by EVENT ALERT: On October 12, The Fried Egg will host The Thoroughbred. The fun will take place the Aiken Golf Club in Aiken, South Carolina. Register now!
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming…
After ten months and more than 40 events, we have reached the end of the PGA Tour regular season. The condensed schedule means we have only four weeks of FedEx Cup updates left—hang in there! We also have the second women’s major championship in as many weeks, which is really something.
One more
There may not be any artificial Wyndham Rewards “drama” this week, but there will be heartbreak and triumph. The final event of the PGA Tour regular season means players are fighting to keep their cards for next year. Tee Times
59edeker
Last year’s Wyndham Championship was the ninth PGA Tour victory of Brandt Snedeker’s career. Sneds started the event with a first-round 59, then he battled C. T. Pan down the stretch on Sunday. Pan hit his tee shot out of bounds on the 72nd hole, leaving Snedeker with an easy walk to victory.
Storylines
Jobs – It’s make-or-break time! Players around the top 125 entering this week have four rounds to earn their 2019-2020 PGA Tour card. Notables who need solid performances this week include Daniel Berger (131st), Bill Haas (140th), Beau Hossler (142nd), and Martin Kaymer (146th).
The Morikawa, the merrier – Fresh off his victory at the Barracuda Championship, Collin Morikawa checks in at 46th in the FedEx Cup standings. He has three straight top fives and has cemented his spot on the Tour. Another solid finish this week would put him in a great position as he heads into the FedEx Cup playoffs.
The third musketeer – Collin Morikawa and Matthew Wolff have already locked up their first career victories. Could fellow rookie Viktor Hovland join them by Sunday? The U.S. Amateur champion has played well in his limited starts but needs a solid performance this week to earn his 2019-20 PGA Tour card. By our calculations, he needs at least a two-way tie for second to guarantee his spot next year.
Where’s Jordan? – It is no secret that Jordan Spieth has had a rough year. He currently sits 67th in the FedEx Cup standings, and needs to make up serious ground to qualify for the Tour Championship.
Paulie’s Picks
This week at Sedgefield Country Club, Paulie is looking at accurate players with strong course history. See his fantasy picks here.
The Thoroughbred
On Saturday, October 12, The Fried Egg will host The Thoroughbred at the Aiken Golf Club in Aiken, South Carolina. The formats will be two-man best ball (18 holes) and alternate-shot match play (18 holes). Your $300 registration fee will cover 36 holes of golf, breakfast, a big lunch, post-round appetizers, tee gifts from Zero Restriction and Imperial Headwear, and prizes. There are 80 spots available in the event, and newsletter subscribers get first access. Register here!
Our venue, the Aiken Golf Club, is one of America’s best affordable courses. Check out Andy’s profile of it here.
AIG Women’s British Open
The women play their second consecutive major championship this week. (Take that, Justin Rose.) Players have made the short jaunt from France to London for the AIG Women’s British Open at Woburn Golf Club. Thanks to AIG’s new sponsorship deal, the purse for this year’s event will be $4.5M, a 40% increase over last season. Georgia Hall is set to defend her title after winning at Royal Lytham & St. Annes Golf Club last year. Jin Young Ko looks to win her third major championship of the season while Sung Hyun Park eyes a fifth straight top 10 in majors. Tee Times
Ellie Mae Classic
It’s Steph Curry week on the Korn Ferry Tour. Players head to California for the Ellie Mae Classic, the beginning of a grueling travel schedule to round out the season. The penultimate event before KFT Finals brings heightened tension as players look to secure their 2019-2020 PGA Tour cards. Tee Times
Korn Ferry Top 25 Bubble
- 22 – Brett Coletta – 713 pts
- 23 – Chris Baker – 705
- 24 – Marty Dou – 663
- T-25 – Brian Campbell – 631
- T-25 – Dan McCarthy – 631
- 27 – Kevin Dougherty – 592
- 28 – Maverick McNealy – 587
Quick Hooks
The 117th Western Amateur is underway! Defending champion Cole Hammer looks to become the first back-to-back winner since Justin Leonard in ‘92-’93. Other notables in the field include Chun An Yu (ASU), Sahith Theegala (Pepperdine), Isaiah Salinda (Stanford), and 2017 Mid-Amateur champion Matt Parziale. Leaderboard
Lexi Thompson accidentally caused 38 players to miss out on a practice round for the Women’s British Open because she left her passport in her golf bag. Full Story
Georgia Hall revealed that her replica trophy from her victory in last year’s Women’s British Open was stolen from her car. Full Story
Here is the full 2019-2020 PGA Tour schedule.
The Latest
The 3rd hole of our Eclectic 18 UK series takes us to Cruden Bay! Read Clyde Johnson’s take on what makes this rumpled par 4 such a treat to play. Eclectic 18 UK – Hole No. 3, Cruden Bay
The Fried Egg Podcast, Episode 150: Jaeger Kovich and Clyde Johnson – Eclectic 18 UK
Golf course architects Jaeger Kovich and Clyde Johnson join the podcast to discuss their travels and new series on The Fried Egg website, the Eclectic 18 UK. Both Jaeger and Clyde have traveled a great deal throughout their careers, working for the likes of Tom Doak and Gil Hanse as well as on their own projects. Wherever they go, they make a point to see as many courses as possible. In this podcast, we discuss those travels and how they came up with their idea for the Eclectic 18 UK. Listen on iTunes, Stitcher or Spotify.
Shotgun Start: Women’s Open goes to Woburn, Courier Cup bubble boys, and Callaway responds
This Wednesday episode begins with a digression on highly ranked Champions Tour players using “cost” as a reason for not going to the Senior British Open. Then we get to the Women’s British Open at Woburn, which is argued as a wasted opportunity. At the Wyndham, Andy crunches some numbers and we spotlight some of the bubble boys—the Asswagon, the Martin Zone, et al.—that have given this historic event an identity in recent years. We also go into Sedgefield and its “adjusted par” for the modern power game. We review some of the featured groupings as well as the lesser-known qualifiers, such as one player who should be playing free and easy now that he’s escaped the Mueller investigation. In news, we go into Callaway’s official statement on the failed driver test at The Open and some of the issues and inconsistencies with it. We also cover Lexi’s lost passport delaying almost 40 players from playing a practice round at a major championship and the idea of a possible suspension for Sergio. Listen on iTunes, Stitcher, or Spotify.
Print of the Week
A shot of Streamsong Black is our Print of the Week. Get yours now!
20% of the proceeds will go to Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund, an organization that gives scholarships and educational support to economically disadvantaged Chicago high school students who demonstrate outstanding academic potential, leadership skills, and strong character.
