- Firestone CC (South) plays to a par of 70 and measures approximately 7,400 yards. (Stan Badz/PGA TOUR)
• FULL FIELD: WGC-BRIDGESTONE INVITATIONAL
• COURSE: Firestone Country Club (South), 7,400 yards, par 70. Originally a generous perk from Harvey Firestone to employees of his tire company, the club eventually found its own standing as a stern test of golf with three majors to its portfolio before the World Golf Championships set up shop. The South course opened in 1929, later re-made by Robert Trent Jones for the 1960 PGA Championship captured by Jay Hebert. The PGA of America brought its championship back again in 1966 and ’75, by which time Firestone had become home of the World Series of Golf. The event moved under the WGC banner in 1999.
• FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 550 points.
• CHARITY: The First Tee is the primary beneficiary of World Golf Championships events. Proceeds also were distributed last year to 46 Northeast Ohio charities, including Akron Children’s Hospital, Flashes of Hope and the LeBron James Family Foundation.
• FIELD WATCH: Newly crowned U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson and World No. 1 Jason Day headline a small list of 59 qualifiers. The field features just 40 of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking, with No. 4 Rory McIlroy among 10 European Tour pros who opted for the Open de France. … Also among the missing are Masters winner Danny Willett and No. 7 Henrik Stenson. … Spots remain for winners of the Quicken Loans National or BMW International Open on the European Tour, as well as anyone who enters the top 50 in Monday’s rankings. … Recent winners William McGirt (Memorial) and Jim Herman (Shell Houston Open) are among eight men making their World Golf Championships debut. … Vaughn Taylor, winner at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, is playing his first WGC since 2008 at Firestone.
• 72-HOLE RECORD: 259, Tiger Woods (2000).
• 18-HOLE RECORD: 61, José María Olazábal (1st round, 1990), Tiger Woods (2nd round, 2000 and 2nd round, 2013), Sergio Garcia (2nd round, 2014).
• LAST YEAR: Shane Lowry notched his first victory on U.S. soil, courtesy of an improbable bogey-free 66 that finished off a two-shot win over Bubba Watson. Lowry’s back nine included two key par-saves and a couple of birdies from unlikely places, including a sky-high wedge at No. 10 after a wild hook found him needing a free drop near the 11th tee. The Irish pro saved par after finding a deep fairway bunker at No. 14 and drained a dicey 6-foot par at No. 17 after pulling his approach. After another wayward drive at No. 18, Lowry hammered a wedge through a tree for a 10-foot clinching birdie. Watson also shot 66, but got hard bounces that took away possible birdie chances at Nos. 16 and 18. Lowry, who got into the field at No. 48 in the world ranking, qualified for immediate PGA TOUR membership with the victory.
• STORYLINES: Johnson returns to action for the first time since his triumph at Oakmont, when he shrugged off a penalty query to finally claim an elusive major crown. He already has two WGC titles to his credit, winning the HSBC Champions in 2013 and the Cadillac Championship at Trump Doral last year. … Day, winner of the WGC-Dell Match Play in March, and Adam Scott (WGC-Cadillac) seek to become just the third man to win two WGCs in the same year. Tiger Woods has done it six times; Phil Mickelson won at Doral and China in 2009. … Jordan Spieth seeks an upturn in form after failing to crack the top 35 at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide and U.S. Open. He has yet to notch a top-5 finish in a WGC event.
• SHORT CHIPS: Lowry and Hunter Mahan (2010) are the only Firestone winners in the past 21 years that don’t also have a major title to their names. That includes the last five editions of the old World Series of Golf. … International players have claimed the past five WGC titles, marking the first time since the series began in 1999 that no American is among the trophy holders. The last U.S. victory came with Johnson’s win at the TPC Blue Monster.
• TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 1:30-6:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, noon-1:30 p.m. (GC); 2-6 p.m. (CBS).
• PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. (Featured Groups), 2-6:30 p.m. (Featured Holes). Saturday-Sunday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Holes).
• RADIO: Thursday-Friday, noon-7 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.COM).
The PGSF arrives at Bridgestone, always a good tournament and what will be an exciting six weeks, with 2 majors, a WGC event and the Olympics
No change in overall standings, DFS still leading the way for another regular season crown
good luck to everyone this week
