PGA TOUR
ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL
Site: Orlando, Florida.
Course: Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Yardage: 7,466. Par: 72.
Prize money: $20 million. Winner’s share: $4 million.
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: Kurt Kitayama.
FedEx Cup leader: Matthieu Pavon.
Last week: Austin Eckroat won the Cognizant Classic.
Notes: This is the fourth signature event of the year, awarding $4 million to the winner as a player-hosted tournament (Arnold Palmer). … Tiger Woods, an eight-time winner, did not ask for a sponsor exemption. He played in the Seminole Pro-Member on Monday. … Tony Finau chose not to play at Bay Hill. Finau has not finished better than a tie for 24th in his five appearances. … Adam Scott received a sponsor exemption for the third time in the signature events. Webb Simpson, who played on an Arnold Palmer scholarship at Wake Forest, also received a sponsor exemption. … The late Payne Stewart has the 72-hole record at Bay Hill of 264 set in 1987. Only Riviera (1985) has a longer scoring record on the PGA Tour. … The tournament has gone 27 years without a playoff, dating to Tim Herron beating Tom Lehman in 1997. … Scottie Scheffler (2022), Tiger Woods (2001-02) and Fred Couples (1992) are the only players to win Bay Hill and the Masters in the same year.
Next week: The Players Championship.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LIV GOLF LEAGUE
LIV GOLF HONG KONG
Site: Hong Kong.
Course: Hong Kong GC. Yardage: 6,710. Par: 70.
Prize money: $20 million. Winner’s share: $4 million.
Television: Thursday-Saturday, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. (CW app); Saturday, 12:30-5:30 p.m. (CW Network-tape delay); Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (CW Network-tape delay).
Defending champion: New tournament.
Points leader: Joaquin Niemann.
Last week: Joaquin Niemann won LIV Golf Jeddah.
Notes: Joaquin Niemann has won three times in the last three months, twice on LIV Golf and the Australian Open. … This is second of three LIV Golf events that are part of the Asian swing. The others were last week in Saudi Arabia and early May in Singapore. … Hong Kong Golf Club also will host an Asian Tour event later in the year. … Ian Poulter is the only LIV player to have won in Hong Kong, although CEO Greg Norman won there twice. … Anthony Kim makes his second straight start. He finished 33 shots behind Niemann last week in Saudi Arabia. … After this week, LIV will be off for three weeks before going to Doral a week before the Masters. … LIV currently has 13 players who will be at Augusta National for the first major of the year. … LIV has 23 players who will be staying in Asia next week for the International Series event in Macau, a list that includes Patrick Reed and Sergio Garcia.
Next tournament: LIV Golf Miami on April 5-7.
Online: https://www.livgolf.com/
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PGA TOUR
PUERTO RICO OPEN
Site: Rio Grande, Puerto Rico.
Course: Grand Reserve CC. Yardage: 7,506. Par: 72.
Prize money: $4 million. Winner’s share: $720,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 2:30-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Nico Echavarria.
FedEx Cup leader: Matthieu Pavon.
Last week: Austin Eckroat won the Cognizant Classic.
Notes: This is the first of five opposite-field events on the PGA Tour that offer 60% of the FedEx Cup points as a regular tournament. The winner gets into The Players Championship and the PGA Championship but not the Masters or the remaining signature events on the PGA Tour. … Rasmus Hojgaard, the twin brother of Nicolai Hojgaard, is playing on a sponsor exemption for the second straight week. … The field includes Kevin Kisner, Zach Johnson, Camilo Villegas and Brandt Snedeker. … The Puerto Rico Open marks a rare appearance by former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy. … The tournament has been part of the PGA Tour schedule since 2008. Its history dates to 1956. … Tony Finau and Viktor Hovland each recorded their first PGA Tour victories at the Puerto Rico Open. … The tournament is the first of four that will determine which five players are eligible for the RBC Heritage, a $20 million event.
Next week: The Players Championship.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LPGA TOUR
BLUE BAY LPGA
Site: Hainan Island, China.
Course: Jian Blue Bay GC. Yardage: 6,675. Par: 72.
Prize money: $2.2 million. Winner’s share: $330,000.
Television: Thursday-Saturday, 12-5 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 12-6 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Gaby Lopez.
Race to CME Globe leader: Lydia Ko.
Last week: Hannah Green won the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
Notes: The tournament is back on the schedule for the first time since 2018. It was not held in 2019 and was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic the past four years. … The LPGA Tour returned to China last fall for the first time since the pandemic; it played in Shanghai. … The field features six of the top 10 players in the women’s world ranking. … Nelly Korda is the only player from the top 10 who did not play any of three tournaments in the Asia swing. … Lexi Thompson and Charley Hull are among LPGA members who are playing a Ladies European Tour event in Florida this week. … Lydia Ko is in the field. She remains one victory away from becoming eligible for the LPGA Hall of Fame. … The LPGA Tour has next week off before heading back to the U.S. for a three-tournament swing through Western states. … The first four events have all been won by major champions.
Next tournament: Se Ri Pak LA Open on March 21-24.
Online: https://www.lpga.com/
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EUROPEAN TOUR AND SUNSHINE TOUR
JONSSON WORKWEAR OPEN
Site: Edenvale, South Africa.
Course: Glendower GC. Yardage: 7,542. Par: 72.
Prize money: $1.5 million. Winner’s share: $250,000.
Television: None.
Defending champion: Nick Bachem.
Race to Dubai leader: Rory McIlroy.
Last week: Jordan Gumberg won the SDC Championship.
Notes: This is the third consecutive week for the European tour on African continent, and the second week of being co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour. … The field has four players from the top 100 in the world, the highest ranked being Rikuya Hoshino of Japan. … The tournament began only three years ago and initially was a Challenge Tour event. … This is the third course in the tournament’s three years, having previously gone to Steyn City last year and Durban for the inaugural event. … Glendower opened in 1937 and two years later hosted a tournament won by the great Bobby Locke. … Jordan Gumberg is in the field after his playoff victory last week. He played college golf at Arizona and spent the previous two years shuttling between the European tour and the Challenge Tour. … The European tour will have five tournaments in Asia before starting the European portion of its schedule in late May.
Next tournament: Singapore Classic on March 21-24.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
COLOGUARD CLASSIC
Site: Tucson, Arizona.
Course: La Paloma CC. Yardage: 6,856. Par: 71.
Prize money: $2.2 million. Winner’s share: $330,000.
Television: Friday, 7-9 p.m. (Golf Channel-Tape Delay); Saturday, 5-7 p.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 5-8 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: David Toms.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Steven Alker.
Last tournament: Ricardo Gonzalez won the Trophy Hassan II.
Notes: The Cologuard Classic begins a stretch of three PGA Tour Champions events in the West over the next month, two of them in California. … The field includes Steve Stricker, who will be at the TPC Sawgrass next week for The Players Championship. Stricker earned a spot by winning the Senior Players Championship last year. … The alternate list includes two major champions in John Daly and Larry Mize. … The tournament has never had a multiple winner since it became part of the PGA Tour Champions schedule in 2015. … The tournament moves this year to a new course in La Paloma. … Tucson held a PGA Tour event from 1945 until 2006. The area then hosted the Accenture Match Play Championship through 2014. … David Duval is in the field. He won in Tucson in 1998. … Also in the field are Fred Couples, Ernie Els and Charles Schwab Cup leader Steven Alker.
Next tournament: Hoag Classic on March 22-24.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions
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KORN FERRY TOUR
ASTARA CHILE CLASSIC
Site: Santiago, Chile.
Course: Prince of Wales CC. Yardage: 6,929. Par: 72.
Prize money: $1 million. Winner’s share: $180,000.
Television: None.
Previous winner: Ben Kohles.
Points leader: Mason Andersen.
Last tournament: Mason Andersen won the Argentina Open.
Next tournament: Bupa Championship on March 21-24.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour
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OTHER TOURS
Epson Tour: Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, Country Club of Winter Haven, Winter Haven, Florida. Previous winner: Agathe Laisne. Online: https://www.epsontour.com/
Ladies European Tour: Aramco Team Series-Tampa, Feather Sound CC, Clearwater, Florida. Defending champion: New event. Online: https://ladieseuropeantour.com/
Japan LPGA: Meijiyasuda Ladies Yokohoma Tire Golf Tournament, Tosa CC, Kochi, Japan. Defending champion: Hikaru Yoshimoto. Online: https://www.lpga.or.jp/en/
Korea LPGA: Hana Financial Group Singapore Women’s Open, Tanah Merah CC, Singapore. Defending champion: Ji Young Park. Online: https://klpga.co.kr/
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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