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The week ahead in pro golf: PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions head to Texas; LPGA, Korn Ferry off

garry smits, jacksonville florida times-union
·2 min read
Jason Day won the PGA Tour's CJ Cup Byron Nelson last year with a 62 in the final round.
Jason Day won the PGA Tour's CJ Cup Byron Nelson last year with a 62 in the final round.

The PGA Tour heads to Texas for the first of three tournaments in two weeks preceding the season’s next major championship.

While the Tour is near Dallas, the PGA Tour Champions will be in Houston at the former site of the Houston Open.

The LIV Golf League stays on the other side of the globe, going to Singapore after playing in Australia last week. But LIV will have its own presence in Texas next month, playing at the Golf Club of Houston June 7-9.

The other major tours are dark this week. The LPGA is off before a four-week stretch that will include three tournaments in New Jersey and the Korn Ferry Tour takes a two-week break before going to Kansas City, Mo. — apparently, the only way to cool off Tim Widing, who has won the last two events.

PGA TOUR

Event: The CJ Cup Byron Nelson, Thursday-Sunday, TPC Craig Ranch, McKinney, Texas.

At stake: $9.5 million purse ($1,710,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points to the winner.

Defending champion: Jason Day.

TV: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 4-7 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m.); CBS (Saturday-Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).

Area players entered: Tyson Alexander, Bud Cauley, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Ben Griffin, Lanto Griffin, Zach Johnson, Patton Kizzire, Ben Kohles, Ryan McCormick, Keith Mitchell, Andrew Novak, Raul Pereda, Sam Ryder, Greyson Sigg, Jimmy Stanger, Davis Thompson, Carl Yuan.

Notable: Day fired a 62 in the final round and defeated Si Woo Kim and Austin Eckroat by one shot. ... Also in the field are Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim and Will Zalatoris. ... The Tour will play a Signature Event next week at the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, N.C. (with an opposite-field event in Myrtle Beach, S.C.), followed by the PGA Championship at Valhalla in Louisville, Ky., May 16-19.

LIV GOLF LEAGUE

Event: LIV Golf Senatosa, Friday-Sunday, Senatosa Country Club, Singapore.

At stake: $25 million purse ($4 million to the winner).

Defending champion: Talor Gooch.

TV:  CW (Saturday-Sunday 1-6 p.m.

Area players entered: Cameron Smith.

Notable: Gooch defeated Sergio Garcia with a birdie on the first playoff hole to win his second tournament in a row.

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

Event: Insperity Invitational, Friday-Sunday, The Woodlands Country Club, Houston.

At stake: $2.7 million purse ($486,000 to the winner).

Jacksonville native David Duval is one of three First Coast players in this week's PGA Tour Champions event at The Woodlands in Texas to have won the PGA Tour's Houston Open when it was played there.
Jacksonville native David Duval is one of three First Coast players in this week's PGA Tour Champions event at The Woodlands in Texas to have won the PGA Tour's Houston Open when it was played there.

Defending champion: Steven Alker.

TV: Golf Channel (Friday, 12:30-3:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).

Area players entered: David Duval, Fred Funk, Vijay Singh.

Notable: Alker defeated Steve Stricker by four shots. ... Ernie Els, David Toms, Padraig Harrington, Stephen Ames and Retief Goosen lead the field. ... Duval, Funk and Singh all won the PGA Tour’s Houston Open when it was contested at The Woodlands between 1986-2002.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Texas on the tee: PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions play in Lone Star State