Albany (Bahamas), Dec 4 (PTI) The absence of the legendary Tiger Woods is a dampener, but a strong field of golfers led by World No.1 and defending champion Scottie Scheffler will vie for glory in the Hero World Challenge, which tees off here on Thursday.
Woods, who won this event a record five times, most recently in 2011, is recuperating from a surgery that he had in September, leading to his withdrawal.
However, a new generation of ambitious, skilful players are ready to take over from the 15-time Major winner, who finished 18th in the last edition here.
None has showed more promise than Scheffler, who also has a Paris Olympics gold in his kitty,
This year's FedEx Cup champion has already won seven PA Tour titles in 2024, and he is also aiming to emulate Woods in becoming the Player of the Year three times in a row.
The 28-year-old has been a formidable player in the Hero World Challenge as well — finishing second in 2022 and 2021, besides the title run last year.
The seasoned Justin Thomas, a 15-time PGA Tour winner, and Robert MacIntyre, who claimed two PGA titles this year, will both target their maiden Hero World Challenge victory.
However, Scottie Scheffler will face a significant challenge from fellow American Nick Dunlap, a nominee for the Arnold Palmer Award as Rookie of the Year. The 20-year-old is the first player in Tour history to grab a title as an amateur (The American Express) and professional (The Barracuda Championships) in the same season.
Legendary Phil Mickelson was the first golfer to win on the Tour as an amateur, way back in the Northern Telecom Open in 1991.
Indian-origin golfers on the move
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Three Indian-origin players — Sahith Theegala, Akshay Bhatia and Aaron Rai — too will pose a meaningful challenge to other big names. The trio will be making their debut at the Hero World Challenge, which carries a prize money of USD 1 million for the winner out of a total purse of USD 5 million.
Ludvig Aberg, Russell Henley, Matthieu Pavon and MacIntyre are the other players appearing in this event for the first time.
After winning the 2023 Procore Championship, his first PGA title, Sahith has managed nine top-10 finishes this year along with the honour of representing the USA in the President’s Cup.
Bhatia, on the other hand, notched his second PGA Tour title with a play-off win over Denny McCarthy in the Valero Texas Open and he would want another trophy in his showcase.
While both Sahith and Bhatia represent USA, Aaron Rai will turn out for England.
Rai is coming into the tournament on the back of his victory in the 2024 Wyndham Championship, and in three years have managed 11 top-10 finishes.