This week’s PGA Tour World Skills Championship may not have a lot of hype, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important. There are signature events to attend, world ranking points to collect (with a year-end invitation to Augusta National top of mind), and a chance to break out, especially for those who haven’t made it… or haven’t made it in a long time.
Below we’ve listed eight players and their specific interest in Sunday’s final round of matches. It’s time to choose your warrior.
Garrick Shego: 22 under, leading
Deep-seated interest: The International Presidents Cup team needs Shego to take another step toward stardom. Technically, it’s Presidents Cup year, with just 10 months left in the biennial event. He can be used by international teams defeated by LIV Golf.
Carson Young: 21 under, one shot behind
Basic interests: If you like first time winners, or just like those literally Need to make a name for yourself, this is your man. Young is the rare tour pro who hasn’t earned enough fame for a Wikipedia page. That could change on Sunday.
Ben Griffin: 20 under, two shots behind
Basic interests: Benny Booms is one of the stories of the year. His rags to riches (mortgage loan officer) to riches (PGA Tour champion) story is very interesting. With one more win, things could get even better.
Nick Dunlap, 17 under, 5 shots behind
Basic interests: Anyone who has ever been unhappy with a driver should take comfort in the fact that it has captured the hearts of PGA Tour players as well. Dunlap had one of his worst days as a golfer earlier this year at the Masters, but he’s grown a lot in the months since.
Francesco Molinari, 15 under, 7 shots behind
Basic interests: The 2018 Open champion has been in the wilderness since the 2019 Masters. He hasn’t finished in the top 20 on Tour since this time last year. He needs to shoot around 61 to get into title contention, but I’m sure he’ll be happy to finish in the top ten.
Patrick Rogers, 17 under, 5 shots behind
Basic interests: If you’re a college golf fan, you want to see Rogers break through. He won as many championships as anyone during his time at Stanford and competed on the PGA Tour with Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele and others… just never crossed the finish line to win. He was already late.
Sami Valimaki, 19 under, 3 shots behind
Basic interests: Most weeks of the year, Viktor Hovland, Ludvig Aberg and even Alex Noren are interested in putting down their Nordic roots. This week, Finland’s Sami Valimaki takes the floor. The 27-year-old has never won on the PGA Tour and has had an up-and-down season. He can change all that with 65 Sunday.
Marty Schmid, 18 under, 4 shots behind
