Come the month of December, the elite of the golf world descends to the Bahamas. The Albany outing has sort of become a casual pre-Christmas hangout and social gathering for the sportâs top-of-the-crop. This year, itâs more significant than the last two editions. Because, yes, you guessed it right, Tiger Woods is finally making a return to the greens at the Hero World Challenge.
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But much has already been written about the veteran golferâs return. So much so that many almost forget that the field features 19 players who are in the top 40. In fact, current World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has also decided to break his post-Ryder Cup hiatus. What are the other storylines you should keep an eye on? We picked the top three.
Something more than Tiger Woodsâ return is on the offing
Viktor Hovland can break Tiger Woodsâ record at the Hero World Challenge
The 82-time PGA Tour winner has the most wins in the Hero World Challengeâfive. While Hovland needs three more to match that, there is another Tiger Woods feat that he can surpass this year. Last year, the Norwegian defended his title by beating Scottie Scheffler in the final round. A three-peat is on the offingâa unique accolade that the host of the tournament doesnât have.
Scottie Scheffler ends his hiatus
Scheffler was broken. He was crushed. The Marco Simone outing was a nightmare for the OWGR no. 1. The six-time PGA Tour winner paired up with Brooks Koepka. The two shared six majors between them. Whereas Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg, two Ryder Cup rookies, had, well, zero Majors under their belt.
"Anybody who thinks the Americans don't care about this, you're seeing it right here..." đşđ˛đ
Yet, in a shocking, baffling, and outrageous duel, two American pros were tossed and turned before succumbing to a 9&7 lossâa Ryder Cup record no one wanted to have. The 27-year-old pro has been absent from the greens since then. All eyes will be on him as he finally comes out of his cave to win a title that he was denied twice by⌠again, Viktor Hovland.
Donât forget the debutants at the Hero World Challenge
Wyndham Clark is the most significant name among the debutants this year. The American Pro had eight top-10 finishes this season with two titles to his name. The Albany invitation, predictably, was a reward for his 2023 US Open victory over Rory McIlroy.
Wyndham Clark wins the #USOpen to claim his first major championship! đ
Brian Harman is another 2023 Major winner on the field. The Open championâs last outing was at the RSM Classic, where he finished in the 44th position.
What about Will Zalatoris, though? A back injury and subsequent microdisectomy sidelined him from the greens for nearly eight months. In that time, he took some classes, updated his LinkedIn profile, and is now back on the greens.
Welcome back, @WillZalatoris 𤠠He's making his first competitive start in eight months this week at the Hero World Challenge.
The Hero World Challenge is set to tee off on November 30 at the Albany Golf Course in the Bahamas. Aside from Tiger Woods, the field features 16 players from the top 25 in the OWGR. The $4.5 million is up for grabs on the small Atlantic island.
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