Tiger Woods returns to play in the Bahamas. European tour splits time in Australia and South Africa
PGA TOUR
HERO WORLD CHALLENGE
Site: Nassau, Bahamas.
Course: Albany GC. Yardage: 7,449. Par: 72.
Prize money: $4.5 million. Winner's share: $1 million.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 1:30-4:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, noon to 2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2:30-5 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 1:30-4:30 p.m. (NBC).
Defending champion: Viktor Hovland.
FedEx Cup champion: Viktor Hovland.
Notes: Tiger Woods returns to competition for the first time since fusion surgery on his right ankle in April. Woods last played at the Masters but withdrew after making the cut. ... This will be the first time Woods plays his holiday event since 2019. ... The tournament has a 20-man field and is sanctioned by the PGA Tour, though it is unofficial. It receives world ranking points because of criteria that everyone be ranked inside the top 50. ... There is an exemption for the tournament host (Woods). ... Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele withdrew from the original list of players. ... The field includes Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa and Collin Morikawa. ... Hovland is going for his third straight victory in the tournament. Scheffler has been runner-up both times. Woods is the only other player to win back-to-back since the event began in 2000.
Next tournament: The Sentry on Jan. 4-7.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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EUROPEAN TOUR AND PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA
ISPS HANDA AUSTRALIAN OPEN
Site: Sydney.
Courses: The Lakes GC (Yardage: 6,832. Par: 72) and The Australian GC (Yardage: 7,228. Par: 71).
Prize money: AD 1.7 million. Winner's share: AD 310,000.
Television: Wednesday-Thursday, 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. (Golf Channel); Friday, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Adrian Meronk and Ashleigh Buhai.
Race to Dubai leader: Min Woo Lee.
Last week: Min Woo Lee won the Australian PGA Championship.
Notes: For the second straight year, the Australian Open and Women's Australian Open will be held concurrently for separate trophies and the same prize money. ... The leading three players not already exempt earn spots in the British Open next year as part of the Open Qualifying Series. ... The Australian Open is fifth-oldest national championship in the world, dating to 1904. ... Among the Australians playing in their home open are major champions Geoff Ogilvy, Adam Scott and Cameron Smith, along with Cam Davis, Aaron Baddeley, Min Woo Lee and Marc Leishman. ... Nick Hardy and Patrick Rodgers are the U.S. players who are competing this year. ... This is the second straight week the European tour is co-sanctioning a tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia. ... The field includes Jasper Stubbs, who won the Asia-Pacific Amateur to earn a spot in the Masters and British Open next year.
Next week: Alfred Dunhill Championship.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/ and https://pga.org.au/
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EUROPEAN TOUR AND SUNSHINE TOUR
INVESTEC SOUTH AFRICAN OPEN
Site: Johannesburg.
Course: Blair Atholl Golf & Equestrian Estate. Yardage: 8,161. Par: 72.
Prize money: $1.5 million. Winner's share: $250,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 5-10 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 5-9:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Thriston Lawrence.
Race to Dubai leader: Min Woo Lee.
Last week: Dean Burmester won the Joburg Open.
Notes: This is the second of three straight weeks the European tour is co-sanctioning a tournament in South Africa with the Sunshine Tour. ... The South African Open dates to 1903, making it the third-oldest championship in golf behind the British Open (1860) and the U.S. Open (1895). ... Former Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, now with LIV Golf, is in the field. He is a two-time runner-up of his national Open but has yet to win it. ... Dean Burmester is the other LIV Golf player in the field. ... Matthias Schwab of Austria is competing under the Category 12 exemption for PGA Tour members who finished between Nos. 126 and 200 in the FedEx Cup last season. ... Matti Schmid of Germany is playing two weeks after he secured his PGA Tour card by narrowly finishing in the top 125. ... Gary Player won the South African Open 13 times. Bobby Locke is next, winning it nine times.
Next week: Alfred Dunhill Championship.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/ and https://sunshinetour.com/
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OTHER TOURS
Japan Golf Tour: Golf Nippon Series JT Cup, Tokyo Yomiuri CC, Tokyo. Defending champion: Hideto Tanihara. Online: https://www.jgto.org/en/
Asian Tour: Taiwan Glass Taifong Open, Taifong GC, Changhua, Taiwan. Defending champion: Chien-yao Hung. Online: https://asiantour.com/
Legends Tour: Vinpearl DIC Legends, Vinpearl Resort, Nha Trang, Vietnam. Defending champion: New event. Online: https://www.legendstour.com/
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
