Charley

Hoffman

Hoffman sits at 145th in the FedExCup standings but has pegged it just once since the start of May, missing the cut at the AT&T Byron Nelson. The 46-year-old has dealt with more than his fair share of injury concerns in recent years. Gamers should continue to treat him as a boom-or-bust fantasy option (with more lean to the bust side of the equation) any time he tees it up.

Hoffman traded five birdies with a pair of bogeys on a windy day. “Yeah, it was cold this morning. I didn’t really look at the forecast to be honest with you, but when we got on the 11th or 12th hole I didn’t expect it to start blowing 15 to 18.” It didn’t bother him too much, especially on the greens as he gained 2 strokes putting (5th) by the time he walked off the course. He arrived with an 11-for-16 record at the event with one top 10 being a runner-up finish at the 2009 edition. Hoffman’s been trying to find his form lately with just three paydays in nine starts to open the season, none of them landing inside of the top 25.

Hoffman arrives off back-to-back paydays at the Bermuda Championship and Mayakoba. That’s not usually notable for someone of Hoffman’s stature but he had missed his first two cuts of the season and went through a stretch last season where he eight of nine cuts at one point. He managed just two top 25s last season but help may be just around the corner as he turns his attention toward the Houston Open. Hoffman is a flawless 12-for-12 at this event, including a T29 two years ago at the current host course. It could be the weather patterns or grass types in the area but there is something about Houston that suits his style. That perfect record will really be put to the test this week as he arrives without much momentum compared to most previous editions.

The 45-year-old, who’s been navigating an ailing back for most of the season, bags his first top 10 in 24 events and first since T3 at last season’s Charles Schwab 30 starts and 14 months ago. This was his second Rocket (CUT/2019), arrived off a T31 at the opposite-field Barracuda two weeks ago, and is in the published field at this coming week’s regular-season-ending Wyndham, where he’s projected to arrive 148th in the FedExCup standings (up 21). For the week, the San Diego native recorded laps of 67-69-69-67, totaled 21 birdies against six bogeys, seven versus two on Sunday, and ranked 2nd, SG: Tee-to-Green (11.564), including 1st SG: Approach (8.000), and 69th SG: Putting (-2.960), losing 1.516 with the flat stick in R4.

Hoffman entered the week at 172nd in the FedExCup race, as he’s battled injuries for most of the year. When asked about his streak of cracking the FedExCup Playoffs (every year since its inception) he had this to say, “As I said in the past, I want to start playing good golf again and I want to be healthy. And I’m starting to feel healthy, starting to hit some shots I want to hit and the scores are starting to reflect that. Still, the long story short, I’m thinking about it, but I’m not stressing out about it.” Hoffman is definitely hitting some good shots this week in Detroit, landing 32 greens so far (T5), gaining 2.2 strokes off-the-tee and 4.3 strokes on approach. At T5 on the live leaderboard, he’s projected to jump from 172nd to 145th in the FedExCup race. It’s a tall ask for Hoffman to deliver over these last two weeks of the regular sseason, but certainly not an impossible task, either.

The 45-year-old is making his second appearance after a missed cut by two at the inaugural in 2019 (69-72). After today’s six-birdie one-bogey effort (link below): “Yeah, tee to green was about as clean as I’ve been all year long. Body’s starting to feel a little better and be able to swing the way I want to. My L-4, L-5 was bulging. I mean, it was bad. I sort of, for lack of a better term, half-assed it through most of the year and now it’s starting to feel like I can practice, hit balls, play.” The San Diego native striped 12 (of 14) fairways and landed 16 greens in regulation, losing strokes around (-0.064) and on-the-green (-0.118), but gaining 1.477 off-the-tee and 2.398 on approach. He checked in 172nd in the FedExCup standings and off a T69 at the Scottish Open (sponsor exemption) and a T31 at the opposite-field Barracuda two weeks ago, where he was an 18-hole co-leader. The UNLV alum has made 23 starts on the season (11 made cuts, 11 missed cuts, 1 WD), and did not play the final two events in the fall or the first three events of the calendar year, and referenced his ailing back at the WM Phoenix Open, which he described then as a degenerative disk.

Hoffman did not have an end-of-round presser today but yesterday he said “the warmer it is, the better it is for my back.” Today’s morning wave saw much colder temperatures today. Others have mentioned it as a point for needing to adjust carry distances but for Hoffman, it may have impacted how his body felt. That is all speculation but at the midpoint he still is right in the hunt, lurking just outside of the top 10 with play still in progress on Friday afternoon. He will be hoping for warmer temperatures over the weekend. Hoffman entered the week at 182nd in the FedExCup race and his 15-year FedExCup Playoffs streak is in jeopardy.

The San Diego native split 9-of-14 fairways and landed 15 greens in regulation. He really made the most of his day with seven birdies to offset a lone bogey at the par-3 17th where he found the greenside bunker. Hoffman entered the week at just 182nd in the FedExCup standings which puts him well outside of the top-125 bubble with only a few events remaining in the regular season. “This year has been a tough year with back issues. Back feels okay, so when it feels okay I want to play, so that’s why I’m playing. Obviously went to college here in Nevada; not at Reno, the other school in Nevada, UNLV. But this is a place that’s near and dear to my heart.” He will remain a volatile fantasy option due to those back injuries but he continues to prove he can contend when the body allows.

With just four weeks remain in the FedExCup regular season, the 45-year-old Hoffman is taking advantage of the opportunity at the Barracuda Championship, where he’ll make his second start. The four-time Tour winner arrives at Tahoe Mountain Club’s Old Greenwood course off a T-69 at the Genesis Scottish Open. It marked his 10th made cut in 22 starts this season, which has featured just one top-25 finish – a T-22 at the Fortinet Championship. He’s made just three cuts in 13 starts dating back to the Players, posting a 66th in the Charles Schwab and T-35 at the RBC Canadian Open. Hoffman, whose last win came at the 2016 Valero Texas Open, played in the 2020 Barracuda, where he finished 25th.

The 45-year-old, who checked in off eight missed cuts in his last nine starts, is having a sub-par season, arriving 186th in the FedExCup standings with one top 25 in 18 events, a T22 at the season-opener in Napa back in September. However, after kicking off with a pair of 68s, he’s now 7-for-9 at the Canadian Open and is chasing a fourth top 10, first since a playoff loss two tries ago in 2017 (Glen Abbey GC), where he was T5 at halfway and the 54-hole leader by one before being caught by defender and eventual winner Jhonattan Vegas (65) despite a closing 4-under 68. This week thru 36 holes, the UNLV alum has tallied eight birdies against four bogeys, four versus two today, and ranks 25th SG: Tee-to-Green (4.377) and 21st SG: Putting (2.745).