Safeway Open
Where: Silverado Resort, Napa (North Course)
When: Thursday through Sunday
Course info: 7,166 yards, par-72
Purse: $6.4 million
Last year’s winner: Brendan Steele (15-under-par)
Notable players: Phil Mickelson, Brandt Snedeker, Patrick Cantlay, Jason Dufner, Bill Haas, Hunter Mahan, Ryan Moore, Nick Watney, Fred Couples, John Daly
Ryder Cup hangover: Mickelson is the only player making the long trip from France, where he went 0-2 in the U.S. loss. Mickelson tied for third last year at Silverado, posting 12-under with rounds of 69-69-68-70.
Three-peat on table: seeks his third consecutive Steele victory in this tournament. He returns to Wine Country after struggling this summer on tour; he failed to finish in the top 40 in his last 10 starts of the 201718 season.
Mulder’s mission: officials to former gave a A’s sponsor pitcher Tournament exemption Mark Mulder, a three-time winner of the celebrity event near South Lake Tahoe. Mulder, a scratch golfer, arrives with modest ambitions: His goal is not to finish last in the 144-man field.
Old guys rule: Couples and Daly, fan favorites who play on the PGA Tour Champions, also landed sponsor exemptions. Couples, who turns 59 on Wednesday, has two top-10s in seven starts this year; Daly, 52, has three top-10s in 14 starts.
Player to watch: Cantlay, at No. 22, is the highest-ranked player in this week’s field. He’s coming off a strong season with seven top-10 finishes, including his first PGA Tour victory at the event in Las Vegas in November. Cantlay qualified for last month’s Tour Championship, in which he tied for 21st.
Champ’s debut: Cameron Champ, who grew up in Sacramento, will make his debut as a PGA Tour member. He missed the cut in last year’s Safeway Open, when he played as an amateur. Champ hits the ball a crazy-long way: He led the Web.com Tour in driving distance this year at 343.1 yards.
Local flavor: Among the players with Bay Area ties are Jeff Brehaut (Los Altos), Brandon Hagy (Cal), James Hahn (Alameda/Cal), Brandon Harkins (Walnut Creek), Max Homa (Cal), Michael Kim (Cal), Maverick McNealy (Portola Valley/ Stanford), Patrick Rodgers (Stanford) and Martin Trainer (Palo Alto).