Here are the key stats You Oughta Know for the second event of the 2016-17 PGA Tour season courtesy of the Golf Channel research department.
Ryan Moore
• Has won this event two of last three years (2014 and 2015); Justin Thomas won last year
• He is a combined 48 under in this event over last three years (best of any player in that span)
Paul Casey
• Has finished fourth or better in each of last four PGA Tour starts:
Top-4 finishes: 4
Rounds in 60s: 13/16
Scoring average: 67.63
Score to par: 58 under
Kevin Na
• Has the lowest scoring average at TPC Kuala Lumpur (minimum eight rounds):
Kevin Na: 67.25
Ryan Moore: 68.00
Brendan Steele: 68.50
Charles Howell III: 68.63
Adam Scott
• Led PGA Tour in strokes gained tee-to-green last season
• Also finished runner-up in this tournament last year (shot final-round 63)
• Since the beginning of the 2003 season, only Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson have more PGA Tour wins than Scott:
Tiger Woods: 45
Vijay Singh: 23
Phil Mickelson: 21
Adam Scott: 13
Rory McIlroy: 13
Patrick Reed
• Making first start since Ryder Cup (finished T-10 in Malaysia last year)
• Reed has 10 consecutive top-25 finishes worldwide (69.15 scoring average in that span)
• In his last 10 events worldwide, Reed has a win and eight top-15 finishes. He has not finished outside the top 25 during that stretch:
Wins: 1
Top-15s: 8
Top-25s: 10
Scoring Avg.: 69.15
Hideki Matsuyama
• Last week, won for the second time this year (Japan Open Golf Championship)
• 13th in the world; no player from Japan has been in top 10 since 1998 (Jumbo Ozaki)
• In his last seven worldwide starts, Matsuyama has finished in the top 5 four different times:
Wins: 1
Top-5s: 4
Scoring average: 68.81
Score to par: 45 under
• One of the best ball-strikers in the world, and his 2015-16 strokes-gained stats proved it:
Approach the green: 3rd
Tee-to-green: 6th
Off-the-tee: 17th
Around the green: 95th
Putting: 103rd
• With his next PGA Tour victory, he will tie Shigeki Maruyama for the most ever by a player from Japan:
Shigeki Maruyama: 3
Hideki Matsuyama: 2
Ryuji Imada: 1
Isao Aoki: 1
Sergio Garcia
• Also making his first start since the Ryder Cup; he’s finished eighth or better in six of last 10 worldwide starts
• Has six finishes of eighth or better over his last 10 starts around the world.
• Has three top-25 finishes in his three career starts in this tournament. Garcia has never recorded a round over par.
• With his win last season in Texas, he tied Seve Ballesteros’ total of nine career official PGA Tour victories:
Sergio Garcia: 9
Seve Ballesteros: 9
Jose Maria Olazabal: 6