So much for respecting the elders. One of this season’s notable changes was the shift of Firestone Country Club’s South Course from the PGA TOUR to the PGA TOUR Champions. It hosted the Bridgestone SENIOR PLAYERS Championship two weeks ago. At 7,400 yards, it was the longest course on the 50-and-older circuit in nine years and the field averaged 72.820 on the par 70. Retief Goosen prevailed at 6-under 274. Only six golfers finished under par in the 72-hole event. With that challenging track dispatched, the firm, fair and scorable TPC Southwind has taken over as the host of the newly named World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Scroll past the projected contenders for a profile of the stroll in Memphis, the field’s experience on it and more. Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Bryson DeChambeau, Tony Finau and Phil Mickelson will be among the notables reviewed in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. From 1989-2018, TPC Southwind hosted the FedEx St. Jude Classic. It’s been a par 70 since 2006 and it will set up for a potential stretch of 7,237 yards this week. That reflects a one-yard decrease at the par-3 eighth hole that now tips at 171 yards. Traditionally slotted in the week before the U.S. Open and open to the maximum field of 156, the course has been reassigned to serve as the backdrop for a limited field of the sport’s elite. There is no cut and there are no alternates. As of midday Monday, 64 of the 69 qualifiers are committed to competing. (Rickie Fowler, Francesco Molinari, Lee Westwood, Bernd Wiesberger and Tiger Woods declined.) Forty pegged it at TPC Southwind at least once before; 25 made at least two appearances. Overall, this field went a collective 82-for-117 with 28 top 10s in the old iteration of the tournament. Two-time champion Dustin Johnson (2012, 2018) is the only winner of the FedEx St. Jude Classic who qualified for and committed to this week’s WGC. After sharing the 54-hole lead here in 2018, DJ ran away to win by six strokes, the largest margin at TPC Southwind in 14 years (David Toms, 2004). Johnson’s 19-under 261 was the second-lowest winning aggregate to John Cook’s 258 in 1996. Indeed, those who attempted to tame Firestone in the past won’t miss it. This isn’t to say that TPC Southwind is a pushover, however. It averaged 70.520 as a 156-man contest last year, and that hit the bull’s-eye for expectations. With a smaller and exponentially stronger field that has course experience, overall scoring should drop. The fairways are narrow, but TPC Southwind essentially is a second-shot test because the bermudagrass rough is trimmed to two-and-a-half inches. It’ll be juicy because it’s been a rainy 2019, but there’s not enough overall length to intensify the challenge. The dozen par 4s are sturdy as a group, but finding the small greens in regulation is the priority. TPC Southwind surrendered only 10.67 GIR on average last season, good for the fifth-lowest clip among all courses. However, it’s one of the easier layouts on which to salvage par (58.72 percent), so it’ll benefit both course management and aggressive types who can get up and down. The Champion bermuda greens will touch 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. Among other perks, the champion will receive 550 FedExCup points and a three-year PGA TOUR membership exemption. Warm and pleasant conditions will facilitate scoring. Daytime highs in the mid- to upper 80s will complement the omnipresent sunshine every day. Winds will be light.   ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings (WGC) TUESDAY*: Power Rankings (Barracuda), Sleepers (WGC), Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done (WGC), One & Done (Barracuda), Champions One & Done * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – PGA TOUR LIVE will offer fans more access than ever before during the 2019-20 PGA TOUR Season by adding early-round featured groups coverage from seven events between September and December. This includes, for the first time ever, live streaming of “featured matches� all four days of competition from the upcoming Presidents Cup at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia (December 12-15, 2019). All told, approximately 140 hours of additional live content will be available, bringing more than 1,100 total hours to subscribers and extending live content across each month of the calendar year. Available in the United States on NBC Sports Gold and Prime Video Channels and internationally on GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR, the TOUR’s OTT subscription service will provide Thursday-Friday coverage of featured  groups starting in September from the six domestic tournaments on the 2019-20 PGA TOUR schedule: A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier; Sanderson Farms Championship; Safeway Open; Shriners Hospitals for Children Open; Houston Open; and The RSM Classic.  “In year one of our partnerships with NBC Sports and Amazon, we’ve exceeded expectations on multiple fronts, and we’re thrilled our fans will have the opportunity to watch the exciting early-round action from these 6 fall events and Presidents Cup,� said Rick Anderson, Chief Media Officer for the PGA TOUR. “It’s clear that fans love the depth and breadth of PGA TOUR LIVE coverage, which is a byproduct of both its increasing accessibility and the expanding volume of live content we’re able to deliver.� Coinciding with the announcement of additional coverage, the PGA TOUR and NBC Sports are offering a limited time subscription offer, whereby fans signing up for an annual pass (September 2019-August 2020) for $64.99 will also receive bonus coverage from the upcoming FedExCup Playoffs for free. Current annual pass-holders will retain access through December 31, 2019, thus receiving access to these seven additional events. International fans can find out about local offers and pricing by visiting GOLF.TV, with access to PGA TOUR LIVE coverage and on-demand content available online and on mobile via the GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR app. NBC Sports Gold and Prime Video Channels, as well as GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR internationally, began distributing PGA TOUR LIVE in January 2019, each now with more than 1,000 hours of content from 35 tournaments. An expanded list of platforms and streaming devices to access PGA TOUR LIVE through these relationships has led to a significant increase in engagement and consumption, including a 25-percent year-over-year increase in time spent per user (2 hours, 30 minutes watched per user, per week).  Additionally, with NBC Sports Gold and Prime Video Channels being available on dozens of connected devices such as Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV and Chromecast, connected device consumption of PGA TOUR LIVE has spiked to about one-third of total minutes in 2019.  About PGA TOUR LIVE PGA TOUR LIVE is the PGA TOUR’s Over-The-Top subscription service that features more than 1,100 hours of live video from 35 PGA TOUR events.  Coverage showcases the TOUR’s biggest stars with live Featured Groups coverage each week beginning at A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier and running through the TOUR Championship.  Fans can subscribe to PGA TOUR LIVE via NBC Sports Gold or Amazon Prime Video Channels, offering fans more viewing options and platforms than ever before.  In addition to its exclusive live coverage, PGA TOUR LIVE now features Speed Rounds that showcase every shot from a Featured Player in under 10 minutes, as well as integrated statistics, rounds replays and event recaps.  About PGA TOUR By showcasing golf’s greatest players, the PGA TOUR engages, inspires and positively impacts our fans, partners and communities worldwide. The PGA TOUR co-sanctions more than 130 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions, Korn Ferry Tour, PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR Series-China. Members on the PGA TOUR represent the world’s best players, hailing from 27 countries (90 members are from outside the United States). Worldwide, PGA TOUR tournaments are broadcast to 226 countries and territories in 23 languages. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations to maximize charitable giving. In 2018, tournaments across all Tours generated a record $190 million for local and national charitable organizations, bringing the all-time total to $2.84 billion.

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