Wyndham Clarks heads to the Texas Children’s Houston Open #1 and talks to the press
MODERATOR: We would like to welcome Wyndham Clark into the interview room here at
the Texas Children’s Houston Open, making his fourth start at this event with his best finish
two years ago finishing T-16.
Wyndham, welcome back to Houston. If we can get some comments on being here this
week.
WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, I’m looking forward to coming back. I’ve had some success
here, unfortunately I’ve had poor Sundays. I’ve been in the top-10 a couple of times, so I
really like this golf course. I like Houston, I like being at this venue and I think it fits my game
so I’m happy to be here.
MODERATOR: One win already this year at Pebble Beach and then two runner-up finishes
here of late, what an excellent start to the season. If we can get some comments on the
state of your game coming into the week.
WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, I’ve been playing some good golf coming off of two second
places. If you take Scottie Scheffler out of the field, I might have two wins. So I’ve played
really good and I feel good about my game.
Unfortunately suffered a little bit of a back injury earlier this week so I’m kind of nursing that,
but it’s loosening up and I was able to hit some shots today, so I’m looking forward to teeing
it tomorrow.
Q. I guess I’ll follow up on that. What did you do to your back or how serious do you
think it’s going to hamper you throughout the course of the week?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Just kind of like a muscle. Well, I threw it out. I was in pretty bad
shape yesterday, but fortunately I have a great team that has gotten me to be able to swing
and hit. So he flew in early yesterday morning. I was only really able to chip and putt, then I
did a bunch of rehab and I was able to hit balls today. So just in a short time I’ve improved a
ton and I think I’ll be ready for tomorrow.
Q. How many times in the last couple of weeks or even if at all have you been able to
sit and watch the replay of that last putt, because I know obviously you lived through
it, but have you looked back on it at all and still wondered how it didn’t go in?
WYNDHAM CLARK: I really haven’t tried to watch it much, to be honest. I’ve seen it a
couple times. One time I really looked at it and I was like I still can’t believe it didn’t go in.
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Yeah, I don’t really want to focus on that as a negative. I played awesome that week, I
clutched up at the end and hit really good shots on 16, 17 and 18. It’s unfortunate I didn’t
make the putts on 16 and 18. All in all, it was an amazing finish. Traditionally I haven’t
played great at that golf course. To come up just short honestly was a huge success.
Q. How do you anticipate this course playing differently in the spring with the
overseed and kind of the different conditions than in the fall?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Well, it’s aesthetically a lot prettier because normally it’s a little more
dormant when we play it. They’ve done an awesome job, the course is in amazing shape, it
looks amazing.
I would say it’s going to play a little bit easier. In the fall it was very tough because you would
hit it in the rough and it was so hard to judge lies. And then around the greens was, you
know, I mean, you would have into the grain, dormant bermuda so you could get some
squirrly shots.
So I predict that scores will be lower than what they normally are in the fall, but all in all I
love it how it is right now. I think everyone’s raving before how good the course is and how
good of shape it’s in.
Q. Have you seen the new 17 at all with the green kind of being moved back 25 yards
or so?
WYNDHAM CLARK: I have not. I literally played nine holes today, so that will be new.
Hopefully my caddie has done some good work.
Q. How did you throw out your back? I guess where were you?
WYNDHAM CLARK: It was on Monday morning. I was in Scottsdale, I was working out.
Body’s been really healthy and I just got caught in an awkward spot doing a lift and back
went.
It’s not something that happens regularly, but it happened and you live and you learn. I’m
trending in the right direction, I’m hitting it or feeling stronger and more mobile every day.
Q. Was there a thought at all that you might not be able to play?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, no, for sure. But I wanted to give it my best effort. I had a
dinner last night that I wanted to be a part of and I knew I was playing with kids today that
were battling with heart transplants and cancer, so I wanted to make sure I could be here for
that.
I’m going to give it my best effort tomorrow and hopefully I can play and compete. If not, I’ve
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got to get ready for tournaments to come after this.
MODERATOR: Before we open it up to more questions here, but you did just play with
Jhett Skaggs, a double heart transplant recipient. What was that experience like for you?
WYNDHAM CLARK: What’s amazing is, one, it’s amazing how good the doctors are
because you could barely even tell that Jhett had gone through so much. And then with that,
it’s amazing how much fight and how much determination that kid has. He just seemed so
happy out there, enjoying himself. He’s a really good golfer and I really enjoyed spending
time with him.
It was quite a special moment spending those nine holes with him.
Q. Last time the tournament was played here in November a year and a half ago and
you absolutely had to hit fairways. The course has changed some, there’s hardly any
rough now. Does this course, is it more forgiving off the tee and does this favor long
hitters?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Yes and yes. It’s not a good week to throw your back out because this
is going to be a grip and rip it, bomb it down as far as you can because there isn’t that
challenging rough that you had to hit fairways in the previous years. So now it’s just really
who can hit it the farthest and then take advantage of that and then obviously make the most
putts.
This course still has a bunch of defense around the greens. The greens are challenging
around, you know, if you miss the green up-and-downs are tough. You know, if you’re hitting
it good and far, it’s a huge advantage.
Q. A couple of things. Have you got to watch Full Swing and kind of how you were
portrayed in the show in season two?
WYNDHAM CLARK: I still haven’t watched it. I feel uncomfortable watching myself on TV, I
don’t like hearing myself talk. And I also lived it, so I don’t know, I’ve just always kind of been
always been weird watching myself. So I haven’t watched it, but I’ve heard some good
feedback from friends and family and they really liked it.
Q. Who do you think on Tour that would be maybe good down the road or someone
that fans who watch the sport would get to know better if they were featured on that
show for future seasons?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Let me think, give me a second. Put me on the spot.
I can’t think of anyone specifically right now, but I think there’s a bunch of up-and-coming
good players that are coming out that I think is just great to showcase how college players
and guys coming off the Korn Ferry can come up to the big leagues and win and have a lot
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of success right away. So I would love to see some of those guys get their time on Netflix.
And even someone, just came to mind, like Peter Malnati. He’s been out here for a long time
and has been grinding and trying to keep his card every year and just broke out and won last
week. Stories like that that I think helps grow our Tour, that it’s not just top players that
people get to see, but we’re very deep out here. I think that would be great for golf.
Q. About a year ago or so you were still in a category of playing in additional events
at times. Is it kind of crazy at all thinking how quickly your, I guess, place in the game
has changed? And when you think about that time, like would you have envisioned
this being kind of the spot you’re in a year later?
WYNDHAM CLARK: It is — I mean, it is crazy to think that just 12 months ago I was — you
know, hadn’t had a first PGA TOUR win and was still ranked outside the top-50 in the world
and in such a short time have done a bunch. But I’ve always thought and believed in myself
that I could be in this position, so I’m not shocked by any means.
But it is amazing to look back and go, wow, in such a short time, won three times and won a
major and played on a Ryder Cup team. So it has kind of been surreal and now it’s become
my new reality, which is pretty fun.
Q. If you had to pinpoint one particular thing that has allowed you to do that, what
would it be?
WYNDHAM CLARK: I would just say, you’ve heard it probably in many interviews, but my
ability to grow in the mental game and to be more positive out on the golf course and my
best friend and talk to myself and not listen to myself has been a huge, huge growth in
myself. I think that’s what’s helped me have success both on and off the golf course.
Q. You mentioned if Scheffler hadn’t been in the field a couple weeks in a row that
you might have had two more wins. He’s in the field again this week. Do you have a
good little rivalry going with Scottie or anything? And just talk about what he means
to the game being so good and everything and how good can he really — what’s his
ceiling?
WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, I would love for us to be battling it out every week because
Scottie is the No. 1 player in the world. He’s a great person. Scottie and I are friends, I really
enjoy him. He’s kind of the — he’s the meter right now of us trying to get to be as good as he
is. He hits it better than everyone else and now he’s starting to putt good. It’s amazing to
watch him play and see what he can do. He’s pushed me to get better.
As far as rivalry, we don’t have one, but it would be fun if every week we were battling it out
and I win one week, he wins the other week. I would take that right now, that would be pretty
awesome.
Valspar Championship best bets 2024: Expert pickssssss for the Sssssnakepit
Originally posted on Action Network | Last updated 3/19/24
The PGA Tour heads to Palm Harbor, Florida for the Valspar Championship, and our experts have their Best Bets & Expert PGA Picks ready.
Golf betting experts Spencer Aguiar, Nick Bretwisch and Matt Gannon have picks for the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort as the PGA Tour makes its fourth and final stop of the Florida Swing at the Snake Pit.
Here’s everything you need to know about Valspar Championship Best Bets at the PGA Tour’s 12th event of 2024.
Valspar Championship Best Bets 2024: Expert PGA Picks
Justin Lower Top 40 +240 (bet365)
By Spencer Aguiar
There is a matchup bet I like this week!
Spoiler alert: It will be discussed at the beginning of this week’s Links + Locks Valspar Championship Betting Preview episode, but let’s instead go a different route for this article to spread the wealth on some additional plays to consider.
My model graded Justin Lower as the best value in the placement market because of his 15th-place grade for Weighted Proximity outside of 150+ yards, which helped to push his Weighted Strokes Gained: Total return to 13th overall.
Like all longshot wagers, some red flags are looming that will shrink his profile, but consider Lower a value grab who can excel in the critical areas at Copperhead to find a safer floor than the market is projecting at this +240 price. I had the proper math here at +170.
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Jacob Bridgeman Top 40 +260 (bet365)
By Nick Bretwisch
Jacob Bridgeman is someone I’ve been keeping my eye on for the early part of this 2024 PGA Tour season, and this is finally a week where I found a price/market/course this week at the Snake Pit that all seemed to grade in the positive direction for me.
He’s not going to wow anyone with his swing and ball speeds, but he should be in a perfect spot to use his accuracy to his advantage and hit a lot of greens in regulation. He’s been one of the better scramblers on Tour this season, which is impressive for a rookie, and I have this priced closer to +190.
Fred Biondi Top 40 +490 (FanDuel)
By Matt Gannon
Fred Biondi is a Korn Ferry Tour rookie who is yet make a name for himself on the PGA Tour. Just last year, Biondi won the inidividual NCAA National Championship and helped lead his Florida Gators to the team championship. It is clear that this kid can play, and he is surely used to Florida golf.
Biondi missed his first two cuts on the PGA Tour but recently finished T31 in Puerto Rico two weeks ago. I think it is a matter of time before he really gets his name in the mix, so finishing in the top 40 should not be too much to ask for this week at Copperhead.
Besides his recent solid result in Puerto Rico, he has made 10+ Korn Ferry Starts in late 2023 and early 2024 and has some decent finishes there. Going back to late 2023, Biondi has top-40 results in three of his last five PGA Tour starts (T13 at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, T23 at The RSM Classic & T31 at the Puerto Rico Open).
The tougher conditions should benefit Biondi’s style of golf. Nearly 5-1 on a top 40 is a no-brainer given his immense talent.
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