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PGA TOUR
THE AMERICAN EXPRESS
Site: La Quinta, California.
Courses: PGA West, Stadium Course (Yardage: 7,147. Par: 72) and Nicklaus Tournament (Yardage: 7,181. Par: 72).
Prize money: $6.7 million. Winner’s share: $1.134 million.
Television: Thursday-Sunday, 3-7 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Andrew Landry.
FedEx Cup leader: Dustin Johnson.
Last week: Kevin Na won the Sony Open.
Notes: For the first time since the tournament began in 1960, it will not feature a pro-am format during the competition. It also has been reduced to two golf courses instead of three. … No spectators will be allowed. … Brooks Koepka is playing the tournament for the first time. … Phil Mickelson is the tournament host. … Defending champion Andrew Landry is among nine players who competed in both Hawaii events. … Patrick Cantlay is the only player from the top 10 in the world, though the field also includes Patrick Reed (No. 11) and Koepka (No. 12). … Among those playing for the first time in 2021 are Rickie Fowler, Gary Woodland and Francesco Molinari. … Steve Stricker originally planned to play two weeks in Hawaii, first on the PGA Tour and then on the PGA Tour Champions. Instead, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain is playing in the desert. … The American Express is one of six tournaments Tiger Woods has never played that were on the PGA Tour schedule when he turned pro.
Next week: Farmers Insurance Open.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LPGA TOUR
DIAMOND RESORTS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS
Site: Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
Course: Tranquilo GC at Four Seasons Golf and Sports Club. Yardage: 6,630. Par: 71.
Prize money: $1.2 million. Winner’s share: $180,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, noon to 3 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 1:30-2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2:30-4:30 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 2-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-5 p.m. (NBC).
Defending champion: Gaby Lopez.
Race to CME Globe champion: Jin Young Ko.
Last tournament: Jin Young Ko won the CME Group Tour Championship on Dec. 20.
Notes: The season opener features a 25-player field. … Women’s British Open champion Sophia Popov is the only winner from the four major championships last year who is playing. … The tournament features only three of the top 10 players in the world, all from North America: Danielle Kang, Nelly Korda and Brooke Henderson. … Lopez won last year in a playoff that didn’t conclude until Monday. … The tournament features celebrities and athletes who compete alongside LPGA players and have their own competition. Former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz won last year. … Jin Young Ko, the No. 1 player in women’s golf, is not playing for the second straight year. She was home in South Korea last year when the COVID-19 pandemic began and didn’t play in the U.S. until November. With a runner-up finish in the U.S. Women’s Open and a victory in the CME Group Tour Championship, she won the Race to the CME Globe for the first time. … The LPGA takes a month off before returning in Orlando at Lake Nona.
Next tournament: Gainbridge LPGA on Feb. 25-28.
Online: https://www.lpga.com/
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EUROPEAN TOUR
ABU DHABI HSBC CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Course: Abu Dhabi GC. Yardage: 7,583. Par: 72.
Prize money: $8 million. Winner’s share: $1.36 million.
Television: Wednesday, 10:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. (Golf Channel); Thursday, 6-8 a.m. (Golf Channel); Friday, 2-8 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday 3-8 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 2-8 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Lee Westwood.
Race to Dubai champion: Lee Westwood.
Last tournament: Matt Fitzpatrick won the DP World Tour Championship on Dec. 13.
Notes: Justin Thomas is playing his third regular European Tour event since he turned pro. He previously played the Dunhill Links before he was on the PGA Tour and the French Open in 2018, the year the Ryder Cup was played in Paris. … Rory McIlroy plays for the first time since the Masters. This will be his first appearance in Abu Dhabi since 2018. … Tyrrell Hatton gives the field three players from the top 10 in the world. … Westwood is the defending champion who is coming off his season victory in the Race to Dubai. … Rickie Fowler in 2015 and Chris DiMarco in 2006 are the only Americans to win the tournament since it began in 2006. … Abu Dhabi is the first of five consecutive European Tour events in the Middle East, followed by tournaments in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar. … Bob MacIntyre is just outside the top 50 and has until the end of March to move up and earn his first trip to the Masters. Europe offers its strongest ranking points of the spring during the Middle East swing.
Next week: Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/european-tour/
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PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CHAMPIONSHIP AT HUALALAI
Site: Ka’upulehu-Kona, Hawaii.
Course: Hualalai GC. Yardage: 7,107. Par: 72.
Prize money: $1.8 million. Winner’s share: $310,000.
Television: Friday-Sunday, 7-10 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Miguel Angel Jimenez.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Bernhard Langer.
Last tournament: Kevin Sutherland won the Charles Schwab Championship on Nov. 9.
Notes: This is the first tournament of the year, but the season is a continuation from last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic that shut down the tour for four months. … Jim Furyk and Ernie Els are in the field. They were two of the three players with multiple victories last year. The other was Phil Mickelson, who is playing on the PGA Tour this week. … Furyk is among seven players who competed last week at the Sony Open. Furyk, K.J. Choi, Jerry Kelly and Mike Weir all made the cut last week. … One of the sponsor exemptions went to 71-year-old Tom Watson. This was the only PGA Tour Champions event Watson played last year. He tied for 30th. … Also playing on sponsor exemptions are former major champions Jeff Sluman, Corey Pavin, Davis Love III and John Daly. … Bernhard Langer is a three-time winner of the tournament.
Next tournament: Cologuard Classic on Feb. 26-28.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/champions.html
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