Event of the Day: The Northern Trust, Day 1
Our event of the day is the opening day of the Northern Trust at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus on the PGA Tour. This is the first of four playoff tournaments that culminate with the FedEX Cup champion being crowned. Not only will the winner boost their FedEx Cup chances, but they will also take home a jackpot of $1.62 million. The tournament features the top 125 players in the world this year based on a points system. These points are carried on through the four playoffs. Following the Northern Trust’s conclusion on Sunday, the top 100 players will progress to the Dell Technologies Championship. A similar elimination process will narrow the field down to 70 players who will play at the BMW Championship. There the final 30 players will be decided, who will eventually battle it out at the Tour Championship for the FedEx Cup.
Defending Northern Trust champion Dustin Johnson, who beat Jordan Spieth in a playoff, with a spectacular birdie last year at Glen Oaks Club, is amongst the favourites. Spieth himself won the FedEx Cup in 2015, and will look to recapture this form to reignite what has been a disappointing season for him based on his high standards. The great Tiger Woods has qualified for the playoffs for the first time in five years. He tees off alongside Marc Leishman and Tommy Fleetwood in an interesting playing group. Notable absentees from the first playoff at Ridgewood are Rickie Fowler, due to injury, and Rory McIlroy. However, with the pair currently sitting seventeenth and twenty-first in the FedEX points standings, they should make the cut for the Dell Technologies Championship with ease. A fantastic four days of golf awaits!
Honourable mentions around the globe go to the first Vitality T20 Blast quarter final between Kent Spitfires and Lancashire Lightning at the Spitfire Ground in Canterbury. Both sides impressed during the group stages, winning eight of their 14 games each. With Lancashire last having won the T20 blast in 2015 and Kent in 2007, both sides will be desperate to make the semi-finals. Elsewhere in the UK, flat racing is on display at the Yorkshire Ebor Festival. Meanwhile in the States at Fenway Park, the fourth game in the MLB series between the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians takes place. In New Haven the Connecticut Open continues on the WTA World Tour, whilst on the ATP World Tour, the Winston-Salem Open enters its fifth day. At the BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Houston Dynamo face FC Dallas in the MLS. Further football action comes from an array of Europa League playoffs across Europe, including Rangers versus FC Ufa at Ibrox and Olympiakos against Burnley at the Karaiskakis Stadium. In Sydney, the Tigers and the Sea Eagles clash in NRL action. The European Tour stops off in the Czech Republic, with the DD Real Czech Masters at Albatross Golf Club. LPGA Tour action comes from Regina, with the CP Women’s Open. A multitude of sports will be on display in Indonesia, as Day Five of the Asian Games gets underway.
Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!
Photos by PGA