NASSAU, BAHAMAS – Just ahead of the start of the Hero World Challenge, several players took to the greens at the Albany Golf Course yesterday for the Pro-am pre-tournament warmup.
Several of the top players in the tournament competed in the event, including Rickie Fowler and Keegan Bradley.
Fowler shot a tournament record 61 in the final round last year to clinch the victory. Now, he’s ready to defend his title.
“It’s always nice to be back,” he said. “
This is an event that you want to be a part of. That means you’ve done something right or consistently done things right to be inside. I think it kind of goes around to the maybe low 20s in world ranking. Yeah, it’s just a nice group to be a part of. Small field, nice way to kind of end the calendar year.”
As for Bradley, he received a last-minute invitation after Tommy Fleetwood withdrew from the competition.
“This is a bonus for me. I didn’t get in until recently, so it’s always a big deal to play in this tournament. It means you’ve done a lot of great things.
“So, it’s fun to be back at this tournament. I played in it every year for a while and took a few years off, and it’s just awesome to be here.”
Action at the Albany Golf Course kicks off at 11:10 a.m.
Tony Finau and Gary Woodland will be the first competitors out of the gate.
The $3.5 million Hero World Challenge takes place at Albany, Bahamas, for the fourth consecutive year.
Sunday’s champion will take home a winner’s prize of $1 million.
