Preview and Prediction for the 2016 Wyndham Championship
The PGA Tour arrives at the the only course designed by famed architect Donald Ross included in the regular tour calendar: Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina.
This week's Wyndham Championship—where Tiger Woods made his most recent appearance as a professional golfer in last year's event—marks the last tournament before the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs. It's also the easiest par-70 track on the PGA Tour, so out-of-gas participants won't be too heavily taxed.
Among those participants, Olympians Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed, Spain’s Rafa Cabrera Bello and New Zealand’s Danny Lee. Jim Furyk and Jimmy Walker also will headline the field, which includes 10 of the top 30 golfers in the Official World Golf Ranking.
For tournament information, the biggest storylines, favorites, dark horses and our pick to win, read on.
Tournament Information
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Defending Champion
Davis Love III
Where
Sedgefield Country Club (Ross), 7,127 yards, par 70
What
Total Purse: $5,600,000
Winning Share: $1,008,000
FedEx Points to Winner: 500
When
Thursday-Friday: 5-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)
Saturday: 3-6 p.m. (CBS)
Sunday: 1-2:30 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS).
Biggest Storylines
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From a storyline standpoint, topping the list is the fact that after this week, the PGA Tour regular season is over and the FedEx Cup playoffs will begin. The top 125 golfers in the season-long points race will book passage to The Barclays next week. So expect to hear a lot about players on the bubble and plenty of playoffs hype.
Also notable: The first men's Olympic golf competition in more than 100 years is in the books. Expect a gold, silver and bronze glow to shine on Sedgefield this week as much discussion of/waxing poetic about the ramifications of the widely watched and well-received competition.
And as mentioned in the intro, buckle up for a birdie fest. The winning total to par has been 17 under the last two seasons. There is no better way to wrap up the regular season than the unrefined thrill of feasting at a buffet of flag hunting and holed putts.
Favorites
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Patrick Reed: At No. 14 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Patrick Reed's firepower has to be respected. He played OK golf in Rio, finishing in a tie for 11th place, but the odds of flying to Sedgewick two days before the tournament and turning in four high-quality rounds after the emotional drain of playing for your country as an intense patriot are slim.
Rickie Fowler: Similar to Reed, Fowler has to be considered a favorite because of his pedigree. However, it's difficult to image he'll be firing on all cylinders and a post-Olympic hangover has to be a real possibility. Still, he's seventh on tour in total strokes gained: an indication of his overall aptitude and best in the field this week.
Hideki Matsuyama: An Olympic skipper, Hideki Matsuyama arrives at the end of the pre-FedEx Cup sprint fresher than the other two favorites. Up and down lately, Matsuyama was a cut-misser the last two times he played this event. But rested and with a relatively weak field, backing the No. 20 golfer in the Official World Golf Ranking and daft iron player is a must.
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Dark Horses
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Wesley Bryan: Former Web.com Tour superstar Wesley Bryan tallied a top-10 finish in his first start as a member of the PGA Tour at the John Deere Classic. Forget about stats or the fact that this guy has never teed it up at Sedgefield: Bryan has defied all logic in his brief rise from trick-shot artist to multiple Web.com Tour winner. Wouldn't be at all shocking to see him work his magic on the PGA Tour as well.
Kevin Kisner: A top-10 finisher at Sedgefield in 2014, Kevin Kisner recorded a respectable 18th-place finish at the PGA Championship in his most recent tour action. Kisner is 12th on tour in strokes gained: putting and 39th in strokes gained: total. Amid a diluted field, if his dubious iron play is solid, expect Kiz to make a run.
Other horses: Rafa Cabrera Bello, Justin Thomas, Scott Piercy, William McGirt
Prediction
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Winner: Jim Furyk
No doubt "The Businessman" is riding high right now on the heels of his brilliant 58 at the Travelers Championship and Payne Stewart Award reception.
He'll take those good vibes to a venue where he finished ninth in 2011 (his only appearance). Furyk has a fifth-place finish at the Travelers Championship and a top-15 effort at the RBC Canadian Open recently in his rearview.
Precise iron play will be critical at Sedgefield, and Furyk excels in that department: He's ninth on tour in proximity to the hole.
Also notable, the Pennsylvania native has solid momentum and arrives on a wave of positive emotions, but he should also be relatively well-rested, having taken last week off.
It's difficult to see anything other than a letdown from the boys who teed it up in Rio. As such, Furyk is the man this week.
Stats via PGATour.com
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