October 19, 2021
(REUTERS) – Fifteen of the top 20 in the world golf rankings will head to the Bahamas for the Hero World Challenge in December.
The Dec 2-5 tournament, a benefit for Tiger Woods’ TGR Foundation and other charities, will include 20 players, up from 18 last year.
The field features world No. 3 Collin Morikawa, the reigning Open Championship winner and No. 18 Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, the reigning Masters champion and the 2016 Hero World Challenge winner. Two other past winners of the event, Jordan Spieth (2014) and Sweden’s Henrik Stenson (2019), also will compete.
The full 20-player entry list, with current world ranking:
Collin Morikawa, United States, No. 3
Patrick Cantlay, USA, No. 4
Xander Schauffele, USA, No. 5
Bryson DeChambeau, USA, No. 6
Justin Thomas, USA, No. 7
Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland, No. 8
Brooks Koepka, USA, No. 10
Tony Finau, USA, No. 11
Abraham Ancer, Mexico, No. 12
Jordan Spieth, USA, No. 13
Harris English, USA, No. 14
Viktor Hovland, Norway, No. 15,
Daniel Berger, USA, No. 16
Tyrrell Hatton, England, No. 17,
Hideki Matsuyama, Japan, No. 19,
Patrick Reed, USA, No. 23,
Scottie Scheffler, USA, No. 24,
Webb Simpson, USA, No. 26,
Justin Rose, England, No. 45,
Henrik Stenson, Sweden, No. 155 (defending champion).
The only missing players among the top 20 in the rankings are No. 1 Jon Rahm of Spain, the reigning US Open champion; No. 2 Dustin Johnson; No. 9 Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa; No. 18 Sam Burns and No. 20 Billy Horschel.
Woods won the event five times before it moved from Southern California to Albany, Bahamas, in 2015. The tournament was cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
