DUBLIN, Ohio — Officials with the Memorial Tournament announced Tuesday four early commitments for this year’s field including defending champion Patrick Cantlay.
Cantlay is joined by No. 3-ranked and two-time major champion Collin Morikawa, reigning PLAYERS champion Cameron Smith and five-time winner Xander Schauffele.
Below is a breakdown of each player provided by the Memorial Tournament.
The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday is May 30–June 5 at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin.
To purchase remaining badge options, visit www.memorialbadges.com or call the ticket office 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at 877-MT BADGE (877-682-2343).
Patrick Cantlay
Cantlay, 30, has been one of the game’s standout players over the last year-plus. Last season he picked up four of his seven career PGA TOUR victories, including his second win in three years at the Memorial Tournament. He carried that momentum throughout 2021 for the best year of his career, with a win in the TOUR Championship and the FedExCup title. Cantlay won the 2021 Jack Nicklaus Award as PGA TOUR Player of the Year and represented the U.S. at last year's Ryder Cup. He began 2022 in fine form with five top-10 finishes, including playoff losses to Scottie Scheffler in the WM Phoenix Open and to Jordan Spieth in the RBC Heritage. Then he stepped back into the winner’s circle when he partnered with Xander Schauffele to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Cantlay is currently ranked No. 4 in the world and in FedExCup points. He has a total of six top-10 finished over 10 starts this season and is fifth on TOUR in Birdie Average, and seventh in Scoring Average. The former UCLA Bruin credits Jack Nicklaus' advice for improving his on-course demeanor and subsequent success, particularly at Muirfield Village Golf Club where he will be making his sixth start this spring. Cantlay’s Memorial Tournament scoring average of 69.90 ranks first and his career Tournament earnings of $3,834,016.00 is second all-time behind five-time winner Tiger Woods. With his 2021 victory Cantlay enters an exclusive club of players to win the Memorial more than once, joining Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Hale Irwin, Greg Norman, Kenny Perry, and Woods.
Collin Morikawa
Morikawa, 25, enjoyed a successful 2020 campaign, with the first multi-win season of his career, that included victories at the Workday Charity Opencontested at Muirfield Village Golf Cluband his first major title at the PGA Championship. The Los Angeles native continued his inspired play in 2021 recording two more victories, including The Open at Royal St. George’s for his second major championship, to bring his win total to five overall. Morikawa has finished inside the top-10 on six occasions this season over 10 starts, with two runner-up efforts leading the way. He is currently ranked No. 3 in the world and No. 13 in FedExCup points. Since turning professional in 2019, Morikawa has garnered career earnings of $17,641,399. He finished T-48 in his Memorial debut in 2020 and lost to Cantlay in a playoff last year. Morikawa’s Memorial Tournament scoring average moved to 71.38 and his earnings jumped to 1,037,539.00 after his 2021 performance.
Cameron Smith
Smith is one of the breakout players of the year and has proven himself to be among the best putters on TOUR. This year has been a memorable one for 28-year-old Australian, with his two victories and a run at the Masters Tournament that ended with a T-3 finish, his fourth top-10 at Augusta National in six starts. Smith’s first win this season and fourth career TOUR title came in Hawaii at the Sentry Tournament of Champions by one stroke over 2020 Memorial Tournament winner Jon Rahm. With Smith’s total of 34-under 258, he became the first player in PGA TOUR history to finish a 72-hole event 34-under or better. He claimed his fifth-career PGA TOUR title two months later at THE PLAYERS Championship by one stroke over Anirban Lahiri. Smith has recorded five top-10 finishes in 10 starts this season, is ranked No. 5 in the world, sits third in FedExCup points and leads the TOUR in several statistical categories, including Scoring Average (69.338), Total Strokes Gained (1.892), and Putting Average (1.648). Smith missed the cut at last year’s Memorial Tournament and will be looking to improve on a T-65 career-best finish at Muirfield Village Golf Club when he makes his seventh start next month. His Memorial scoring average is 74.38 and his earnings total $37,341.00.
Xander Schauffele
Schauffele burst onto the PGA TOUR scene during the 2016-17 season, recording four top-10 finishes, including two wins—A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier and the TOUR Championship. His victory at East Lake helped Schauffele cap off his rookie campaign ranked No. 3 in FedExCup standings and lock up the Arnold Palmer Award as the PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year. The 28-year-old California native has racked up a total of 34 top-10 finishesnine coming in major championshipsin his six-plus seasons on TOUR, including five victories. At the end of last season, Schauffele joined Justin Thomas as one of two players to finish in the top-15 of the FedExCup standings each season since 2016-17. Schauffele is currently ranked No. 21 in FedExCup points to go with his No. 12 world ranking on the strength of two top-10s in 11 starts this season, including last month’s victory at the Zurich Classic with partner Cantlay. This will be Schauffele’s fifth appearance at the Memorial Tournament, where he enjoyed his best finish last year with a T-11 effort to increase his earnings to $560,910. His Memorial scoring average is 71.43.
