Liberty National Golf Club boasts spectacular views of the New York City skyline, which, of course, was permanently altered by 9/11. It was in the aftermath of the tragic events in 2001 that Woods had the idea to make a major alteration to his foundation. Specifically, Woods had time to think while driving home alone from St. Louis to Orlando after that week’s WGC-American Express Championship was cancelled.

“[I realized] if I was here at the time, what would happen to the foundation? Well, it would be gone,” Woods said of his then golf-based charity, which was started in 1996. “There was really nothing sustaining it except for me to doing golf clinics.”

According to TGR Foundation, it’s a choice that has now positively affected more than 1 million underrepresented students through educational resources that include STEM curricula, college-access programs and teacher development. But Woods is in the process of expanding globally—and events like the NEXUS Cup will help.

“What’s really unique about it is that it’s an amateur event, but the experience people have, it makes you feel like pros,” TGR Foundation CEO Rick Singer said of the new competition that took place Tuesday and Wednesday. “You’re seeing what it’s like to be a PGA Tour pro.”

That included a scripted wardrobe for both days with each team being assigned different colours and custom staff bags embroidered with individual and team names for each player.

There were actual PGA Tour pros on various holes as well. Major champions Henrik Stenson, Gary Woodland and Keegan Bradley were all available to hit shots for teams that wanted a bit of help. Here’s Woodland hitting one with his U.S. Open trophy looking on:

Although, choosing Bradley from 190 yards directly into the wind wasn’t a gimme when the regular tee was about 80 yards closer.

Stenson also offered people Swedish Fish (seriously) and took participants through a complimentary fitting of his line of sunglasses:

Golfers also could get a massage on the range:

Now that’s living.

Not surprisingly, there was plenty to drink and eat on the golf course, highlighted by Fuku chicken creations:

There also was plenty to drink at eat off the course with nightly dinners at the posh NEXUS Club in downtown Manhattan.

It was at Tuesday night’s dinner where an auction raised an additional $365,000 to be split between TGR Foundation and the One Bahamas Fund, created by Tiger and fellow NEXUS partner Justin Timberlake following Hurricane Dorian. That night also featured Jimmy Fallon conducting a Q&A with Tiger.

What a fun night with @jimmyfallon at the #NEXUSCup. Thanks for bringing an unplugged version of The Tonight Show to our guests in support of @TGRFound. pic.twitter.com/GoYnjQ5vW4

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) September 25, 2019

Sixteen teams of four golfers competed in the luxury two-day event, put on in partnership with NEXUS, with the funds going directly to TGR Foundation.

“Tiger has the stature and ability to change the lens on how to do fundraising and what to do with the outcome and the impacts,” NEXUS senior managing director Douglas E. McMahon said. “It’s not just about kids wanting to be athletes. It’s whatever their giftedness is. And these are kids that need a boost. We feel very honoured to do things together.”

“Everyone wants to meet Tiger,” said Damien Mitchelmore, vice president of NEXUS’ Albany property in the Bahamas, where Woods has a residence. “He’s a living legend.”

But while Woods was fairly accessible for the two days—he took a $100 off one unlucky (lucky?) team with a side bet on a par 3—three teams, in particular, got to know the 15-time major champ better. The winning team had dinner with Woods at the NEXUS Club on Wednesday. And the two teams that split the tab on the auction’s big prize, a private breakfast (“Tiger really eats steak and eggs!”) and putting lesson with Woods and Woodland. And before you ask, yes, that’s Lawrence Taylor in the pictures below:

Starting day 2 with a strategy session and putting lesson with two major champions. A special morning for a few #NEXUSCup teams pic.twitter.com/aASRw5wWJp

— TGR Live (@TGRLiveEvents) September 25, 2019

“Tiger’s foundation does great work and we’ve been involved in the Hero World Challenge, which was a great experience,” Brian Shatz, captain of Team Magnolia, said. “But I don’t think anyone expected the access and having the ability to spend the time with Tiger at this event. It’s something we’ll never forget.”

Taylor was one of two New York Giants legends competing in the tournament. The other being Michael Strahan, who also filmed a “Good Morning America” segment with Woods that will air on Friday morning on ABC:

Then was stunned when Tiger beat him in a putting contest by draining his first attempt at a curling 20-footer:

“I’ve still got it!” yelled an exuberant Tiger. And for those curious, Woods looked spry following arthroscopic surgery on his left knee last month. The reigning Masters champ didn’t hit any full shots but said he was cleared by his doctors to resume playing golf as of last week. Tiger remains on track to return to competition at another inaugural event, GOLFTV’s “The Challenge: Japan Skins,” on Oct. 21 before playing in the PGA Tour’s Zozo Championship later that week. Woods has an exclusive content partnership with GOLFTV, which along with Golf Digest, is part of Discovery.

Back to those who were playing, the event featured a fun, but unusual format. Five squads, most of which boasted fantastic team names, made it through the team match-play portion and into the championship shootout. From there, it was alternate shot starting from the middle of the fairway on Liberty National’s scenic 18th hole while a couple of big names watched—and sometimes, heckled.

“We wanted to differentiate and give it a different twist than what our guests typically see,” TGR Live’s VP, Championships Mike Antolini said. “What can we do that really keeps the competition up? And we figured team match play was the answer. Everyone has a chance waking up on Day 2. And having Tiger and Gary looking over their shoulders in the championship shootout adds to the pressure. So it’s a pretty cool finish.”

Speaking of the finish, that turned out to be quite a story as well. On a week of NYC gridlock—avoided, by the way, with a ferry to the course—due to the United Nations General Assembly, a pair of players from South Africa (Kamalan Munsamy, Kinesh Pather) and another pair from Miami (Jason Rosenfeld, Antonio Arbulu) meeting for the first time came together for an emotional victory as part of Craig’s Team, named after a friend who sadly passed away at 48 from stomach cancer earlier this year.

“We played in his honour and his memory,” Rosenfeld said. “And it’s a really, really wonderful feeling to be able to know he’s looking down on us.”

Thank you to all our guests, donors, supporting Tour players, to Liberty National, to NEXUS, and my @TGRLiveEvents team for making the inaugural #NEXUSCup such a success. All to raise money for @TGRFound supporting students and giving them access to higher education. pic.twitter.com/0xJY9jGPwA

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) September 25, 2019

This new bunch of best friends will be back—and so will the NEXUS Cup.

“It’s great to be here. He’s done so much for all of us so it’s nice to give something back for him,” Bradley said. “This is a great thing Tiger has done and I know it will just continue to get bigger and better.”

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By John Strege
Tiger Woods has committed to playing in the first FedEx Cup playoff event, The Northern Trust, at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J., next week.

Woods, 43, last played at the British Open and hinted that he might skip the first of three playoff tournaments. At the Open, he had rounds of 70 and 78 and missed the cut.

Since his victory in the Masters in April, Woods has played just four tournaments and missed the cut in two of them. He noted at The Open that he deliberately is playing fewer events in an effort to extend his career after his spinal fusion surgery in 2017.

Woods, who is one victory short of tying Sam Snead’s record of 82 career PGA Tour wins, is 27th on the FedEx Cup points list. He is a two-time winner of the FedEx Cup.

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By Stephen Hennessey
Liberty National Golf Club, the site of the 2017 Presidents Cup and FedEx Cup playoff events, had its bid to obtain a 21-acre portion of waterfront land that is part of Liberty State Park denied by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. The club planned to add three new holes and a First Tee facility if its proposal was accepted by the environmental agency, according to a report by NorthJersey.com.

The ultra-exclusive Liberty National, which opened in 2006 and soon hosted the 2009 and 2013 Barclays, the first tournament of the FedEx Cup swing, had its eyes on the extensive wetlands and sandy beach on the Caven Point peninsula that fronts the New York Harbor. And according to a January report by NJ.com, Liberty National owner and founder Paul Fireman planned to use that land to reroute the course, turning Liberty National’s current holes nine through 11—which sits on land farthest from the clubhouse—into an expansive First Tee facility. Fireman said in a statement at the time: “We are thrilled by the opportunity to collaborate with the State of New Jersey to address what is an obvious and tremendous need to serve the underprivileged children of Jersey City, Hudson County and the surrounding Metropolitan area.”

The area circled in red is the portion of Liberty State Park that Liberty National Golf Club sought to obtain.

Construction costs for Liberty National totalled about $250 million, with about 90 percent of that sum coming from Superfund clean-up costs, according to a 2017 report from Golf Digest’s Ron Whitten. Previous to the building of the golf club, the land had been an oil terminal for nearly a century, and the harbour-side ground had been contaminated with petroleum, lead, beryllium toxic PCBs. It also served as an ammunition depot in the 1950s, according to the Golf Digest report. “We were pretty sure any travesty known to man was on this property,” co-architect of Liberty National Bob Cupp, who died in 2017 and designed the course with former tour player Tom Kite, told Ron Whitten.

In the Thursday letter from the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection, an official writes that the DEP will not pursue the project “at this time,” leaving it unclear whether Liberty National could resubmit its plans to be considered in the future. The NorthJersey.com report details other private-enterprise plans being considered for the sought-after land, including a marina. Advocates had campaigned the agency to reject the plan, and a group called “Friends of Liberty State Park” told NJ.com on Friday that the news of Liberty National’s expansion rejection was “wonderful news.”

A 2002 aerial shot of the formerly contaminated land on which Liberty National Golf Club turned into its course, which opened in 2006.

A current view of Liberty National Golf Club, with his made-for-TV views of the Statue of Liberty and the downtown Manhattan skyline.

The club will host the 2019 and 2022 Northern Trust Open, the first event of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

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By Christopher Powers
The Presidents Cup captains and their army of assistants did their best impression of an NFL team’s war room on draft day Wednesday in the media center at Liberty National Golf Club. There was paper-shuffling, note-scribbling and top secret whispers. But when it came to the announcement of the U.S. team’s pairing in the third match off the tee on Thursday, not much needed to be discussed.

“Team USA will put out Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed,” said U.S. captain Steve Stricker, completing the easiest task he’s had since this whole process began.

When the superteam of Spieth and Reed tee off in their alternate-shot match at 1:29 p.m. Thursday, it’ll mark the ninth time the duo has been paired together in a team match-play event. They’ve compiled a 4-2-2 record, including their 2-0-1 record as Ryder Cup rookies in 2014 at Gleneagles.

For 99.9 percent of the season, golf is an individual sport. Yet when Spieth and Reed link up, they fully embrace the team aspect the Ryder and Presidents Cups provide. So, what’s their big secret?

Treating each other exactly the same as they do week in and week out on the PGA Tour, of course.

“We try to beat each other and try to play better than each other that day,” Spieth said. “It’s like a weird way that helps our team out because we don’t like the one of us getting more credit than the other. It’s kind of a weird pride thing for us, but it’s been successful.”

Speaking of weird, standing directly across from each other as they answered questions, Reed echoed his partner’s sentiments. Almost like they planned it.

“Jordan and I, we’ve always had the same kind of mindset,” Reed said. “Go out there and play the best golf we can. It doesn’t matter who we are playing against, we’re going after each other, and if we do that, hopefully we come out on top.”

If there has been an issue for Spieth-Reed tandem it’s been in foursomes, where their record sits at 1-1-2. They’ll look to remedy that on Thursday against the pair of Si Woo Kim and Emiliano Grillo, both making their first appearance in a Presidents Cup. Despite how difficult it will be for the International rookies to take down one of America’s top pairings, Reed and Spieth aren’t looking ahead.

“It’s going to be a dogfight,” Reed said. “There’s no easy pushover matches.”

With any confidence the International team may have gained from a near victory in 2015, Spieth knows they need their best golf no matter what.

“Doesn’t matter who we’re playing,” Spieth said. “We’re doing our best to control what we can control because tomorrow is a big day in shutting down any momentum they may feel.”

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By Ron Whitten
Liberty National Golf Club is inspirational, going from Federal Superfund cesspool to Presidents Cup showcase, but it has been sadly shackled to a poor national debut. As host of The Barclays in 2009, the Jersey City, N.J., layout got trashed by pros and the press. Its architecture, by Bob Cupp and Tom Kite, is subtle and stylish, intended to be thought-provoking, not easily absorbed. One hole rewards length, another accuracy. One puts a premium on the recovery game, another on approach putting. But in 2009, most simply saw a 7,400-yard course with small greens and gusty winds off New York Harbor, so thumbs went down after a single round.

Some participants launched into comedy routines. “Maybe Tom did this course before his eye surgery,” said Tiger Woods.

“They ruined a perfectly good landfill,” said one unidentified caddie, channeling Dave Hill’s critique of Hazeltine National at the 1970 U.S. Open.

The nadir was reached a few years later, when our sister publication, Golf World, released the results of a survey of anonymous tour pros, ranking the courses they’d played that year. Liberty National was the consensus pick for Least Favorite, a position relabeled as Worst Course on Tour.

Ironically, Cupp, who died last year, and Kite considered Liberty National one of their greatest achievements. Kite had first been alerted to the site in 1992, shortly after he’d won the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He brought in Cupp, with whom he’d been involved in previous designs, to view the property with him. What they saw was dreadful. Kite described it as “flat as a table. Ugly, abused, mistreated.”

It had been a harbor-side oil terminal for nearly a century, the ground infiltrated with petroleum, lead, beryllium toxic PCBs. In the 1950s, it had served as an ammunition depot. “We were pretty sure any travesty known to man was on this property,” Cupp said.

The cost of cleanup was picked up by taxpayers, and the developer would be allowed to build a course atop the site at its own expense, under strict regulations. In recent years, Liberty National’s price tag has been reported as $250 million. About 90 percent of that figure were Superfund cleanup costs.

After a dozen years of regulatory issues, the course was finally constructed, built like a giant layer cake, capping the site first with impervious fabric and clay, then soil, then sand, contouring the holes to make certain no pipe or tree root would ever pierce the contamination cap. Six million cubic yards of earth and sand were delivered, 200 dump trucks per day for two years.

The layout opened in 2006. “Everything is 100 percent created,” Kite said at the time. “The big thing in golf-course design right now is minimalist design. This is light-years on the other side of the spectrum.”

Kite and Cupp were proud of their concept. Holes close to the harbor are links-like, with tall, wavy fescue grasses edging twisting bentgrass fairways. Away from the shoreline, the motif changes to that of Central Park, with lush, manicured rough and 5,000 fully grown transplanted oaks, maples and evergreens. One par-3 green they’d fashioned in the manner of the tricky third green at Augusta National; another after a Donald Ross green at Pinehurst. They directed the longest holes into the wind, to keep them playing long. Two holes were deliberately aligned with the Statue of Liberty, just offshore. It can also be seen from several other holes.

They were not pleased when Golf World anointed it Worst Course on Tour. Nor was the owner, Paul Fireman (of Reebok fame and fortune), or the PGA Tour, which had contracted for another Barclays in 2013. So in 2010, the course was remodeled by a PGA Tour Design Services team headed by architect Steve Wenzloff.

The media took that as affirmation of their previous condemnations and gleefully reported that 74 changes had been made to Liberty National’s design. This was technically true, but most of the changes were insignificant: a greenside knob lessened, a cartpath moved, a fairway mowing line re-contoured. Three greens were totally rebuilt to lessen severity of slopes, and nine others had some contours softened. Two new fairway bunkers were added and six eliminated; hardly the stuff of wholesale redesign.

Kite and Cupp were consulted before the renovation, offered their input, and fully participated. Wenzloff reports that Cupp even handled all the construction drawings.

Although not widely reported, most players gave favorable reviews of the “new and improved” Liberty National at the 2013 Barclays, calling it far more receptive, mainly because, though the tall fescue roughs remained, the primary rough of thick bluegrass was mowed short, allowing players to get a club on the ball instead of hacking it out. “The teeth will still be in it,” Wenzloff said, “but the teeth won’t sink as deep into your skin.”

‘The teeth will still be in it, but the teeth won’t sink as deep into your skin.’

The routing of the course has been changed for the Presidents Cup. (Photo by Dom Furore)

ROUTING ALTERED

With the PGA Tour again running the show for the Presidents Cup Sept. 28-Oct. 1, expect Liberty National’s setup to mirror that used at The Barclays four years ago, with one major exception. The routing will be altered, a process that seems de rigueur for modern-day professional match-play events, from previous Presidents Cup sites at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club and TPC Harding Park to last year’s Ryder Cup venue, Hazeltine National.

At Liberty National, players will use the southern end of the 400-yard-long practice range, on a less-expansive “teaching tee” that can accommodate the limited field of players. From there, players will be looking directly at the skyline of Manhattan, perhaps a psychological boost for the American team.

From that practice tee, it’s a few steps to the back tee of the fifth hole, which will serve as the opening hole for the Presidents Cup. The sixth becomes the second hole, and so on. Officials want us to believe the renumbering of holes was done to assure that the normal concluding holes (all very scenic and dramatic) will be played by most matches, but in truth it assures that lucrative corporate tents around those holes will see the action.

The normal closing hole will thus be the 14th hole, and the final four will be the normal first through fourth, an interesting stretch of two par 4s of less than 400 yards and two par 3s, neither of them touched in the 2010 renovation. They are the stuff of calendar art. The par-3 16th points directly at Miss Liberty, although the view will likely be blocked by bleachers or tents. The par-3 18th (with the green that is a mirror image of Augusta’s third) faces the same Manhattan skyline visible from the practice tee, with spectators on the hillside above the back tee afforded a far better vista than players below.

Although the burn and pond edging the par-4 15th could derail some, the closing stretch will be arguably four potential birdie holes, far from the original finish of back-to-back tough par 4s designed by Cupp and Kite. Of course, they had been contemplating stroke-play events. The Presidents Cup is man-to-man. Let’s hope a majority of the matches make this final glorious loop, where the arenas are far more intimate and the cheers might be heard on Wall Street.

Aerial view of the seventh green and the sixth fairway. (Photo by Dom Furore)

[divider] [/divider]

U.S. DOMINATION
The U.S. Team is 9-1-1 In the Presidents Cup, winning the past six competitions after a tie in 2003:

1994: U.S. 20, International 12
Robert Trent Jones G.C.

1996: U.S. 16½, International 15½
Robert Trent Jones G.C.

1998: International 20½, U.S. 11½
Royal Melbourne G.C.

2000: U.S. 21½, International 10½
Robert Trent Jones G.C.

2003: U.S. 17, International 17
The Links At Fancourt (S. Africa)

2005: U.S. 18½, International 15½
Robert Trent Jones G.C.

2007: U.S. 19½, International 14½
Royal Montreal G.C.

2009: U.S. 19½, International 14½
Harding Park

2011: U.S. 19, International 15
Royal Melbourne G.C.

2013: U.S. 18½, International 15½
Muirfield Village G.C.

2015: U.S. 15½, International 14½
Jack Nicklaus G.C. (South Korea)

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By John Strege
Phil Mickelson’s streak of playing on every U.S. Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup since 1994 will continue, courtesy of U.S. Presidents Cup Captain Steve Stricker, who made him one of his two picks overnight.

Stricker also chose another native San Diegan, Mickelson’s friend Charley Hoffman, to round out his 12-man team. Hoffman, 40, will be playing in his first Presidents Cup.

The International team Captain Nick Price added Emiliano Grillo of Argentina and Anirban Lahiri of India.

“We all know what Phil brings to the table,» Stricker said. «He’s been on 20 plus teams. He’s an important part of all these teams. He, too, is starting to play better. He guarantees me he’s on the right track.

The Presidents Cup begins on Thursday, Sept. 28, at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, N.J., just across the Hudson River from Manhattan.

Mickelson, 47, seemed to have been a lock, notwithstanding his having finished 15th on the points list. His experience, along with the fact he’s beloved in the New York area, made him an easy choice. Moreover, he tied for sixth in the Dell Technologies Championship on Monday.

“It really has been special the way the people [in the New York area] have treated me and my family,” Mickelson said.

“They’re incredible sports fans. It’s a great place for the USA to play and complete. I don’t know what sparked it, but I’m certainly very appreciative”

This will be Mickelson’s 12th Presidents Cup. He also has played on the last 11 U.S. Ryder Cup teams.

“My excitement to be on this team is as great as it’s been for any team I’ve been on,” Mickelson said. “It means a lot to me. What means a lot to me this year is that they wanted me there even though I didn’t get the spot on my own. I really love being around these guys. I respect how great they are. This is a special team and to be a part of it is very meaningful to me.”

Hoffman, meanwhile, finished 11th on the points list, edged out by Kevin Chappell in the final round of the Dell on Monday.

“[Kevin] Chappell and I were sort of going back and forth that last day in Boston,” Hoffman said.

“I’m glad it’s finally over and I finally made an American team and I can’t wait. It’s a very special moment. Phil and I have played a lot of golf in San Diego and he talks a lot about it. It’s sort of one of the things that drove me to get on this team was sort of the ribbing he gave me put on the golf course out in San Diego and knowing how special it would be to be a part of this Presidents Cup.”

The International team has not won a Presidents Cup since 1998 and has lost six in a row after a tie in 2003.

“We can’t be complacent,» Mickelson said. «If we play our best and are prepared I believe we’ll come out on top. But they are an incredibly talented team and if we take some things for granted we’ll get beat.”

The rest of the U.S. team: Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler, Daniel Berger, Brooks Koepka, Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed and Matt Kuchar.

The rest of the International team: Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day, Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen, Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim, Jhonattan Vegas and Adam Hadwin.

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By Brian Wacker
Kevin Chappell was out, then he was in, qualifying for his first Presidents Cup by a slim margin after Monday’s final round of the Dell Technologies Championship. He didn’t realize just how much it meant to him until he had trouble sleeping the night before. But Chappell was probably going to be on the team anyway even if he didn’t nab the final spot in the top 10.

On Wednesday at 5 p.m. Steve Stricker will announce his two captain’s picks for the United States team, and Nick Price will do the same for the International squad that will be playing at Liberty National Golf Club outside New York City at the end of the month.

With Chappell in, it means Charley Hoffman is out … for now. He didn’t look too stressed about the whole thing as he enjoyed a beer and a cigar on the terrace of the TPC Boston clubhouse late Monday afternoon, having finished up T-47 in the tournament. Nor should he be.

Though Hoffman doesn’t have a win this season, he does have a half-dozen top-10s and has been in contention a number of times. Yes, he didn’t close out any of those opportunities, but at No. 11 on the points list, No. 22 in the World Rankings and a birdie machine who is also in the top 25 in total strokes gained, it’s hard to imagine Stricker passing on him.

As for the other captain’s pick? This is where things get more interesting.

Of the next nine names down the list none carries as much star power as Phil Mickelson, who has played on every Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup team since 1994, boasts a 17-4-7 record in the last seven Presidents Cups and who last fall went 2-1-1 in helping the U.S. reclaim the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National. He also appears suddenly re-energized and re-focused, posting a a T-6 finish at TPC Boston that moved him up three spots to No. 15 in the standings.

Asked if he felt like he has done enough to get the nod from Stricker, Mickelson said, “We’ll see. I hope so.”

Stricker has been talking with Mickelson through much of the summer to get a better gauge on Lefty’s game. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Which brings up the next point. Who else is Stricker going to pick?

Jason Dufner has just one top-10 this year (a win at the Memorial). Gary Woodland has only one top-10 since March. Brendan Steele has missed the cut in four of his last six starts. Brandt Snedeker is out with an injury. Bill Haas and Kevin Na have two top-10s apiece since March.

The only other player in the top 20 on the points list who could seemingly knock Mickelson off would be Brian Harman, who finished 12th with seven top-10s, including an impressive win at the Wells Fargo Championship and a runner-up at the U.S. Open. He’s also a deadly putter and his personality would fit well in the laid back team room (so, of course, would the elder statesman Mickelson).

More complicated is whom Price picks for the International team, which has lost the last six Presidents Cups and hasn’t won it since 1998 with the two teams tying in 2003. Adam Hadwin secured the final spot in the top 10 with his tie for 13th at TPC Boston. Where Price goes from there is less certain.

Emiliano Grillo finished 12th in the standings and had a 22nd-place showing at the Dell, but he also has five missed cuts in his last nine starts.

But like Stricker, who else is Price going to pick? No one around Grillo has exactly stood out. Hideto Tanihara is No. 11 and Yuta Ikeda 13 and both have missed a handful of cuts of late.

Li Haotang, 14th on the list, has missed his last two cuts but did finish third at the British Open, while Byeong Hun An at 15 hasn’t had a top-10 since May.

Going any deeper reveals even fewer options. Outside the box thinking is never a bad thing when it comes to the selection process—particularly when on a losing streak—but this is one year when taking a chalk approach would be difficult to criticize.

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