Golf fans don't agree on much, as evidenced by the outcry that *checks notes* Ian Poulter got selected for the Ryder Cup ahead of Justin Rose. But they appear to agree on it being a little odd that Jon Rahm plays in the Fortinet Championship. Twenty-three of the 24 team members are taking this week off. Number 24, or should that be number one, is instead taking part in the PGA Tour's low-key season opener.
I was in agreement at first, but having seen the US team minus Brooks Koepka spend Sunday and Monday at Whistling Straits, I'm coming to the view that Rahm's way might be better. As Ryder Cup stalwart Lee Westwood said last week, the event is exhausting. It begins in effect on Monday, but players have to wait until Friday to get going. Imagine being a rookie like Harris English, and containing your excitement, when you are on the grounds almost two full weeks before the competition begins.
There's certainly a risk of over-preparing and it's worth noting that in 2016 and 2018, the TOUR Championship took place a week before the Ryder Cup, and featured players from both sides. In 2014, Jamie Donaldson warmed up for his famous debut with a top-five finish at Celtic Manor. Delaying the switch to Ryder Cup mode might be a stroke of genius on the part of Europe's most important player.
Second in the Masters back in the spring having been in the top 10 at the US Open this time last year, the rise of Zalatoris was one of the stories of the season, cut short by misfortune and mismanagement. The youngster was cruelly injured during an otherwise good start to the Open, before he was denied the chance to feature in the FedEx Cup Playoffs due to a system so rigid and lacking in foresight that it made things worse for everyone.
Interestingly, the fact Zalatoris was not deemed a full PGA Tour member didn't stop them naming him PGA Tour Rookie of the Year at the beginning of the week. At least we can now draw a line under things at the Fortinet Championship which, somehow, will effectively be his debut as a cardholder, and Zalatoris can play wherever he's good enough to play. Everywhere, in other words.
Reavie boasts a fabulous course record. Seven times he's played here, seven times he's made the cut, and having found form following the PGA Championship in May this looks the ideal way to kickstart the new season.
His record here is enough to tell you all you need to know about him, as he's often been away from the heat of battle because his putter hasn't behaved. In fact in five of his last six visits he's ranked inside the top 10 in strokes-gained approach, which says so much about how comfortable he is taking aim at Silverado's greens, usually from the fairway.
Last year a decent putting performance saw him finish third and if we are going to get a good one, the bentgrass and poa annua blend you often find in these parts is probably best. Both of Reavie's PGA Tour wins came under similar conditions, as did his standout third place in the 2019 US Open behind Gary Woodland, and whereas over the course of his career he's lost strokes putting, on poa annua he's around about average.
Reavie has made eight of his last 10 cuts, missing one of them by a shot, and now returns to the scene of his sole top-10 finish last season. There's every chance he's once again in the mix and given the shape of the market, he looks good value to land the place money at least.
Ghim is developing a similar reputation and there's no doubt we run the risk of a frustrating few days watching opportunities slide by.
However, he putted well here last year to be 14th and went on to establish himself as a highly promising PGA Tour maiden, not least when in the mix in The PLAYERS. By the end of the season he ranked 45th in strokes-gained off the tee, 21st in approaches and 21st in tee-to-green, and as far as old-fashioned ball-striking goes he hits fairways and greens for fun.
Given that it was driver which held him back on his debut at Silverado, I'm hopeful he can find improvement there and while the putter may let him down, it's notable that in these early stages of his career he's gaining strokes on poa annua. That may change, but it's encouraging and explains why he played so well in California during his second season, with finishes of 14-5-37-21-MC, latterly on the number at Riviera.
The Canadian is second only to Champ when it comes to raw power in this field and unlike some of his contemporaries, we've seen what it can do. He led the field in strokes-gained off the tee on his penultimate PGA Tour start in the Barbasol (11th), and after that seemingly drove the ball to a similar standard when 13th in the Barracuda.
Having been 23rd in the US Open a year ago, this time fourth off the tee in world-class company, Pendrith can do serious damage under the right conditions and he may well have them here. As a Canadian, poa annua greens are familiar and he's been close for a long time on the Korn Ferry Tour, where his last missed cut was in April.
Like Pereira, Straka played really well in the Olympics (10th) and he backed it up with 15th place in the Wyndham Championship. A missed cut followed in The Northern Trust, but Liberty National is quirky and difficult and it's no surprise he was found out by it as he had been on his first visit two years earlier.
Landry hasn't been at his best but he hasn't had to be before winning in the past. In fact his 2020 victory at The American Express here in California came after a run of five missed cuts, his Texas Open win came at similar odds to those available now for similar reasons, and he was fourth in the RSM Classic last season having done nothing for a while beforehand.
Far from the longest but a good driver at his best, Landry is very much a horses-for-courses player, hence that was his second top-five in the RSM, and he'd previously lost a play-off to Rahm in the AmEx. As such, the fact he's made all three cuts here, finishing seventh on debut and 23rd when out of sorts in 2019, bodes particularly well.
Then there's the fact his first win came at TPC San Antonio, which for reasons unclear has always been a good guide to this. Steele has won his three PGA Tour titles across these two courses, Tway was third in Texas before he broke through here, and shock San Antonio winner Steven Bowditch had been runner-up at Silverado in 2014.
There are plenty of others who help strengthen ties between the two, Landry included, and having carded a pair of 65s on his last start this proven winner could spring yet another surprise. He's preferred to Trey Mullinax, a big-hitter he beat that day, but there's no denying there are myriad options here at big prices, against a short-priced favourite who looks there to take on.
Posted at 1100 BST on 14/09/21
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