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PGA Tour: Three Weeks of Limited-Field, Star-Studded Events

By Kathlene Bissell

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 05: Phil Mickelson putts on the fourth green during the third round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin on October 5, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 05: Phil Mickelson putts on the fourth green during the third round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin on October 5, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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The PGA TOUR fall season is about to take a major step up in talent, with some of the game’s biggest name’s making the Asian Swing a must-see series.

Starting with the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges in South Korea, the PGA Tour has three weeks of star-filled golf events, all of them in Asia.  One reason these competitions are popular with big stars is that there’s no cut.  That’s particularly important if you are going to spend the money to fly to Asia and stay there for two or three weeks.

Making sure everybody gets a paycheck is one way the Asian Swing of the PGA Tour attracts name golfers.  It’s not quite appearance money, but it has the appearance of being that.

For instance, Brooks Koepka, world No. 1, tees it up this week at the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges, a tournament he has won previously. He’ll be joined by Phil Mickelson, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Ian Poulter and numerous others. Those are players you (and just about everybody else in the golf world) want to watch.

Then, there’s the new MGM Resorts, The Challenge Skins Game with Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy,  Day and Hideki Matsuyama.  In an absolutely hysterical video promoting the event, Matsuyama has some fun with the rest giving them lessons in speaking Japanese.  Warning, there are subtitles!  The video features exactly the kind of things competitors would like to say to Woods, McIlroy and Day if they could.

Hopefully they will all have microphones and needle each other a lot.

https://twitter.com/GOLFTV/status/1181917228385656833?s=20

The Skins Game is a preview to the real attraction of the week, the ZoZo Challenge which also features, Woods, McIlroy, Day, and Matsuyama, as well as Spieth, Adam Scott, Thomas, Poulter and Bubba Watson.

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Both are being played on the same golf course,  Accordia Golf Narashino CC.

Then there’s the first World Golf Championships event of the year, even though it seems like the last one to us because it ends November 3rd.  It’s the WGC-HSBC tournament.

Already committed to tee it up at Sheshan International GC in China are the top four in the world, Koepka, McIlroy, Dustin Johnson and Justin Rose as well as last year’s winner Xander Schauffele. Francesco Molnari and Haotong Li have also signed up to play.

Those who automatically qualify for the HSBC include the top 50 in the world rankings. So do the top 30 in the Race to Dubai and top 30 in last season’s FedEx points.

According to the tournament’s site, Mickelson and Danny Willett are also among the competitors.

For golf fans and viewers in the U.S., this trifecta of tournaments begin at approximately 10 PM Eastern on Golf Channel.  The question is, will you stay up until 2 AM to see how each round finishes?  Or will you set a DVR and catch it later?

Next. How to keep a bad shot from ruining your round. dark

The one plus in the TV scheduling is that the tournaments end Saturday night because over there, it’s already Sunday. It all has to do with the International Date Line.  Don’t ask me to explain it.  That’s above my pay grade. Just make sure you get ready well in advance, because this is the type of golf that you definitely don’t want to miss.

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