by ¡Buenos días! The PGA Tour heads down to Mexico for the second WGC of the 2018-2019 season and the third year of the WGC Mexico Championship. We also have an opposite field event in Puerto Rico and the LPGA heads to Thailand to round out the weekend.
Don’t miss our own announcement below right after Quick Hooks!
Chapultepec
The first WGC of 2019 takes place in Mexico City this weekend. This is the third year of the event since the move from Doral and while the course is very very not good, the first two editions have been very entertaining. WGC Mexico Tee Times
Return of the Phil
Last year brought us the emphatic return of all things Phil Mickelson. Lefty had not won since 2013 and found himself in a playoff with Justin Thomas. JT was only able to get into the faceoff with Phil after holing his final shot of regulation. The playoff was a short affair as Phil walked and chatted with the chairman of the event, Rodrigo Lebois, and beat Thomas on the first hole.
Storylines
Playoff Participants – Both Phil and Justin Thomas are returning to Mexico in great form this year. JT now has three top-3 finishes in his last four starts, and Phil won at Pebble two weeks ago.
Euros – The Mexico event is the first time we get the full-fledged backing of both the PGA and European Tours. The next gathering of the whole group of the top players will happen next month with the first March PLAYERS in over a decade.
Jon Rahm – The Spaniard is on an absolute heater and is due for a victory. He has finished inside the top 10 in each of his last seven events and has finished inside the top 20 of both Chapultepec events. Expect big things out of him this week.
Paulie’s Picks
With events in Mexico and Puerto Rico, here’s who Paulie likes for your one and done leagues and Draftkings lineups. Read here
Puerto Rico Open
The Puerto Rico Open returns this year after Hurricane Maria caused the event to be cancelled last year. Daniel Berger, Wyndham Clark, Adam Svensson, Peter Uihlein, and Corey Conners are amongst the players this week. Don’t ignore this event over the weekend, previous winners include Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, and Bryson DeChambeau (h/t Sean Martin). Puerto Rico Open Tee Times
Honda LPGA Thailand
The LPGA Tour continues its trek through the east with a trip to Thailand this week. Nelly Korda, the Jutanugarn sisters, So Yeon Ryu, Sung Hyun Park, Lexi Thompson, Lydia Ko, hedline the field. Another notable name in the field is Michelle Wie, making her return to professional golf after four months off due to injury and surgery. Tee Times and Leaderboard
Campus Roundup with Will Knights
College golf is back in swing and we have a full slate this week. So far, we already have two events complete with The Prestige still to finish on Wednesday.
The All American was captured by Sam Houston State by 5 shots over Baylor on Monday. The third round was rained out, but SHS put on an impressive performance in the first two rounds. The individual title was won by Ole Miss’ Cecil Wegener. The Puerto Rico Classic also finished up on Tuesday with Georgia Tech and Georgia sharing the team title. The individual title was shared by Bryson Nimmer (Clemson), Benjamin Shipp (NC State), and Marcus Bryd (Middle Tennessee).
The Prestige has one more round to go with LSU trying to hold off Oklahoma State in California. LSU holds a 3-shot lead over OSU as they look to topple the #1 team in the country. Brandon Wu (Stanford) and Thomas Hutchinson (UC Davis) hold the top spot in the individual race. Watch the Prestige live!
Quick Hooks
All tours affiliated with the PGA Tour will now allow players to wear shorts during practice rounds and pro-ams. Calf raises for everyone.
The AT&T Byron Nelson has extended a sponsor’s exemption to Tony Romo this summer. Romo will be playing in his second PGA Tour event after playing in the 2018 Punta Cana event. Full Story by Will Gray.
Steve Stricker is expected to be announced as the 2020 U.S. Ryder Cup captain on Wednesday.
Big News from the Eggquarters
We are excited to announce a partnership with our friends at Summit Golf Brands. To say that we’ve played a lot of golf together over the last nine years would be an understatement, and now we can say that they are the exclusive apparel partner of The Fried Egg.
To celebrate, we’ve restocked the pro shop with tons of B.Draddy and Fairway & Greene gear. Check out the new threads here and look out for much more to come in 2019!
The Latest Podcasts and Articles
Episode 121: Geoff Ogilvy – Riviera, Slow Play & Adapting to modern equipment
Former U.S. Open Champion Geoff Ogilvy joins the podcast to discuss the latest happenings in golf. Andy and Geoff discuss the transition to modern equipment, including the low-spin and modern ball. They then talk about the weekend at Riviera. Geoff lends insight into what makes Riviera a course where veterans thrive, and the two discuss potential solutions for slow play. Part two of the podcast will be released later this week. iTunes, Stitcher or Spotify.
WGC season begins, mysteries of the Puerto Rico Open field, and Skipper Stricker
The first WGC of 2019 is here and the field, as you’d expect, is loaded in Mexico City. So naturally, we lead off with a list of pressing and amusing questions about the field at the Puerto Rico Open, where a cadre of Champions Tour talents and unknowns will populate Coco Beach. Then we move to the WGC Mexico Championship and discuss the Chapultepec course, featured groups, Fan Vote options, and Trackman making adjusting to altitude a lost skill. In news, we salute the new shorts rule, review the expected announcement that Steve Stricker will be the next USA Ryder Cup captain, and react to Tony Romo’s exemption at the Byron Nelson. We wrap with some intel from Paulie with picks for both Puerto Rico and WGC Mexico. Listen on iTunes, Stitcher or Spotify
