KAPALUA, Hawaii (AP) — Tiger Woods is playing twice in California over the next six week as he begins another comeback on the PGA TOUR from back surgery.

Woods announced Thursday he will play the Farmers Insurance Open on Jan. 25 at Torrey Pines, the San Diego course where he has won eight times. That includes the 2008 U.S. Open, his 14th and most recent major.

He also says he will play the Genesis Open at Riviera in Los Angeles that starts Feb. 15. Riviera is where Woods played his first PGA Tour event as a 16-year-old amateur. He last played in 2006, though it now is back in play because the Tiger Woods Foundation runs the tournament.

NASSAU, Bahamas – Rickie Fowler and Tiger Woods each had cause for celebrations large and small Sunday in the Hero World Challenge.

Fowler rallied from a seven-shot deficit by starting his final round with seven straight birdies at Albany Golf Club and closing with an 11-under 61 for a four-shot victory over Charley Hoffman. It was the second victory of the year for Fowler, and the second time he has ended a year with multiple victories worldwide.

“Finally just kind of got everything to piece together,” said Fowler, who moves to No. 7 in the world.

In a week that began with so much curiosity over how Woods would perform, he had his best result in four years. More than his score, he looked just as strong at end, including a vicious recoil on a 2-iron he hit from 265 yards on the third hole that ran through the green.

Playing for the first time in 10 months while recovering from fusion surgery on his lower back – his fourth back surgery in three years – Woods shot another 31 on the front nine, closed with back-to-back bogeys and shot a 68.

He tied for ninth in the 18-man field, his best result since a playoff loss at this holiday event in 2013 at Sherwood Country Club in California.

“I’m excited,” Woods said. “This is the way I’ve been playing at home.”

WHAT. A. DAY.@RickieFowler beats the world’s best to win the Hero World Challenge. pic.twitter.com/iemJ7vIEIc

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 3, 2017

He still finished 10 shots behind Fowler. Then again, Fowler didn’t give anyone much of a chance.

Fowler, whose lone PGA Tour victory this year was in the Honda Classic, was close to flawless on the front nine. He holed birdie putts of about 12 feet on the first two holes, hit a gap wedge to 3 feet on the par-5 third, made his toughest putt into the green from 15 feet on No. 4, and then holed a bunker shot on No. 5. He followed that with another wedge that spun back to a foot on the par-5 sixth, and he hit out of a bunker to about 7 feet on the next hole.

“I knew I needed to get off to a quick start to at least show Charley I was there,” Fowler said.

By then, he was tied for the lead as Hoffman, who birdied his first hole, began to drop shots and work to make par. He never caught up and shot 72. Fowler went out in 28 and then added birdies on the 11th and 13th holes to stretch his lead.

Fowler finished at 14-under 274.

Tommy Fleetwood, the Race to Dubai winner from England who is getting married Tuesday in the Bahamas, closed with a 67 and tied for third with Jordan Spieth (69), who has not finished out of the top 10 since the PGA Championship.

A year ago, Woods returned from a 15-month hiatus from back surgeries and showed flashes of his old self, particularly when he shot 65 in the second round and ended the week with 24 birdies. Woods said nothing about his health that week, though his back couldn’t withstand the rough at Torrey Pines and the 16-hour flight to Dubai. He withdrew after one round at Dubai with back spasm and had the fusion surgery in April.

This return was different from how far he hit the ball with plenty of speed in his swing (his ball speed approached 180 mph), and he made putts from the 8- to 15-foot range than he has in recent years.

Conditions were far tamer for the final round and Woods got off to a start strong, buoyed by driving the par-4 seventh green and curling in a 25-foot eagle putt. His birdie on No. 9 gave him another 31 on the front – his second such score in two days – and never ending interest from the gallery. On Sunday, that included his two children dressed in red shirts, and tennis great Rafa Nadal.

He just couldn’t keep it going. Woods chopped up the 10th hole on his way to double bogey, and while he added three birdies with his power and putting along the back nine, he three-putted the 18th from about 15 feet for his second straight bogey.

“He’s obviously a lot more upbeat, a lot more positive, a lot healthier than he was last year at this time,” said Justin Thomas, the PGA Tour player of the year who was paired with him in the first and final rounds. “He’s got a lot of energy. It’s just so weird to say that you’re excited for somebody else’s year, but it will be a fun year. And I hope we dual it out a lot this upcoming year.”

Woods appears to be back, at least to playing.

He has not said where he will start in 2018, though he made it clear he plans on not being a stranger. The best bet is the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, where he has won eight times and considers a hometown event from his roots in California.

“I don’t know what my schedule is going to be, but my expectations are we’ll be playing next year,” he said. “How many? Where? I don’t know yet, but we’ll figure it out.”

NASSAU, Bahamas – Tiger Woods fell behind early and never recovered. Charley Hoffman pulled away late and made himself hard to beat.

Hoffman handled the blustery conditions Saturday in the Hero World Challenge for a 2-under 70, one of only five rounds under par, and built a five-shot lead going into the final round at Albany Golf Club.

Woods went 11 consecutive holes without hitting a green in regulation. He went 14 holes until making his first birdie. He had to settle for a 75, leaving him 10 shots out of the lead and finding consolation in the way he feels and the way he fought to keep it from getting worse.

“It’s nice to be part of the fight again,” Woods said. “Fighting against the golf course, fighting against the guys, that’s fun. I just haven’t done it a whole lot in the last few years.”

The strong wind took the air out of any hopes that Woods, playing for the first time in 10 months following a fourth back surgery, might even get into contention in his celebrated return. He opened with rounds of 69-68. Those two rounds were enough for his odds of winning the Masters to plunge to 15-1, the same as Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm. And then a warm afternoon brought a cold dash of reality.

Woods opened with four bogeys in seven holes. He played four par 5s without having a birdie putt on any of them. And when he finally made a birdie, Woods removed his cap to acknowledge the crowd and held up a finger to indicate his first birdie.

“It’s ridiculous it took me 14 holes to make a birdie,” Woods said. “At that time, I’d already played four par 5s and nothing happened. Just one of those days. Anything I did right ended up in a bad spot, and then everything I did wrong, it was really bad.”

It was tough on everyone.

No one in the 18-man field broke 70.

Hoffman had a few nervous moments but paid for it only once. He send his tee shot far right into the bushes on a sand dune right of the 10th fairway. He took a penalty drop onto a sandy path and wound up with a double bogey that brought a half-dozen players back into the mix.

But not for long.

Hoffman closed with three birdies over his last five holes, including the 18th hole for the second straight day. That put him at 14-under 202.

Justin Rose, an Albany resident, had a 71 and joined British Open champion Jordan Spieth (72) at 9-under 207.

“I got lucky on some tee balls that didn’t find the bushes and stayed in the sandy areas and I was able to sort of scrap it around,” Hoffman said. “I’m going to have to handle my nerves a little better than I did today”

Woods was under pressure early. In his previous two rounds, he was under par early in the round. This one started with a tee shot into the waste area, an approach the wind knocked down short of the green and a chip that was too strong, running 10 feet by and leading to a bogey.

Even his good shots didn’t work out for him. Woods blistered a 3-wood from 278 yards into the wind and saw it run through the green into a tough lie. His chip didn’t reach the green. His next chip ran 6 feet by the hole and he missed the par putt.

He bogeyed the next par 5 when he didn’t play for a flyer out of the rough, went well long and was left in such a tough spot that he played away from the flag and his pitch went through the green to the fringe.

He already was 5 over for his round through 10 holes, and he did well not to drop any more shots until he made a pair of birdies late.

Woods began his round by giving a hug to his 10-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son, who flew over from Florida. Even after a 75, he still managed to look at the big picture. He was hitting the ball well, his back felt strong and he at least feels as though he can contend.

“I think overall, I’m very happy with what’s going on this week,” Woods said. “There were a lot of questions that I had – I’m sure you guys have had – and I feel like I’ve come out on a good side.”

But he made it clear he had fewer questions about his performance than the public.

“I knew how I was playing at home,” he said. “I knew how I was hitting shots. I knew what was going on. Obviously, the very intelligent people out there didn’t know.”

This is the second straight year the 54-hole leader has built a cushion. Hideki Matsuyama led by seven shots last year and held on to beat Henrik Stenson.

It would be a great way for Hoffman to cap off a peculiar year. He hasn’t won a tournament since the Texas Open in May 2016, but he was in the mix at the Masters and the U.S. Open and played on his first Presidents Cup team.

“To have a chance to win this great tournament, hopefully I can knock it off,” Hoffman said.

NASSAU, Bahamas – One of the biggest cheers at the Hero World Challenge came from seeing the name Tiger Woods moved to the top of the leaderboard.

It just wasn’t there for long.

In another impressive showing in his latest comeback from back surgeries, Woods built on a solid start with a 31 on the front nine at Albany Golf Club that briefly gave him the lead Friday. He stalled on the back nine with a pair of bogeys and not enough birdie chances, and he settled for a 4-under 68.

“Successful,” Woods said, when asked to describe his round in one word.

When the second round ended, Woods was five shots behind Charley Hoffman, who had a 63 that might have sent fans into a frenzy if they had been watching.

Hoffman made 12 birdies, closing with five in a row . He was at 12-under 132 and had a three-shot lead over Jordan Spieth (67) and Tommy Fleetwood (69). Hoffman made only one par over his final 12 holes to go along with eight birdies and three bogeys.

But this week, a holiday exhibition with an 18-man field and no cut, is all about Woods. That much was obvious after the round.

Hoffman spoke to no more than five reporters about his round, while a dozen others were about 30 feet away surrounding Joe LaCava, Woods’ caddie, looking for any additional morsel about his round.

Woods delivered plenty on his own. He opened with three birdies in four holes. He made three good pars, one of them having to chip up the slope from a thin lie on No. 8, and then really raised hopes with his eagle on the par-5 ninth, set up by a 3-wood into the wind from 265 yards.

“Hit up in the air and took something off of it and cut it back into the wind,” he said.

He made the 20-foot putt to reach 8 under. Behind him, Hoffman made bogey on the par-3 eighth. Woods was alone in the lead, and the workers at the white scoreboard to the left of the green quickly moved his name to the top as some 100 people – that constitutes a large gallery this week – began cheering. There was a smattering of “He’s back!” and even a few mentions about the Masters.

Woods missed it. He was on his way to the 10th tee. By the time he saw a leaderboard, it was getting crowded at the top with Hoffman making his run, Spieth chipping in for birdie and setting up another with a tough chip, and Fleetwood overcoming a double bogey-bogey start to his back nine with three straight birdies.

“I saw somewhere on the back nine, I think there was like five guys at 8 under or something like that, something weird like that,” Woods said.

A case could be made that his name among them was weird.

His past is enough to merit legend status in this field. Woods has 79 victories on the PGA Tour, compared with 81 for the rest of the field. But he hasn’t won in more than four years, and this is only his 20th start since the first of four back surgeries in the spring of 2014.

He had played only seven rounds dating to August 2015, and this was his first competition in 10 months. He had fusion surgery on his lower back in April.

"Talk to me, Joey."

Not many can land it this soft with a 3-wood from 270 yards away.#ShotOfTheDay pic.twitter.com/5NrC5NbG8t

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 2, 2017

“You’ve got to be anxious – doesn’t matter who it is, doesn’t matter how well he’s been in the past at handling pressure,” Spieth said. “It’s still a new experience for him to have that little golf. And to come out and play competitive golf and work his way into contention, that’s what’s really exceptional.”

Woods didn’t make a bogey until a three-putt from 30 feet on the 12th hole. The greens were quicker, and that’s where he struggled. He had an eagle attempt from just short of the 15th green, about 45 feet away, that he ran 15 feet by the hole. He missed that for a three-putt par.

He still played the par 5s in 4 under, a five-shot improvement from the opening round.

And he showed his creative side on the par-3 17th. Facing a long putt over a hump with the grain running away from him, Woods chose to chip it off the putting surface and along the fringe to be able to better judge the speed. It settled 3 feet away for a par.

Otherwise, he looked like any of the other elite players at Albany. And while he wasn’t sure what to expect coming into the week, his expectations are getting stronger with each round, especially this one.

“I felt like today I could have easily gotten to double digits under par,” he said. “That would have put me probably one or two back, but I think I’m still in it. We’ve got two more days, and I think it’s supposed to blow a little harder to tomorrow. If that’s the case, I think a good, solid round should get me up there.”

That depends on Hoffman.

“I said at the beginning of the week, I hope he wins,” Hoffman said. “It’s great for the game of golf. Hopefully, I can stop him from winning this week. But anytime he’s in contention, or even playing the golf tournaments, it brings a buzz to golf that we all need.”

NASSAU, Bahamas – Tiger Woods looked a lot better in his return to golf than he did when he left.

Playing for the first time since his fourth back surgery, Woods returned from a 10-month layoff with a 3-under 69 on a breezy Thursday in the Bahamas that left him three shots behind Tommy Fleetwood after the opening round of the Hero World Challenge.

“For me, I thought I did great,” Woods said with a smile.

And in a sign that he was ready to get back into the mix, he was far from satisfied.

Unlike a year ago, when Woods ended a 15-month hiatus from his ailing back, he didn’t show any fatigue at the end of his round or make any big numbers. His only regret was playing the par 5s at Albany Golf Club in 1-over par with two bogeys that stalled his momentum.

Coming off a 25-foot birdie putt on the par-3 eighth, Woods hit a 3-wood that rolled up on the green and then down a slope about 30 feet from the pin. It took him four shots from there, starting with a chip that didn’t reach the green and his first expletive loud enough for television to pick up.

After his best shot of the day _ a pitching wedge he hit low from 95 yards that settled a foot behind the hole for birdie on No. 14 _ he sent a drive well to the right into the native dunes. Woods had to take a penalty drop to get back in play and wound up making bogey.

But it was solid enough that Woods was far more interested in the leaderboard than the fact he felt strong physically.

“It was not only nice to get the first round out of the way, but also I’m only three shots out of the lead,” he said. “So to be able to put myself there after not playing for 10 months or so, it was nice to feel the adrenaline out there.”

He was tied for eighth in the 18-man field of this holiday exhibition that awards world ranking points but does not count as official on any tour. Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar were at 67, while Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and Kevin Chappell were at 68.

The buzz was back. Johnson noticed it when he was on the practice range and noticed a crowd around the putting green.

“Tiger must be there,” Johnson said. “Because there’s 40 people instead of four.”

Golf Channel added an hour of coverage, and Twitter came alive with people curious about the latest return. That included Steph Curry, the Golden State Warriors’ two-time MVP who played a Web.com Tour event in August. “The wait is over. The wait is over,” he tweeted .

Michael Phelps said he was “pumped to be watching” Woods on TV again.

This event doesn’t draw big crowds, but most of them were with Woods to see how he would fare in this latest comeback, this one from fusion surgery on his lower back on April 20. Given it was his fourth surgery in three years, coupled with a DUI arrest in the summer that exposed the struggles Woods was having with pain medicine, a day like this seemed a long way off.

Woods said he appreciated the moment Thursday morning.

“I was in my head thanking all the people who have helped me in giving me a chance to come back and play this round again,” he said. “There were a lot of people who were instrumental in my life – friends, outside people I’ve never met before, obviously my surgeon. I was very thankful.”

And he was as competitive as always.

Woods delivered his first fist pump on par-4 fourth hole when he scooped a chip that didn’t reach the green, and then holed an 18-foot par putt.

While the field is short, the competition is strong with eight of the top in the world at Albany. Woods realizes they have spent the last couple of years playing at a high level that allows them to overcome a few mistakes.

“I don’t want to lose shots,” Woods said. “I haven’t played in a very long time and I can’t afford to go out there and make a bunch of bogeys and know that I can make nine, 10 birdies and offset them.”

Along with his five birdies – only two of them were tap-ins – Woods had an assortment of tough par saves, including a 10-footer that kept him dropping another shot on a par 5 at No. 11. He finished his round with a belly wedge from short of the 17th green because of mud on his ball, and holing a 6-foot par putt on the 18th.

A year ago, Woods made a pair of double bogeys over the last three holes for a 73 to finish nine shots behind. This time, he closed with pars and was three back.

PGA champion Justin Thomas, who also opened with a 69 in the same pairing with Woods, is among those who have played with him in recent weeks in Florida. Woods said he once played nine straight days.

“It was what I saw when we played at home,” Thomas said. “Obviously, taking this much time off from competition is hard. I felt rusty starting after a month-and-a-half, so I can’t imagine what it felt like for him. But he played well.”

Vintage Tiger. #ShotOfTheDay pic.twitter.com/IbZIJ9SaVg

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 1, 2017

Ben Silverman has put in the work to climb nearly 1,000 spots in the Official World Golf Ranking since the end of 2016.

Now he’s ready for a break.

Silverman, from Thornhill, Ont., went through a whirlwind year both on the course and off in 2017. He and his wife Morgan welcomed a son – Jack Palmer Silverman – in July, and he won the first tournament he played in after becoming a father.

The 30-year-old’s victory at the Price Cutter Charity Championship propelled him into the top 25 on the Web.com Tour money list, earning him PGA Tour status for 2017-18.

In the five events of the PGA Tour’s Fall Series, he made the cut in four of them and notched two top-10 finishes, including last week at The RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Ga.

Silverman admitted he couldn’t even remember where the PGA Tour played last week because of how much mental energy he had used up this past year.

“I was basically forcing myself each day to put every ounce of mental strength into it because after Sunday I knew I could just crash and let go. I was feeling completely exhausted,” he said.

Thanks to his recent results, he has moved up to sixth on the ranking of graduates from the Web.com Tour this year (from 49th), meaning there is a chance for him to get into even more tournaments next year.

He’ll play the first six events of the 2018 portion of the PGA Tour schedule with hopes of winning early and have the opportunity to take time off.

“A lot of hard work is starting to pay off,” he said. “I put together some good finishes and earned my way up to the PGA Tour the hard way.”

Silverman said his next big goal is to represent Canada at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

To do it, he’ll have to jump approximately another 100 spots in the World Golf Ranking to either match or pass Adam Hadwin, currently Canada’s highest-ranked male golfer at No. 55.

“It’s a long-term goal but there are a lot of little things to do in order to get there, like become a top-two player in Canada,” Silverman said. “Hopefully I can win one or two tournaments before 2019. Those things are in my head as a way to get to my ultimate goal.”

Silverman’s path to the PGA Tour was non-traditional, as he didn’t play golf seriously until he was 16. He was a high-level hockey player before, and he didn’t play on Golf Canada’s National Team like PGA Tour winners Mac Hughes and Hadwin.

But he knew what he wanted to do with his life, and said he put in lots of hard work to get where he is today.

“I didn’t have a Plan B,” he said.

Although Silverman called his ride to the PGA Tour “improbable,” Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum told The Canadian Press watching Silverman’s progress has been inspiring.

“His journey to the PGA Tour exemplifies resilience and dedication and he should be extremely proud to have earned his place alongside the world’s best golfers,” Applebaum said. “It has been exciting to see that strong play carry over to his first few PGA Tour starts and no doubt Ben has positioned himself for success going forward.”

Up next for Silverman will be captaining the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada team at the beginning of December at the second annual Aruba Cup competition – which pits the top 10 golfers from the Mackenzie Tour against the top 10 golfers from PGA Tour Latinoamerica – before hanging up the clubs for the holiday season.

His first tournament back in action on the PGA Tour will be the Sony Open in Hawaii, Jan. 11-14.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. _ Austin Cook was chased by proven PGA Tour winners all day at the RSM Classic.

Now the Arkansas player is one of them.

The PGA Tour rookie held off veterans Brian Gay, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner and Brian Harman on Sunday at the chilly, windy Sea Island Club’s Seaside Course.

Cook closed with a 3-under 67 for a four-stroke victory over J.J. Spaun. The victory in the final PGA Tour event of the calendar year gave Cook a spot in the Masters next year.

“It was definitely exciting … real brutal with the wind,” Cook said. “I got off to a slow start but I was able to keep my head level and know there was a lot of golf to be played. With the wind and those conditions, a lot could happen.”

Cook birdied three of his last four holes after the three-shot lead he began the day with slipped to one over Spaun. Cook made a 14-foot birdie putt at No. 18 to finish at 21-under 261.

Spaun shot a 66.

Gay, the oldest contender of the week at 45, eagled the par-4 18th hole from 161 yards with a 9-iron to break out of a five-way tie for third and finish at 16 under. He shot 68.

Kirk (71) and Kisner (68), past winners of the tournament, St. Simons Island resident Brian Harman (65) and Andrew Landry (67) tied for fourth at 14 under.

Cook, the 26-year-old from Little Rock, earned $1,116,000 and improved to third on the FedEx Cup points list.

It’s the second year in a row that a rookie won the RSM Classic. Mac Hughes of Dundas, Ont., survived a five-way playoff to capture the title last year in a Monday finish, but missed this year’s cut.

Ben Silverman (66) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian, jumping up five spots and tying for eighth at 13 under. David Hearn (65) of Brantford, Ont., was 11 under and Corey Conners (69) of Listowel, Ont., was 7 under.

From @MacHughesGolf to @austincookgolf.

Another rookie winner at @TheRSMClassic. pic.twitter.com/v9K5EP4fa5

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 20, 2017

Spaun, a stocky former University of San Diego player, made the biggest move of the day and twice cut Cook’s lead to one shot _ the last time on an 8-foot birdie putt at the par-4 16th.

However, Spaun bogeyed No. 17 when he failed to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker, and Cook birdied No. 15 with a 4-footer and No. 17 with a 15-footer to seal the victory.

Spaun’s birdie at No. 16 could have put him into a tie for the lead but he missed a 4-foot birdie attempt on the previous hole.

“That (Spaun’s miss at No. 15) was big,” said Cook, who said he’s an obsessive leaderboard-watcher and knew exactly when Spaun had come within a shot.

Cook, who has Gay’s former caddie, Kip Henley, carrying his bag, never slipped after a bogey at the second hole, just his second of the week. He missed only two fairways in the final round and made par after four of his five missed greens. He led the field in scrambling, converting 11 of 12 pars after missing greens, and tied for fourth by hitting 48 of 56 fairways.

“With Kip on the bag, he was able to keep me in the moment and keep me pressing instead of playing conservative,” Cook said. “There was a lot of stuff going on, mostly up here (tapping his head). My ball-striking was great and for the most part, my putting was great. Holding the nerves down, playing a good round in these conditions. … I’m so happy.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – PGA Tour rookie Austin Cook shot a 4-under 66 on Saturday to increase his lead to three strokes in the RSM Classic.

Cook, a shot ahead after a second-round 62, had five birdies and a bogey – his first of the week – to reach 18-under 194 with a round left at Sea Island Golf Club’s Seaside Course.

“Putting is key right now,” Cook said. “Been able to make a lot of clutch putts for the pars to save no bogeys. Hitting the ball pretty much where we’re looking and giving ourselves good opportunities on every hole.”

Former University of Georgia player Chris Kirk was second after a 64.

“I’m really comfortable here,” Kirk said. “I love Sea Island. I lived here for 6 1/2 years, so I played the golf course a lot, SEC Championships and come down here for the RSM Classic. My family and I, we come down here a few other times a year as well.”

Brian Gay was another stroke back at 14 under after a 69.

“I love the course,” Gay said. “We keep getting different wind directions so it’s keeping us on our toes. Supposed to be another completely different wind direction tomorrow, so we’re getting a new course every day.”

J.J. Spaun had a 62 to get to 13 under.

“I just kind of played stress-free golf out there and kept the golf ball in front of me,” Spaun said. “I had a lot of looks and scrambled pretty well, even though it was only a handful of times, but pretty overall pleased with how I played today.”

Ben Silverman (69) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian at 9 under. David Hearn (69) of Brantford, Ont., and Corey Conners (68) of Listowel, Ont., are 6 under.

Cook has made the weekend cuts in all four of his starts this season. The 26-year-old former Arkansas player earned his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour.

“I think with an extra year on the Web this past year, I really grew mentally and with my game, just kind of more confidence,” Cook said. “I was able to put myself in contention on the Web.com more this year than I have in the past. I think I’ve just, you know, learned from experiences on the Web to help me grow out here.”

He planned to keep it simple Saturday night.

“I’ve got my parents here and my in-laws are both here as well as my wife,” Cook said. “Go home and just have a good home-cooked meal and just kind of enjoy the time and embrace the moment.”

Kirk won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2015 at Colonial.

“It’s nice to be back in contention again,” Kirk said. “It’s been a little while for me. But I felt great out there today, I felt really comfortable, and so hopefully it will be the same way tomorrow and I’ll keep my foot on the pedal and stay aggressive, try to make some birdies.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. _ PGA Tour rookie Austin Cook made a 6-foot birdie putt on his final hole for an 8-under 62 and a one-shot lead going into the weekend at the RSM Classic.

Cook has gone 36 holes without a bogey on the Plantation and Seaside courses at Sea Island Golf Club. He played Seaside _ the site of the final two rounds in the last PGA Tour event of the calendar year _ on Friday and ran off four straight birdies on his opening nine holes.

“We’ve just been able to it hit the ball really well,” Cook said. “Speed on greens has been really good and getting up-and-down has been great. I’ve been able to hit it pretty close to the hole to make some pretty stress-free putts. But the couple putts that I have had of some length for par, I’ve been able to roll them in. Everything’s going well.”

The 26-year-old former Arkansas player was at 14-under 128 and had a one-stroke lead over Brian Gay, who shot 64 on Seaside. No one else was closer than five shots going into the final two rounds.

The 45-year-old Gay won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2013.

“I’ve hit a lot of greens and fairways,” Gay said. “I’ve hit the ball, kept it in front of me. There’s a lot of trouble out here, especially with the wind blowing, so I haven’t had to make too many saves the first couple days and I putted well.”

Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., shot a second straigh 67 for an 8 under total through two rounds. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., was 5 under and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., was 4 under.

Cook has made the weekend cuts in all four of his starts this season. He earned his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour, and has hired Gay’s former caddie, Kip Henley.

“With him being out here so long, he knows everybody, so it’s not like I’m completely the new kid on the block,” Cook said. “He’s introduced me to a lot of people, so it’s just making me feel comfortable out here. He knows his way around these golf courses. We’re working really well together.”

First-round leader Chris Kirk followed his opening 63 on the Plantation with a 70 on the Seaside to drop into a tie for third at 9 under with C.T. Pan (65) and Vaughn Taylor (66).

Brandt Snedeker is looking strong in his first start in some five months because of a sternum injury. Snedeker shot a 67 on the Plantation course and was six shots back at 8 under.

“I was hitting the ball really well coming down here,” Snedeker said. “I was anxious to see how I would hold up under pressure. I haven’t played a tournament in five months, so it’s held up better than I thought it would. Ball-striking’s been really good, mental capacity’s been unbelievable.

“I think being so fresh, excited to be out there and thinking clearly. My short game, which has always been a strength of mine, I didn’t know how sharp it was going to be. It’s been really good so far.”

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Chris Kirk holed an 18-foot putt for eagle on his final hole for a 9-under 63 and a one-shot lead Thursday in the RSM Classic.

Kirk played the par 5s on the Plantation Course at Sea Island Golf Club in 5 under.

“I kind of hit my putter on the fringe a little bit and I wasn’t sure it was going to get there, but that was just kind of the day that it was,” Kirk said. “Even when I thought it wasn’t quite going to work out, it still went in the middle of the hole.”

The seven lowest scores of the opening round came on the Plantation Course during a picturesque afternoon on the Golden Isles. Sporting a University of Georgia hat Thursday, Kirk won at Sea Island four years ago for the second of his four PGA Tour victories.

“It’s a big Georgia territory out here on St. Simons,” Kirk said. “Hopefully, my hat will bring me some luck the rest of the week.”

The tournament is the final PGA Tour event of the calendar year, and Kirk is sorting out equipment changes.

“I’m still trying to get it all worked out and figure out what I want to do going forward,” Kirk said. “But keep shooting 9 under, so I won’t have to worry about it too much.”

Joel Dahmen had a 64.

“I think it played a little easier today,” Dahmen said. “The wind was down, greens were a little softer over here on the Plantation side. But just kept the ball in front of me and made a bunch of 8- to 10-footers.

“I’ve been rolling it pretty good,” Swafford said. “Took some time off, which was nice, after China. I was kind of frustrated with the golf a little bit. Took a little time off and got back into it. Something just kind of started clicking, but knew I don’t have to be crazy aggressive and just give myself a chance.”

Sea Island resident Hudson Swafford was at 65 with Jason Kokrak and Brian Gay.

Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., was at 67, Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., finished with a 68, David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., were 3 under and defending champion Mac Hughes of Dundas, Ont., shot an even-par 70.

“I feel like I’ve been rolling it pretty good,” Swafford said. “Took some time off, which was nice, after China. I was kind of frustrated with the golf a little bit. Took a little time off and got back into it. Something just kind of started clicking, but knew I don’t have to be crazy aggressive and just give myself a chance.”

He played alongside fellow former Georgia players Bubba Watson and Brian Harman.

“We are right in the heart of Dawgs’ territory, mine and Harman’s backyard, so it’s kind of nice,” Swafford said.

Though, his caddie wore an Auburn shirt.

“We don’t need to talk about that,” said Swafford, not needing to be reminded that Auburn beat Georgia in football last week.

Nick Watney and Brice Garnett each had a 5-under 65 on the Seaside Course, which will be used for the final two rounds.

Harman shot 69, and Watson had a 71.