Masters champ Matsuyama to play Shriners
Masters champ joins list of elite performers
Reigning Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama is among nine major championship winners who have committed to play the Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin.
Matsuyama will be joined by Louis Oosthuizen, Francesco Molinari, Adam Scott and a host of other elite players in the field, which is shaping up to be among the best of the fall season on the PGA Tour.
Players have until the Friday before the tournament to officially commit. Among those missing from the initial listing are Patrick Cantlay, Bryson Dechambeau and Collin Morikawa, but all have indicated they will commit before the Oct. 1 deadline.
Other top-tier players planning to play the CJ Cup the following week also in Las Vegas could also decide to add the Shriners to their schedule.
“The 2021 Shriners Children’s Open field is shaping up as expected,” said Patrick Lindsey, executive director of the tournament that runs Oct. 7-10. “We are thrilled to have several returning champions, including the 2021 Fedex Cup champion Patrick Cantlay, along with several PGA Tour stars that call Las Vegas home.”
Other big names set to play in Las Vegas in just two weeks include Max Homa — who picked up his third PGA Tour win over the weekend — Viktor Hovland, Abraham Ancer and PGA Tour rookie of the year Will Zalatoris.
In addition, 12 players with ties to Southern Nevada will play, including two-time champion Kevin Na, Ryan Moore and Garrick Higgo.
“These players, and several more to still be announced, will represent our destination and Shriners Children’s extremely well when they tee it up on Oct. 7,” Lindsey said.
Tickets remain available at shrinerschildrensopen.com; volunteer opportunities for the event have closed.
Mcnealy’s close call
Las Vegas resident Maverick Mcnealy keeps inching closer to his first PGA Tour victory, falling one shot shy Sunday at the Fortinet Championship in Napa, California. He held the second-round lead and shared the third-round lead before being overtaken on the back nine Sunday by Homa.
Mcnealy held his head high afterward, proud of how he handled the pressure of playing in the final group on both Saturday and Sunday for the first time in his career.
“It was a great week. I learned a lot,” said Mcnealy, who is just 25 and three years out of college. “I was really, really proud of how I came out of my front nine. I love the way I was feeling. I love the way I managed myself, and I love the shots that I executed.”
Mcnealy had a final-round 68, but Homa simply played better on the back nine. Homa was 5 under over the final seven holes, including a hole-out for eagle from the 12th fairway.
“I executed my game plan to the best of my ability,” Mcnealy said. “I gave every shot my full attention. I managed myself, I managed my emotions, and sometimes it just doesn’t work out.”
The former Stanford player was the nation’s top-ranked amateur before turning pro. He finished last season 58th on the Fedex Cup standings and took home just more than $2 million in earnings. He’s 76th in the world rankings, cracking the top 100 for the first time this week.
“I’m really excited to see the direction my game’s trending,” he said.
Chip shots
The CJ Cup is just three weeks away from being played at the Summit Club Oct. 14-17, yet the PGA Tour still has not released its plan for tickets for the tournament, featuring 78 of the top players in the world and a $9.75 million purse.
Shadow Creek’s Erik Matthewson tied for fourth last week at the Southwest PGA Section Championship at We-ko-pa Golf Club outside of Phoenix, earning him a spot in the 55th PGA Professional Championship in April in Austin, Texas. The top 20 finishers there will earn a spot in the PGA Championship in May.