2021 CJ Cup Preview and Picks

 

Fresh off his 2021 Ryder Cup performance, Dustin Johnson is our top pick to win the 2021 CJ Cup

 

 

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - The PGA Tour continues its Las Vegas Swing this week, with the 2021 CJ Cup hosted by The Summit Club.

The field is filled with many of the PGA Tour's elite players and promises to be a spectacle for golf fans.

 

 

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The CJ Cup is a relatively new event on Tour. It was conceived to be the first PGA Tour event played in South Korea, starting in 2017 at The Club at Nine Bridges on Jeju Island. Nine Bridges has hosted the event since 2019.

 

In 2020, Covid-19 travel restrictions forced the event to be played on US soil at Shadow Creak in Las Vegas. The event stayed in the US this year, but is expected to return to South Korea once travel restrictions are lifted.

 

The event is invitation only and because of this boasts an elite field of 78 players. The Top 60 in last year's FedEx Cup Rankings receive an invite, as well as the top 3 players from the Korean Tour's order of merit and the top player from the Asian Tour's order of merit. In addition, previous winners of the KPGA Championship and Genesis Championship on the Korean Tour are invited, as well as the top 3 Korean players in the Official World Golf Rankings.

 

Eight spots are also reserved for sponsor's exemptions, five of which are restricted to PGA Tour members, one to a Korean amateur and three unrestricted. 

To quantify just how elite the field is compared to a regular PGA Tour event, last year the CJ Cup had a Strength of Field rating of 610. That ranks it just under a typical WGC event and on par with The Memorial. 

OUR PICKS THIS WEEK

 

1) Dustin Johnson

2) Marc Leishman

3) Justin Thomas

This is Johnson's first event of the season and first since his dominant Ryder Cup performance. He'll be looking to capitalize on that this week. Leishman is a previous winner of this event and is having a great season so far, with a T3 finish at the Shriners Children's Open and a T4 finish at the Fortinet Championship. Thomas has won this event twice, in 2017 and 2019, can he go for a third this year?

***

Since the event is in Las Vegas, play kicks off Thursday around mid-morning. Be sure to check out our Weekend Update to see who is leading heading into the weekend.

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews

Sungjae Im Wins 2021 Shriners Children's Open With Dominant Final Round

Sungjae Im Wins the 2021 Shriners Children's Open With Dominant Final Round

(image: Andrew Redington)

 

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - It's not often that we see a dominating performance during a final round on the PGA Tour.

But that is exactly what we saw Sungjae Im pull off today. 

The 36-hole co-leader shot a 9-under 62 for his final round to win the 2021 Shriners Children's Open. His final score was 24-under and good enough to win by four shots over Matthew Wolff. 

This is Im's second PGA Tour win, his last being the 2020 Honda Classic. It is also Im's 100th event played on tour and what better way to celebrate that. His win also puts him second in the FedEx Cup Rankings and he takes home a check for $1.26 million.

IM VS TPC AT SUMMERLIN: BATTLE ROYAL

At the start of his final round, Im was three shots behind leader Adam Schenk. Knowing he needed a good start to close the gap and apply pressure, Im set off.

Right away, battle began between Im and TPC at Summerlin, with Im carding birdies on the 1st and 4th holes, then going on to make more birdies on the 6th, 7th, and 9th holes. He made the turn onto the back nine in 30, already 5-under for the day.

What Im was able to pull of next was nothing short of spectacular. On the par 4 10th hole, Im put his approach shot to 22 feet and sank the impressive birdie putt. On the par 4 11th hole, Im took dead aim at the flag and stuck his approach to 8 feet, sinking the birdie putt. It was rinse and repeat on the par 4 12th hole, with another approach shot to 9 feet, then drained birdie putt.

At the par 5 13th hole, Im was short with his second shot to take on the green in two, but a great chip for his third left him with a tap-in birdie.

Im was 9-under on the day at this point and at 24-under; a runaway was looking imminent. But, Im cooled down over the remaining holes, perhaps playing more conservatively now after attaining such a lead. No one managed to catch him however.

Not only did Im put on an approach shot masterclass on Sunday, he followed it up with solid putting. Being hot in both of these areas, especially throughout a final round, is impressive.

Im's final round 62 was the low round of the day and his performance over the week should come as no surprise for anyone. As we wrote about in our Weekend Update post, Im has an incredible work ethic and commitment to the PGA Tour, playing as many events in a season as he can.

HOW DID OUR PICKS FINISH?

 

1) Louis Oosthuizen: T14 at 15-under

2) Nick Watney: T56 at 7-under

 

Another Top 15 performance from Oosthuizen, to no one's surprise really, after a 69/68 over the weekend. Watney will be disappointed with his performance, particularly on Saturday after shooting a 73. 

***

That wraps up our coverage of the 2021 Shriners Children's Open from TPC at Summerlin. What a tournament this was and officially the first dominant win on the PGA Tour this season. 

Our coverage stays in Las Vegas next week for the CJ Cup, hosted by The Summit Club. This is one of the more elite events on tour and always boasts a strong field. 

 

 

Stay tuned for our preview and picks for the tournament,

 

 

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews

 

 

Im and Ramey Co-Lead 2021 Shriners Children's Open

Sungjae Im co-leads the 2021 Shriners Children's Open (image: Andrew Redington)
 

 

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - The last of the weekday rounds of the 2021 Shriners Children's Open hosted by TPC at Summerlin are wrapping up. As it stands now, Sungjae Im and Chad Ramey co-lead heading into the weekend with a score of 14-under and a single shot lead over Sam Burns and Adam Schenk.

The cut is projected to be at 5-under.

 

 

HARD WORK PAYING OFF FOR IM

Im, who is coming off a great FedEx Cup Playoffs run last season, carded a 63 on Thursday and a 65 on Friday to take the solo lead. In both rounds, he managed to not card a single bogey or worse and put on a putting masterclass, sinking several mid-range putts for key birdies throughout his rounds

For many, Im's incredible form will come as no surprise. There is no other player on tour who is more committed to playing events like Im. Last season, Im broke the record for most birdies in a season, carding a total of 497. This was largely due to the fact that he played the most tournaments that year. 

 

To put into perspective how many tournaments Im has played thus far, this week marks the 100th start on the PGA Tour, having only been on tour for three years.

RAMEY CO-LEADS, LOOKING FOR SUCCESS THIS SEASON

Ramey's week started off hot. After a quiet 34 on his front nine during his Thursday round, Ramey found a hot streak and went on to card seven birdies on the back nine for a 29.

The script did not change for his Friday round, where birdied three of his four final holes, including the 18th, to put him in the lead with Im. 

 

This is a great performance thus far from Ramey, who after graduating from the Korn Ferry Tour last year, did not have the best start to his PGA Tour season so far, missing the cut at the Fortinet Championship, then following it up with a T63 at the Sanderson Farms Championship.

 

 

WINDS PICK UP IN THE DESERT

Windier and wetter than expected conditions were present for the first two rounds of the Shriners Children's Open, which seemed to have surprised some players. When asked about the winds, which gusted up to 30mph, many players reported having to adjust their ball flights to not get caught up in it.

Despite the weather, low scores were had, with Sung Kung shooting a 61 on Thursday and Aaron Wise shooting a 62 on Friday, the low rounds for their respective days.

The winds are expected to continue into the weekend, but what is uncertain is the direction they will come from, largely due to the proximity of TPC at Summerlin to the nearby mountain ranges and the valley it sits in. 

All we know is that it will make for some entertaining golf for us fans to watch.

HOW ARE OUR PICKS DOING?

 

1) Will Zalatoris: CUT

2) Louis Oosthuizen: T13 at 10-under

3) Nick Watney: T43 at 6-under

Zalatoris didn't play horrible golf, carding a 69/72, but others played better. Louis is again in a good position heading into the weekend, to no one's surprise really. Watney started off strong with a 67 on Thursday but followed it up with a 69 on Friday.

***

 

With the uncertain winds, it will be interesting to see how players will continue to respond to them. Stay tuned for our article to see who has won it all.

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews

2021 Shriners Children's Open Preview and Picks

Will Zalatoris is our top pick to win the 2021 Shriners Children's Open 

(image: Chris Carlson/AP)

 

 

The 2021-2022 PGA Tour season is in full swing now and heading to Las Vegas this week for the 2021 Shriners Children's Open, hosted by TPC at Summerlin. 

 

A favourite among many, the tournament often features a field of some of the best golfers on the PGA Tour and is known for benefiting and raising money for the Shriners Hospital for Children network. 

 

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The tournament boasts an elaborate history, compared to other events on tour, reflecting the showmanship of the city that hosts it.

Since its inception in 1983 and until 2004, the tournament consists of five rounds of golf, spread out over several courses in the Las Vegas area; similar in style to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

 

In 1984, it became the first PGA Tour event to offer a purse of over $1 million, with $162,000 going to the winner.

From 2006 to 2007, it was known as the Frys.com Open, after which Frys.com switched their sponsorship to what is now the Fortinet Championship.

From 2008-2012, Justin Timberlake hosted the tournament and it's pro-am event.

The tournament was also the site of first career wins for a number of notable professionals including Jim Furyk in 1995, Tiger Woods in 1996, Kevin Na in 2011, and Patrick Cantlay in 2017. 

TPC AT SUMMERLIN

After going through a rotation of courses, the current host for the event is TPC at Summerlin, located just 20 minutes downtown from Las Vegas. 

 

The course opened in 1991 and was the design of Bobby Weed, frequent collaborator with Pete Dye. In addition to TPC at Summerlin, Weed oversaw the design of several other tournament-level courses in the TPC network including TPC Las Vegas, TPC Tampa Bay and TPC River Highlands in Connecticut.

Summerlin is private and for the Shriners Children's Open will play as a par 71 measuring 7,255 yards in length.

OUR PICKS TO WIN

 

1) Will Zalatoris

2) Louis Oosthuizen

3) Nick Watney

Zalatoris is off to a hot start this season, finishing T11 at the Fortinet Championship and T14 last week at the Sanderson Farms Championship, where he carded a course record 61 during his second round. TGR favourite Oosthuizen makes his season debut this week, looking to carry some momentum from last season. Finally, Watney is coming off a T2 finish last week and is in great form. 

***

Play kicks off Thursday morning, be sure to check out our Weekend Update to see who is leading heading into the weekend.

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews

Danny Willett Wins 2021 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Danny Willett Wins the 2021 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

 

 

FIFE, SCOTLAND - Sundays at the Old Course are always the site of something special. 

This year, it was the host of a stellar performance by Englishman Danny Willett, who has won the 2021 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship with a score of 18-under. He wins by two strokes over 54-hole leader Tyrrell Hatton and Joakim Lagergren.

 

This is the 2016 Masters Champion's first win in two years, his last since winning the 2019 BMW PGA Championship. With this win, he shoots up to 23rd in the Race to Dubai Rankings, up 103 places from 126th. It also happened to be Willett's 34th birthday on Sunday.

 

Willett kicked off his final round quickly at the Old Course, carding four birdies and a bogey on the front nine to shoot a 33; a classic case of playing well and putting pressure on others to catch up. His back nine was much quieter though, making all pars save a lone birdie on the 10th hole. 

It was an excellent display of links golf by Willett all week. Many can remember the difficulty that Willett faced in his career in the aftermath of his 2016 Masters win. It is great to see Willett back on the world stage again and winning, given the quality player he is.

 

Notable finishes include Richard Bland, who just five months removed from his first European Tour win was gaining momentum during his final round and challenging for yet another win. He finished T4 at 16-under. 

 

HISTORY MADE IN DUNHILL LINKS PRO-AM

In the 20th edition of the event, history has been made on the pro-am side of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Michael Hoey and amateur Maeve Danaher, both of Irish heritage, have won the pro-am with a score of 36-under. In doing so, Danaher becomes the first female amateur golfer to win the pro-am at the Dunhill Links. 

Danaher plays to a 22-handicap and plays most of her golf at Adare Manor Golf Club in Ireland, 2027 host of the Ryder Cup. She is also married to Gerry McManus, member of the McManus family which has been a staple at the Dunhill Links for many years.

 

Hoey himself is no stranger to winning at the Old Course, having won the professional side of the event back in 2011.

HOW DID OUR PICKS FINISH?

 

1) Shane Lowry: T4 at 15-under

2) Pablo Larrazabal: CUT

3) Billy Horschel: T36 at 6-under

Lowry was on a hot streak similar to Willett on the front nine on Sunday, but he too cooled off on the back nine. It is great to see him continuing his high quality of golf. Horschel was in the mix for a bit on Saturday but shot even par on his final round. Better luck next time to Larrazabal as well, who could not find his rhythm all week. 

***

That wraps up our coverage of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Again, us fans were treated to an excellent display of links golf at some truly special and historic courses. The more I watch this event, the more I fall in love with links golf. 

Our coverage moves across the pond to Las Vegas, Nevada next week for the 2021 Shriners Children's Open hosted by TPC Summerlin. 

 

Stay tuned for our preview and picks,

-Nick

Toronto Golf Reviews