Morgan

Hoffmann

Stricker won back-to-back-to-back titles at TPC Deere Run (2009, 2010, 2011). He’s piled up nearly $3.3 million at the event which leads the way, just ahead of fellow Midwesterner, Zach Johnson ($3,075,023). Stricker was going to be arriving fresh off a runner-up finish at the U.S. Senior Open. He continues to pile up great finishes on the senior circuit but hasn’t played a single PGA TOUR event this season.

The 32-year-old Hoffmann has one start left in his quest to earn 238.42 FedExCup points and regain full Tour status via his medical extension. He missed the cut at the RBC Heritage and the most recently at the Wells Fargo Championship, where he shot rounds of 73-80. The 46-year-old Armour made the cut in his most recent start last week at TPC Potomac, where he rebounded from a 76 on Saturday to card a 66 on Sunday and finished T-25. Armour has made seven cuts in 12 starts this season, with his best finish being a T-15 at the Corales Puntacana Championship in March. Last year at TPC Craig Ranch, Armour finished T-26.

The 32-year-old Hoffman, who stepped away in October 2019 to focus on his battle with Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (a genetic muscle disorder) has three starts remaining on the exemption and needs 238 FedEx Cup points before the end of the 2021-22 season to regain full status. “I still had some dreams that I wanted to accomplish out here,” Hoffman told media on Tuesday. “…Obviously I want to play well and results would be special, but I think this week and whatever happens is already a success.” Hoffman has spent most of the last two years in Costa Rica, where he’s built a health and wellness center. But four months ago his own progress suffered a setback after a motorcycle accident on his way to the gym, however he said Monday he’s “back in the gym every day and getting stronger.” The Oklahoma State alum has made two cuts in five previous starts at Harbour Town Golf Links, finishing T-9 in 2015. If Hoffman fails to earn enough FEC points in this last three starts, he could also regain status through the Korn Ferry Finals, should he earn enough points in his three KFT starts to qualify.

The Oklahoma State product took some time off in 2018, due to his Muscular Dystrophy. When he returned, he posted just five cuts made in 15 events played, failing to find his previous form. His last appearance on the PGA TOUR was a missed cut at the 2019-20 Shriners. Hoffmann does still have three starts remaining on a Major Medical but doesn’t appear like a return is imminent. The 32-year-old is focused on staying healthy and running the Morgan Hoffmann Foundation which puts an emphasis on natural healing. It would be great to see Hoffmann make a surprise return in 2022 but gamers wouldn’t need to rush to invest in fantasy leagues, given the state of his game when he saw him last in 2019.

Hoffman needs to earn 238 FedExCup points to satisfy the terms of his medical requirement and re-earn his card, he has a good chance at doing exactly that this week as he currently sits in a tie for eighth after the first round. The Oklahoma State product has five starts remaining in his exemption and has gone 1-for-2 on the season with a high finish of T31 at The Greenbrier. This is Hoffman’s third appearance at the Safeway and he has cracked the top 50 in both trips. Hoffman was rather agile on the afternoon carding only one bogey to go with his five birdies. He gained almost two and a half strokes tee-to-green, good enough for 16th best.

Hoffmann split just 8-of-14 fairways but recovered to pelt 15 greens in regulation. From there, his putter caught fire by gain 3.014 strokes putting on the day. Highlights included a 24-footer to save par at the 11th and a 16'8" birdie blast after the turn, at the par-4 fifth. Trying to play his way back into form, Hoffmann arrived with six straight finishes outside the top 65 (3 PGA TOUR, 3 Korn Ferry). He’s been boom or bust at The Greenbrier with a pair of top 25s to go along with a pair of missed cuts on his resume. He’s on his way to another boom.

The start of the day began with a six-hour weather delay which had the golfers playing catch-up all day. When play finally got started, golfers were treated to a soft course with preferred lies being utilized. As a result, the field walked off the course today averaging 67.61 (-3.39 RTP). One of the golfers that beat that field average and also finished his round was Morgan Hoffmann who fired a 6-under 65 to reach 10-under on the week (T16 on the live leaderboard). Playing alongside Cameron Tringale and Padraig Harrington, they ran after their tee shots on the par-3 17th to ensure they’d get all 18 holes in. That trio will be rewarded with the ability to sleep in tomorrow while others will set an early wake-up call to finish their opening 54 holes.

Hoffmann was all over the place from tee-to-green today. He found 8-of-14 fairways and landed just six greens in regulation. He gave himself just four scoring chances from inside 15, yet he walked away with five birdies and one bogey for the day. The recipe was strong short game as he opened his day with a 22'11" hole out at the first and later added a 24'1" birdie blast at the par-4 10th. Overall, he walked off the course gaining 1.94 strokes around-the-green and another 1.48 strokes putting. Hoffmann’s three previous visits had resulted in finishes of MC-WD-MC which doesn’t bode well for what we should expect in rounds two, three, and four this week.

Hoffmann returned from his long injury layoff with finishes of solo 77th and missed cut over the last two weeks. That came on the heels of a T24 in a Web.com Tour rehab start. It’s a lot to ask of anyone to play four straight weeks, let alone someone that was returning from nearly a year away from competitive golf. Hoffmann is 0-for-2 at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am (2013, 2017) which probably made this decision a little easier. Hoffmann has 16 starts remaining on a Major Medical Extension with 294.27 FedExCup Points needed to fulfill the terms.

Hoffmann started last season with a 3-for-9 record before shutting it down. Early in the season he found out he had muscular dystrophy and it wasn’t trending in the right direction for him. After his last start (Honda Classic in late February) he took a trip to Nepal for a 90-day treatment program. It was a busy year for Hoffmann as he also launched his charity foundation and recently got engaged. Hoffmann has been granted a Major Medical Extension with 18 starts to earn 296.57 FedExCup Points. He is allotted a handful of Web.com Tour rehab starts if he wants them but with this week’s T24 he may decide to ramp it up to the big stage sooner rather than later.