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Dean & Deluca Invitational 2017: 5 groups to watch in Rounds 1 & 2

By Luke Norris

Mar 4, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Jordan Spieth gets a nudge from Zach Johnson as he walks across Spieth's tee box during the second round at TPC Blue Monster at Trump National Doral. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Jordan Spieth gets a nudge from Zach Johnson as he walks across Spieth's tee box during the second round at TPC Blue Monster at Trump National Doral. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sam Saunders
Apr 14, 2017; Hilton Head, SC, USA; Sam Saunders studies the green of the ninth hole during the second round of the RBC Heritage golf tournament at Harbour Town Golf Links. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports /

5. Jazz Janewattananond, Martin Piller, Sam Saunders

Round 1: 10th tee, 8:39 a.m.

Round 2: 1st tee, 1:39 p.m.

Yep, I’m picking this group because of a name. Come on, this guy’s name is Jazz. Okay, his real name is Atiwit Janewattananod and if you’ve never heard of him, there’s probably a good reason for that. The Dean & DeLuca Invitational will actually be his PGA TOUR debut. Just 21 years of age, Jazz spends the majority of his time on the Asian Tour and does have a win to his credit after emerging victorious at the Bashundhara Bangladesh Open earlier this year. He also won the Mahasamutr Masters in Thailand on the MENA Golf Tour earlier this month and the 218th-ranked golfer in the world, who made his first cut on the Asian Tour at 14, is ready to bring his talents to the U.S. He finished 6th at the Thailand Open in his most recent start.

But Jazz isn’t the only man in this group with something to his name. The casual golf fan also may not be familiar with the name Sam Saunders but he’s got golf greatness in his blood as the 29-year-old just happens to be the grandson of the late, great Arnold Palmer. Saunders hasn’t had the greatest 2017, missing eight cuts in the 14 events he’s played, including his last three, but he did have a nice stretch earlier this year, finishing in a tie for 5th at the Puerto Rico Open, a tie for 20th at the Shell Houston Open and a tie for 11th at the RBC Heritage. Saunders is currently ranked 317th in the world.

Rounding out this trio is Martin Piller, a Texas native who currently spends most of his time on the Web.com Tour after struggling on the PGA TOUR last season. Piller missed eight consecutive cuts to finish his season and has also missed eight of the last 12 cuts in Web.com events. His last made cut on the PGA Tour was actually right here at the Dean & DeLuca Invitational one year ago. Piller finished sixth that week, which is why he’s here as the top 15 and ties make it into the field, and he has to be hoping for another good showing this week. Once ranked as high as 141st in the world, he’s dropped to 457th.

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