There is a terrific tournament on tour this week with the top 15 players in the world and most of the top 50 competing at the World Golf Championships Workday Championship at the Concession. The Concession Golf Club is a course in Brandenton, Florida, a city on the southern west Florida Gulf coast between Tampa and Sarasota. It is a 7,474 yard, Par 72. This WGC Tourney is 1 of 3 this year along with the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play event March 24th-28th at Austin Country Club and the WGC FedEX St. Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind in Memphis, August 5th-8th. This is the start of the Florida Swing. Next week is the Arnie Invitational at Bay Hill Golf Club, then The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. commences March 11-14th with one of the most spectacular fields and tournaments in golf, the “Fifth Major” as the players like to say. It means a ton to those guys, both financially and for legacy. The Players will be followed by the Honda Classic at PGA National, the Champions Course, a Jack Nicklaus design, featuring the vaunted and difficult “Bear Trap,” holes 15, 16 and 17. That takes place March 18-21st. Then the WGC Match Play at Austin CC. followed by the Valero Texas Open April 1-4th, in San Antonio. And then the Masters commences April 8-11th. So some phenomenal golf is forthcoming starting this week.

The Concession Golf Club is a Jack Nicklaus and Tony Jacklin design. Jack seemingly designs most courses throughout the country and they’re all gems. . The Concession name is contributed to Nicklaus conceding a 3 foot par putt to Jacklin on the 18th hole in the 1969 Ryder Cup at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England that guaranteed the first tie in Ryder Cup history. The U.S. still took home the Cup because they had won the competition over Europe 2 years earlier in 1967 at the Champions Club in Houston. It was considered an amazing act of sportsmanship on Jack’s part in a Cup that was ironically characterized by acrimony and a lack of sportsmanship. Per Wiki, Britain’s captain, Eric Brown, had instructed his players not to search for the opposition’s ball if it ended up in the rough. American Ken Still, in the first-day foursomes, had deliberately and regularly stood too close to Britain’s Maurice Bembridge as he was putting. On one of the 4 balls on the second day, both captains had to come out and calm down their respective warring players. Now, that was some serious competition. Too much, most likely. . Sam Snead was the captain of the U.S. team and he was incensed that Nicklaus conceded the putt to Jacklin. Nonetheless, the U.S, retained the Cup and Nicklaus and Jacklin became close friends and designed the Concession course in 2006. Bryson DeChambeau won the 2015 NCAA Championship at the Concession and Bryson, of course, is in the field. Dustin Johnson is the +650 favorite after the Genesis Invitational, won by Max Homa. More on that a little later. Jon Rahm is at +1000, then the next higher tiered players are between +1600 and +2000. Rory and Xander Schauffele are at +1600. Justin Thomas, who was visibly shaken up yesterday after the Woods’ accident, and Patrick Cantlay, are at +1800. DeChambeau, Tony Finau and Tyrrell Hatton all come in at +2000. Rory and JT missed the cut last week at the Genesis. Some other players of note are Viktor Hovland at +2500 and Brooks Koepka at +2800. Koepka at +2800 would seem like a steal as Koepka is on his home turf in Florida. Last week’s winner, Homa ,and Pebble Beach winner Daniel Berger are also in the field. Sungjae Im, who seems to play every week, and that’s phenomenal, is also in the field.

Back to the Genesis, Homa defeated Finau in a playoff. Home hit a wedge on the 72nd hole in regulation to 3 feet and looked to have the tournament closed out on the final hole of the tournament. But he didn’t factor in the break and gagged it. But he held on strongly. After driving his ball against a tree on No.10, the 315 yard par 4, he chipped to the front of the green and 2 putted for par. Finau hit an awesome drive, but his chip landed 7 feet away and he missed his birdie putt., which broke about 2 feet left to right Homa parred 11 and Finau bogeyed it from 14 feet to give Homa the championship. Mike “Brownie” Brown, predicted Homa as his sleeper pick. Great job by Brownie. He picked Rory to win, but still getting it somewhat right is well done. Better than the rest of us. Getting a golf prediction right can be seemingly next to impossible at times, so Brownie did well. An amazing stat about Finau was flashed up by Golf Channel after the tournament. Since the 2016-17 season, the most top ten finishes are Justin at 43, he’s won 12 times, Rahm, at 41 and has won 5 times. DJ, at 38, and he’s won 12 times, and Finau, at 37 with 0 W’s. Finau last won in 2016 at the Puerto Rico Open, his only PGA Tour victory, and has been a runner-up 8 times, including 3 playoff losses and has 21 top 5’s to go along with his 37 top 10’s. What does Steve Perry say, “Don’t Stop Believin.” That’s got to be the 31 year old from Salt Lake City’s mantra.

All the excitement of this WGC event came to a screeching halt yesterday after Tiger Woods crashed his Genesis SUV in Southern California at 9:12 AM CT/ 7:12 AM Pacific Time. He has major injuries to his left leg and Leigh Steinberg, his longtime agent, said he has major leg injuries, although nothing was reported on his right leg. He has more than one fracture in his left leg. The police used an ax to smash the windshield and remove Woods from the vehicle. The speed limit was 45 on that descending hill and the sheriff said that Woods may have been traveling at a much higher rate of speed. So it’s another not so stellar moment for Tiger. He just can’t seem to get out of his own way. He had his fifth back surgery in December and was hoping to get back for the Masters. But this shuts the door on that attempt. Jack’s 18 majors are seeming very secure now. The 45 year old Woods has 15 with his last coming at the 2019 Masters, but he could be done. Not ruling him out totally to at least come back and play, but he’s an older guy now, and he’s pretty fragile physically. Hope he can come back from this, but right now there is just rest and rehabilitation ahead for Tiger, and an attempt to figure out how it happened. The LA County Sheriff said they would be investigating for the next 2 to 3 weeks, and the Sheriff said Tiger did not seem impaired when he reached him in the SUV, though that’s not certain. Woods was on his way for a practice session film shooting with Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert and New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees. So, stay tuned. The soap opera that is Tiger Woods is the gift that keeps on giving. Hoping for him to recover, but he just can’t seem to get it right these days.

Winner at the WGC

Weather, super, high 70’s Thursday, mid 80’s Friday-Sunday, winds in the 10-15 MPH range throughout ,so should be a factor on this course that features a lot of water, as you would expect in Florida, and over 6 dozen sand traps. Jack likes water and sand to test the best players in the world. No. 17 is a 610 par 5 and No.18, a classic finishing hole, is 486 par 4 with water coming into play off the tee and on the approach. No.14 is a 222 yard par 3 that challenges you with water and wind. The players will be challenged with their club selection and driving and approach accuracy. The greens will stimp at 12. They are Bermuda greens as you would expect in the warm climate of Florida. Bentgrass is pretty much not a factor in Florida as it is too hot to save those type of greens. Bentgrass is viable here in Alabama, with Birmingham Country Club, Mountain Brook Club and Shoal Creek among the most recognizable courses, feature them. But the greeens have to be maintained constantly to save them from the summer heat. The greens should be excellent at the Concession.

TV: Thursday, 12-5 PM CT, Golf Channel. Friday, 12-5 PM CT, Golf Channel. Saturday, 11 AM-1:30 PM CT, GC, 1:30-5 PM CT, NBC. Sunday, 11 AM-1:30 PM CT, Golf Channel, 1:30-5 PM CT, NBC.

I’ll take the 27 year old from Modesto, California by way of SMU. He’s the reigning U.S. Open Champion where he scorched the field at the venerable Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York. I like the fact that he won the NCAA Championships here in 2015. I also like, as Walter and Spike like to say, the horse for the course. So give me,

Bryson DeChambeau