A month into his sophomore season on the PGA Tour and Canada's Michael Gligic can already see the difference a year makes.
Gligic, from Burlington, Ont., finished the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season ranked 168th on the FedExCup points list and 181st on the official money list. But entering this week's Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas, the fourth event on the 2021 schedule, he's already 51st in the FedExCup standings.
"I think we're starting to see some golf courses for the second time, we're starting to get familiar," said Gligic. "We're starting to get some good results."
The 31-year-old Gligic opened tied for 14th at the season-opening Safeway Open, missed the cut at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship but then bounced back last week to tie for 37th at the Sanderson Farms Championship.
Part of Gligic's success this fall has been recognizing that he's where he belongs.
"Any time you move up the ranks you have those questions in the back of your mind if you're good enough to be out here," said Gligic. "Especially when you get to the PGA Tour you're playing against all the guys you've admired and idolized growing up.
"I think playing a full season, playing with a lot of these guys, I've realized I can hang with these guys, I'm just as good as them."
Gligic fired a 63 to qualify for the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He said that every time he has to qualify for a tournament at the start of the week he has to play some of his best golf against a field that is always deceptively deep.
"Going into these things you know you've got to make a lot of birdies," said Gligic. "Hit a lot of good shots and gave myself a lot of good looks and then made some putts."
He'll be joined at TPC Summerlin by fellow Canadians Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin, both from Abbotsford, B.C., as well as Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask.
LPGA TOUR — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Hamilton's Alena Sharp are the only Canadians in the field at this week's KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newton Square, Penn. Henderson won the major in 2016 and she says she draws confidence from returning to a tournament where she's had previous success.
"I know that I can compete here and I know that I've done it before, so that gives me a lot of confidence going into the week," said Henderson on Tuesday. "There's just a lot of perks to it. But I feel like the biggest one is just confidence knowing that you can compete on the biggest stage there is in women's golf, and hopefully I can get four solid rounds together and be in contention come Sunday."
KORN FERRY TOUR — Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., head into the Orange County National Championship at Panther Lake Course in Winter Garden, Fla., ranked second overall on the Korn Ferry Tour. He'll be joined by fellow Canadians Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., and Vancouver's Stuart Macdonald at the event.
CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary's Stephen Ames and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., are in the field at the SAS Championship at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary, N.C. That tournament tees off on Friday.
PGA LATINOAMERICA — Jared du Toit of Kimberley, B.C., Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., and Hugo Bernard of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., are in the field at this week's Classic at The Club at Weston Hills in Weston, Fla.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 7, 2020.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
