Charles Howell III spent a lot of time on his short game during the offseason and the hard work has paid off. The Augusta native will enter the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 27 on the money list, with a good chance to get to the Tour Championship.
The improvement is most noticeable when it comes to putting. He ranks 15th in strokes gained/putting, considered the best gauge of putting on the PGA Tour.
“I’ve spent a lot of time and effort on that part of my game,” Howell said.
Howell’s season got off to a quick start when he tied for third at the Sony Open in Hawaii and lost in a playoff at the Humana Challenge the following week. He has posted three other top-10s and has won $1.78 million.
“I had a nice start and played OK through the summer,” he said.
Howell enters the playoffs on an unusual note. He shot a 66 in the first round of the Wyndham Championship last week, but was disqualified in the second round for playing a non-conforming club. The small toe-cap came off Howell’s driver. He did not replace it, which made the club non-conforming.
“The idea that the club would no longer be conforming because of the missing toe-cap never entered my mind,” Howell said. He will have the repaired driver back in his bag this week.
Players in the top 125 of the FedEx Cup points list begin the playoffs this week at the Barclays. The biggest jump last week was made by former Augusta State star Patrick Reed, who won the Wyndham Classic in a playoff and advanced from No. 78 to No. 22.
Reed, 23, became the first player to win with his wife (Justine) as his caddie since Steve Stricker won the 1996 BMW with his wife, Nicki, on the bag.
Savannah’s Brian Harman tied for third at the Wyndham, his second top-10 of the year, both coming in North Carolina. Harman jumped from No. 115 on the points list to No. 80, which gives him a better chance to reach the second round of the playoffs.
The top 100 on the points list after the Barclays advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship next week in Boston. From there, the top 80 move on to the BMW Championship in Chicago, with the top 30 earning spots at the Tour Championship at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Club.
Web.com Tour hands out cards: This is the final week in the regular season of the Web.com Tour and the top 25 will be guaranteed membership on the PGA Tour for the 2013-14 season. Georgia golfers guaranteed spots include former Georgia Tech star Chesson Hadley and former University of Georgia standouts Kevin Kisner and Brendon Todd, who each have a win this year.
The four-week Web.com Tour finals begin the following week. The top 75 money winners on the Web.com Tour will compete with those from the PGA Tour who finished between No. 126 and No. 200 and who have no membership status. That will determine an additional 25 cards, as well as the positioning of the 50 cards awarded.
U.S. Amateur countdown: A crowd gathered at the Atlanta Athletic Club on Sunday to begin the countdown for the 2014 U.S. Amateur, which the club will host on its Highland and Riverside courses. Unveiled was a new print of the painting of Bobby Jones with the 1927 U.S. Amateur trophy, which Jones reportedly said was his favorite.
The club will certainly have the defending champion in the 2014 field. Matt Fitzpatrick of England, who won the U.S. Amateur last week in Brookline, Mass., is exempt. Fitzpatrick will begin his freshman year at Northwestern this fall.
Two Georgians reached match play at the U.S. Amateur. Georgia Tech’s Seth Reeves upset Jordan Niebrugge, who was later named to the Walker Cup team, before losing to second-seed Brady Watt of Australia. Georgia Southern’s Scott Wolfes beat Mario Clemens of Mexico in the first round before losing to Xander Schauffele of San Diego.
Etc.: The NGA Tour (formerly the Hooters Tour) makes a stop in Stockbridge for the Eagle's Landing Classic at Eagle's Landing Country Club. The 72-hole event begins Thursday. … Georgia won the eighth annual Georgia-South Carolina Junior Challenge 15 1/2 to 8 1/2 at Johns Island, S.C. Diane Lim of Norcross went 2-0 and earn 5 1/2 points to lead Georgia.
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