to actors Sylvester Stallone and Matt Damon.

The condition is mint. Justin Rose said they were the best greens he has played this side of Augusta National and Muirfield Village, home of the Memorial.

It last was seen on television two years ago when Phil Mickelson beat Tiger Woods in a $9 million winner-take-all match as golf delved into pay-per-view, which turned out to be free because of technical glitches.

“I definitely look at that as our key event this fall,” Rickie Fowler said. “With CJ bringing the tournament here to Shadow, I think is is actually a great place to have a little checkpoint of where things are leading up to Augusta. The greens could be fairly similar in areas to what we may see at Augusta.”

The CJ Cup marks the return of Brooks Koepka after two months off to heal a left hip injury, a byproduct of a knee injury he had been dealing with since last year. Several others, such as defending champion Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele, have not played since the U.S. Open.

Rose, Shane Lowery and Tommy Fleetwood are among those who were outside London last week for the European Tour flagship event, finding it well worth it to cross eight time zones to tee it up at Shadow Creek.

As much emphasis as there is on the greens, McIlroy arrived in Las Vegas talking about length _ specifically Bryson DeChambeau’s method of hitting it as far as he could on his way to winning the U.S. Open.

McIlroy isn’t about to add 40 pounds of muscle and mass. But he is trying to add speed to his swing, even if he doesn’t catch up to the 200 mph ball speed DeChambeau is approaching.

“Having length is an advantage and I’ve always been pretty long,” McIlroy said. “I think what I want to do is at least know that I have it if I need it. I’m not going to try to do it all the time, I’m not trying to get my ball speed into the 190s every time I hit a driver, but at least I know that if I need to do it, I can do it.”

DeChambeau is home in Dallas for a month working on a 48-inch driver for the Masters. McIlroy is at Shadow Creek and Sherwood the next two weeks. Both are thinking about the Masters in their own way.