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The Hawaii swing has been put away, but what should be a thrilling stretch of golf up and down the West Coast in the continental United States as a prelude to the Players Championship in March lies just ahead. That starts this week with The American Express, which boasts its best field in nearly two decades and features two of the top four players in the world, both of whom have been playing some of the best golf on the planet over the last six months.
Let’s take a closer look at this week’s contest with odds provided via Caesars Sportsbook.
Event information
Event: The American Express | Dates: Jan. 20-23
Location: La Quinta Country Club, PGA West Stadium Course and Nicklaus Course – La Quinta, Calif.
Par: 72 | Purse: $7.6 million
Three things to know
1. Wait, 373 yards? I’m fascinated by the story of James Hard du Preez, a South African player in the field this week. He’s longer than Bryson DeChambeau with a grace and an ease that reminds you of another South African legend. He hits 200 MPH ball speed (or more) without even really trying that hard, it seems. This won’t win you a golf tournament, but in a golf world obsessed with speed and distance, he’ll be an intriguing follow this week at this event. According to Golf Channel, he averaged (AVERAGED) 373 yards off the tee last year on the Sunshine Tour.
2. Can Rahm stay hot? The No. 1 player in the world is going to be difficult to not pick this week. In his last nine PGA Tour starts, he’s finished in the top 10 seven times, and one of those in which he didn’t was his withdrawal at the Memorial Tournament where he was leading by six after 54 holes. In addition to that, he won this event in 2018 over Andrew Landry and is protecting his No. 1 spot in the world, which Collin Morikawa — who is playing on the DP World Tour this week in Abu Dhabi — can swipe from him with a win over there. Every tournament Rahm plays in right now runs through…
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Source : cbssports
