The PGA Tour professional had a splendid opening round, if you don’t count the fact that he fell into a creek. But he still managed to make one of the best pars of the year. These guys are good.

The former trick-shot artist’s adventure — fortunately, the PGA Tour had extra cameras rolling because Bryan is part of a behind-the-scenes show called “The Turn” — began with his second shot on the par-5 14th hole at the Country Club of Jackson. Going for the green in two, Bryan pulled a fairway wood wayyy left to wind up in a tricky spot.

But Bryan showed off some impressive athleticism by leaping over the water and then hitting a remarkable, blind recovery shot to the back fringe. “I heard one ‘great’. Oh, I hear claps, now what?” Bryan says in the video before being informed where his golf ball wound up. However, this saga was just getting started.

Deciding he couldn’t leap back over the creek, Bryan removed his shoes and began to wade into the water. But then he fell on his butt. “Oh God,” he said. “What a disaster.” With some assistance from his caddie, Bryan made his way back to the hole and two-putted for a wild par with his mud-stained trousers rolled up to his knees (apparently that’s allowed on tour even if shorts still aren’t). Have a look for yourself:

This would be categorized as an adventurous par ?‍@WesleyBryanGolf's first round:

1 eagle
3 birdies
1 "disaster"
0 bogeys pic.twitter.com/UbOvUBNv85

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 5, 2023

Good stuff, Wes. And, hey, at least he didn’t ruin those white shoes.

What’s no laughing matter is the position Bryan finds himself in as he battles to try to keep his PGA Tour card. The 33-year-old enters this week 189th on the FedEx points list, meaning he only has a few more events to finish inside the top 125. So every shot matters a lot for him. Whether he’s wearing dry trousers or not.

Main image: Jonathan Bachman

The post Watch as PGA Tour pro Bryan falls into creek, still makes par of the year appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

If it feels like there’s been a lot of golf news lately involving brothers, that’s because there has. The Hojgaard twins have been racking up European Tour titles and Ryder Cup points, and the Fitzpatricks had a nice brotherly battle at the Open Championship after both Matt and Alex made the cut at Royal Liverpool. And then there’s the unique situation that happened in a PGA Tour qualifier on Monday.

With four spots on the line for this week’s Wyndham Championship, the final event of the 2022-2023 PGA Tour regular season, a pair of brothers were involved in a playoff. And only one walked away with a Thursday tee time at Sedgefield Country Club.

Golf fans know Wesley Bryan mostly from his win at the 2017 RBC Heritage. But they may also recognise his older brother, George, as the other member of the trick-shot duo, the Bryan Bros. Both were standouts at the University of South Carolina and both shot a five-under-par 66 on Monday at Bermuda Run.

After Hank Lebioda shot 65, that left Wesley and George in a six-way tie for second. Meaning they had to face off against each other as part of a six-for-three playoff. Of course, Ryan French, AKA Twitter’s Monday Q Info, was all over the unusual occurrence.

If this doesn’t make you love Monday Qs, well, I can’t help you.

A 6 for 3 playoff, including two brothers, and they are playing a sixsome.

This is how golf is meant to be played. pic.twitter.com/TJR8nEdsyZ

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) July 31, 2023

Obviously, the coolest ending to this fun story would have been if both brothers qualified. But instead, only Wesley got through along with fellow PGA Tour winner Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey and Joey Lane. And after, Wesley and George posed for this photo depicting their mixed emotions about what happened.

The good stuff. Thanks @CarolinasPGA pic.twitter.com/0278FBFjlX

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) July 31, 2023

Wesley is the one pointing — and he looks more upset even though he’s the one who made it. But, hey, that’s brotherly love for you.

The post Wesley Bryan emerges from PGA Tour Monday qualifier playoff that included his older brother appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Daniel Rapaport
ATLANTA — On Sunday morning, those near the top of the Tour Championship leaderboard had $15 million on their mind. For the man on the bottom, however, the magic number was 1 hour and 59 minutes.

That’s how long it took Kevin Na to play his final round at the 2016 Tour Championship, which is the fastest anyone’s gotten it around East Lake. (Or, at least the fastest since the tour has been measuring such things). It’s not the fastest round on record for the PGA Tour—that belongs to Wesley Bryan, who shot 69 in 1 hour 28 minutes at the 2017 BMW Championship at Conway Farms.

Joaquin Niemann and caddie Gary Mathews knew that mark was out of reach, for undulating East Lake is no easy walk, and especially not on a hot and humid late-summer day. But they also knew they would be playing alone, the initial field of 30 cut to an odd number when Brooks Koepka withdrew on Saturday with a wrist injury. And Niemann knew he didn’t have his best stuff, and it’s been a long season, so why not have a little fun at the end of it and get some bragging rights over Na in the process?

Mathews emptied out the bag in preparation; there were three balls instead of the usual nine, the training aids were left at home, as was the rain gear and umbrella. Breakfast was light, on-course deliberations were minimal.

In the end, the mission was accomplished. The 22-year-old Niemann hustled hard throughout his back nine to play his final round at the Tour Championship in 1 hour 53 minutes. On the 18th green, after Niemann two-putted for par and a two-over 72, Mathews fell to the ground in (semi-mock) exhaustion. Despite finishing last among those who completed 72 holes this week, Niemann will still collect a $405,000 bonus for finishing 29th in the FedEx Cup.

There’s a new fastest man at East Lake. ?@JoacoNiemann finishes his final round in 1 hour and 53 minutes. pic.twitter.com/LCOtfOveGY

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 5, 2021

“I didn’t know how fast I could play 18 holes, but on the front nine, I decided to play quick but not like crazy quick, not like rushing and hurrying up,” Niemann said. “But then they told me I did like just over an hour, I was like, ‘ah, I’m just going to rush it and try to break the record.’ It was pretty good, the back nine.”

Niemann admitted that he’d probably have abandoned the record-chasing had he played the front nine in a few under par. But after a double-bogey 6 on the par-4 eighth, Niemann went full DGAF-mode.

?? So you’re telling me there’s a chance… pic.twitter.com/5IWkeCDOll

— Skratch (@Skratch) September 5, 2021

“When he made double on 8,” Mathews said, “it felt like it took us 20 minutes to play that hole. And we were walking up to 10, and the guy that helps us out in the caddie area there said, ‘You’re at 1:03.’ So we were flying for nine holes.”

?‍ @JoacoNiemann has played 15 holes in 1 hour and 40 minutes.

And he just made a birdie. pic.twitter.com/WV2VOeEAXm

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 5, 2021

On the 10th tee, he informed his walking scorers—two 17-year-old kids—that the last nine holes would be a hustle-fest. He played his final side of the season in 47 minutes and shot even-par 35, including a birdie on the intimidating par-3 15th over water.

The Atlanta crowd got a major kick from the image of Niemann, who is rail-thin, jogging ahead of Mathews, who is not rail-thin. Yet not everyone was pleased.

“Man, if he had taken his time today and shot 64, he might have made another couple hundred grand,” said Paul Azinger on the NBC broadcast, his tone not sounding as if tongue was in cheek. “But now he’s got a meaningless record and he is hurting … hope that was fun for him.”

It’s only partially true. Had Niemann shot that six-under round—which, he said, was essentially impossible with the form he was in this week—he’d finished somewhere around 20th, which comes with a $505,000 cheque. At the risk of sounding insensitive, perhaps $100,000 isn’t quite so important to a 22-year-old who’s made nearly $4 million this season and $9.5 million in his young PGA Tour career, to say nothing of endorsements.

It wasn’t until after his round, in the scoring tent, that Niemann second-guessed his decision. PGA Tour chief of tournaments and competition Andy Pazder greeted him there with a stern look on his face. He told Niemann that his antics had disrespected the professional game, the Tour Championship, and that he would be fined $10,000.

“I look at him like, I was burning inside,” Niemann said. “I was going to say something and he’s like, ‘all right, forgive me. Before you say something, I was just kidding.’

“I was like, ‘Oh, I hate you.’ He gave me a really hard time.”

The post Joaquin Niemann plays Tour Championship final round in 1 hour 53 minutes, gets punked by PGA Tour official appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images

Kobe certainly had his flaws, but you can’t argue the impact he had on the world. As Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard pointed out, 13(!) PGA Tour pros list him as their favourite athlete in their media guide bios. He was bigger than a sports star, bigger than a brand. His Mamba Mentality is a movement. And one that isn’t going away anytime soon. So let’s keep Kobe in our heads, at least for his relentless drive and tireless work ethic. And let’s keep Kobe, his daughter GiGi and the seven other victims of this tragedy in our hearts as a reminder of how precious our time on Earth is. OK, time to talk about some happier stuff.

WE’RE BUYING

Marc Leishman: The Aussie won the Farmers Insurance Open while playing with a different tragedy on his mind, providing the latest victory for a country looking for any good news. “Pretty amazing, particularly with all the problems that have been happening back in Australia with the fires and people losing their lives. Just devastating really,” Leishman said. “So if this can bring them a little bit of joy, it’s a big win for me personally and then for them as well. I hope this can bring them a bit of joy.”

Sean M. Haffey

Leishman joins Cameron Smith as Aussie winners on the PGA Tour in the past three weeks. Plus, Lucas Herbert won the European Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic on Sunday. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Well done to all three providing a much-needed boost and raising awareness and relief funds for what’s happening Down Under.

Sebastian Soderberg: The Swede didn’t come close to winning in Dubai, but he did shatter the European Tour record for fastest round by shooting a Sunday 75 in 97 minutes. Soderberg and his caddie, younger brother Jasper, also got in their cardio workout by 8:45 a.m. and had the rest of the day to do whatever they wanted. How efficient.

97 minutes. 75 shots. ?

Sebastian Söderberg on the fastest round in European Tour history.#ODDC pic.twitter.com/4J4TxH9wV1

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 26, 2020

When it comes to playing quickly, though, Soderberg couldn’t quite catch Wesley Bryan, who played a solo Sunday round at the BMW Championship in 89 minutes. Oh, and shot 69, by the way. That prompted this Grind video in which I tried my best to speed talk like the Micro Machines Man in Wes’ honour:

In any event, golfers of every skill level don’t need to play this fast, but we could all pick up the pace a bit. So to guys like Wes and Sebastion, thanks for the inspiration.

Tiger Woods’ new driver: Not to give TaylorMade free advertising here, but Woods sure looked comfortable swinging the new Sim driver around during his T-9 at Torrey Pines to kick-off 2020.

While Phil Mickelson has resorted to wildly swinging out of his shoes as he approaches 50 (he hit 2 of 14 fairways on Friday), Woods has throttled back by hitting what he calls a “slap cut.” He’s hitting more fairways, his misses are manageable, and “slap cut” is instantly one of my all-time favourite Tigerisms.

WE’RE SELLING

Jon Rahm’s Sunday: First of all, that was a rough start. I mean, wow. ROUGH. It makes you wonder how much more pressure he was feeling to win this tournament than a Euro Tour event. . . To the Spaniard’s credit, though, he made a furious late rally only to come up one shot short. But making matters worse is the fact he thought he was actually tied for the lead when he tapped in for birdie on 18. How can you not know where you stand in a tournament?! How could he not know he needed eagle on 18?! That’s a bad job. A really bad job.

Bryson DeChambeau’s finish: On the bright side, Bryson says his new bulk has “opened new boundaries I never thought were possible.” But his recent quote about hitting it so far that his pace of play won’t matter didn’t hold up too well as DeChambeau was given a bad time on the back nine while contending in Dubai. Also not holding up too well was his play down the stretch as he threw away his chance to defend his title. . .

Today in Dubai, Bryson DeChambeau was put on the clock and given a slow-play warning on the 10th hole.

He went on to shoot 76, T-8, which included bogeying his last four holes. pic.twitter.com/3RovwMAgbM

— Samantha Marks (@SamanthaSMarks) January 26, 2020

Coincidence? Maybe. But this is certainly something to keep an eye on, especially when he plays on the European Tour.

Tiger’s bad break: Seriously, how in the world did this not stay in the hole?!

@TigerWoods nearly holed out from the fairway.

The ball went IN the hole … and came back out. ? pic.twitter.com/ikm21gLSju

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 26, 2020

No, seriously. How? Did anyone ask Bryson? Tiger out here doing magic tricks.

ON TAP

The PGA Tour heads to TPC Scottsdale for the country’s biggest annual boozefest, which also coincides with a golf tournament. Welcome to the Waste Management Phoenix Open! Please try not to get arrested! And if you’re playing golf like Bryson DeChambeau, please try to keep up with the group in front of you!

Random tournament fact: It’s been one year since Johnny Miller signed off on NBC for his last tournament. I miss you, Johnny. I miss you every day. Well, every Sunday, at least.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

—Tiger Woods would ever make a leader board gaffe on the final hole: 1-MILLION -to-1 odds

—Tiger Woods will win the Masters: 10-to-1 odds (Actual odds, now a co-favourite)

—Johnny would have a LOT to say about Bryson this week: LOCK

TWEETS OF THE WEEK

Fully understand if Bryson wants to keep hitting it 40 past me tomorrow so we don’t have to chat.

— Eddie Pepperell (@PepperellEddie) January 25, 2020

Eddie Pepperell is the best. And he followed it up with this update after he and Bryson played together on Sunday:

We actually got on quite well. And to his credit, he’s sped up.

— Eddie Pepperell (@PepperellEddie) January 26, 2020

Well, other than that bad time, of course.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (PGA TOUR EDITION)

This is pure golf porn, folks.

Flushed. ?

?? pic.twitter.com/kNJUJFnKh0

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 22, 2020

Nicely done, PGA Tour.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (EUROPEAN TOUR EDITION)

And kudos to the European Tour CONTENT makers as well for this gem of a game pitting Viktor Hovland and Andrew “Beef” Johnston:

Beef ?Hovland #LuckOfTheDraw ??#ODDC @OMEGAGolfDubai pic.twitter.com/d0glMwwGQj

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 24, 2020

Just don’t try this at home. Unless your course is completely empty.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Lucas Herbert is a European Tour winner. And an honest bloke:

Victory + Australia Day = ? pic.twitter.com/Sj0ObZRnPO

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) January 26, 2020

Hope Monday morning wasn’t too painful, Lucas. You’re only 24! It gets much, much worse. Trust me.

THIS WEEK IN PGA TOUR PRO-WAGS PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION

https://www.instagram.com/p/B704RKDAaz9/?utm_source=ig_embed

Get it? “Boat” load? Good stuff, Jena. Also, by my extensive research of Jena’s Instagram account, this is the first time she’s posted a photo of the couple on a boat together since May 4 of last year. What’s significant about that? Brooks won the PGA Championship that week. So he’s basically a lock-in Saudi Arabia this week.

And how about C.T. Pan going shopping with his wife and sometimes caddie, Michelle:

When it comes to grocery shopping, I’m her caddie. 3 tasks I need to do for her, show up, keep up and shut up. #happywifehappylife #groceryshopping #happymondays #groceryshopping pic.twitter.com/k1nAAFuZDc

— C.T. Pan (@ctpangolf) January 27, 2020

Also, pay up at the end. ? https://t.co/ojLON1xv2R

— C.T. Pan (@ctpangolf) January 28, 2020

Looks like someone learned his lesson from that time he knocked Michelle’s caddying skills on national TV.

THIS AND THAT

The Players Championship’s purse will increase $2.5 million to $15 million total with $2.7 million of that going to the winner. And no one even batted an eye. . . . Phil Mickelson missed his second consecutive cut to start a calendar year for the first time in his career. And at No. 86 in the Official World Golf Ranking, he might have a few more holes on his schedule since he currently isn’t qualified for a slew of big events. . . . Speaking of the OWGR, Jordan Spieth dropped out of the top 50 for the first time since his rookie season. That historic 2015 campaign seems like it was decades ago. . . . The Premier Golf League, a possible PGA Tour competitor, is drawing interest from players, including Rory McIlroy. The bad news for Phil and Jordan? These would be 48-man events. Ouch. . . . And finally, it looks like I need to find a new hiding spot for my fruit snacks. . .

She’s a crafty one. And like Kobe, I’m a proud girl dad. RIP Kobe and GiGi.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

What’s the golf equivalent of Kobe’s 81-point game?

How fast could I play 18 holes walking?

How much should I bet on Brooks Koepka?

The post Tiger Woods’ new toy, Jon Rahm’s brutal leader board gaffe, and a possible good omen for Brooks Koepka appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Instead of complaining, Bryan thanked the unnamed airline and treated himself to a spa day:

Bags didn’t make it to Mexico with me yesterday…..

Don’t mind me while I have a spa day ?

This is a legitimate thank you tweet to the unnamed airline for losing my bags pic.twitter.com/FgTqAlT3y6

— Wesley Bryan (@wesleybryangolf) November 6, 2018

Well played, Wes. Of course, it helps when you’re staying at a resort in Mexico on a perfect day, but still, that’s a pretty chill response by the winner of the 2017 RBC Heritage.

Bryan is in Playa del Carmen for this week’s Mayakoba Golf Classic. If he ever gets his golf clubs, that is. If not, you can probably find him by the pool.

The post This PGA Tour pro is much more chill about an airline losing his golf clubs than you would be appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Not only did 64 watch collectors from around the world enjoy playing alongside 16 of Audemars Piguet’s big name golf ambassadors at famed Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, they were then invited back to Henrik Stenson’s gaff for a slap up dinner.

The special treat included a visit of the 2016 Open Champion’s trophy room which, according to the AP’s official media release, “put a smile on everybody’s face.” We bet.

Here’s a Instagram post from the Iceman marking the occasion with New Zealand trick shot artist Tania Tare:

Great day @lakenonagcc with @audemarspiguetgolf and @taniatare63 the trick shot girl. #APGolf

A post shared by Henrik Stenson (@henrikstenson) on May 7, 2018 at 10:58pm PDT

The 28-year-old Kiwi, who was unveiled as the latest AP golf ambassador at the event, was playing the mutual appreciation game on social media, pictured alongside golf trickster turned PGA Tour star Wesley Bryan, another newbie to the AP “Dream Team”:

@audemarspiguetgolf with a little side of @18birdiesapp ?? @meandmygolf @wesleybryangolf #APInvitational #APFamily #HenrikStensonsHouse ?

A post shared by Tania Tare (@taniatare63) on May 7, 2018 at 4:39pm PDT

That’s a hashtag – #HenrikStensonsHouse – most of us can only ever dream of.  The New Zealander is certainly living the dream. If you’ve never heard of Tare, try refreshing your social feeds or simply enjoy a small taster of her incredible skills here:

Proud to be part of the #APFamily ?? #APGolf @audemarspiguetgolf

A post shared by Tania Tare (@taniatare63) on May 7, 2018 at 6:20am PDT

We can’t hit a hybrid that straight off the deck, let along juggle off the crown of such a tiny clubhead. Actually, if we’re honest, we can’t even juggle with a wedge.

Here’s something else we can’t do with a wedge:

Sundayze at Troon! ? #pumagolf #cobragolf #oncoregolf #18birdiesapp

A post shared by Tania Tare (@taniatare63) on Apr 22, 2018 at 6:44pm PDT

It’s little wonder AP signed Tare up. Among the other big names enjoying Stenson’s hospitality were 2016 Masters winner Danny Willett, Vijay Singh and Miguel Angel Jiménez, Englishmen Ian Poulter and Tyrrell Hatton, Argentinian Emiliano Grillo, Americans Peter Uihlein and Bud Cauley, as well as new ambassador’s Xander Schauffele and Bryan.

Related: Meet Euro honed PGA Tour rookie Peter Uihlein

Audemars Piguet has built an impressive stable of PGA Tour and European Tour stars. In addition to the members present in Orlando, Patrick Cantlay, Darren Clarke, Paul Dunne, Branden Grace, Andrew Johnston, Renato Paratore, Andy Sullivan, Matt Wallace, Lee Westwood and Bernd Wiesberger complete the AP  “Golf Dream Team”.

Audemars Piguet ambassadors (from left to right): Danny Willett, Vijay Singh, Xander Schauffele, Andy Proudman, Miguel Angel Jimenez, François Bennahmias (Audemars Piguet CEO), Piers Ward, Tyrrell Hatton, Ian Poulter, Bud Cauley, Tania Tare, Curtis Luck, Wesley Bryan, Emiliano Grillo, Henrik Stenson, Marty Dou, Peter Uihlein.

The post Audemars Piguet Golf Day ends up in a party at Henrik’s house appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The post Wes Bryan’s advice after his lightning-fast round: “Quick, decisive decision-making helps a lot” appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Alex Myers
On a day when Wesley Bryan took less than 90 minutes to play 18 holes, Sergio Garcia required a 20-minute ruling to play one shot at the BMW Championship. But playing partner Phil Mickelson handled the lengthy delay — made worse by the fact the two were on their final hole — well, because he’s the first to admit he’s had a few, um, adventures on the golf course.

“I was thinking this is what my playing partners go through most of the time,” Mickelson told reporters after. “I was just on other end of it. I’ve been on his side of it a lot.”

But still, Garcia’s situation was rather unusual. After finding a hazard guarding the 18th green at Conway Farms with his second shot, he (eventually) got to take a drop — still in the hazard — due to the grandstand affecting his backswing. Even the drop took time, though, with Garcia’s ball bouncing forward and into the creek both times before he was allowed to place it on the rocks. Garcia then hit his third shot off another grandstand, but got up and down to save par and punch his ticket to this week’s Tour Championship.

“I was feeling bad for the people behind me and for Phil because they were waiting but it was an important moment and I wanted to make sure to — I would do what was best for me at that time and obviously within the rules and that’s what we did,” said Garcia, who shot 69 to finish T-12. “I obviously didn’t want to do anything wrong either. So, it was important to get it done the right way.”

Here’s how it, well, some of it unfolded:

Garcia found out after that a bogey would have been enough to advance. It was an extra shot to play with that Mickelson could have used, but after lipping out an eagle chip on 18 — after chipping in for eagle on 15 — the five-time major champ’s PGA Tour season came to an end. Well, again, eventually.

“I needed that extra 38 minutes to read that putt,” Mickelson cracked.

The post Why Phil Mickelson wasn’t upset with Sergio Garcia’s 20-minute ruling at the BMW Championship appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Stephen Hennessey
PGA Tour players have gotten a bad rap for playing slow . . . and most of the time it’s warranted. It’s not uncommon for a final round of a tour event to push five-and-a-half hours. But hey, if it’s a three-ball and there are millions on the line, wouldn’t you take your time?

On Sunday, Wesley Bryan did his best effort to disprove that notion that tour players play slow by finishing his final round realllly fast. And the PGA Tour rookie played well while doing so.

The winner of the RBC Heritage played in an hour and 28 minutes and shot a final-round 69 playing as a single in the first group off on Sunday at Conway Farms Golf Club. For those sharp minds, that’s slightly more than a stroke per minute — and five minutes per hole.

.@wesleybryangolf's final round at @BMWchamps

• 1 hour, 29 minutes
• 14 pars
• 3 birdies
• 1 bogey
• 69 pic.twitter.com/pKyl16Ayes

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 17, 2017

How about this exchange between him and his caddie? This is how you play in less than 90 minutes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BZJR67ih1OS/

We can all learn some lessons in playing faster from Bryan. He holed out with his wedge when he had tap-ins. He removed the pin and replaced it by himself on occasions, so his caddie could conserve time (and energy) by heading to the next hole.

We can all learn some lessons in playing faster from Bryan.

Blink and you might miss it.@wesleybryangolf's final round at the @BMWchamps was crazy fast. ?? pic.twitter.com/SqUBqChL8B

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 17, 2017

And Wes posted this tweet after finishing his round.

https://twitter.com/wesleybryangolf/status/909417014627901440

The group behind Bryan? They hadn’t even gotten to the ninth hole yet. Bryan’s wife, Liz, said a marshal at Conway Farms took her from hole to hole in a cart — because she couldn’t keep up with her hubby’s pace. Most impressive? Bryan shot his best round of the week on Sunday. Impressive stuff!

We saw Kevin Na, who has a reputation for being one of those slow players, complete his final round at last year’s Tour Championship in less than two hours. And Na shot a 70 while doing so.

Kevin Na is teeing it up alone today.

He played the front nine in one hour. pic.twitter.com/0Hq3ov15PG

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) September 25, 2016

Now we all have some goals to try to accomplish next time we’re playing as a single with the entire course to ourselves. Thanks for proving tour players can pick up the pace, guys. Bryan finished his final round before more than half of the field would even tee off. And he got a pretty good work out in for the day.

The post Wesley Bryan proves PGA Tour players can hustle, playing final round at the BMW in an hour and 28 minutes appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

After a week off, the march to the Tour Championship begins again at the BMW Championship, where the process of cutting the original 125 golfers down to the final 30 endures its biggest slice.

Seventy players will tee it up at Conway Farms outside of Chicago this week, each playing with different goals in mind in this no-cut tournament. Forty are simply trying to find a way to keep this from being their final 72 holes of the 2016-’17 season. Among those are several marquee players, including the defending FedEx Cup champion, Rory McIlroy.

Others have more than survival in mind but rather are jockeying for position to claim this year’s Cup or to lock up other end-of-the-year honors. Get inside the top 30, and you earn a spot into all four majors in 2018. (How’s that for incentive?) Get inside the top five, and you control your own destiny next week at East Lake and the Tour Championship in your quest to win the FedEx Cup title and tis accompanying $10 million bonus.

To these ends, we’ve identified the seven tour pros, listed alphabetically, who are playing with the most on the line at this week’s event, identifying their motivations and what’s at stake when play resumes on Thursday.

[divider] [/divider]

Wesley Bryan
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 37

Sam Greenwood

Bryan’s year was made when he won the RBC Heritage in April, but it would become extra special if he could also claim Rookie of the Year honors. None of the 29 rookies on tour are inside the top 30 on the FedEx Cup rankings, with Mackenzie Hughes (31) and Xander Schauffele (32) both slightly ahead of Bryan. But while all three have a victory to their credit, the former trick-shot artist has the most top-10 finishes (five). If he could pull ahead of his rookie rivals and sneak into a start at East Lake, the award is as good as his.

[divider] [/divider]

Jason Day
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 28

Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

Day is in the midst of salvaging his 2017 season with a T-9 finish at the PGA Championship and a T-6 at The Northern Trust, pushing him inside the top 30 on the FedEx Cup points list for the first time all year. A T-25 showing at the Dell Technologies Championship moved him up to 28th. If Day can make the cut at Conway Farms, he’ll have wrapped up a spot in the Tour Championship for the seventh time in eight years.

[divider] [/divider]

Rickie Fowler
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 6

Warren Little/Getty Images

Of course, Fowler has nothing to worry about when it comes to qualifying for the Tour Championship. However, he is one of the ones trying to elbow his way into the top five of the points list after BMW so that he can control his own fate when he gets to East Lake. While Fowler went another summer without claiming his first major victory (and close pals Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas each grabbed one), the FedEx Cup title would be a reasonable substitute.

[divider] [/divider]

Sergio Garcia
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 34

David Cannon/Getty Images

After his Masters victory in April, many media types pontificated that the Spaniard didn’t need to do much of anything else and the 2017 season would be considered a success. Little did everyone know Garcia would actually work to test the theory. To his credit, Garcia has missed only one cut in eight subsequent PGA Tour starts since his Augusta National glory, but he had just one top-15 finish during that time (which included getting married fiancée Angela Akins). By skipping The Northern Trust to start the FedEx Cup Playoffs, Garcia put more pressure on his performance in Boston and now this week at Conway Farms. If he can’t jump into the top 30 on the FedEx Cup points list, he’ll be AWOL the Tour Championship for the third straight year. Of course, he did win the Masters, so you’ve got to consider his season a success.

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Rory McIlroy
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 51

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The FedEx Cup jinx seems to be alive and well for McIlroy, who could become the seventh of 10 defending champions to fail to make the top 30 the following year, with only one ever finishing in the top 10 while trying to defend his title (Jordan Spieth, ninth in 2016). McIlroy’s hurdles this season—injury, equipment changes, marriage, caddie changes, etc.—have been well-documented. It’s hard to doubt his heart is still into giving this a try; why else would he be playing given his admissions that he’s not 100 percent? But the question is whether his body is going to come along for the ride.

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Phil Mickelson
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 36

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The hard part is over now that Mickelson managed his 11th-hour heroics at the Dell Technologies Championship and rode the T-6 finish to his coveted spot on the Presidents Cup team. Yet, there’s more work to be done for Lefty if he wants to avoid missing the Tour Championship for the third time in four years.

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Gary Woodland
FedEx Cup points list ranking: 29

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Woodland’s 2016-’17 season was a bittersweet one as he had four top-six finishes in his first six starts before the heartbreak his family suffered when his wife lost one of their expected twin babies in the spring during her pregnancy. The other, Jaxson Lynn, was born in June, and Woodland has since been able to pay attention to his golf game again. A good week at Conway Farms will keep him in the top 30 and ensure that he can play in all four majors in 2018 and begin the new year with a favou rable schedule.

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