Because the PGA Tour begins its Florida swing on the Cognizant Basic within the Palm Seashores on Thursday, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler and Daniel Berger are among the many names vying for a redeeming victory.
A pair of fan favorites, Spieth and Fowler, have dropped to Nos. 70 and 95, respectively, within the Official World Golf Rating amid troublesome stretches. Spieth remains to be working his method again from August wrist surgical procedure and made his season debut earlier this month.
After tying for fourth on the WM Phoenix Open, he missed the minimize on the Genesis Invitational, a signature occasion that solely minimize 18 gamers. This will likely be his first time competing at PGA Nationwide Resort in Palm Seashore Gardens, Fla.
“It was very nice to get again after which even to get into rivalry one week,” Spieth stated. “So my aim now, as we glance in direction of the Masters, is to attempt to play troublesome golf programs and work my method into rivalry and simply see what I can enhance upon by the point we get to Augusta.”
Spieth hasn’t gained on tour since April 2022, whereas Fowler’s 2023 Rocket Mortgage Basic is his solely victory this decade.
“Sport-wise, positively trending and on course,” Fowler stated. “Clearly final yr was again to taking part in some poor golf or not essentially making the most of some alternatives. Performed poorly on the weekends.
“Not an awesome begin this yr, however I really feel like I’ve seen a whole lot of good issues, and I do know that I am at the least trending. That is a constructive.”
This event is a “house sport” for the various gamers like Fowler who reside in close by Jupiter, Fla. That goes double for Berger, a Florida native and Florida State alum.
As soon as ranked as excessive as No. 12 on this planet, Berger missed a few of 2022 and all of 2023 as he rehabbed a again damage. He ended a quiet 2024 season with a T2 end on the RSM Basic and has gotten off to a fantastic begin this yr, tying for second in Scottsdale and putting twelfth on the Genesis.
“It took me legitimately a yr to really feel like I used to be the identical golfer that I used to be pre-injury,” Berger stated. “I really really feel like I am a extra educated golfer, as in like I perceive what I have to do. I do know my physique higher. I feel that is going to make me a greater participant sooner or later.”
PGA Nationwide was as soon as referred to as one of many harder tracks on tour, however the development lately has been successful scores within the double digits beneath par, the place it as soon as had been within the single digits. When Austin Eckroat gained final yr with a 17-under 263, it was the bottom rating since 2003.
“They overseeded the golf course so it is not Bermuda anymore. The greens are incredible; they’re the most effective I’ve ever seen them,” Berger stated. “Chipping is noticeably simpler now. … You are not going to see guys duff balls like they might when it was pure Bermuda. It is loads simpler.”
The course nonetheless has its challenges, particularly the “Bear Lure,” the fifteenth by seventeenth holes with loads of water in play.
–Area Stage Media