Patrick Reed shoots 66 in last audition for Presidents Cup
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SHANGHAI, CHINA - NOVEMBER 03: Patrick Reed of the United States plays his shot from the first tee during Day Four of the WGC HSBC Champions at Sheshan International Golf Club on November 03, 2019 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
Patrick Reed ended his Presidents Cup candidacy on a high note, shooting a final-round 66 at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions. It was just one stroke higher than the day’s low round.
Reed has played on every U.S. team since 2014, but he’ll need a captain’s pick this year. Tiger Woods will round out his 12-man squad when he announces his four picks Thursday.
Reed finished 12th in the U.S. team’s standings. He’s made a strong push, winning the first event of the FedExCup Playoffs, THE NORTHERN TRUST, and finishing in the top 25 in his last 10 TOUR starts. He finished T8 in the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions and finished second in the field in greens hit (58 of 72). He missed just five greens in the final two rounds.
“To come out and play like I did on Sunday, the day that really matters, to go out and shoot a low one, that definitely -- I know at the end of the day, Tiger will pick the guys he feels like are the best for the team to help win the Cup,” Reed said.
On the International side, three potential captain’s picks finished in the top 15: Sungjae Im (T11), Byeong Hun An (T14) and Jazz Janewattananond (T14). Canada’s Corey Conners shot a final-round 66 to finish T20. It was Conners’ fourth consecutive top 20 on TOUR.
Im, the reigning PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year, finished third at last week’s ZOZO Championship. He also finished second at the Sanderson Farms Championship, losing a playoff to Sebastian Munoz, and won the Korean Tour’s Genesis Championship.
An finished in the top 10 in the first two stops on the TOUR’s Asia swing. He recently finished third in the Wyndham Championship and Sanderson Farms Championship, as well.
Janewattananond finished outside the top 50 in the TOUR’s first two events in Asia. He finished 10th in the International Team standings thanks to two wins in Asia and a 14th-place finish at the PGA Championship.
Some of the other contenders for Woods’ four picks struggled Sunday. Tony Finau, who finished ninth in the U.S. standings, finished T53 in Shanghai after shooting 75-76 in the final two rounds. Kevin Kisner shot a final-round 77 to drop 20 spots into a tie for 28th place. Chez Reavie finished T60 after closing with three consecutive over-par rounds.
Gary Woodland and Rickie Fowler, who finished 10th and 11th in the U.S. standings, did not play the WGC-HSBC.
Sean Martin manages PGATOUR.COM’s staff of writers as the Lead, Editorial. He covered all levels of competitive golf at Golfweek Magazine for seven years, including tournaments on four continents, before coming to the PGA TOUR in 2013. Follow Sean Martin on Twitter.