PGA TOUR
ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL
Site: Orlando, Fla.
Course: Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Yardage: 7,454. Par: 72.
Purse: $9.3 million. Winner’s share: $1,674,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 2-6 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 12:30-2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2:30-6 p.m. (NBC).
Defending champion: Francesco Molinari.
FedEx Cup leader: Justin Thomas.
Last week: Sungjae Im won the Honda Classic.
Notes: Tiger Woods is skipping for the second straight year. He is an eight-time winner at Bay Hill but has played it just once (2018) since his last victory there in 2013, mainly because of back surgeries. … The field features five of the top 10 players in the world ranking, starting with Rory McIlroy (No. 1) and Brooks Koepka (No. 3). Koepka has a mathematical chance to return to No. 1 with a victory. … The leading three players from the top 10 at Bay Hill, who are not already eligible, will earn spots in the British Open at Royal St. George’s this year. … Tommy Fleetwood’s third-place finish in the Honda Classic moved him to No. 10 in the world, knocking Woods out of the top 10 for the first time since he won the Masters last year. … Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, is playing on a sponsor exemption. … Steve Stricker is in the field, one week after he tied for fifth on the PGA Tour Champions. Stricker, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain, has made one cut in his four PGA Tour starts this year. … International players have won the Arnold Palmer Invitational the last four years. The last American winner was Matt Every in 2015. … Bay Hill has not gone to a sudden-death playoff since Tim Herron won in 1999.
Next week: The Players Championship.
Online: www.pgatour.com
___
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
HOAG CLASSIC
Site: Newport Beach, Calif.
Course: Newport Beach CC. Yardage: 6,584. Par: 71.
Purse: $1.8 million. Winner’s share: $270,000.
Television: Friday, 6-8 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 5:30-8 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Kirk Triplett.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Bernhard Langer.
Last week: Bernhard Langer won the Cologuard Classic.
Notes: Langer moved atop the Schwab Cup standings for the first time this year with his victory in the Cologuard Classic. He now has led the Schwab Cup at least one week in each of the last nine years. He has led for 47% of the weeks since his first full year in 2008. … For the second straight year, the Cologuard Classic was won by a 62-year-old player. Mark O’Meara won the previous year. … Langer now has won in 17 of the 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour Champions schedule. … Along with 41 career victories, Langer now has 100 finishes in the top 3. He is second only to Hale Irwin, who had 111 top 3 finishes on the senior circuit. … Vijay Singh is in the field after missing the cut last week in the Honda Classic. He won the Hoag Classic two years ago. … Fred Couples is playing for the second straight week. … Former Masters champion George Archer won the first edition of the tournament in 1995.
Next tournament: Rapiscan System Classic on March 27-29.
Online: www.pgatour.com/champions
___
EUROPEAN TOUR
COMMERCIAL BANK QATAR MASTERS
Site: Doha, Qatar.
Course: Education City GC.
Purse: $1.75 million. Winner’s share: $291,667.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 2:30-4:30 a.m., 6-9 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 4-8:30 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 5-9:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Justin Harding.
Race to Dubai leader: Patrick Reed.
Last week: Sami Valimaki won the Oman Open.
Notes: With two weeks remaining to qualify for the 64-man field at the Dell Match Play, players competing in Qatar on the bubble include Eddie Pepperell, Robert MacIntyre, Mike Lorenzo-Vera and Thomas Pieters. … Two-time major champion Martin Kaymer is playing for the second straight week. … Justin Harding won last year and it was his fifth victory worldwide in 10 months, which led to him getting into the Match Play and the Masters. He tied for 12th in the Masters, earning a trip back to Augusta National. … This is the fifth European Tour event in the Middle East and the last one until the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in November. … The tournament dates to 1998 and was won the first year by Andrew Coltart.
Next week: Magical Kenya Open.
Online: www.europeantour.com
___
LPGA TOUR
Last tournament: Inbee Park won the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open.
Next tournament: Volvik Founders Cup on March 19-22.
Race to CME Globe leader: Inbee Park.
Online: www.lpga.com
___
KORN FERRY TOUR
Last week: David Kocher won El Bosque Mexico Championship.
Next tournament: Chitimacha Louisian Open on March 19-22.
Points leader: Mito Pereira.
Online: www.pgatour.com/kornferry
____
OTHER TOURS
Symetra Tour: Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, Country Club of Winter Haven, Winter Haven, Fla. Defending champion: Kelly Tan. Online: www.symetratour.com
Asian Tour: Bandar Malaysia Open, Kota Permai Golf and CC, Shah-Alam, Malaysia. Defending champion: Anirban Lahiri (2016). Television: Friday, 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. Golf Channel). Online: www.asiantour.com
PGA Tour Latinoamerica: Estrella del Mar Opan, Estrella del Mar Golf & Beach, Mazatlan, Mexico. Defending champion: Martin Trainer (2016). Online: www.pgatour.com/la/en
Please read our comment policy before commenting.