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A bit of an abbreviated letter today with me scrambling to get ready to go out to Vegas for a few days.

This tournament and the playoffs as a whole are a bit of an enigma to me. This is the last shot for some guys to get in, but it’s always going to be a second-class field with the top players comfortably in the FedEx Playoffs already. So, while there is the possibility of drama, there is no guarantee.

Meanwhile, it’s the birdie fest course that certainly doesn’t present the opportunity for the very best in this field to separate and move up the rankings at the buzzer, as it often just boils down to some hot putting anyway. On the other hand, I do love a par-70 course. Distance gains have made many par-5s too scorable and I like a bunch of challenging par-4s as the backbone of a track.

Either way, it’s a nice looking course in an area with rich golf history and it’s that or pre-season football (I will watch both). I’d love to see them make this course a bit tougher in the future, but for now I’d just love to see them try to get 72 holes in with a tropical storm bearing down.

So, a little bit about the course, from Ron’s preview:

Sedgefield

Sedgefield Country Club is classified as a positional track that is slightly shorter than the average Tour course. It is a par-70 that measures out to 7,131 yards. With fairways that are heavily tree-lined, the course is routed over an undulating, wooded landscape. Just southeast of Greensboro among the rolling hills of the Piedmont region, it has a definite Carolina feel.

The course features wall-to-wall Bermudagrass with average-sized greens that run between 12.5 to 13 on the stimpmeter. The rough only measures 2.5 inches, but with Bermuda being the most unpredictable grass, even that length can be tricky to hit from.

Sedgefield places a premium on positioning your ball on the proper side of the fairway and finding the best angle to attack the tricky green complexes. Donald Ross was well-known for using the topography of the land to determine the routing of the course and how it should be played. Players will also be challenged to be strategically aggressive and will be rewarded with scoring opportunities if they are successful.

The visual challenges that Ross provides throughout the course are a perfect illustration of this. On the second hole tee, for example, there are numerous bunkers that appear to surround the fairway landing zones, yet they are actually much further back than anticipated. Numerous holes with doglegs also force players into decisions to either attack the dogleg or lay up with a shorter club.

While only a par 70 course, conditions are typically scoring-friendly at Sedgefield Country Club. Six of the past seven years the winning score has been at least 20-under. Over the past five events, the course has played to an average of 1.09 strokes under par per round, making it the 15th easiest track in the Tour rotation. There are only six holes that average over par. When winds are down and conditions are soft, low scores are in play, especially if someone catches fire with the putter as evidenced by Brandt Snedeker’s first-round 59 back in 2018.

There are three main defenses of this golf course that will somewhat challenge players—the Bermuda rough, the undulating green complexes, and the fairway bunkers. The routing of the course can also be challenging when the wind increases. Golfers tee off in a different direction on almost every single hole, which can affect distance control and accuracy if needing to calculate different wind speeds and directions. Water comes into play on six holes but is not a huge threat.

The fairway bunkers are the toughest on Tour from which to reach the green in regulation. The average GIR rate last year on Tour courses from fairway bunkers was 48.3%. Over the past couple of years at Sedgefield, it has been only 23.3%. Typically played in the sweltering heat and humidity of the Carolina summer, fatigue could also play a role in performance for those players who are not in the best physical shape.

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Model

I talked about the one we built on the First Look show Monday and brought it up SEVERAL times, that I would also be implementing a Course/Comp course History model to add to it. Just as I said, I made it with 50% Course History from the past 5 years, 10% history at other Donald Ross designs, and 40% history at comparable courses.

More Sungjae! Not surprising we have Glover here considering the weight last year’s performance carries along with some other golfers who have some high finishes. Currently the outright card for me is just Im and Mackenzie Hughes. As much as I’d love to take some more long shots, I feel like it’s a decent week to take it easy, considering the weather reports.

Still finalizing a first-round leader stable, I’ll tweet it out when I put the finishing touches on.

Weather

Looks pretty bad, guys. FOUR TO SIX INCHES OF RAIN.

There is a flash flood watch until Friday, with some of Tropical Storm Debby hitting the greater Greensboro area this week and into the weekend. I’m not sure what happens here, but if Thursday and Friday are as bad as predicted, will there be a 54-hole AND a Monday Finish?

Not going to attempt to make any calls at wave advantages or any other sort of prognostication now. Hope for the best, prep for the worst, it would be funny to be sweating out a first round leader bet on Saturday.

News and Notes

So, the Wells Fargo is changing title sponsors next year, but ALSO, since Quail Hollow is being used for a Major, it’s moving again for the 2025 season up to Philly. I don’t know anything about this course, but we’ll add it to the list of places we need to sort out next spring I suppose.

Going to spend a bit more time looking at how this works, but it would seem that some of the bigger names on the LIV Tour that are of the European persuasion still have a way to make it onto the Ryder Cup team if they’re willing to go get some points on the DP Tour.

Flex.

Finally, maybe I’m the last person to discover Georgia, but I enjoy these. I’m bad at golf, but I also have crippling ADHD, so these 1-minute pointer vids are solid. Worth a follow.

As always, bet responsibly, and have fun…. I hope your favorite guy makes the playoffs.

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