Scott, Woods choose major prep over WGC

Adam Scott is the only golfer from the world's top 10 to skip the World Golf Championships event in Tennessee.

By Evin Priest, Australian Associated Press
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Adam Scott is treating the long-awaited PGA Championship as a "prize fight" and has no regrets about joining Tiger Woods in skipping this week's World Golf Championships event in Memphis, Tennessee.

Scott is the only player in the world's top 10 who will not use the elite no-cut WGC as a tune-up for the year's first major, which starts next week at California's TPC Harding Park.

Many expected Australia's world No.9 to contest the $US10.5 million WGC tournament at the TPC Southwind course given he has not played a PGA Tour event since the US circuit was suspended in March.

But the 2013 Masters winner says it won't hurt his chances of capturing an elusive second major victory.

"I don't often play the week before majors anyway," Scott told AAP.

"I like that lead-in week to be on my schedule, not on tee times and weather and all those factors which could happen over seven days at Memphis."

Instead, Scott is sweating it out in North Carolina, practising at a golf resort under the watch of coach Brad Malone, caddie John Limanti and trainer David Darbyshire.

"It's bloody hot, but me, John, Brad and Darbs have created our own bubble and we've been pushing each other along," Scott said.

"We're taking the mentality that I'm coming up to the prize fight in boxing, after months of anticipation and preparation, and there's one fight coming up and that's the PGA Championship.

"We're going in to do battle to try and win the PGA."

While Scott and 15-times major winner Woods are out, the 78-player WGC field will still include 45 of the world's top 50 golfers.

Marc Leishman, Jason Day, Cameron Smith, Matt Jones and Lucas Herbert will make up the Australian contingent at TPC Southwind.

Day and Leishman have high hopes this week.

Former world No.1 Day is coming off consecutive top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour while world No.18 Leishman finished third at last year's WGC in Memphis.

"TPC Southwind is a course I really feel suits my game because you have to shape the ball both ways and I want to show some good form before the PGA Championship, so there's extra motivation," Leishman told AAP.

Headlining the WGC event are defending champion Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy and new world No.1 Jon Rahm.


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