PGA Tour: Jordan Spieth Wins Dean and Deluca Invitational Heading into The Memorial

Beginning the forth round with a one-shot lead at the Dean and Deluca Invitational, Jordan Spieth finished in style to seal a three-shot win over Harris English that marks his first-ever professional win in his home state.  This win not only helps boolster Speith's much needed confidence heading into this coming week's Memorial Tournament but also strengthens his hold on his OWGR #2 position. “It’s really special. Had some close calls, even here in the past,” Spieth said. “Fort Worth was the first one. This is a very special place. This tournament gave me a champions’ exemption back in 2013 when I was searching for exemptions. They gave it to me before I even had status, so I actually owe a lot to this event, and it’s very special to me.” The victory is Spieth’s eighth of his burgeoning pro career, and he now joins Jason Day and Adam Scott as the only players with multiple wins this season on the PGA Tour, having won the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in January. “Actually at this point last year we had two wins, so we’re kind of right on track,” he said. “Obviously we had a major last year and almost one this year, but things seem to be kind of back on track, in contention three of the last four events, and that’s the way we’ve tried to keep on looking at it.”  With all eyes now focused on the "meeting" at Jack's place - The Memorial - just how will this win enhance Speith's competitiveness against Jason Day and Rory McIlroy? Share your thoughts with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

Byron Nelson Classic: Garcia Wins While Spieth Slips Further into Dismay

Spain's Sergio Garcia is closing in on the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking after his first  PGA Tour win in nearly four years. Garcia outlasted Brooks Koepka in a playoff to win the AT&T Byron Nelson, and jumped three spots in the rankings to No. 12. It equals his best ranking of the year, which came after a runner-up finish at the Honda Classic in March. Koepka also made a jump after his runner-up in Dallas, moving up three spots to No. 16. Matt Kuchar, who finished alone in third, also rose three spots to No. 20.  By contrast Jordan Spieth shot +4 over par in the final round on Sunday to drop from co-leader after three rounds to T18 when the tournament finished. Moreover, Spieth's grip on the OWGR #2 position is at risk to Rory McIlroy (details to follow on Tuesday).  What does this win portend for Garcia's performance for the balance of the 2016 season - PGA, European PGA, Olympic and Ryder Cup)? Share your comments with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

PGA Tour: Byron Nelson Classic - Round 2 Co-Leaders Cauley, Koepka and Spieth

With second round place at the Byron Nelson Classic nearing completion, Bud Cauley, Brooks Koepka and Jordan Spieth are tied for the lead at -11 under par. This is the first time Jordan Spieth has been na leader in several weeks and may bode well as he eyes the Memorial Tournament at Jack's place in two weeks. On Thursday, it was just the opposite. Spieth shot a 6-under 64 on a course that hasn’t always been kind to him. In the process, he took one big first step to fulfilling his dream of winning his hometown event, the AT&T Byron Nelson. Trying to beat the darkness caused by a 2-1/2 rain delay to start the day, Spieth managed his way around the TPC Four Seasons Resort course despite some balky iron play at times. The 64 ties for his lowest round in this event and puts him just one shot off the lead shared by Sergio Garcia, Danny Lee and Johnson Wagner. “I got of the most out of the round -- which is what I was looking for last week that I just couldn't get,” Spieth said. Thursday’s round started when Spieth holed out from the intermediate rough for birdie on the par-4 first, an indication that maybe he was due for some good fortune after failing to take advantage of prime scoring conditions in the first two rounds last week at TPC Sawgrass. Another indication that he had put his troubles of last week behind him came in the form of a couple of mid-range putts – a 13-footer at nine for birdie and another 13-footer at 14 for a bounce-back birdie after his lone bogey of the round at the par-3 13th. Can Spieth hold a share of the lead on Saturday? Let us know your predictions here at the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

Olympics - Update: How to Obtain Spectator Tickets

Golf is making its first appearance at the Olympics since 1904. You can catch it at the Summer 2016 Olympics in Rio de janero, Brazil, however, you will have to act quickly. This is sure to be one of the hottest events of the Olympics, as golf fans have been eagerly awaiting this return and requesting it for decades. We are sure to see some of the golfing greats show up and represent their countries, and an international golfing event of this magnitude hasn't been see in a long time. The event is set to feature both men and women's events, so there will be a number of games to see. If you want to make sure that you are there for each game, then you will need to buy your tickets right away. These tickets are sure to be a hot commodity.  And you can be there for that historic moment, but only if you act quickly. Tickets for this event are sure to be sold out in short time. You want to be sure that you have yours purchased right here before that happens, otherwise you will miss out.Tickets for men's golf are $53 per day for Thursday-Saturday and $106 for the Sunday final round. Visit Safe Tickets for complete details. Will golf's return to the Olympic stage be a major success? Share your comments with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

PGA Tour: Jason Day Wins The Players Championship - Extends His OWGR #1 Position

Jason Day won The Players Championship by four strokes yesterday adding yet another victory to his resume while also extending his Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) as the world's best male golfer over Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy. Fueled by a course record-tying performance in Round 1, Jason Day went wire-to-wire and defeated the best field in golf to earn the fifth Players Championship title by an Australian. Day padded his lead atop the Official World Golf Ranking, as his seventh win in his last 17 starts now has him 2.47 points ahead of world No. 2 Jordan Spieth. It's a wide enough gap that, even if Spieth should win both the AT&T Byron Nelson and Dean & Deluca Invitational in the next two weeks, Day would still be No. 1 when they tee it up next month at the Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament. Day has to be considered the odds-on favorite for the US Open title as well as an Olympic medalist in August. Share your comments on Day's fate for the balance of the 2015-2016 season with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

The Players - Update: Jason Day Leads By a Single Stroke

With Round 2 play in-progress at TPC Sawgrass OWGR #1 Jason Day leads this elite field of players by one stroke, currently sitting at -11 under par.  The game’s best giddily paraded around the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course Thursday morning with more smiles, back slaps and fist pumps than we’re accustomed to seeing around here.The Players Championship was more Fun House than House of Horrors, even for the afternoon wave. It played more like the second CareerBuilder Challenge of the season than the fifth major. Somewhere, Pete Dye must have been grinding his teeth. The famed architect watched Jason Day go record low (20 under) for 72 holes at the PGA Championship last summer on his Whistling Straits design, and watched him equal the Stadium Course Thursday record with a 63. “Today was the most gettable I’ve ever seen it,” said Justin Rose, who shot 65. “I was surprised to see it so soft because there hasn’t been a drop of rain all week.” There were 12 scores of 66 or better, the most in any single round since The Players Championship moved to TPC Sawgrass in 1982. “Today was the day you had to get it,” Bill Haas said after posting a 65. Dye’s course can be a maddening puzzle for pros to figure out, with its deceptive angles, optical illusions and hidden trouble. Dye had them scratching their heads again Thursday, but this time players were trying to figure out how their games suddenly came together here. Can Jason Day Hhold his slim lead heading into the weekend? And can Jordan Spieth regain contend by regaining some of his lost luster? Send your predictions to the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

Olympics - Golf Countdown to Rio: Player Qualification System

Golf's historic return to the Olympics this August will include 60 men and 60 women players from countries around the world. Based upon the Olympic Golf Ranking points earned between July 14, 2014 through July 11, 2016. The four highest ranked players from each country will be considered for Olympic play. Once these players are determined then qualification defaults to the top 60 players in the Olympic Golf Rankings ... not to be confused with the Official World Golf Rankings. PGA and LPGA tour players are highly focused to earn a choice spot on their country's team. For example, the current US men's qualifiers include Jordan Spieth, Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson. Which other players from your own country will make it into the Olympic field? Share your comments with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

PGA Tour: Hahn Defeats Castro in Playoff to Win Wells Fargo Championship

James Hahn won a playoff at the Wells Fargo Championship despite entering off a string of eight straight missed cuts. So he and his caddie, Mark Urbanek, sat down at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and had a heart-to-heart. They both knew Hahn was a better player than that. He needed to believe in himself again. That's how quickly things can change. The victory was Hahn's second on the PGA TOUR and boosted him from 120th to 26th in the FedExCup entering this week's PLAYERS Championship. "The mind is a powerful thing and it was going bad for a while," Hahn recalled. "Just didn't have the confidence, didn't believe in myself. I felt like I was putting in the work but wasn't getting any reward for it, so it made me not want to put in as much work because it's not gratifying. "You're playing bad and you're missing cuts and there's nothing funny about that." As a result, he jumped from No. 134 in the world rankings to No. 55, a new career high. Hahn's second career win also took him to No. 18 on the U.S. Ryder Cup points list, ahead of the likes of Kevin Na, Jimmy Walker and Ryan Moore. Roberto Castro, who lost to Hahn in the playoff at Quail Hollow, moved up 160 spots to No. 122 in the latest world rankings. Zach Johnson didn't play last week, and as a result he dropped to No. 7 in the Ryder Cup race - passed by Rickie Fowler and Phil Mickelson, both of whom finished T-4 in Charlotte. Mickelson's result, which came after a Sunday 66, helped him jump three spots to No. 17 in the world rankings. What does the future hold for the young Hahn with three majors, the FedEx Cup, the Olympics and Ryder Cup looming on the horizon? Share your comments with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

Olympics - Golf Update: A Look at the New Golf Course

Developing the 2016 Olympics Golf Course may be the biggest challenge of American Gill Hanse's career. Nonetheless, after overcoming great odds on 9 March, nine Brazilian golfers took part in the Aquece Rio Golf Challenge in the Barra di Tijuca area of Rio de Janeiro to inaugurate the new par 71, 6934 yard course that will host the first Olympic golf competition in 112 years. The Olympic golf course has been built at Reserva de Marapendi in Barra da Tijuca, the district that will contain the largest number of Rio 2016 Olympic Games venues. It will be a unique Olympic Games venue, located approximately nine kilometres from the Athletes’ Village and seven kilometres from the Main Press Centre (MPC) and the International Broadcast Centre (IBC), South of Avenida das Americas and North of Lagoa de Marapendi. After the 2016 Olympic Games, the course will be used as a public facility with the chief purpose of promoting golf in Brazil and the globe, representing one of the most important Olympic Games legacies for sport development in the country. Share your thoughts about the Gill Hanse design and development with the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/

PGA Zurich Classic: Brian Stuard Wins Three-Man Playoff

The young Brian Stuard won his first PGA Tour title on the second hole of a three-way playoff against Jamie Lovemark and Byeong-Hun An. Jason Day, OWGR #1, finished T5 at -13 under par. The tournament was reduced to 54 holes due to inclement weather. Lovemark was trailing both Stuard and Vegas when the third round resumed Monday morning, but he made a move to the top with three birdies on Nos. 10-13. An was the first to post 15 under, and Lovemark had a chance for the win but three-putted from 90 feet on the final green. Stuard birdied the last to join the playoff, and while An was eliminated on the first extra hole it was Stuard who took the title with a birdie on the second extra hole. The win is the first of his career in his 120th PGA Tour start, and it brings with it a two-year exemption and a spot in the 2017 Masters. There were no changes to the Official World Golf Rankings top 10 player due to this weekend's results. And while there is speculation of Tiger Woods' return at next week's Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in North Carolina all eyes are looking forward to The Players Championship - aka the "fifth major" - and its $10.5m purse the following week. Our advanced player pick for The Players is definitely Jason Day. Send your predictions to the Pro Golf Tour: http://progolftournaments.blogspot.com/