Tiger Woods is going back to the PGA Tour event at Riviera for the first time since 2006.

The Tiger Woods Foundation will become the host organization that runs the tournament, which has Hyundai Motor America as the new title sponsor. The PGA Tour said Tuesday that Woods will be the tournament host and become actively involved in the tournament.

Riviera is where Woods, who grew up about 45 minutes away, made his PGA Tour debut as a 16-year-old amateur. He missed the cut with rounds of 72-75.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for my foundation,” Woods said in a statement. “This is the first PGA Tour event I ever played, and it means a lot to contribute to a community that has supported me and my foundation for more than 20 years. I’m committed to playing in my foundation’s events, and it will be exciting to return to Riviera.”

Still to be determined is the name of the tournament.

Hyundai previously was the title sponsor at the winners-only event at Kapalua that starts the year (Hyundai Tournament of Champions). It takes over in Los Angeles after Northern Trust moved its title sponsorship to the New York area for the opening FedEx Cup playoff event.

“Recognizing Tiger’s ongoing connection to his home state through his foundation, we saw an opportunity to correspond the transition of the tournament operation with the new long-term sponsorship by Hyundai,” PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said.

Hyundai Motor America has headquarters in southern California.

The question is when Woods will play. Because of two back surgeries late last year, he has not competed since August and has not indicated when he will return. Riviera has become the anchor of the West Coast Swing toward the end of February.

Woods has never missed one of his foundation events except for injury. Along with playing, he donates all his earnings to the foundation.

He last played what was then the Nissan Open at Riviera in 2006 when he narrowly made the cut and withdrew the next day with the flu.

Taking over at Riviera means the Tiger Woods Foundation still has three PGA Tour events it runs – the Quicken Loans National in the Washington, D.C., area, and the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.

It previously had the Deutsche Bank Championship outside Boston. The tour said its management would take over Boston in 2017, and that the foundation will keep its charitable commitment to the New England area through the Earl Woods Scholarship Program. There are 15 scholars from the New England region, with five more scheduled for the next school year.

The successes of reality TV shows like Pawn Stars, Storage Wars, and Canadian Pickers could be attributed to the lure of great fortune. People often find exhilaration in possibly having – or finding – that single needle in a haystack that might be worth a great deal.

The thought of dusty old clubs which haven’t been touched in years generally doesn’t excite too many people, but some see value in age and potential with the passage of time.

Fortunately for those of us who do, the Golf Historical Society of Canada (GHSC) will be hosting its annual “Antique Golf” Trade Fair & Auction on Sunday, April 3 at the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum – and they want to check out YOUR antique golf collectibles.

Appraisers and collectors will be on hand to let you know if you truly have a hidden ‘treasure’.  The knowledgeable members of the GHSC will identify any of your golf collectibles for FREE, including wooden-shafted golf clubs, balls, tees, porcelain collective ware, books, photographs, trophies, etc…

There is no need to be a member of the GHSC to attend.  Admission and parking are free.

Doors open at 10 a.m. and the auction (which all are welcome to participate in) begins at 2 p.m. The cut-off for auction items is 1:30 p.m. and those wishing to bid on items must register by no later than 1:45 p.m.

The Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is located on the grounds of Glen Abbey Golf Club at:
1333 Dorval Dr.
Oakville, Ont.
L6M 4X7

A trio of Canadian girls are set to head south for the 2016 Drive, Chip & Putt Championship at Augusta National on April 3—the Sunday prior to the Masters tournament week.

Canadians Vanessa Borovilos, Jayla Kucy and Elaine Giantsopolous will be among the 80 qualifiers (40 male, 40 female) vying to be crowned champions of their respective age divisions at the third annual national championship.

Toronto’s Borovilos will compete in the 7­–9 age group for a second consecutive year—she finished fourth in 2015, just four points off the lead. The aspiring LPGA golfer and Trafalgar Golf & Country Club member punched her ticket to Augusta by winning the regional qualifier held at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa.

Vanessa Borovilos (Dave Reginek/ Getty Images) and Jayla Kucy (Steve Dykes/ Getty Images)

Camrose, Alta., native Jayla Kucy will also make her return to Augusta National in the 2016 event. The year prior, Kucy (9-years-old at the time) posted a final score of 13 to finish T8 in the 7­–9 group. With another year of experience under her belt, Jayla will take the all-expenses-paid trip once more to golf’s hallowed ground. Kucy and Borovilos are among four competitors set to return for a second straight year.

Competing in the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship for the first time is Elaine Giantsopolous of Richmond Hill, Ont. Giantsopolous earned her spot in the final with a one-point victory at her regional qualifier—also held at Oakmont. Playing out of York Downs Golf & Country Club, Giantsopolous will compete in the 12–13 division.

The journey to the final event is no easy task. Amongst tens of thousands of entrants in 250 qualifying events, all three girls secured top-three spots at their local qualifiers, top-two finishes at their sub-regionals, followed by wins at their regional events. Results of all qualifying events can be found here.

A joint initiative by the United States Golf Association (USGA), the Masters and the PGA of America, the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship is a free nationwide youth golf development program open to girls and boys aged 7-15 – competing in separate divisions in four age categories – focusing on the three fundamental skills employed in golf and tapping the creativity and enthusiasm of young golfers.

Coverage of the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship will be broadcast live on the Golf Channel on April 3.

The Canadian equivalent, the CN Future Links Junior Skills Challenge National Event, will be contested on July 16 at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont., the Sunday prior to the 2016 RBC Canadian Open.

AUSTIN, Texas – The fortunes of Jason Day turned as quickly as the biggest match he faced in winning the Dell Match Play.

Just two weeks ago, he arrived at the Arnold Palmer Invitational without having won in six months and showing few signs that he was ready to crank up that fearsome combination of long ball and short game.

Day now heads to the Masters as the man to beat.

Coming off a one-shot victory at Bay Hill, the 28-year-old Australian overcame a back injury that nearly caused him to withdraw, went far enough in the Match Play to return to No. 1 in the world, outlasted Rory McIlroy in the semifinals and then capped off a remarkable week in Texas by going home with the trophy.

He will head to Augusta National later this week to start preparing. The Masters starts April 7.

“I am looking forward to it,” Day said. “I know it’s one tournament that I’ve always want to win. So the motivation and the want … there’s no problem. It’s been good momentum for me, confidence-wise, over the last two weeks. I can’t get comfortable with how I’m playing right now. I can’t get lazy, because I’ve got to understand that what I’m doing is working. So I’ve got to keep working on the things that have caused me to win over the last two weeks.”

The last time anyone won back-to-back on the PGA Tour was only three weeks ago when Adam Scott won at PGA National and Doral. What makes Day stand out as a favorite is that the Match Play was his sixth victory in his last 13 starts dating to his record win at the PGA Championship last August.

Jordan Spieth’s loss in the fourth round was the first part in Day getting back to No. 1.

Day winning in the quarterfinals was the second part.

As for that big match?

The record book will show that Day defeated Louis Oosthuizen, 5 and 4, to win the tournament. That was never really in doubt. Day took the lead for good on the fourth hole and extended it because he was making putts at Austin Country Club and Oosthuizen was not.

“A top player these days, he always makes that crucial putt when he needs to,” Oosthuizen said. “We’ve seen a thousand times through Tiger doing it. Jordan does it all the time. And Jason, whenever he needs to make a crucial putt, he makes it. You see him this morning against Rory when he made that putt on 18. He’s always been a great iron player. He’s always been a great long iron player.

“And the way he’s putting now, there’s a reason why he’s No. 1 in the world.”

The key moment for Day even getting to the championship match was against McIlroy on the back nine.

McIlroy was on the verge of going 1 up when he hit a magnificent shot into the wind, over the water to the left corner of the green, leaving him 6 feet for birdie. Day missed the green left and faced a downhill chip so severe that he went with a full shot to reduce the roll. It worked OK, but not great, and he still had 12 feet left for par.

Day made. McIlroy miss.

Then, both were in range on the par-5 12th when McIlroy protected against the water and played his shot out to the right. Day was going to do the same thing with a 4-iron when he felt a gust in his face, and switched to a 2-iron. He took a line right over the water, cleared it by a foot and set up a two-putt birdie that gave him the lead for good.

That’s how quickly control in that match changed.

“Once the wind started gusting up, I said, ‘I’m going to change and for the 2-iron and go for the green,'” Day said. “In my head, I was saying that. I pulled it a little bit … and it worked out fantastic.”

McIlroy hit a poor chip behind the 13th green and fell 2 down, and he never could catch up.

“I think the morning’s round was probably one of the hardest rounds I’ve had to go through in match-play format,” Day said.

The back injury was all but forgotten when Day motored his way to an easy victory over Oosthuizen. It was the largest margin in the championship match since it went to 18 holes in 2011. Tiger Woods beat Stewart Cink, 8 and 7, when it was a 36-hole final.

Day’s short game was most impressive. He was just off the green eight times against McIlroy and got up-and-down each time. He did it four more times against Oosthuizen. And yes, he can still hit it a long way. That should work out for him at Augusta National.

“It will be fun to walk through the gates as the No. 1 in the world,” he said.

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Lydia Ko won the Kia Classic on Sunday at Aviara, reaffirming her position as the top player in the world heading into the first major championship of the season.

Ko birdied the final three holes for her third straight 5-under 67 and a four-stroke victory over second-ranked Inbee Park.

“I just kind of peeked at the leaderboard and saw Inbee was making a lot of birdies – Inbee doing her Inbee things,” Ko said. “I knew that I needed to focus up until the last moment and fortunately I made some birdies down the stretch.”

A week after finishing second in Phoenix in the Founders Cup, Ko headed to Rancho Mirage for the ANA Inspiration with her first LPGA Tour victory of the year and 11th overall. The 18-year-old New Zealander also won the Ladies European Tour’s New Zealand Women’s Open in February.

“All the work we’ve put in as a team kind of paid off,” Ko said. “A really happy moment, but I have to focus for next week. I’m really excited to go back to ANA.”

Ko finished at 19-under 269.

Park closed with a 67. The 2013 winner at Rancho Mirage, the South Korean player appears to be over the back problem that forced her to withdraw from the first event of the season.

“We have a really important tournament coming up next week, so I really needed to push myself a little faster to get ready,” Park said. “This is a great finish for me and it’s going to be a good confidence week for me.”

She tied for 30th in Thailand and Singapore in her first events back and missed the cut in Phoenix.

“I have been struggling with ball-striking to putting and everything until probably last week,” Park said. “This week, everything started clicking together. Started to hit the ball a lot straighter and started to get a lot of confidence and, obviously, dropping a few putts gave me a lot of confidence.”

Playing two groups ahead of Ko, Park pulled within two shots with birdies on the par-4 16th and par-5 17th. Ko pushed the lead back to two with a birdie on the short par-4 16th, holing a 10-foot putt after driving the green and racing her first putt past the hole.

Ko made an 8-foot birdie putt on 17, and finished with a 15-footer on 18.

She bogeyed the par-5 10th after double-hitting a putt from the fringe. The ball popped out of a divot and caught her club in the follow-through, costing her a one-stroke penalty.

Japan’s Ai Miyazato was third at 12 under after a 66. The nine-time LPGA Tour winner had her first top-10 finish since 2013.

“I’ve been struggling with my putting since a couple years ago,” Miyazato said. “That’s why my game wasn’t really there. But I had really good patience and I know I can get through it. Right now, I’m in the process, but just the difference is it’s just I’m having fun more with my game.”

South Koreans Sung Hyun Park and Jenny Shin each shot 72 to tie for fourth at 11 under. Sung Hyun Park received a sponsor exemption.

Brittany Lang closed with a bogey on 17 and a double bogey on 18 – hitting into the water twice – for a 74 that dropped her into a tie for 10th at 9 under.

Brooke Henderson tallied six birdies and an eagle en route to a 6-under 66. The Smiths Falls, Ont., native finished in a tie for 10th at a combined 9-under par.

MESA, Ariz. – Team Canada Development Squad member A.J. Ewart carded a bogey-free final round 71 on Sunday to finish tied for fourth at the Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic hosted by Longbow Golf Club.

The 16-year-old Coquitlam, B.C., product finished at 4-under par (71-67-71) in the 54-hole event conducted by the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA). He trailed the trio of leaders by just one stroke, with Ricky Castillo of Yorba Linda, Calif., emerging to win the two-hole playoff.

The result marks the third Top-5 AJGA finish for Ewart—he won the Sunriver Junior Open in 2015 and finished T5 at the AJGA/CJGA Junior Championship in 2014.

Fellow Canadian James Song was also in action at Longbow, posting a 77-69-71 (+4) to finish T22. Development Squad teammate Jack Simpson of Aurora, Ont., missed the cut after struggling with scores of 71 and 78.

Click here for full scoring.

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Tony Finau won the Puerto Rico Open on Sunday for his first PGA Tour title, beating Steve Marino with a birdie on the third hole of a playoff at windy Coco Beach.

The 26-year-old Finau won with his third straight birdie in the playoff on the par-5 18th, blasting out of the back bunker to 3 feet.

“I think I’m still a little bit overwhelmed,” Finau said. “It probably hasn’t all sunk in.”

Marino was just off the back edge of the green in two, but left his putt from the fringe 4 1/2 short and missed his birdie try to the right.

“I finally played the hole like you’re supposed to,” Marino said. “I hit the fairway and then hit it on the back fringe. I didn’t think that putt was going to be that slow and then I just hit a poor putt on the second putt. Pretty disappointing, played really well.”

Finau and Marino each shot 2-under 70 to finish at 12-under 276. Marino birdied the 18th to tie Finau, and got into the playoff when Finau missed a 6-foot birdie putt.

“In regulation, it was a putt that I kind of dreamed of making my whole life,” Finau said. “It’s a putt that you practice for your first PGA Tour victory or just for any PGA Tour victory, so I was a little bit bummed that that sneaked by the hole because I hit a really good putt. But I was happy I had another chance at it and was able to make the second one.”

Finau and Marino each birdied the 18th on the first two playoff holes.

On the first extra hole, Marino got up-and-down from the left bunker, blasting to 8 feet. Finau pitched to a foot from left of the green. On the second, Marino hit a flop shot over the right-side bunker to 10 feet, and Finau pitched to 6 feet from in front of the green.

Marino is winless on the PGA Tour. He also lost in a playoff in the 2009 Colonial.

Finau birdied four of the first 10 holes to reach 14 under, then dropped back with bogeys on the par-3 11th and par-5 15th.

The long-hitting Finau, a 6-foot-4 former Utah high school basketball star, is in his second full season on the PGA Tour. He’s the cousin of Milwaukee Bucks player Jabari Parker.

“I tried to just stay in the moment really,” Finau said. “That’s what I learned from last year. You can never look too far ahead and you can’t look back, either. You’ve got to focus on the here and now. I did a really good job of that today even though that putt slipped by in regulation for the win, I knew I still didn’t lose the tournament. I needed to refocus and get ready to play 18 again. That’s what it takes out here I feel like to win. And now that I have that feeling, it’s pretty special.”

Ian Poulter and Mexico’s Rodolfo Cazaubon finished a stroke out of the playoff.

Pouler closed with a 72, missing an 18-foot birdie putt on 18. Playing the event for the first time after failing to get into the Match Play tournament in Texas as the first alternate, the Englishman took a one-stroke lead into the final round.

“It’s a shame. Just slightly disappointing,” Poulter said. “I’m continuing to work on the game to try and improve, and I know if I rectify a couple of poor shots, then my game will improve. Obviously, hitting shots slightly too far right at certain times is costly.”

Cazaubon shot a 68. The Web.com Tour player was making his third PGA Tour start.

“I’m really happy,” Cazaubon said. “I guess I feel really comfortable since the beginning. I didn’t have anything to lose because I play on the Web. I just came here to have some fun here.”

Abbotsford, B.C., product Nick Taylor closed with a 70 to finish T5 at 10-under alongside Andres Romero (67) and Scott Brown (71). Puerto Rico’s Rafael Campos, the leader after each of the first two rounds, was another stroke back after a 72.

Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., carded a 71 to reach 8-under and a share of 11th place. Surrey, B.C., native Adam Svensson shot 73 and finished in a tie for 47th.

AUSTIN, Texas – Jason Day made his return to No. 1 in the world feel even sweeter Sunday by winning the Dell Match Play.

Day outlasted Rory McIlroy in an epic battle in the morning semifinals by making a 12-foot par putt on the 18th hole. The championship match against Louis Oosthuizen turned into a victory lap at Austin Country Club.

And to think Day thought about pulling out Thursday morning when his back seized up on him. Three days later, he looked better than ever.

“It’s been a memorable week, not only to win the Dell Match Play but to get back to No. 1 in the world,” Day said.

Day pulled ahead with a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-3 fourth hole, stretched his lead to 3 up at the turn and was relentless with his power and short game the rest of the way. He closed out Oosthuizen with a wedge to 3 feet for a conceded birdie on the 14th hole and a 5-and-4 victory.

It was the largest margin in the championship match since Tiger Woods beat Stewart Cink, 8 and 7, in 2008 at Dove Mountain in a 36-hole match.

Day was assured of the No. 1 ranking when Jordan Spieth lost Saturday morning in the fourth round and Day won his quarterfinal match that afternoon. But he said it would have felt hollow without leaving town with the trophy.

Oosthuizen, who knocked out Spieth, won the opening hole with a par and that was it. His only birdie was an 8-foot putt on No. 5 after Day had stuffed his wedge from the rough into 2 feet.

“I couldn’t buy a birdie,” Oosthuizen said. “I played OK, but nothing spectacular. Up against a guy like Jason, you need to play 3 or 4 under to have a chance.”

Day joined Woods and Geoff Ogilvy as the only multiple winners of the Match Play. Along with replacing Spieth at No. 1 in the world, the 28-year-old Australian figures to be the favorite when he goes to Augusta National next week to start preparing for the Masters on April 7-10.

Day, coming off a victory last week in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, has won six of his last 13 tournaments dating to the PGA Championship.

None of this looked possible when he winced and grabbed his back on the final hole he played in his 3-and-2 victory over Graeme McDowell on Wednesday. Day said he thought about going back to Ohio for tests, especially with the Masters around the corner. He went through therapy every day, and stuck it out. And while his back got progressively better, so did his game.

Day played only 101 holes over seven matches – one match was six holes when Paul Casey withdrew with a stomach ailment – and only had one match go the distance.

Rafa Cabrera Bello of Spain, who lost to Oosthuizen in the other semifinal, won the last three holes to beat McIlroy in the consolation match. The real consolation for the Spaniard was moving into the top 50 in the world ranking to earn a trip to the Masters for the first time.

Day might have won this tournament in the morning.

His semifinal match with McIlroy – only the second semifinal in the 18-year history of this event that the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds met – lived up to the expectation. The lead changed seven times. They combined for 11 birdies in chilly, blustery conditions.

The match turned on the 11th hole when Day got up-and-down for par with a 12-foot putt, while McIlroy missed a 6-foot birdie. Day got up-and-down eight times in his match against McIlroy. On the par-5 12th, McIlroy was first to hit and played well right of the green, away from the water. Day took on the hazard, and his shot cleared the water by about a foot to set up a two-putter birdie that gave him the lead for good.

Day had never seen the 18th hole in his life until he had to get up-and-down from a tough spot short and left of the pin. He played the slope too hard and the ball rolled 12 feet on the other side of the hole. McIlroy was 6 feet away for par when Day made the putt to win.

Oosthuizen was no match for him in the warmth of the afternoon. The South African hit out of a bunker into the hazard to lose the third hole, missed a 7-foot par putt on the seventh hole to fall 2 down, and Day took control with a 6-foot birdie on the ninth.

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Top-ranked Lydia Ko made three straight birdies early on the back nine Saturday in the Kia Classic and finished with a 5-under 67 to take a three-stroke lead.

Ko birdied Nos. 11-13 and closed with five straight pars to reach 14-under 202 at Aviara in the final event before the major ANA Inspiration next week in Rancho Mirage.

“I’d rather be a couple shots ahead than a couple shots behind,” Ko said. “But the girls are playing great golf. The course is tough, but still, the scores are out there. So I’ve just got to focus on my game. Anything can happen.”

The 18-year-old New Zealander saved par with a 10-foot putt on the par-4 18th, and has played bogey-free since her second hole in the first round. She won five times last season and is coming off second-place finish last week in Phoenix in the Founders Cup.

“I struck the ball really well,” Ko said. “I think almost the harder part was that because I was giving myself a lot of opportunities, it almost felt like I wasn’t putting good, but I was stroking good and holing a few putts here and there. I’m really proud with the way I played today. Obviously, I’ve got to take the positives and the confidence going into tomorrow.”

Sung Hyun Park, Brittany Lang and second-round leader Jenny Shin were tied for second.

Park had five straight birdies on Nos. 12-16, made a double bogey on par-5 17th, and closed with a birdie for a 68. Lang had a 70, making three birdies and four bogeys on the back nine. Shin shot 71.

“A lot of up-and-downs on the back nine, which I don’t like doing that,” Lang said. “I wasn’t quite as sharp on the back nine. I don’t know if I got a little tired or a little out of what I was doing. … But to come out with 2 under and still be right there, I’m very happy and excited for tomorrow.”

Second-ranked Inbee Park was 10-under after a 70.

Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson also carded a 70 and sits tied for 30th at 3-under.

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Ian Poulter shot a 4-under 68 on Saturday at windy Coco Beach to take the third-round lead in the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open.

Playing the event for the first time after failing to get into the Match Play tournament in Texas as the first alternate, the Englishman got up-and-down for par from a greenside bunker on the par-5 18th, holing a 15-foot putt.

“It was a big save,” Poulter said. “Obviously it’s a par 5, it’s pretty much reachable in two off of a decent drive and I kind of left myself in an awkward spot. It wasn’t lying very well on the right-hand side just short of the green. I guess I got a little bit too cute, hit it in the front trap, splashed it out to 15 feet, but I rolled that par putt in the middle. Each putt like that obviously makes a difference at the end of the week.”

Poulter bogeyed the par-4 13th and rebounded with birdies on the par-5 15th and par-3 16th. He’s trying to win for the first time since the 2012 World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in China.

“We got here very late, early hours of Wednesday morning, but I felt comfortable,” Poulter said. “I like the windy conditions. It kind of takes me back to hitting some old-school shots and I feel comfortable on the course. The ball was kind of boring through that strong wind, so you’re still able to get good distance out there. But I’m happy. I’m happy how I’ve hung in there nicely.”

He had an 11-under 205 total.

Tony Finau, Jonathan Byrd and Steve Marino were a stroke back. Finau shot 67, Byrd 68, and Marino 69.

“It’s windy out there,” Byrd said. “You had to be kind of real purposeful with your shots and I did that for the most part of the day and I made some nice putts and just played really solid. I’ve played the par 5s beautifully for the most part this week.”

Puerto Rico’s Rafael Campos, the leader after each of the first two rounds, had a 72 to drop into a tie for fifth at 9 under with Scott Brown (67) and Aaron Baddeley (69).

Campos didn’t make a par until the eighth hole, opening with three bogeys, a double bogey and three birdies. He played the final 11 holes in 2 under, birdieing Nos. 12 and 16.

“I came off to a really bad start,” Campos said. “I was having some difficulty kind of getting my tempo going and coming over the top on most of the shots at the beginning. But I was fortunate to kind of get a good rhythm afterward, a good tempo especially coming into the back nine. … I really didn’t strike the ball well, as good as I wanted, but was able to at least recover myself a little bit at the end.”

A 5-under 67 performance propelled Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., to T8 at 8-under – three-shots back of the leader. Weyburn, Sask., native Graham DeLaet carded a 70 to move to T12 at 7-under, while Adam Svensson, a product of Surrey, B.C., was 2-under on the day and sits T36.