The PGA Tour heads west to Las Vegas for back-to-back events, starting with this week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin. After a couple of weeks with fields full of young stars and veterans looking to dial in their games (see Sergio Garcia), some of the current standouts in the game return for this event.
We have a strong field this week, with three of the Top 7 players in the world and 11 of the Top 25 in the current Official World Golf Rankings teeing it up. Major championship winners Collin Morikawa and Bryson DeChambeau are among the entrants.
Webb Simpson rounds out the Top 10 players. We also have a strong field across the pond at the BMW Championship on the European Tour, a trend that will likely continue as players look to round into form ahead of next month’s Masters.
The Course
The course at TPC Summerlin is a Par-71, 7,255-yard layout, designed by Bobby Weed, with the consultation of Fuzzy Zoeller. Similar to last week, it features Bermuda grass tees, fairways and rough, but with bentgrass greens. There are large putting surfaces at 7,400 square feet on average and set to roll on the slower side, likely at 11.5 on the Stimpmeter.
The course is protected by 92 sand bunkers, along with four holes where water comes into play. Yet, in spite of that, this event has typically been a birdie fest.
Three of the last four years have delivered champions who had scores better than 20 under par. The notable exception was Patrick Cantlay, who captured the 2017 title at 9 under par. That year, winds were up during the week and the course played considerably tougher. We have to keep an eye on the forecast this week, as it could drastically change the way the course play. As of Monday, there are some major winds projected to be in play over the weekend.
The par 71 course features three par 5s, which present some of the best scoring opportunities each year. In fact, they rank as three of the easiest four holes at the Shriners. Each hole is likely to play nearly a half stroke under par and yield birdies more than 40 percent of the time.
The Par 5, 16th hole measuring at 560 yards plays as the easiest hole on the course, reachable in two shots by nearly everyone in the field. The ninth is a similar Par 5 (563 yards), in both length and result as the second-easiest hole on the course. While the 16th plays easier, it can also produce some larger numbers through the protection of a lake to the front right of the putting surface. Still, these holes, along with the Par 5 13th and potentially drivable Par 4 15th, make for the best scoring opportunities.
The teeth of the course comes in the four Par 3s, three of which rank as some of the hardest at the event. Listed at 239 yards on this year’s scorecard, the Par 3 8th typically plays as one of the two hardest holes. It will see bogeys nearly 20 percent of the time, yielding about birdies around 10 percent of the time. This is a hole where players will be looking to walk away with par all four days.
Regular hacks like myself with play the third hole as a 492-yard Par 5, but the pros will play it as a Par 4. It’s no surprise it played as the hardest hole on the course last year at the Shriners. The hole features a dual fairway, which I mostly mention just because of Bryson DeChambeau. All others will most likely take a traditional route, hitting a narrow fairway rather than cross the desert waste bunker to a narrow green protected by traditional bunkering.
The hole has played nearly a quarter stroke over par in past versions of the event, bringing bogey or worse over 28% of the time. Similar to the Par 3s, players will be looking to escape the third hole with a par each day.
Course Horses
Patrick Cantlay has played this event each of the past three years, most notably winning in 2017 (part of the 2018 season). He finished second the following year, then suffered a playoff loss to Kevin Na in last season’s tournament. For those scoring at home, that’s 1-2-2 in three appearances. He seems to like it here.
Bryson DeChambeau, the newly minted major champion, returns for the first time since his triumph at Winged Foot, and does so at a course he’s played well. DeChambeau has played the Shriners each of the last four years, making the cut each time. He finished seventh the year Cantlay came away victorious, then followed it up the next year with a win. Last year, DeChambeau finished fourth. It will be interesting to see how he changes his play this week after having so much success the “traditional” way the past three years, but regardless, he’s clearly a fan of this track.
Webb Simpson comes in having made the cut in each of his last five appearances at the Shriners. He has finished in the Top 20 each of the past three years, with a seventh-place effort last year. Add in the fact he’s won the 2014 edition of the event and you can see this course certainly fits the eye of the Wake Forest alum.
I hesitated even adding in Lucas Glover, due to the fact he is the player I never seem to get right. Regardless, Glover has a great record here, with finishes inside the Top 10 in each of his last three appearances. He finished third here during the 2017 season, then followed it up with a seventh and ninth the last two years. I’d hold out on your opinion on him until you see my upcoming GPP article. If Glover is in there, run. If not, hit the lock button.
