Tiger Woods plays a tournament on the American tour for the second week in a row and does so a stone's throw from his home, in Palm Beach Garden, Florida, on the splendid "Champion" course of the Pga National, designed by Jack Nicklaus. On this course the Golden Bear has left his most ferocious paw, the so-called "Bear Trap", formed by holes 15, 16 and 17. Whoever overcomes this obstacle unscathed during the four days of competition has a good chance to win. Tiger tries, from today to Sunday, even if last week he didn't pass the cut in the Genesis Open, a tournament won by left-handed Bubba Watson. The fact that the former number one is back on the field immediately is a good sign, it means that he is physically and mentally well and that he is trying to get some rust off his back, after the long break for back surgery . Too bad he's going, tomorrow night, he'll be walking home.
It is also recent news that his friend Steve Stricker, captain of the US team for the 2018 Ryder Cup, which will take place in Paris, has appointed him as his deputy.
Defending title is Rickie Fowler, who has played 22 events around the world since last year's win, collecting 15 top 15 player finishes. The Spaniard Sergio Garcia, 2017 Masters champion, is also back on the scene in his season debut on the PGA Tour. El Nino got married about a year ago and will become a father for the first time next month. The list of champions in Palm Beach includes, among others, Rory McIlroy, still opaque in his last appearance, Justin Thomas, Adam Scott, Gary Woodland, Tyrrel Hatton, Daniel Berger. The prize pool is $6,6 million.
The European tour, on the other hand, remains in the gulf and stops in Doha for the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters (February 22-25). Six Italians on the pitch: Edoardo Molinari, Matteo Manassero, Nino Bertasio, Renato Paratore, Andrea Pavan and Lorenzo Gagli. The Korean Jeunghun Wang defends the title in a context that includes the English Chris Wood and Andy Sullivan, the Welsh Jamie Donaldson, the Swede Robert Karlsson, the Spanish Pablo Larrazabal. The prize pool is 1,420 million euros.
