Course Guide: Sedgefield is an original Donald Ross design which has typical Carolina course overtures. A short Par 70 by modern standards, the course still favours accuracy from the tee over outright power. Ultimately streaky scorers have got the job done here, with scoring being dictated solely by the firmness of the greens when wind isn’t a factor.
Champion Bermudagrass greens were laid for the 2012 renewal and they undoubtedly run faster than the tired Bentgrass putting surfaces they replaced, particularly if conditions remain dry. But as the greens have settled scoring continues to improve with -21/258, -22/258, -21/259, -22/258, -21/259, -20/260 and -20/260 being 7 of the last 8 winning totals.
Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro, North Carolina: Designer: Donald Ross 1926, with Kris Spence renovation 2007; Course Type: Carolina, Mid-score, Short Length; Par: 70; Length: 7,131 yards; Number of Holes with Water In-Play: 6; Number of Sand Bunkers: 52; Acres of Fairway: 25; Fairways: Bermudagrass; Rough: Bermudagrass 2.5″; Greens: 6,000 sq.ft average featuring Champion Bermudagrass; Stimpmeter: 12.5ft.
Course Scoring Average & PGA Tour Difficulty Rank:
- 2023: 69.47 (-0.53), Rank 22 of 50 courses
- 2022: 69.26 (-0.74), Rank 27 of 50 courses
- 2021: 68.88 (-1.12), Rank 34 of 51 courses
- 2020: 68.78 (-1.22), Rank 29 of 41 courses
- 2019: 68.18 (-1.82), Rank 41 of 49 courses
Fairway Widths (yards): Below are the fairway widths for Sedgefield Country Club and how they compare to recent courses that we’ve seen on Tour:
- Sedgefield: 250 yards from tee: 29 yards wide; 275:28; 300:26 325:23; 350:22.
- TPC Twin Cities: 250 yards from the tee: 38 yards wide; 275:38; 300:31; 325:30; 350:36.
- TPC Deere Run: 250 yards from tee: 41 yards wide; 275:40; 300:36 325:33; 350:30.
- Detroit Golf Club: 250 yards from tee: 34 yards wide; 275:34; 300:35 325:34; 350:33.
- TPC River Highlands: 250 yards from the tee: 38 yards wide; 275:36; 300:29; 325:29; 350:28.
- Pinehurst Number 2: Average 35-45 yards wide.
- Muirfield Village: 250 yards from the tee: 34 yards wide; 275:32; 300:28; 325:24; 350:27.
- Hamilton G&CC: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:29; 300:29; 325:27; 350:28.
- Colonial: Average 25-30 yards wide.
- Quail Hollow: 250 yards from tee: 33 yards wide; 275:32; 300:31; 325:30; 350:29.
- Harbour Town: 250 yards from tee: 29 yards wide; 275:26; 300:22; 325:26; 350:22.
- Oaks Course: 250 yards from tee: 33 yards wide; 275:34; 300:29; 325:27; 350:26.
- Memorial Park: 30–40 yards at 300 yards.
- Copperhead: 250 yards from the tee: 24 yards wide; 275:20; 300:21; 325:23 350:19.
- TPC Sawgrass: 250 yards from the tee: 31 yards wide; 275:32; 300:30; 325:28 350:20.
- Bay Hill: 250 yards from the tee: 32 yards wide; 275:33; 300:33; 325:39 350:29.
- PGA National: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:27; 300:25; 325:27 350:25.
- Riviera: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:27; 300:26; 325:26 350:28.
- TPC Scottsdale: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:30; 300:28; 325:27; 350:27.
- Pebble Beach: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:33; 300:29; 325:30 350:26.
- Torrey Pines South: 250 yards from the tee: 26 yards wide; 275:27; 300:25; 325:24; 350:23.
- Pete Dye Stadium: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:27; 300:26; 325:26; 350:24.
- Waialae: 250 yards from the tee: 34 yards wide; 275:32; 300:34; 325:37; 350:34.
- Plantation Course: 250 yards from the tee: 59 yards wide; 275:61; 300:65; 325:60; 350:62.
Course Designer Links: For research purposes other Donald Ross designs include:
- Aronimink – 2010/11 AT&T National & 2018 BMW Championship
- Detroit Golf Club – Rocket Mortgage Classic
- East Course at Oak Hill – 2013 + 2023 PGA Championship
- East Lake Country Club – Tour Championship
- Pinehurst Number 2 – 2014 & 2024 U.S. Open
- Plainfield – 2011 & 2015 Barclays
Course Overview: Sedgefield CC is perennially one the two easiest Par-70s on the PGA Tour alongside Waialae CC (Sony Open). Take 2023 with 20 players finishing double-digits under par. Set to the south-east of Greensboro, the course has a typical Carolina feel with tree-lined fairways, pine straw and Bermudagrass throughout. Fairways are quite tight but relatively easy to find if conditions are soft.
Statistically driving accuracy often helps (yes you read that right), but the key to the course, which measures just over 7,200 yards, are Ross’s green complexes which although undulating and surrounded by shaved run-off areas are actually large for the length of the course.
If the Champion Bermudagrass greens are receptive (as they were for Rounds 1 and 2 in 2023) that’s the green light for low scoring. Winners here year-in, year-out, must hit a minimum 14 greens per round and invariably break par every 1 in 3 holes. A fast start, excellent and consistent approach play, and a hot putter are they keys to victory, plus it’s noteworthy that the front 9 plays far easier and has to be capitalised upon.
Wyndham Championship Winners: 2023: Lucas Glover (-20); 2022: Tom Kim (-20); 2021: Kevin Kisner (-15); 2020: Jim Herman (-21); 2019: J.T. Poston (-22); 2018: Brandt Snedeker (-21); 2017: Henrik Stenson (-22); 2016: Si-Woo Kim (-21); 2015: Davis Love III (-17); 2014: Camilo Villegas (-17); 2013: Patrick Reed (-14); 2012: Sergio Garcia (-18); 2011: Webb Simpson (-18); 2010: Arjun Atwal (-22).
- 2023: Lucas Glover 66-64-62-68 -20/260 PM/AM Wave
- 2022: Tom Kim 67-64-68-61 -20/260 PM/AM Wave
- 2021: Kevin Kisner 65-68-66-66 -15/265 PM/AM Wave
- 2020: Jim Herman 66-69-61-63 -21/259 PM/AM Wave
- 2019: J.T. Poston 65-65-66-62 -22/258 AM/PM Wave
OWGR of Wyndham Championship Winners: 2023: Glover 117; 2022: T Kim 34; 2021: Kisner 52; 2020: Herman 311; 2019: Poston 164; 2018: Snedeker 88; 2017: Stenson 4.
Cut Line: 2023: -1; 2022: -1; 2021: -3; 2020: -3; 2019: -4; 2018: -3.
Lead Score Progression:
- 2023: Round 1 -8; Round 2 -12; Round 3 -18; Round 4 -20.
- 2022: Round 1 -9; Round 2 -9; Round 3 -13; Round 4 -20.
- 2021: Round 1 -8; Round 2 -14; Round 3 -15; Round 4 -15.
- 2020: Round 1 -8; Round 2 -10; Round 3 -18; Round 4 -21.
- 2019: Round 1 -8; Round 2 -13; Round 3 -17; Round 4 -22.
- 2018: Round 1 -11; Round 2 -14; Round 3 -16; Round 4 -21.
Path to Victory: Below are the end-of-round positions for the winners of the Wyndham Championship since 2012:
- 2023 – Lucas Glover: Round 1: 7th, Round 2: 3rd, Round 3: 1st.
- 2022 – Tom Kim: Round 1: 23rd, Round 2: 1st, Round 3: 3rd.
- 2021 – Kevin Kisner: Round 1: 9th, Round 2: 12th, Round 3: 3rd.
- 2020 – Jim Herman: Round 1: 13th, Round 2: 36th, Round 3: 5th.
- 2019 – J.T. Poston: Round 1: 16th, Round 2: 9th, Round 3: 5th.
- 2018 – Brandt Snedeker: Round 1: 1st, Round 2: 1st, Round 3: 1st.
- 2017 – Henrik Stenson: Round 1: 2nd, Round 2:3rd, Round 3: 1st.
- 2016 – Si-Woo Kim: Round 1: 41st, Round 2: 1st, Round 3: 1st.
- 2015 – Davis Love III: Round 1: 7th, Round 2: 3rd, Round 3: 10th.
- 2014 – Camilo Villegas: Round 1: 1st, Round 2: 7th, Round 3: 8th.
- 2013 – Patrick Reed: Round 1: 3rd, Round 2: 1st, Round 3: 1st.
- 2012 – Sergio Garcia: Round 1: 20th, Round 2: 3rd, Round 3: 1st.
Shots From the Lead: Below are the Wyndham Championship winners since 2012 and where they were positioned in terms of shots from the lead during the tournament:
- 2023 – Lucas Glover: Round 1: 4 back, Round 2: 2 back, Round 3: level.
- 2022 – Tom Kim: Round 1: 6 back, Round 2: level, Round 3: 2 back.
- 2021 – Kevin Kisner: Round 1: 3 back, Round 2: 7 back, Round 3: 4 back.
- 2020 – Jim Herman: Round 1: 4 back, Round 2: 5 back, Round 3: 4 back.
- 2019 – J.T. Poston: Round 1: 3 back, Round 2: 3 back, Round 3: 3 back.
- 2018 – Brandt Snedeker: Round 1: 4 ahead, Round 2: 2 ahead, Round 3: 1 ahead.
- 2017 – Henrik Stenson: Round 1: 1 back, Round 2: 1 back, Round 3: 1 ahead.
- 2016 – Si Woo Kim: Round 1: 5 back, Round 2: 2 ahead, Round 3: 4 ahead.
- 2015 – Davis Love III: Round 1: 2 back, Round 2: 1 back, Round 3: 4 back.
- 2014 – Camilo Villegas: Round 1: 1 ahead, Round 2: 2 back, Round 3: 4 back.
- 2013 – Patrick Reed: Round 1: 1 back, Round 2: 1 ahead, Round 3: level.
- 2012 – Sergio Garcia: Round 1: 5 back, Round 2: 2 back, Round 3: 1 ahead.
Tournament Stats: We’ve published some key player statistics for this week’s event that are well worth a look. Naturally they’ll help to shape a view on players who could go well this week: Current Form | Tournament Form | First Round Leader | Combined Stats.
My published predictor is available here. Top 10 of my published predictor are: Sungjae Im, Mackenzie Hughes, Denny McCarthy, Shane Lowry, J.J. Spaun, Jhonattan Vegas, Lucas Glover, Webb Simpson, Brendon Todd.
Our brand new predictor model is running alongside, where you can build your own rankings in live time, using the variables listed on the left hand side.
Wyndham Championship Winning Prices: 2023: Glover 90/1; 2022: T Kim 40/1; 2021: Kisner 55/1; 2020: Herman 600/1; 2019: Poston 100/1; 2018: Snedeker 28/1; 2017: Stenson 14/1; 2016: S.W. Kim 150/1; 2015: Love III 500/1; 2014: Villegas 125/1; 2013: Reed 80/1; 2012: Garcia 40/1; 2011: Simpson 20/1; 2010: Atwal 200/1. Past 5 Renewals Average: 177/1; Overall Average: 146/1.
Historical Weather:
- 2023: Thursday: Cloudy with intermittent showers. High of 72. Wind S 10-15 mph. Preferred lies were in effect in round one. Friday: Mostly cloudy with mist in the morning. High of 81. Wind NNE 5-10 mph. Preferred lies were in effect for the second round. Saturday: Partly cloudy. High of 88. Wind NE 4-8 mph. Sunday: Mostly sunny with afternoon thunderstorms. High of 87. Wind SW 10-15 mph. Play was suspended due to inclement weather at 4:52 p.m. ET and resumed at 6:55 p.m. ET (suspension of 2 hours, 3 minutes).
- 2022: Thursday: Mostly sunny. High of 93. Wind SW 6-12 mph. Friday: Mostly cloudy. High of 88. Wind SW 7-14 mph. The second round was suspended due to inclement weather at 5:36 p.m. ET and resumed at 7:06 p.m. a delay of 1 hour, 30 minutes. Due to darkness, the second round was suspended for the day at 8:20 p.m. with four players left to complete their rounds. Saturday: Cloudy with afternoon thunderstorms. High of 89. Wind WSW 5-10 mph. The third round was suspended due to dangerous weather situations at 12:20 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. Sunday: Mostly cloudy. High of 87. Wind SSW 5-10 mph.
- 2021: Thursday: Partly cloudy. High of 93. Wind SW 5-10 mph. Due to inclement weather, play was suspended from 5:01 p.m. to 7:08 p.m. ET (suspension of 2 hours, 7 minutes). Due to darkness, the first round was suspended for the day at 8:14p.m. with 22 players left to complete their rounds. Friday: Partly cloudy. High of 93. Wind WSW 5-10 mph. Saturday: Partly cloudy and hot. High of 91. Wind SW 5-10 mph. Sunday: Cloudy. High of 83. Wind E 4-8 mph. Due to anticipated thunderstorms, final-round tee times were moved to 7-9:12 a.m. ET in threesomes off Nos. 1 and 10. Due to wet course conditions, preferred lies were in effect.
- 2020: Thursday: Cloudy with a high of 84. Wind ENE 4-8 mph. Friday: Cloudy with a high of 83. Wind NE 4-8 mph. Saturday: Cloudy. High of 80. Wind ENE 5-10 mph. Sunday: Mostly cloudy with a high of 78. Wind NNE 10-15 mph.
- 2019: Thursday: Partly cloudy, with a high of 88. Wind SSW 4-8 mph. Friday: Mostly cloudy, with a high of 81. Wind SSE 4-8 mph. Due to 3.17 inches of rain overnight, preferred lies were utilized for the second consecutive day. Saturday: Mostly cloudy, with a high of 86. Wind NE 4-8 mph. Sunday: Partly cloudy, with a high of 88. Wind SW 4-8 mph.
- 2018: Thursday: Partly cloudy. High of 91. Wind SW 5-10 mph. Friday: Partly cloudy. High of 90. Wind SW 6-12 mph. Saturday: Mostly cloudy. High of 83. Due to a dangerous weather situation, round three was suspended at 3:27 p.m. and eventually called for the day at 6:45 p.m. Sunday: A total of 30 players were back in position at 8 a.m. Round three concluded at 10:24 a.m. Mostly cloudy. High of 88. Wind WSW 5-10 mph.
Weather Forecast: Latest weather forecast for Greensboro, North Carolina is here.
Rain with associated wind isn’t something we usually see at the Wyndham but with 85% (Thursday), 80% (Friday) and 50% (Saturday) chance of rain with no associated electrical activity across the opening 3 days, this could turn into a bit of a grind, especially with gusting 20 mph north-easterly winds.
Sunday is potentially also interesting on the basis that temperatures fall from 27 degrees Celsius (81 Fahrenheit) to 21 degrees Celsius (70 Fahrenheit), with 25 mph north-easterly winds (no rain). All in all I’d downgrade winning to around mid-teens.
Player Strokes Gained Rankings: These top 25 in the field rankings are based on an 8-tournament window that stretches back to the U.S. Open which includes both PGA Tour and DP World Tour events, where recorded. Player rankings are based on performance relative to the rest of the field:
- Top 25 SG Off The Tee: 1) Jhonattan Vegas; 2) Patrick Fishburn; 3) Cameron Young; 4) Cameron Champ; 5) Luke Clanton; 6) Ryan Brehm / Robert MacIntyre; 8) Davis Thompson; 9) Paul Barjon / Max Greyserman / Kurt Kitayama; 12) C.T. Pan / Viktor Perez; 14) Matti Schmid; 15) Kevin Dougherty / Chan Kim; 17) Pierceson Coody / Joe Highsmith; 19) Austin Eckroat; 20) Jordon Spieth / Sam Stevens / Carl Yuan; 23) Akshay Bhatia / Carson Young; 25) Brian Harman / Patrick Rodgers.
- Top 25 SG Approach: 1) Shane Lowry; 2) Doug Ghim; 3) Jhonattan Vegas; 4) Matt Kuchar; 5) Thomas Detry / J.J. Spaun; 7) Ben Griffin / Nicolai Hojgaard; 9) Matt Wallace; 10) Nick Hardy; 11) Andrew Putnam; 12) Luke Clanton; 13) Keith Mitchell / Cameron Young; 15) Harry Hall; 16) Stephan Jaeger; 17) Emiliano Grillo; 18) Sungjae Im / Chan Kim / Mac Meissner / Justin Rose / Michael Thorbjornsen; 23) Keegan Bradley / Will Gordon / Si Woo Kim / Kurt Kitayama.
- Top 25 SG Around The Green: 1) Webb Simpson; 2) Min Woo Lee; 3) Nick Taylor; 4) Sungjae Im; 5) Harry Hall; 6) Eric Cole; 7) Vincent Whaley; 8) Zach Johnson / Brendon Todd; 10) Cam Davis; 11) Ryan Moore / Cameron Young; 13) Billy Horschel / Denny McCarthy; 15) Andrew Putnam / Davis Thompson; 17) Maverick McNealy; 18) Chan Kim; 19) Michael Kim; 20) Akshay Bhatia / Patrick Rodgers / Camilo Villegas; 23) Jacob Bridgeman / J.T. Poston / Justin Rose.
- Top 25 SG Tee to Green: 1) Jhonattan Vegas; 2) Cameron Young; 3) Shane Lowry; 4) Sungjae Im; 5) Chan Kim; 6) Kurt Kitayama; 7) Harry Hall / Nicolai Hojgaard / J.J. Spaun; 10) Patrick Fishburn / Doug Ghim; 12) Cam Davis / Robert MacIntyre; 14) Si Woo Kim; 15) Akshay Bhatia / Davis Thompson; 17) Brian Harman / Mac Meissner / Keith Mitchell; 20) Matt Wallace; 21) Thomas Detry; 22) Luke Clanton / Jordan Spieth; 24) Christiaan Bezuidenhout / Nick Taylor.
- Top 25 SG Putting: 1) Shane Lowry; 2) Kevin Kisner; 3) Thomas Detry / Justin Suh; 5) Justin Lower / Patrick Rodgers; 7) Pierceson Coody; 8) Mackenzie Hughes / Aaron Rai; 10) Taylor Moore; 11) Max Greyserman / Andrew Novak; 13) Harris English / Harry Hall; 15) Eric Cole / Ben Taylor / Davis Thompson; 18) Bud Cauley / Min Woo Lee / Chandler Phillips / Sam Stevens; 22) Victor Perez; 23) Matt NeSmith; 24) Rico Hoey; 25) Cameron Champ / Matti Schmid.
- Top 25 SG Total: 1) Shane Lowry; 2) Jhonattan Vegas; 3) Max Greyserman / Harry Hall; 5) Patrick Rodgers; 6) Thomas Detry / J.J. Spaun; 8) Patrick Fishburn / Davis Thompson; 10) Sungjae Im / Aaron Rai; 12) Akshay Bhatia / Brian Harman; 14) Eric Cole / Ben Silverman; 16) Rico Hoey / Si Woo Kim; 18) Luke Clanton / Kurt Kitayama; 20) Chan Kim; 21) Cam Davis / Andrew Novak; 23) Sam Stevens / Cameron Young; 25) Matt Kuchar.
For a summary of the Strokes Gained Performances from this week’s field here at Sedgefield Country Club click here.
Trends & Key Factors: Analysing the Strokes Gained Stats of the Wyndham Championship winners here at Sedgefield since 2016 gives us a little more insight into the requirements for this low scoring Par 70:
Strokes Gained Tournament Trends:
- 2023, Lucas Glover (-20). SG Off the Tee: 6th, SG Approach: 1st, SG Around the Green: 52nd, SG Tee to Green: 1st, SG Putting: 15th.
- 2022, Tom Kim (-20). SG Off the Tee: 36th, SG Approach: 12th, SG Around the Green: 74th, SG Tee to Green: 33rd, SG Putting: 1st.
- 2021, Kevin Kisner (-15). SG Off the Tee: 34th, SG Approach: 12th, SG Around the Green: 26th, SG Tee to Green: 12th, SG Putting: 8th.
- 2020, Jim Herman (-21). SG Off the Tee: 5th, SG Approach: 4th, SG Around the Green: 56th, SG Tee to Green: 4th, SG Putting: 3rd.
- 2019, J.T. Poston (-22). SG Off the Tee: 28th, SG Approach: 1st, SG Around the Green: 13th, SG Tee to Green: 1st, SG Putting: 13th.
- 2018, Brandt Snedeker (-21). SG Off the Tee: 47th, SG Approach: 3rd, SG Around the Green: 5th, SG Tee to Green: 2nd, SG Putting: 19th.
- 2017, Henrik Stenson (-22). SG Off the Tee: 35th, SG Approach: 3rd, SG Around the Green: 29th, SG Tee to Green: 6th, SG Putting: 3rd.
- 2016, Si Woo Kim (-22). SG Off the Tee: 1st, SG Approach: 5th, SG Around the Green: 42nd, SG Tee to Green: 1st, SG Putting: 34th.
Strokes Gained Tournament Skill Averages:
- SG Off the Tee: 24th, SG Approach: 5th, SG Around the Green: 37th, SG Tee to Green: 8th, SG Putting: 12th.
Tournament Trends & Key Factors: Analysing the final stats of the winners of the Wyndham Championship since the green complexes were changed to Champion Bermudagrass in 2012 gives us a little more insight into the requirements for this test:
- 2023, Lucas Glover (-20). 312 yards (27th), 82.1% fairways (1st), 90.3% greens in regulation (1st), 26’0″ proximity to hole (1st), 71.4 % scrambling (5th), 1.71 putts per GIR (10th).
- 2022, Tom Kim (-20). 302 yards (79th), 73.2% fairways (4th), 79.2% greens in regulation (16th), 30’1″ proximity to hole (25th), 73.3 % scrambling (6th), 1.65 putts per GIR (1st).
- 2021, Kevin Kisner (-15). 304 yards (65th), 62.5% fairways (31st), 80.6% greens in regulation (8th), 30’4″ proximity to hole (27th), 64.3 % scrambling (20th), 1.78 putts per GIR (37th).
- 2020, Jim Herman (-21). 298 yards (51st), 82.1% fairways (4th), 87.5% greens in regulation (1st), 30’2″ proximity to hole (30th), 44.4% scrambling (71st), 1.71 putts per GIR (23rd).
- 2019, J.T. Poston (-22). 297 yards (53rd), 80.4% fairways (2nd), 86.1% greens in regulation (1st), 26’11” proximity to hole (3rd), 100% scrambling (1st), 1.69 putts per GIR (20th).
- 2018, Brandt Snedeker (-21). 315 yards (25th), 57.1% fairways (51st), 80.6% greens in regulation (19th), 27’10” proximity to hole (12th), 57.1% scrambling (46th), 1.64 putts per GIR (2nd).
- 2017, Henrik Stenson (-22). 294 yards (71st), 75.0% fairways (8th), 87.5% greens in regulation (3rd), proximity to hole 25’9″ (1st), 44.4 % scrambling (67th), 1.62 putts per GIR (2nd).
- 2016, Si-Woo Kim (-21). 307 yards (51st), 73.2% fairways (6th), 83.3% greens in regulation (8th), proximity to hole 24’11” (1st), 81.5 % scrambling (1st), 1.63 putts per GIR (2nd).
- 2015, Davis Love III (-17). 298 yards (33rd), 71.4% fairways (10th), 77.8% greens in regulation (18th), proximity to hole 29’1″ (7th), 75.0 % scrambling (9th), 1.71 putts per GIR (11th).
- 2014, Camilo Villegas (-17). 301 yards (39th), 76.8% fairways (6th), 77.8% greens in regulation (8th), 29’5″ proximity to hole (6th), 87.5 % scrambling (1st), 1.75 putts per GIR (24th).
- 2013, Patrick Reed (-14). 298 yards (11th), 64.3% fairways (42nd), 83.3% greens in regulation (1st), 29″6″ proximity to hole (2nd), 58.3% scrambling (56th), 1.72 putts per GIR (14th).
- 2012, Sergio Garcia (-18). 302 yards (26th), 73.2% fairways (13th), 72.2% greens in regulation (26th), 32″2″ proximity to hole (29th), 80.0% scrambling (1st), 1.63 putts per GIR (2nd).
Tournament Skill Averages:
- Driving Distance: 44th, Driving Accuracy: 15th, Greens in Regulation: 9th, Proximity to Hole: 12th, Scrambling: 24th, Putting Average 12th.
Let’s take a view from players as to how Sedgefield Country Club sets up and what skill-sets the course favours:
Lucas Glover (2023): “Just putted OK. I didn’t read them great yesterday. I think a lot of us that have played here a lot are so used to the greens being so, so fast and then with the weather we’ve had, they’re not that. So there’s a lot of different speeds, different reads that it’s hard to get out of your head when you’re used to them being so fast.
I grew up on putting a lot of Bermuda greens, I seem to read the greens pretty well. I think I’m OK laying back off the tees a lot to make sure I’m in the fairway. When my irons are sharp, I seem to be able to make a lot of birdies. I think you try to attack this place a little too aggressive and miss some fairways, it can bite you. I learned that quite a while ago. I think it’s just a “fairways first” mentality, and then if you get some good numbers and hit it close, you’ve got a good chance to make some birdies.”
Tom Kim (2022): “Yeah, I mean, I just, I didn’t really feel uncomfortable. Normally it’s all kind of a mental thing, I feel like. Just you want to start good and a start like (A quadruple bogey on the 1st hole) that wasn’t the best, but I told myself, hey, imagine if you make two more bogeys a day, it’s just one hole, so just keep pushing. There’s definitely a lot of opportunities out there. You know, I got a good birdie on 3 to just kind of get my momentum and had a really good up-and-down on the par 5. Just kind of kept pushing. Felt like after the first hole I kind of played really solid.”
“I feel like I take it one day at a time. Just because I’ve been playing well, I played well last week, this could be a really different week. I told myself it’s a fresh start. This is my fifth, sixth week in a row, I played a lot of golf coming from Scotland as well, but I feel ready and I’m happy to be out here.”
Kevin Kisner (2021): “My record’s pretty good here at Sedgefield and I enjoy where everybody– we’ve got to put the ball in the same place. And then I love the greens surfaces, obviously what I grew up on. There’s less of those courses on Tour than ever, so when we get to weeks like this, I really have to be on form to play well and these are my chances to hold the trophies.”
Jim Herman (2020): “ Yeah, 61, it’s great anytime you can do that. Just gave myself good looks. You’ve got to be below the hole, got to have makeable putts out here or you’re going to be playing defensive. If you’re above the hole, you’re going to be just lagging all day long. I had a really good approach game today, I think I hit almost every green. The one green I did miss, I putted in from off the green. Yeah, good iron play. Starts off the tee with me, got to hit it in the fairway. I’m not as long as most guys out here, so I’ve got to put it in play, give myself a chance from the fairway.”
J.T. Poston (2019): “ Ball-striking’s been really good, haven’t missed many greens. Just keep giving myself a lot of looks and hit a lot of good putts. Made a few, but just really steady, solid golf for the most part. The golf course was easy enough to where if you hit fairways, you could attack some pins, and my iron play was really solid all week. So it was nice to give myself some looks, and today I finally made some putts and was able to get that low one in there.”
Brandt Snedeker (2018): “Yeah, I’m playing a lot better than I have been early in the year. I’m excited about the way I’m rolling the ball, putting great again. For whatever reason, seems like every week I have a bad round or a bad nine holes that kind of keeps me out of contention. So a big focus this week is staying patient. This is a golf course I had a lot of success on, I love it. It breeds kind of my kind of play hit, hit fairways, hit some greets, lots of wedge opportunities. It’s going to turn into a birdie-fest like it always does because the course is in great, shape so you know what you have to do when you step up on the first tee, put the ball in play and give yourself a lot of opportunities. So excited about that and excited about seeing how my game’s feeling. After last week at the PGA I kind of found something I thought on the weekend and hopefully it kind of stays in there and gives me a good chance to win this week.”
Henrik Stenson: “I think whenever you play a week after a Major championship, which isn’t all the time for me I found in the past you can find the golf courses quite easy when you play the tougher course the week before and you still kind of keep a strong mindset in terms of one shot at a time which, again, you always want to have but probably even more so at the Majors. It’s crucial. I’ve had some good success in particular playing in Germany the week after the U.S. Open a lot of times and done well.
Have left the driver out this week. Strong 3-wood, 4-wood and 2-iron. Putting myself in position and trying to stay out of that Bermuda rough. If you do that you got pretty short clubs and you can be accurate with your second shots. Plenty more of the same tomorrow. I’m trying to be kind of offensive to defensive spots, if you know, off the tee on a few of holes but then you get a lot of 8, 9 irons, wedges into these greens and they’re pretty receptive. You can be pretty aggressive if you’re feeling you got good numbers and feels right, go for it. We’ll produce a lot of birdie chances the first two days. My putting has been excellent. I’ve seen the lines nicely. Hit a lot of good putts and I’ve been hitting a lot of good iron shots as well, some wedges and some mid to short irons, and that’s kind of what I keep on doing and trying to hit a lot of fairways with the 3-wood and trying to attacking the hole and that’s been working nicely so far. No need to change that for tomorrow.”
Luke Donald: “It’s a course I really enjoy. I love the design of this course. The greens are very true, very fast, quite undulating. You have to have some imagination. And nice to get off to a solid start. Conditions were nice out there. The greens are holding for the most part and not too much wind. So, you’re playing well there’s some opportunities out there. I struggled a little bit visualizing that tee shot. It was a couple tee shots you don’t see them land and 18 is one of them. I hit a poor tee shot left and had to chip out. I had a good number with a little wedge, stick it to that pin. Would have been disappointing to drop one there after playing so well for the rest of the round.”
Webb Simpson: “It goes back to the point of the golf course. Bay Hill, Tiger won so many times. Akron produces long hitters winning there. Depending on the golf course you kind of create your own pool of winners that are usually going to win there, whereas this course, like I said, it favours nobody. So I think that’s what makes it hard to repeat, that if you have a field of whatever, what did we have, 156 players, that most everybody in the field has a legitimate chance to win whereas, you know, maybe you go to San Diego, I can’t remember the last time somebody who didn’t bomb it winning there. That’s a place where you take out 50 percent of the field from the start of the week. like I said earlier about the golf course, I don’t think it’s one where you have to play many years to learn it, where a lot of courses you do. Like Augusta is a good example whereas this golf course is more straight in front of you and, again, it’s a level playing field for everyone which I wish we played more like these.”
Tiger Woods: “The golf course is tricky. I know it’s wet and the fairways, ball in hand but the greens are so fast. They’re so speedy. Hideki, myself, even Brooks, we ripped a couple putts down there probably 10, 15 feet past the hole and even though as wet as they are, they’re still that fast downhill, down-grain and got to respect it and it puts such a premium on iron play to put the ball in the right spot and give yourself putts. For the majority of the day I was putting myself in perfect spots where I can be aggressive.”
Incoming Form of Wyndham Championship since 2012:
- Lucas Glover: MC 3M Open/ 5th Barbasol/ 6th JDC/4th Rocket.
- Tom Kim: 9th Rocket/26th 3M Open/47th Open/3rd Scottish Open.
- Kevin Kisner: 63rd WGC St Jude/73rd Open/8th Rocket/5th Travelers.
- Jim Herman: 77th PGA/MC Memorial/MC Workday Open/33rd RBC Heritage.
- J.T. Poston: 29th Barbasol/MC JDC/11th Rocket/MC Travelers.
- Brandt Snedeker: 42nd PGA/8th Canadian/MC Open/3rd Greenbrier.
- Henrik Stenson: 13th PGA/17th Bridgestone/11th Open/ 26th Scottish Open.
- Si-Woo Kim: 25th Travelers/MC PGA/23rd Canada/2nd Barbasol.
- Davis Love III: MC PGA/MC Canada/54th Greenbrier/MC Travelers.
- Camilo Villegas: WD Canada/45th JDC/26th Greenbrier/MC Quicken National.
- Patrick Reed: 9th Canada/7th JDC/MC Greenbrier/34th Quicken National.
- Sergio Garcia: MC PGA/29th Bridgestone/MC Open/29th BMW Intl.
First Round Leader Analysis: First round leader(s), their wave and winning score since 2010. Full First Round Leader stats are here.
- 2023 – Henley – PM -8/62 – 40/1.
- 2022 – Huh – AM -9/61 – 125/1.
- 2021 – Henley – AM -8/62 – 50/1.
- 2020 – Hoge/Sloan/Varner III – 2PM/1AM -8/62 – 125/1/200/1/80/1.
- 2019 – An/Im – AM/PM Split -8/62 – Both 66/1.
- 2018 – Snedeker – AM -11/59 – 33/1.
- 2017 – Every – AM -9/61 – 200/1.
- 2016 – Cabrera-Bello/Na – Both AM -7/63.
- 2015 – Compton/Hoge/McGirt – 2AM/1PM -8/62.
- 2014 – Villegas – PM -7/63.
- 2013 – Fisher/Stroud – AM/PM Split -6/64.
- 2012 – Pettersson – AM -8/62.
- 2011 – Gainey/Quinney – AM/PM Split -7/63.
- 2010 – Atwal – PM -9/61.
For the record, here’s the breakdown of Bermudagrass PGA Tour victors in the field since 2008:
- 5 – Jordan Spieth.
- 4 – Bill Haas, Billy Horschel, Zach Johnson, Si Woo Kim, Camilo Villegas.
- 3 – Kevin Kisner, Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker.
- 2 – Daniel Berger, Harris English, Lucas Glover, Mackenzie Hughes, Peter Malnati, Justin Rose, Webb Simpson, Nick Taylor.
- 1 – Aaron Baddeley, Akshay Bhatia, Keegan Bradley, Wesley Bryan, Cameron Champ, Stewart Cink, Tyler Duncan, Nick Dunlap, Austin Eckroat, Chris Gotterup, Adam Hadwin, Nick Hardy, Jim Herman, Garrick Higgo, Sungjae Im, Stephan Jaeger, Kurt Kitayama, Patton Kizzire, Martin Laird, Luke List, Shane Lowry, Keith Mitchell, Taylor Moore, C.T. Pan, J.T. Poston, Seamus Power, Davis Riley, J.J. Spaun, Kevin Streelman, Adam Svensson, Brendon Todd, Jhonattan Vegas, Gary Woodland, Will Zalatoris.
Recent winning totals of -20, -20, -15, -21, -22, -21, -22, -21, -17, -17, -14 and -18 highlight that the key to success in Greensboro is two-fold: make plenty of eagles and birdies plus minimise dropped shots. It’s also worth noting that we’re returning to a Champion Bermudagrass-greened golf course this week – naturally many have played months of Bentgrass, Fescue and Poa Annua grasses. Indeed this is the first Bermudagrass greened tournament since the U.S. Open in mid-June.
Across the recent PGA Tour schedule the only courses where Champion Bermudagrass greens feature are Congaree (2021 Palmetto Championship & 2022 CJ Cup), the Country Club of Jackson, The Dunes Golf and Beach Club (2024 Myrtle Beach Classic), TPC Southwind and Quail Hollow (since the 2017 PGA Championship), plus Pinehurst Number 2 which hosted this year’s U.S. Open also featured Champion.
It won’t surprise in a tournament where 4 straight rounds of 65/66 is the target that streaky scorers dominate the contending positions. However game-wise since the swap to Champion Bermudagrass greens it’s safe to say that Garcia, Reed, Villegas, Love III, Si Woo Kim, Henrik Stenson, Brandt Snedeker, J.T. Poston, Jim Herman, Kevin Kisner, Tom Kim and Lucas Glover all primarily won through their ability to create enough birdie opportunities with neat tee-to-green play which they then converted.
Those looking for Donald Ross-positive players should look no further than PGA Tour tracks Aronimink (AT&T National 2009/10 + 2018 BMW Championship), Detroit Golf Club (Rocket Mortgage Classic), East Lake (Tour Championship) as well as Oak Hill (2013 +2023 PGA Championship) and Pinehurst No2 (2014 + 2024 U.S. Open).
Sedgefield has a habit of producing 1st time PGA Tour winners with Tom Kim, J.T. Poston, Si Woo Kim, Patrick Reed, Webb Simpson, Arjun Atwal and Ryan Moore all recording their first main-Tour victories here since 2008. FedEx Cup standings-wise, Webb Simpson was 12th in the standings when he captured his first title here at 20/1 in 2011. Since then 102nd, 78th, 105th, 187th, 44th, 75th, 80th, 83rd, 192nd, 69th, Special Temporary Member (Tom Kim could only qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs by winning the Wyndham) and 112th suggest that we should certainly consider players a little deeper than the very obvious candidates this week.
