PGA TOUR
HERO WORLD CHALLENGE
Site: Nassau, Bahamas.
Course: Albany GC. Yardage: 7,267. Par: 72.
Purse: $3.5 million (First prize: $1 million).
Television: NBC Sports (Saturday, 2:30-5 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.); Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 1:30-4:30 p.m.; Saturday, noon-2:30 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.).
Defending champion: Bubba Watson.
Last week: Denmark won the World Cup of Golf behind Thorbjorn Olesen and Soren Kjeldsen.
Notes: Tiger Woods returns to competition for the first time since he tied for 10th in the Wyndham Championship on Aug. 23, 2015. … Woods was No. 257 in the world ranking after his last official tournament. He returns at No. 898. … Woods will be paired in the opening round with Patrick Reed. … The 18-man field includes four players who were in Australia last week for the World Cup of Golf - Hideki Matsuyama, Rickie Fowler, Jimmy Walker and Russell Knox. … Spieth won the Hero World Challenge by 10 shots two years ago at Isleworth after winning the Australian Open the previous week. … Knox, Brooks Koepka and Emiliano Grillo are playing the tournament for the first time. … Adam Scott, who lives at Albany, is not playing this year because he is at the Australian PGA. … The two sponsor exemptions were given to Woods (tournament host) and Zach Johnson, who beat Woods in a playoff in 2013 the last time it was held at Sherwood Country Club in California. … Justin Rose has not played a 72-hole tournament of stroke play since the BMW Championship at Crooked Stick in September.
Next week: Franklin Templeton Shootout.
Online: www.pgatour.com
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EUROPEAN TOUR/ PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA
AUSTRALIAN PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Gold Coast, Australia.
Course: RACV Royal Pines Resort. Yardage: 7,364. Par: 72.
Television: Golf Channel (Wednesday-Saturday, 8 p.m. to 1 a.m.).
Defending champion: Nathan Holman.
Last week: Denmark won the World Cup of Golf behind Thorbjorn Olesen and Soren Kjeldsen.
Notes: The winner earns an exemption into the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational next August. … Adam Scott is playing his third straight week in Australia, skipping the Hero World Challenge at the golf course where he lives. … Harold Varner III is playing for the second straight year. He lost in a playoff last year. … Duncan Stewart makes his debut as a full European Tour member. The Scot played in the World Cup last week with longtime friend Russell Knox. They tied for 19th. … Long drive specialist Jamie Sadloski is playing. He missed the cut two weeks ago in the Australian Open. … Danny Lee of New Zealand is playing the event for the first time.
Next week: UBS Hong Kong Open
Online: www.europeantour.com and www.pga.org.au
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EUROPEAN TOUR/SUNSHINE TOUR
ALFRED DUNHILL CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Malelane, South Africa.
Course: Leopard Creek CC. Yardage: 6,951. Par: 72.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 3:30-5:30 a.m., 7:30-10:30 a.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 5-9:30 a.m.).
Defending champion: Charl Schwartzel.
Last week: Denmark won the World Cup of Golf behind Thorbjorn Olesen and Soren Kjeldsen.
Notes: Schwartzel has won three of the last four years by four shots in 2013 and 2015 and by a tournament-record 12 shots in 2012. Branden Grace won in 2014 by seven shots. … Marc Cayeux, who nearly lost his life in an automobile accident in 2010, is in the field. … Among those playing on sponsor invitations are Heath Slocum and Alvaro Quiros. … Adam Scott won the first of his 27 victories worldwide in the 2001 Alfred Dunhill Championship by one shot over Justin Rose. Both were 21 at the time. … In addition to his three victories, Schwartzel has been runner-up four times.
Next week: UBS Hong Kong Open.
Online: www.europeantour.com and www.sunshinetour.com
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OTHER TOURS
MEN
Japan Golf Tour: Golf Nippon Series JT Cup, Yomiuri CC, Tokyo. Defending champion: Ryo Ishikawa. Online: www.jgto.org
Asian Tour: Panasonic Open India, Delhi GC, Delhi, India. Defending champion: Chiragh Kumar. Online: www.asiantour.com
PGA Tour Latinoamerica: Shell Championship, International Links Melreese CC, Miami, Fla. Defending champion: Daniel Mazziotta. Online: www.pgatour.com/la/en
WOMEN
Ladies European Tour: The Queens, Miyoshi CC, Aichi, Japan. Defending champion: Japan LPGA. www.ladieseuropeantour.com
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