Week 17 Approach Shots: Quail Hollow Championship
By PGATOUR.COM Staff
THE START OF THE CAREER YEAR: The Quail Hollow Championship will always hold a special place in Anthony Kim's heart. It was at Quail Hollow Club in 2008 that Kim earned his first PGA TOUR title, taking a four-stroke lead into the final round and rolling to a five-stroke victory over Ben Curtis. The win -- the first of two 2008 titles for Kim (he also won the AT&T National in July) -- helped him finish fourth in the FedExCup and land a spot on the victorious 2008 U.S. Ryder Cup team.
| Quick Facts | |||||||||
|
Kim opened this season in strong fashion, tying for second at the season-opening Mercedes-Benz Championship. He has made the cut in five of his six PGA TOUR starts and has also played in two European Tour events.
He is 46th in this year's FedExCup standings, tying for 20th in his last start the Masters Tournament.
TOP FEDEXCUP POINTS EARNERS IN FIELD: Seven of the top 10 players and 18 of 25 in the FedExCup standings are playing this week in the Quail Hollow Championship in Charlotte, N.C. Geoff Ogilvy still leads the overall points chase by 77 points over Phil Mickelson. Both players are in the Quail Hollow field. Jerry Kelly, who improved from 97th to 17th in the standings with his win at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, is also playing this week. Ogilvy has led the competition for the last nine weeks and has held the top spot for 10 weeks overall.
PLAYER NOTES: Kim, who won the 2008 Quail Hollow Championship at age 22 years, 10 months, 15 days, was the youngest winner on the PGA TOUR last year. ...
Tiger Woods has played in three Quail Hollow Championships (2004, 2005, 2007), winning in 2007. Out of Woods' 12 career rounds at the event, only two have been over par, and half have been in the 60s. ...
Former champion Vijay Singh, who won the 2005 tournament, has four top-10 finishes in six appearances at the Quail Hollow Championship. Of Singh's 24 career rounds at the event, 20 are at par or better. ...
Padraig Harrington is looking to improve on his best performance at Quail Hollow -- a tie for 43rd in 2007. He tied for 75th in his only other appearance, in 2005. ...
Three of the six previous Quail Hollow Championship winners have come from behind Sunday to win the title. Joey Sindelar, Vijay Singh and Tiger Woods trailed heading into the final round. The other three champions, David Toms, Jim Furyk and Anthony Kim, held the 54-hole lead. ...
Furyk, who won the Quail Hollow Championship in 2006, has had almost all-or-nothing success at Quail Hollow. In five appearances at the event, he has missed the cut twice, tied for second (2005), and he finished seventh a year ago, to go with his '06 win. In 16 career rounds at this event, Furyk has only shot over par twice. Seven of his 16 rounds are in the 60s. ...
Davis Love III will play in his seventh consecutive Quail Hollow Championship. Born in Charlotte, Love's best finish is a tie for 14th in 2006. He missed the cut last year and in 2005. ...
Four of the six past champions of the Quail Hollow Championship are currently ranked among the top 15 in the Official World Golf Ranking -- Woods (No. 1), Singh (No. 8), Kim (No. 13) and Furyk (No. 14). ...
Brendon Todd, who received notoriety two weeks ago when he made holes-in-one on the same hole on consecutive days at the Athens Regional Foundation Classic on the Nationwide Tour, is in the field this week. He's playing on a sponsor's exemption, along with Notah Begay III, Ross Fisher, Jason Gore, Danny Lee, Jeev Milkha Singh and Charles Warren. ...
Twelve winners of 2009 PGA TOUR events are playing this week, including two-time champions Ogilvy (Mercedes-Benz Championship and World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship) and Phil Mickelson (Northern Trust Open and World Golf Championships-CA Championship).
ON-COURSE OBSERVATIONS: PGA TOUR Network correspondent John Maginnes is on the scene in Charlotte for this week's satellite radio coverage (XM 146/SIRIUS 209). Reports Maginnes:
Quail Hollow has proven, in its brief history, that it is one of the best tests of golf that PGA TOUR players face all year. When asked what is the prevailing factor in putting a tournament on their schedule, PGA TOUR players start with the golf course and finish with hospitality. At Quail Hollow, every one of those expectations is met and exceeded.
One of the elements of a great course is that it has many faces and personalities. The last couple of years, the course has played relatively slow with deep rough. That will not be the case this year. The rough has been topped at two inches, and less-than-average spring rains have allowed the field staff to make Quail Hollow play fast. How fast remains to be seen. Quail Hollow is one of those rare venues that could easily make the transition to a major championship. But so far this week, the greens remain relatively receptive, leaving players and pundits alike thinking that scoring might be a little better than in years past. The par 4s will play slightly shorter, perhaps requiring more thought off the tee. The par 5s will become reachable for every player in the field.
The overwhelming speculation is that 13 or 14 under could be the winning score. To push red digits into the teens, even on a kinder Quail Hollow, will take exceptional playing. The firmer the narrow, sloping fairways are, the more likely that well-struck drives will bound into the rough. Sure, with less rough, a player will be able to advance his ball to the green, but it seems unlikely that he will be able to actually find the putting surface. Missing greens at Quail Hollow will test every aspect of creativity and execution for the short games of golf's best.
A trip around Quail Hollow requires a player to use every club in his bag. It is a complete test from start to finish and one of the best all-around golf tournaments on the PGA TOUR.
| Weather forecast for the Quail Hollow Championship | ||||||||
|
| Quail Hollow Championship snippets | ||||||||
|
| In the spotlight | ||
| This week: Anthony Kim | ||
|
| A victory this week earns you ... | |||||
|
Shop your favorite brand name golf equipment and accessories at SHOP.PGATOUR.COM
FAN ZONE
PGATOUR.com is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network