Majors loom: Match Play in Texas for men, LPGA in California

Published Mar. 22, 2022 11:23 a.m. ET

Associated Press

INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF PGA TOURS

WORLD GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS-DELL MATCH PLAY

Site: Austin, Texas.

Course: Austin CC. Yardage: 7,108. Par: 71.

Prize money: $12 million. Winner's share: $2.16 million.

Television: Wednesday-Friday, 2-8 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2-6 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-7 p.m. (NBC).

Defending champion: Billy Horschel.

Format: 16 groups of four players in round-robin play. The winner of each group advances to the knockout stage of 18-hole matches.

Last WGC: Abraham Ancer won the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.

Notes: This is the sixth straight time the Match Play is at Austin Country Club. ... The Masters will take the top 50 in the world ranking after this week, with tournaments in Texas, the Dominican Republic and Qatar. ... Twelve players in the 64-man field are not yet eligible for the Masters. ... Jason Day is the only international winner the five previous times in Austin. ... The only championship match that reached the 18th hole in Austin was Dustin Johnson beating Jon Rahm in 2017. ... The 16 groups are composed of one player from Nos. 1-16 in the world (A player), one from 17-32 (B), one from 33 to 48 (C) and one from 49-64 (D). Since the event went to groups in 2015, someone from the A group has won three times, the B group once and the C group twice. Gary Woodland in 2015 is the only player from a D group to reach the championship match. ... Pebble Beach winner Tom Hoge is among 11 players in the Match Play for the first time. ... The field features players from 15 countries. Half of the field is from the U.S.

Next WGC: To be determined.

Online:

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LPGA TOUR

JTBC CLASSIC

Site: Carlsbad, California.

Course: Aviara GC. Yardage: 6,609. Par: 72.

Prize money: $1.5 million. Winner's share: $225,000.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 9-11 p.m. (Golf Channel-tape delay). Saturday-Sunday, 5-8 p.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Inbee Park.

Race to CME Globe leader: Danielle Kang.

Last tournament: Nanna Koerstz Madsen won the Honda LPGA Thailand.

Notes: The LPGA Tour returns from the two-stop Asia swing to start its quick road to the first major of the year. ... The tournament dates to 2010 and has a new title sponsor this year. It previously was known as the Kia Classic. ... Nelly Korda, the No. 2 player in the world, is not playing. She is recovering after being diagnosed with a blood clot in her arm. ... Jin Young Ko at No. 1 in the world leads eight of the top 10 players at Aviara. Also not playing is U.S. Women's Open champion Yuka Saso. ... Inbee Park has not won on the LPGA Tour since her victory at Aviara last year. ... Juli Inkster is in the field, playing on a Hall of Fame exemption. ... No one has won the tournament more than once since it began in 2010. ... Cristie Kerr (2015) and Mirim Lee (2017) share the tournament record at Aviara at 268. The Chevron Championship is next week at Mission Hills, the first major of the year and the last time it will be held in Rancho Mirage. ... Five players from five countries — U.S., New Zealand, Ireland, South Korea and Denmark — have won the five LPGA events.

Next week: Chevron Championship.

Online:

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PGA TOUR

CORALES PUNTACANA CHAMPIONSHIP

Site: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

Course: Corales GC. Yardage: 7,670. Par: 72.

Prize money: $3.7 million. Winner's share: $666,000.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 2-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Joel Dahmen.

FedEx Cup leader: Scottie Scheffler.

Last week: Sam Burns won the Valspar Championship.

Notes: The highest-ranked player in this opposite-field event is Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark. He would have to win to have a mathematical chance of getting into the top 50, though that would be unlikely with greater points available at Match Play. This is the final week before the Masters takes the top 50 in the world. ... The winner is exempt into the PGA Championship but not the Masters. ... Hojgaard and his twin brother, Rasmus, are in the field. They won in consecutive weeks on the European tour last year. ... Joel Dahmen picked up his first career PGA Tour victory last year. He was No. 81 in the world when he won. The other three winners in the Dominican Republic were outside the top 200 — Brice Garnett (214), Graeme McDowell (257) and Hudson Swafford (345) ... The field includes every champion in the short history of the event, including Nate Lashley and Dominic Bozelli when it was a Korn Ferry Tour event.

Next week: Valero Texas Open.

Online:

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EUROPEAN TOUR

COMMERCIAL BANK QATAR MASTERS

Site: Doha, Qatar.

Course: Doha GC. Yardage: 7,401. Par: 72.

Prize money: $2 million. Winner's share: $333,333.

Television: Thursday, 5-10 a.m. (Golf Channel); Friday, 7-10 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 7-9:30 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 5-9:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Antoine Rozner.

DP World Tour points leader: Viktor Hovland.

Last week: Shaun Norris won the Steyn City Championship.

Notes: This is the final week to move into the top 50 in the world and be invited to the Masters. Dean Burmester (64) is the only one with a mathematical chance if he wins. Shaun Norris chose not to enter after his victory in Steyn City moved him to No. 62. ... The Qatar Masters began in 1998 as one of two European tour events in the United Arab Emirates. This year it is among six UAE events on the schedule. ... Because of lingering travel restrictions from the pandemic, the tournament was moved out of the Middle East swing. It now is held opposite the WGC-Dell Match Play, which has the leading 64 players from the world ranking as of last week. ... Antoine Rozner's victory last year enabled him to get into the Match Play. He will be back to defend in Qatar. ... The field includes Guido Migliozzi of Italy, who is eligible for the Masters through his tie for fourth in the U.S. Open last year at Torrey Pines. ... Paul Lawrie in 1999 is the only player to win the Qatar Masters and a major in the same year.

Next tournament: The Masters.

Online:

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KORN FERRY TOUR

LAKE CHARLES CHAMPIONSHIP

Site: Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Course: Country Club at Golden Nugget. Yardage: 6,940. Par: 71.

Prize money: $750,000. Winner's share: $135,000.

Television: None.

Defending champion: New event.

Points leader: Carl Yuan.

Last week: Carl Yuan won the Chitimacha Louisiana Open.

Next week: Club Car Championship at The Landings Club.

Online:

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OTHER TOURS

Epson Tour: IOA Championship, Morongo GC at Tukwet Canyon, Beaumont, California. Defending champion: Sophie Hausmann. Online:

Asian Tour: The DGC Open, Delhi GC, New Delhi. Defending champion: New event. Online:

Ladies European Tour: Joburg Ladies Open, Modderfontein GC, Johannesburg, South Africa. Defending champion: Cassandra Hall. Online:

PGA Tour Latinoamerica: Termas de Rio Hondo Invitational, Rio Hondo GC, Rio Hondo, Argentina. Defending champion: Alejandro Tosti. Online:

Sunshine Tour and Challenge Tour: SDC Open, Zebula Golf Estate and Elements Private Golf Reserve, Randburg, South Africa. Defending champion: New event. Online:

Japan LPGA: AXA Ladies Golf Tournament, UMK CC, Miyazaki, Japan. Defending champion: Eri Okayama. Online:

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