The First Look: The American Express January 17, 2021
Editor's note: Jon Rahm withdrew on Monday. The PGA TOUR returns to the U.S. mainland for The American Express in La Quinta, California. This year’s edition will have a different look – only two courses will be used, and amateurs will not play alongside the pros – but a strong field has assembled, highlighted by Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, Patrick Cantlay and tournament host Phil Mickelson. Andrew Landry is your defending champion. FIELD NOTES: Amateur standout John Augenstein, the runner-up in the 2019 U.S. Amateur, is making his professional debut. He also was a member of the United States’ victorious Walker Cup team in 2019 and the 2020 SEC Player of the Year. He made the cut in the 2020 Masters, finishing T55… Koepka is making his first start of the 2021 calendar year. He battled injury last season but showed flashes of his usual brilliance with a T5-T7 run at the Vivint Houston Open and the Masters… Past FedExCup champion Bill Haas looks to become the only three-time winner of The American Express. Arnold Palmer won the event five times, but Haas is one of seven golfers (including Mickelson) who has won it twice… Mickelson is making his first start of the 2021 calendar year. This is the second time he’ll play host, as well as compete… Francesco Molinari returns to action. The past Open Championship winner had a truncated year in 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns. He played three times in the fall, with his best finish being a T15 at the Vivint Houston Open… There are 13 golfers ranked in the top 50 in the world teeing it up at The American Express. Rahm, who’s ranked No. 2 in the world and a past American Express champion, leads the way. Rahm beat Landry in a playoff at PGA West in 2018. Other top-ranked golfers making the trip to the Coachella Valley include the ninth-ranked Cantlay, No. 11 Reed, who won the 2014 American Express, No. 15 Matthew Wolff, and No. 18 Sungjae Im.