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Club de Golf Chapultepec is the site of the biggest tournament of the PGA Tour season thus far, as most of the world’s best golfers will gather just west of Mexico City for the WGC-Mexico Championship. World No. 1 Dustin Johnson is the reigning champion and tournament favorite, but with 45 of the top 50 ranked players in the field (Brooks Koepka, Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, Rory McIlroy and Henrik Stenson are the only ones sitting out), a repeat will be no easy task.
Television coverage of the WGC-Mexico will be split between the Golf Channel (Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday) and NBC (Saturday and Sunday). If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can watch both of those channels live on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
Hulu With Live TV: If you want an extensive Netflix-like on-demand streaming library in addition to live TV, Hulu now also offers a bundle of live channels, including both NBC (live in select markets) and Golf Channel. You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of Golf Channel or NBC on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
DirecTV Now: NBC (live in select markets) is included in all four channel packages, while Golf Channel is in the “Go Big” and “Gotta Have It” bundles. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial no matter what package you choose, and you can then watch NBC or Golf Channel live on your computer via the DirecTV Now website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the DirecTV Now app.
FuboTV: NBC (live in select markets) and Golf Channel are both included in the “Fubo Premier” channel package. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial, and you can then watch live on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the FuboTV app.
Sling TV: NBC (live in select markets) is included in the “Sling Blue” channel package, while Golf Channel is in the “Sports Extra” add-on. You can get both by signing up for a free 7-day trial, and you can then watch live on your computer via your browser, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app
Note: In addition to being able to watch Golf Channel and NBC live via the above streaming services, you can also watch on your computer via NBCSports.com, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the NBC Sports app. You’ll need to sign in to a TV provider to watch this way, but you can use your Hulu, DirecTV Now, FuboTV or Sling TV credentials to do that.
PGA Tour Live: You can also watch early Thursday and Friday action before Golf Channel coverage begins via PGA Tour Live, which costs $5.99 per month or $39.99 per year. You can then watch on your computer via PGATourLive.com, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the PGA Tour Live app.
Preview
With the calendar year’s first WGC event making its Club de Golf Chapultepec debut last year, a red-hot Johnson defeated Tommy Fleetwood by one stroke for what was his second of three straight wins. The high altitude seemed to somewhat level the playing field off the tees–Johnson was abnormally just 17th during the week in driving distance and 27th in strokes gained off the tee–but he made up for it by leading the field in strokes gained approaching the green, strokes gained tee to green, proximity to the hole and Par-5 scoring.
Johnson’s mid-range game has been a bit shaky to start the season (he ranks 63rd on Tour in strokes gained approaching the green and 163rd in proximity), so it’ll be interesting to see if he can take a similar route to success in Mexico this year. But at the same time, the mid-range struggles haven’t really matter, as he has finished second, first, second and 16th in his four official tournaments this season. He’s the favorite (+600) for a reason.
Up next on the odds list is Justin Thomas (+800). Fresh off his second win of the season at the Honda Classic and up to No. 3 in the world, the reigning Fed-Ex Cup champion will look to erase the memory of last year’s tournament, when he carried the solo lead into Sunday but shot a 72 to finish in a tie for fifth.
Sandwiching Thomas in the world rankings, No. 2 Jon Rahm and No. 4 Jordan Spieth also figure to be right in the mix of contention. Rahm has followed up his CareerBuilder Challenge win with three finishes outside the Top 10 thanks to some shaky play on the weekends, but he finished third here last year. And while Spieth has had some shaky moments this year, such as his missed cut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, he’s coming off a T9 at Riviera in what was his best putting performance of the season.
Of course, that’s just the tip of the iceberg in terms of contenders. Tommy Fleetwood, who finished second here last year, has gone win and three Top-10’s in his last four starts. Phil Mickelson has fired three consecutive Top-10’s. Justin Rose has played just two official tournaments this year, but those have resulted in a win (WGC-HSBC Champions) and a T8 (Farmers Insurance Open). Rickie Fowler has been a fascinating case of boom (three Top-11’s) or bust (two missed cuts) in his five tournaments so far this season. And Alex Noren is red-hot with five consecutive Top-21 finishes, including a solo third at PGA National last week.
In other words, the star power will be prevalent this week, setting the scene for what should be a highly entertaining tournament.
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