More than two dozen PGA TOUR pros reside in the Golden Isles area of Georgia, the site of this week’s The RSM Classic. Included in that group is tournament host Davis Love III, who was instrumental in helping bring a PGA TOUR event to his community. The tournament, which will be played on two courses – Seaside and Plantation — at Sea Island Golf Club, is the last event of the fall portion of the 2017-18 TOUR schedule. After a six-week break, the next official TOUR event will be the Sentry Tournament of Champions in the first week of January. Here’s a look at the featured groups in the first two rounds (current FedExCup ranking in parentheses). All times ET. Patton Kizzire (1), Kevin Kisner (N/A), Mac Hughes (N/A) – Kizzire, one of the players who lives in the area, comes off his first TOUR win at last week’s OHL Classic at Mayakoba. He’s playing with two guys who know how to win at Sea Island – 2015 winner Kisner and defending champ Hughes, who last year became the 13th Canadian to win a PGA TOUR event. Tee times: Round 1 – 11 a.m. off No. 1 tee (Seaside); Round 2 – 9:50 a.m. off No. 10 tee (Plantation). Matt Kuchar (T-139), Luke Donald (147), Brandt Snedeker (N/A) – Snedeker has been sidelined since June with a rib injury, so he may be a bit rusty. Kuchar – a Sea Island resident – and Donald have each made one start this season, with Kuchar finishing T-31 at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions, and Donald finishing T-32 at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. Tee times: Round 1 – 11:10 a.m. off No. 1 tee (Seaside); Round 2 – 10 a.m. off No. 10 tee (Plantation). Brian Harman (30), Hudson Swafford (110), Bubba Watson (T-169) – If you’re a fan of the University of Georgia, you’ll like this group. All three players are former Bulldogs stars. Harman – another Sea Island resident — has two top-10 finishes this season and seems to be building on his breakthrough 2016-17 campaign. Swafford also won last season. Watson is making his first start in this event. Tee times: Round 1 – 10 a.m. off No. 10 tee (Plantation); Round 2 – 11 a.m. off No. 1 tee (Seaside). Zach Johnson (60), Webb Simpson (77), Davis Love III (T-136) – Plenty of star power in this group. Combine their four major wins, and it’s a Grand Slam group (Johnson with the Masters and Open Championship, Simpson with the U.S. Open, and Love with the PGA).  But in 19 cumulative starts in this event, none of the three have won at Sea Island. Simpson came closest as the runner-up in 2011. Love tied for fourth in 2012 but has missed the cut three times in seven starts. Johnson’s best finish in his seven starts was a T-12 in 2010. Tee times: Round 1 – 10:10 a.m. off No. 10 tee (Plantation); Round 2 – 11:10 a.m. off No. 1 tee (Seaside).
Click here to read the full article…
