- Webb Simpson, United States — The 2012 U.S. Open champion has gotten off to a solid start to the new season with a tie for 17th in the Safeway Open and a tie for 20th in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. That gives him seven top-20 results in his last eight tournaments dating to the end of last season, including solo third in the Wyndham Championship before a tie for sixth in The Northern Trust and a tie for ninth in the BMW Championship. Simpson also tied for 13th in the Tour Championship and wound up 17th in the FedExCup point standings. He has four PGA Tour victories in his career and almost added another before losing on the second hole of a playoff to Ben Crane in 2011 on the Seaside Course in Sea Island, Ga., site to the RSM Classic this week. Simpson lost when his three-foot par putt on the second extra hole lipped out. He is playing in the event for the sixth time, and also tied for seventh in 2014.
- Matt Kuchar, United States — This is a home game for Kuchar, the former Georgia Tech All-American who lives in St. Simons Island, Ga. He is playing in what now is the RSM Classic for the seventh time. Kuchar has finished in the top 25 on six occasions, but the only time he broke into the top 10 on the Seaside Course at Sea Island came when he tied for seventh in 2014, and last year he shot 70-72 — 142 to miss the cut by five strokes. Kuchar, who leads the PGA Tour with 84 finishes in the top 10 since 2009, tied for 31st in the WGC-HSBC Champions late last month in his only start this season, but tied for ninth in the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow in August to start a strong run at the end of the season. He later tied for 10th in The Northern Trust, tied for fifth in the BMW Championship and tied for 10th in the Tour Championship to finish 14th in the FedExCup standings.
- Patton Kizzire, United States — After returning home to Sea Island as a winner on the PGA Tour for the first time following his victory in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba last weekend, Kizzire will be one of the favorites of the local crowd this week in the RSM Classic. He shot 66-67 in a 36-hole finish on Sunday in rain-delayed tournament at Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and held off Rickie Fowler by one shot by playing bogey-free in the final round. His only other pro victories came in the Utah Championship and the News Sentinel Open two years ago on the Web.com Tour. Kizzire also tied for fourth in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and tied for 10th in the Sanderson Farms Championship to hold the lead in the FedExCup point standings early in the season. He has yet to play well in his hometown event, tying for 54th three years ago before shooting 68-73 — 141 and 73-65 — 138 to miss the cut each of the last two seasons.
- Kevin Kisner, United States — Two years ago, Kisner claimed his first PGA Tour victory in the RSM Classic and he added to that last May when he captured the Dean & DeLuca Invitational. He played the weekend in 64-64 in 2015 at Sea Island to run away for a six-stroke victory over Kevin Chappell. That came after he lost in playoffs three times that year, to Jim Furyk in the RBC Heritage, to Rickie Fowler in the Players Championship and to Danny Lee of New Zealand in the Greenbrier Classic. Kisner is playing on the Seaside Course for the seventh time, also tying for fourth in 2014 and tying for 20th in 2013, but he has missed the cut twice, including in his title defense last year with a score of 68-72 — 140 to miss the weekend by three shots. He went on to have a solid season with his RBC victory and runner-up results in the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Zurich Classic, winding up 12th in the FedExCup standings after tying for third in the Tour Championship.
- Brian Harman, United States — The left-hander has finished in the top 10 in both of his outings early this season, tying for fifth in the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges and finishing eighth in the WGC-HSBC Champions, where he was right with the leaders before closing with a 74. Those results came after he claimed his second PGA Tour victory last season in the Wells Fargo Championship, holding off top-ranked Dustin Johnson and Pat Perez by one stroke during a career season. Harman finished in the top 10 on seven occasions, including a tie for second in the U.S. Open in Erin Hills and wound up 25th in the FedExCup standings. He is another one of the Sea Island residents playing at home in the RSM Classic this week, making his sixth start in the event. His best result was a tie for 10th in 2014 after tying for 27th two years earlier. However, Harman shot 71-73 — 144 two years ago and 72-71 — 143 to miss the cut last year, missing the cut both times.
- Chesson Hadley, United States — Only an illness knocked Hadley off track last week in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in Mexico, where he was forced to withdraw after making the cut with a score of 71-70 — 141. Before that, after regaining his PGA Tour card by leading the 2017 Web.com Tour money list while winning twice, he got the new season off to a great start with a tie for third in the Safeway Open, solo second in the Sanderson Championship and a tie for fourth in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. Hadley, who won the 2014 Puerto Rico Open on the PGA Tour and also won twice more on the Web.com Tour in 2013, has finished in the top 10 eight times in his last 11 starts on both tours. He is making his fifth start on the Seaside Course at Sea Island and has yet to play well, with his best results a tie for 32nd in 2014 and a tie for 45th last year, in addition to missing the cut twice.
- Whee Kim, South Korea — One of the young players who has taken advantage of the Fall events to get his season off to a fast start, Kim is ninth in the FedExCup standings heading to Sea Island Resort. He already has played five times and tied for second in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas, losing in a playoff to Patrick Cantlay, and finished fourth in the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges at home in South Korea. The 25-year-old Kim was in the chase last week in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba with three scores in the 60s before he closed with a 75 and slid to a tie for 45th. He showed last year that he can play with the big boys when he tied for second in the FedEx St. Jude Classic and tied for fifth in the Puerto Rico Open. Kim, whose only pro victory came in the 2012 Shinhan Donghae Open on the Korean Tour, is playing in the RSM Classic for the third time, having tied for 54th three years ago and tied for 27th last year.
- Brandt Snedeker, United States — The guy they call Sneds, an eight-time winner on the PGA Tour, returns to competitive golf for the first time since July 4, when he went down because of a sternum joint injury before the start of the Greenbrier Classic. He has been plagued by injuries in recent years, but was playing well at the time of his most recent ailment, having tied for ninth in the U.S. Open and tied for 14th in the Travelers Championship, closing with a 64 in his last round of the season. The 36-year-old Snedeker is playing in what now is the RSM Classic for the fourth time and his best result was a tie for 32nd in 2011, when he played the last three rounds on the Seaside Course in Sea Island, Ga., in 68-67-69 after opening with a 71. He also shot 71-74 — 145 to miss he cut by five strokes two years ago and tied for 45th last year despite opening with a 66 and closing with a 68.
- Bill Haas, United States — The 2011 FedExCup champion started this season with a tie for 17th in the Safeway Open and has played well in four previous starts in what is now the RSM Classic. In 2010, he played the weekend at Sea Island Resort in 66-65 to finish solo second, one shot behind Heath Slocum, in addition to tying for 22nd in 2015 and tying for 13th last year, posting four rounds in the 60s each time. Haas, who has won six times on the PGA Tour but not since the 2015 Humana Challenge, didn’t have a great 2016-17 season, but he did tie for fifth in the U.S. Open at Erin Hills, finish third in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and tie for 10th in the Dell Technologies Championship during the playoffs. However, he tied for 53rd in the BMW Championship to finish five spots outside the top 30 players in the FedExCup point standings who qualified for the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
- Charles Howell III, United States — Not only has Howell gotten off to a quick start in the new season with three results in the top 20, he has a strong record in what has become the RSM Classic on the Seaside Course. He has three top-10 results in seven starts at Sea Island Resort, including a tie for ninth two years ago, a tie for seventh in 2012 and a tie for sixth in 2010, plus a tie for 13th last season. Howell, who has won twice on the PGA Tour but not since the 2007 Nissan Open, tied for 19th in the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges, tied for 15th in the WGC-HSBC Champions and tied for fourth last weekend in the OHL Classic by playing the 36-hole final day in 66-66 in rainy Mexico. He came close to returning to the winner’s circle last year when he tied for second in the Farmers Insurance Open, and lost in a playoff to Kyle Stanley in the Quicken Loans National.
–Courtesy of The Sports Xchange, TSX Golf Editor Tom LaMarre
