2021 Fortinet Championship: Groups to Watch Thursday, Friday
By Tim Letcher
The Fortinet Championship tees off on Thursday in California. Stewart Cink won here last year but he will not be back to defend his title. However, there are some former winners of this event in the field this week.
There is some pretty solid talent in this week’s field. Here’s a look at the top few groups to watch the first two days of the event.
More from Pro Golf Now
- Golf Rumors: LIV set to sign Masters Champion in stunning deal
- Fantasy Golf: Grant Thornton Invitational DFS Player Selections
- Brutal return leaves Will Zalatoris looking towards 2024
- Stars You Know at World Champions Cup Starts Thursday at Concession
- Fantasy Golf: An Early Look at the 2024 Masters Tournament
Max Homa, Si Woo Kim, John Rahm – Homa had a very solid season on tour in 2020-21, finishing 35th in the FedEx Cup standings. Just above him in the standings was Kim, who was 34th. Both players narrowly missed out on the Tour Championship. Rahm easily could have been the PGA Tour Player of the Year, but he just missed out.
Cameron Champ, Phil Mickelson, Kevin Tway – Champ was struggling along last season before getting a win near the end of the campaign. He also won here in 2020. Mickelson, if you haven’t heard, won the PGA. In addition, he finished 70th in the FedEx Cup standings last year. Tway, the 2019 winner here, is the third player in the group.
Matt Kuchar, Hideki Matsuyama, Hudson Swafford – Kuchar had one of his worst seasons ever on tour last year, barely making it to the postseason. Matsuyama won the Masters and finished 26th in the final FedEx Cup standings. Swafford had a nice season, finishing 36th in the final FedEx Cup standings.
Ryder Cup: Padraig Harrington Wise to Choose Ian Poulter. dark. Next
Marc Leishman, Brandt Snedeker, Will Zalatoris – Leishman was 42nd in the FedEx Cup standings last year and will be looking for better things this season. Snedeker made it into the playoffs but finished 97th overall. Zalatoris was named the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year after a truly memorable campaign that included a runner-up finish at the Masters.
Emiliano Grillo, Webb Simpson, Michael Thompson – Grillo is poised for a breakout year on tour. Simpson didn’t make the Ryder Cup team but will be one of the better players in this week’s field. Thompson will be looking to catch some magic here this week.