Texas Open the final stop before Masters, LPGA goes to LA
Rickie Fowler plays a shot from a bunker on the fifth hole during the second round of the Dell Technologies Match Play Championship golf tournament in Austin, Texas, Thursday, March 23, 2023. Credit: AP/Eric Gay
PGA TOUR
VALERO TEXAS OPEN
Site: San Antonio.
Course: TPC San Antonio (Oaks). Yardage: 7,438. Par: 72.
Prize money: $8.9 million. Winner's share: $1.602 million.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-7 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 1-3:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3:30-6 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2:30-6 p.m. (NBC).
Defending champion: J.J. Spaun.
Taylor Montgomery plays a shot from the rough during the second round of the Dell Technologies Match Play Championship golf tournament in Austin, Texas, Thursday, March 23, 2023. Credit: AP/Eric Gay
FedEx Cup leader: Jon Rahm.
Last week: Sam Burns won the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and Matt Wallace won the Corales Puntacana Championship.
Notes: The final spot in the Masters is being set aside for anyone not already invited who wins the Texas Open. ... Ten players in the field already are in the Masters, including Francesco Molinari. He is in the final year of his five-year exemption from winning the 2018 British Open. ... Adam Schenk is playing for the 11th time in 12 weeks as his wife prepares to have their first child. He was runner-up two weeks ago at the Valspar Championship. ... J.J. Spaun won last year to earn his first trip to the Masters. ... Padraig Harrington returns to the PGA Tour on a sponsor exemption. He made the cut in his previous two tour events. ... Davis Love III is playing his first PGA Tour event since the Wyndham Championship last August. He has not made a cut since the RSM Classic in November 2021. ... Akshay Bhatia received a sponsor exemption. He has special temporary membership. ... The tournament has not gone to a playoff since 2009.
Next week: The Masters.
J.J. Spaun watches his drives on the sixth hole during a round of 16 at the Dell Technologies Match Play Championship golf tournament in Austin, Texas, Saturday, March 25, 2023. Credit: AP/Eric Gay
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LPGA TOUR
DIO IMPLANT LA OPEN
Site: Palos Verdes Estates, California.
Course: Palos Verdes GC. Yardage: 6,447. Par: 71.
Prize money: $1.75 million. Winner's share: $262,500.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 7-9:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 6-9 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Nasa Hataoka.
Race to CME Globe leader: Jin Young Ko.
Last week: Celine Boutier won the LPGA Drive On Championship.
Notes: Wilshire Country Club was the host course last year. Wilshire now will host the tournament that previously was at Palos Verdes. ... The LPGA Tour typically is in Rancho Mirage, California, for the first major of its season. Now it's in Los Angeles, as the first major has moved to Houston in late April under new title sponsorship. ... The field features seven of the top 10 in the world ranking, starting with world No. 1 Lydia Ko. She did not play last week in Arizona. ... U.S. Women's Open champion Minjee Lee, Lexi Thompson and Brooke Henderson are not playing. Lee and Henderson won the tournament when it was held at Wilshire. ... Henderson missed the cut last week in the LPGA Drive On Championship in Arizona. ... Danielle Kang is listed in the field. She withdrew during the first round in Arizona last week with an allergic reaction.
Next tournament: Lotte Championship on April 12-15.
Online: https://www.lpga.com/
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LIV GOLF
LIV GOLF ORLANDO
Site: Orlando, Florida.
Course: Orange County National (Crooked Cat). Yardage: 7,297. Par: 71.
Prize money: $25 million. Winner's share: $4 million. Winning team share: $3 million.
Television: Friday, 1-6 p.m. (The CW App); Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (CW Network).
Defending champion: New event.
Points leader: Charles Howell III.
Last tournament: Danny Lee won LIV Golf Tucson.
Notes: The timing of the tournament gives players a chance to compete the week before the Masters. ... The 48-man field has 18 players who are playing in the Masters, six of the past champions. ... This will be the second golf tournament in Orlando in the last five weeks, following the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. ... Orange County formerly was the site of the PGA Tour's qualifying tournament. Dustin Johnson and Brendan Steele each played there in 2007. Johnson earned his PGA Tour card. ... Charles Howell III, who won the LIV event at Mayakoba to start the season, is one of four players who have finished in the top 10 in each of the first two events. The others are Steele, Carlos Ortiz and Peter Uihlein. ... This is the second LIV Golf event in Florida. It ended its first season last year with the team championship at Doral outside Miami. ... Dustin Johnson has finished out of the top 10 in both LIV Golf events this year.
Next tournament: LIV Golf Australia on April 21-23.
Online: https://www.livgolf.com/
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AUGUSTA NATIONAL GOLF CLUB
AUGUSTA NATIONAL WOMEN'S AMATEUR
Site: Augusta, Georgia.
Course: Champions Retreat (Yardage: 6,410. Par: 72) and Augusta National GC (Yardage: 6,310. Par: 72)
Television: Wednesday-Thursday, 1:30-3:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, noon to 3:30 p.m. (NBC).
Defending champion: Anna Davis.
Last year: Anna Davis became the youngest champion at age 16 when her 3-under 69 gave her a one-shot victory.
Notes: Anna Davis is the first winner to return to defend her title. ... Tsubasa Kajitani of Japan returns to the ANWA for the first time since she won the 2021 title. ... The field is the strongest one yet, primarily because the LPGA Tour's first major has moved from the weekend before the Masters to late April. It is led by Rose Zhang, an NCAA champion and U.S. Women's Amateur champion. The Stanford player is No. 1 in the world among female amateurs. ... Eila Galitsky of Thailand won the Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific to earn the final spot in the 72-player field. ... The ANWA will be represented by 20 countries. Japan has 10 players, the most of any country outside the United States. ... The winner gets an exemption to the U.S. Women's Open and U.S. British Open. ... Davis has made five cuts in the seven LPGA events she has played since winning last year.
Online: https://www.anwagolf.com/index.html
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KORN FERRY TOUR
ASTARA CHILE CLASSIC
Site: Santiago, Chile.
Course: Prince of Wales CC. Yardage: 6,830. Par: 71.
Prize money: $1 million. Winner's share: $180,000.
Television: None.
Defending champion: New tournament.
Points leader: David Skinns.
Last tournament: David Skinns won the Club Car Championship.
Next tournament: Veritex Bank Championship on April 13-16.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour
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EUROPEAN TOUR
Last week: Nick Bachem won the Jonsson Workwear Open and Sam Burns won the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
Next week: The Masters.
Race to Dubai leader: Victor Perez.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
Last week: David Toms won The Galleri Classic.
Next tournament: Invited Celebrity Classic on April 21-23.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: David Toms.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions
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OTHER TOURS
Epson Tour: Casino Del Sol Classic, Sewailo GC, Tucson, Arizona. Previous winner: Andrea Lee. Online: https://www.epsontour.com/
Japan Golf Tour: Token Homemate Cup, Token Tado CC (Nagoya), Mie, Japan. Defending champion: Jinichiro Kozuma. Online: https://www.jgto.org/en/
Challenge Tour: The Challenge, Karnataka Golf Association Club, Bangalore, India. Defending champion: New event. Online: https://www.europeantour.com/challenge-tour/
Sunshine Tour: Limpopo Championship, Euphoria Golf & Lifestyle Estate, Mookgophong, South Africa. Defending champion: Mateusz Gradecki. Online: https://sunshinetour.com/
PGA Tour of Australasia: The National Tournament, The National GC (Moonah), Cape Schank, Australia. Defending champion: Derek Ackerman. Online: https://pga.org.au/tournament/
PGA Tour Latinoamerica: JHSF Brazil Open, Fazenda Boa Vista, Porto Feliz, Brazil. Defending champion: Jaime Lopez Rivarola. Online: https://www.pgatour.com/latinoamerica
Japan LPGA: Yamaha Ladies Open Katsuragi, Katsuragi GC (Yamana), Shizuoka, Japan. Defending champion: Mao Saigo. Online: https://www.lpga.or.jp/en/
