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Tournament Information:
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Houston Open
Date: November 11th – 14th
Course: Memorial Park Municipal Golf Course
Purse: $7.5mm ($1.4mm to winner)
2020 Winner: Carlos Ortiz (-13)
Course: Memorial Park Municipal Golf Course
Originally a 9-hole course in 1923, this course was renovated by John Bredemus in 1935. As a par 72 this course is long (7,292 yards) but it is easier with a slope rating of 118 (the course rating is 74.2). The greens are generous in size, providing ample space to land. Challenges in this course will lie in the angled rough, which golfers will have to take longer shots out of on some of the longer holes. There are a handful of easier holes down the final stretch, but look for the big hitters to thrive this week. I am anticipating some lower scores this week (maybe approaching -20).
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My Starting 4
Talor Gooch (first selection this year) – The 4th place finisher at Memorial Park last year has been off to a solid start to this season. He’s 12thin FedEx ranking having finished among the top 12 in every tournament he’s played in so far. He has fantastic irons as he is 6th in strokes gained approaching the green and around the green.
MacKenzie Hughes (first selection this year) — MacKenzie finished 7th here last year. He is currently top 50 in OWGR and has been among the top 35 in every tournament this year. His putting is elite (9th in strokes gained) and he has an accurate drive.
Sam Burns (first selection this year) — Sam finished 7th here last year. He’s 1st in FedEx ranking, as he now has three top 15 finishes this season including a win at Sanderson Farms Championship. Putting is the only weakness to his game as he’s top 15 in strokes gained—off the tee, approaching the green, tee to green and total.
Aaron Wise (first selection this year) — Aaron was 11th here last year. He is top 20 in FedEx ranking and has been top 30 in every tournament this season. He’s top 12 in strokes gained around the green, tee to green and total.
My Bench 2
Harold Varner III (first selection this year) — He’s top 50 in FedEx ranking, he was 15th here last year, and he has been top 35 in three of four tournaments this season. He’s among the top 50 in strokes gained putting, tee to green and total.
Jason Day (first selection this year) — Jason was 7th at Hewlett Packard last year. He was 64th in the one tournament this year and most of his strokes gained are outside the top 100—but he is 52nd in Greens in Regulation.
Fun Fact: Between 1960 – 1967 Jack Nicklaus finished 2nd here twice and Arnold Palmer finished 2nd here twice.
2021-2022 Stats
Start: Average Finish 39th (35th percent)
Bench: Average Finish 58th (52nd percent)