PGA TOUR
- WELLS FARGO CHAMPIONSHIP
- Site: Charlotte, North Carolina.
- Course: Quail Hollow Club. Yardage: 7,521. Par: 71.
- Prize money: $8.1 million. Winner’s share: $1.458 million.
- Television: Thursday-Friday, 2-6 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS).
- Defending champion: Max Homa (2019).
- FedEx Cup leader: Justin Thomas.
Last week: Sam Burns won the Valspar Championship.
Notes: Max Homa had to wait two years for his first PGA Tour title defense because the tournament was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. … The field features 10 of the top 15 in the world, headed by Justin Thomas at No. 2. … Thomas won the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow in 2017. … Jordan Spieth is not playing, meaning he has taken off four weeks since the Masters. … Rory McIlroy slipped to No. 15 globally, his lowest ranking in 11 years. He was off last week, working on his game at home with English swing coach Pete Cowen. …
This is the final week to finish among the top 70 in PGA points (a special PGA Tour money list) to ensure getting into the PGA Championship. … The tournament will move to the TPC Avenel Farms outside Washington next year because Quail Hollow is hosting the Presidents Cup. … Phil Mickelson is playing after missing the cut last week at Innisbrook. He has gone 16 consecutive tournaments outside the top 20. He is No. 115 globally, his lowest ranking since the week of the 1993 PGA Championship won by Paul Azinger.
TOUR CHAMPIONS
Last week: Mike Weir won the Insperity Invitational.
Notes: This is the first of five majors on the PGA Tour Champions. It was canceled last year because of the pandemic. Steve Stricker won his first senior major at the Regions Tradition two years ago. … This is the only senior major not offering an exemption into a PGA Tour event. … Mike Weir is coming off his first win on the PGA Tour Champions. … John Daly is in the field after losing out on a chance to win in Houston last week by hitting the water on the 18th hole when tied for the lead.
Last week, Bernhard Langer moved back to the top of the Charles Schwab Cup standings, overtaking Kevin Sutherland. … It has been ten years since five different players won the five senior majors. The winners in 2011 were Tom Lehman, Tom Watson, Olin Brown, Fred Couples, and Russ Cochran. … Langer will try to extend his senior record with a 12th major. … The tournament was held in Arizona and Oregon until moving to Alabama in 2011. … Jack Nicklaus won this significant four times in seven years.
