AUSTIN, Texas Dont try to convince Justin Thomas theres a Group of Death this week at Austin Country Club. Nor does the American want to hear arguments that his group at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, or any group for that matter, should be considered an easier draw.I understand that Golf Channel, they need things to talk about, but to look at some groups and be like, oh, that's an easy group, Thomas said on Tuesday. Everyone here is really, really, really good, and it is funny how it's like, this is the Group of Death or this is that. Let's all just calm down and go play golf.Keep calm, play on.We get it, but that ignores the best part of round-robin play at the Match Play. In exchange for the head-to-head drama of true match play, officials introduced group play in 2015, a twist that screamed for just this kind of micro-analysis.
WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play: Full bracket | Scoring | Group standingsWGC-Dell Technologies Match Play: Articles, photos and videos
At first brush there are certain groups that stand out among the 16 foursomes. Rory McIlroys group, for example, includes the Northern Irishman, who finished tied for fourth last week at Bay Hill; Emiliano Grillo, who was seventh last week; and Gary Woodland, who has a pair of top-5s in his last two starts.Similarly, defending champion Jason Days pod of Marc Leishman, winner last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Lee Westwood and Pat Perez holds some intrigue for those looking for the path of most resistance.But with the bracket for this weeks event based on the Official World Golf Ranking, each group is mathematically equal at least as it applies to the relative strength or weakness of a particularly group, so any suggestion that a particular pod is more daunting than the next is based on recent form, historical match play performances and hunches.Thomas has a valid point that none of the 16 groups is a particularly appealing draw, but if any pod were to qualify as the Group of Death it would be the foursome of Sergio Garcia, Jon Rahm, Kevin Chappell and Shane Lowry.I don't think there's any easy groups out there, but obviously I'm in a group with guys that are great players, Garcia said. It's not an easy group. It's a challenging one. But the good thing is, the way I look at it, is if I can get out of this group, it means that I'm playing really well because none of those guys are going to give anything away.Garcia is playing his 14th Match Play this week, has an 18-17 overall record and won earlier this year on the European Tour in Dubai; while Rahm is making his first start at this event but is one of the hottest players in the game right now following his first Tour victory at the Farmers Insurance Open and top-10 finishes in last two starts.Although Chappell is winless on Tour, he finished runner-up four times last season and Lowry has something of a penchant for upsetting higher-seeded players in this event, like he did when he beat McIlroy in 13 and Graeme McDowell two years ago, both on Day 1.Higher-seeded players have historically lived up to that billing at the World Golf Championship, but there are exceptions, like in 2015 when McIlroy, the No. 1 seeded player, beat Woodland, from the 11th group, in the finals; and last year when Day defeated Louis Oosthuizen, the 16th overall seeded player, in the championship match.Thomas point is valid. Professional golfs version of March Madness doesnt exactly fit the bracket-ology narrative and maybe all groups are created equal, but wheres the fun in that?
Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed making '18 debuts at
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Mickelson, Reed making '18 debuts at CareerBuilder Challenge January 17, 2018 FLM 0 Comments CareerBuilder Challenge , Hudson Swafford , Jon Rahm , Patrick Reed , Phil Mickelson For many of those who failed to qualify for the Tournament of Champions or did not make the trip to Hawaii for last week's Sony Open, the CareerBuilder Challenge
Phil, Reed making 2018 debuts at CareerBuilder
Spieth won the FedEx Cup in 2015. "I was in control of my own destiny and didn't have it this week,'' said Spieth, who shot 73 on Monday at Aronimink Golf Club to tie for 54th. A really solid
FedExCup update: Bradley, Schauffele move into Top 30; Spieth
Tim Lincecum officially became an Angel on Friday, signing a $2.5 million, one-year deal with Los Angeles. The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner, attempting to come back from left hip surgery
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Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson sing hilarious Si-Woo-Kim inspired tune at the question of his favorite song sung by the fans at Liberty National. in the fever of this Si Woo version of the
Presidents Cup 2017: Watch Jordan Spieth and - Golf Digest
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NYC Weather: Storms Loom As Temp Climbs Into The 80s
Kupcho leads by 1 as playoff determines 36-hole cut.
Kupcho heads to Augusta National with 1-shot lead - The Sport
Stock Watch: Walk-up music needs tuning. By Ryan Lavner. May 1, 2018 at 11:15 AM. Getty Images Each week on GolfChannel.com, we'll examine which players' stocks and trends are rising and
Stock Watch: Walk-up music needs tuning | by Golf News
But in September last year Thompson's grandmother died, prompting the golfer to step away from social media for a period. "The events of the past year and a half (on and off the golf course) have taken a tremendous toll on me both mentally and emotionally," added Thompson. "I have not truly felt like myself for quite some time.
Steve Stricker opens with 68 in first start since August
LA JOLLA, California (Reuters) - Jason Day and Alex Noren will return early on Monday to decide the Farmers Insurance Open after their playoff was suspended due to darkness at Torrey Pines. The
Day, Noren set for Monday finish in Farmers playoff
Tiger-Phil stat is almost supernatural. March 11, 2018. The professional careers of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are inextricably linked. Mickelson ended a winless streak dating back to 2013
This Tiger Woods-Phil Mickelson stat is almost supernatural
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Phil Mickelson came to the Old Course with high hopes of adding a British Open to his major championship resume. But the hopes were dashed today, after two bad swings with a 5-iron cost him three strokes and moved him out of contention for the claret jug.
Memorial Tournament: Patrick Cantlay shoots brilliant 64 to
I really like the E ans S class interiors by Mercedes. Hopefully Tesla can steal with pride from them in that area. I'm not sure why people have a problem with buttons. Some buttons can be useful and easier to use than fake buttons on a touch screen. Mercedes desperate? It's too easy to make fun of
I've Fallen | Mad Genius Club
President Donald Trump has accepted an invitation to be an honorary chairman of the Presidents Cup this fall, according to the Golf Channel. "It is a great honor for me to be even a small part of the Presidents Cup. I have watched it since the very first tournament in 1994. It gets better with age.
'This will be the greatest of them all': Trump to serve as
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