2020 The American Express Preview
See the list of American Express winners at the link.
- Dates: January 13-19, 2020
- Where: La Quinta, California
- Courses: Stadium Course at PGA WEST (72/7,113) (Host) Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA WEST (72/7,159) La Quinta Country Club (72/7,060)
- Defending champion: Adam Long
- Purse: $6,700,000/$1,206,000
- FedExCup: 500 points to the winner
- Format: 72-hole stroke play
- Field: 156
Things to Know
- American Express serves as the new title sponsor in the event’s 61st year
- Two-time champion Phil Mickelson returns as tournament host and looks to become winningest TOUR player in California (since 1983)
- American Express ambassador Tony Finau makes his first start since helping the United States Team to victory at the 2019 Presidents Cup
- Five-time PGA TOUR winner Rickie Fowler returns to The American Express for the first time since 2014
- Stadium Course at PGA WEST was designed by Pete Dye, who passed away on January 9 at age 94
- South Korea’s Seung Yul Noh plays on the PGA TOUR for the first time since completing his mandatory military commitment for his country
A look back at 2019 The American Express
| Pos | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total |
| 1 | Adam Long | 63 | 71 | 63 | 65 | 262 (-26) NT-SC-LQ-SC |
| T2 | Adam Hadwin | 65 | 66 | 65 | 67 | 263 (-25) SC-LQ-NT-SC |
| T2 | Phil Mickelson | 60 | 68 | 66 | 69 | 263 (-25) LQ-NT-SC-SC |
| 4 | Talor Gooch | 67 | 67 | 66 | 64 | 264 (-24) SC-LQ-NT-SC |
- Adam Long earned his first PGA TOUR victory in sixth career start
- Long became the first player to win in six TOUR starts or fewer since Smylie Kaufman at the 2015 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open
- Long needed 98 putts for the week, tied for fewest on TOUR in 2018-19
- Phil Mickelson earned his 36th career runner-up on TOUR and fourth top-three result in 16 starts at The American Express
- Adam Hadwin recorded his third consecutive top-three result at the event (T2/2019, T3/2018, 2nd/2017)
The American Express Preview: Field Notes
- 17 of the top 30 in the current FedExCup standings, led by Brendon Todd (No. 2) and Sebastian Munoz (No. 4)
- 10 of the 30 players that qualified for the 2019 TOUR Championship
- 83 PGA TOUR winners combining for 257 total victories
- 7 major championship winners combining for 12 major victories, led by Phil Mickelson (5)
- 10 past champions of The American Express: Phil Mickelson (2002, 2004), Charley Hoffman (2007), D.J. Trahan (2008), Jhonattan Vegas (2011), Mark Wilson (2012), Brian Gay (2013), Bill Haas (2010, 2015), Jason Dufner (2016), Hudson Swafford (2017), Adam Long (2019)
FedExCup and The American Express
- 14th event of the 2019-20 PGA TOUR Season
- All 13 winners of The American Express in the FedExCup era have gone on to qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs and advance to the BMW Championship
- Four of the last six winners qualified for the season-ending TOUR Championship in the same season: Patrick Reed (2014), Bill Haas (2015), Jason Dufner (2016), Jon Rahm (2018)
Current FedExCup standings
The top 10 in the FedExCup at the conclusion of the PGA TOUR Regular Season will be recognized through the Wyndham Rewards Top 10 program and be well-positioned entering the FedExCup Playoffs
| Position | Player | Points | Wins | Top-10s | Points Behind | Starts | Projected Bonus |
| 1 | Justin Thomas | 1,162 | 2 | 3 | — | 5 | $2 million |
| 2 | Brendon Todd | 1,024 | 2 | 3 | 138 | 10 | $1.5 million |
| 3 | Lanto Griffin | 887 | 1 | 2 | 275 | 10 | $1.2 million |
| 4 | Sebastian Munoz | 867 | 1 | 3 | 295 | 9 | $1.1 million |
| 5 | Cameron Smith | 740 | 1 | 2 | 422 | 6 | $1 million |
| 6 | Rory McIlroy | 713 | 1 | 2 | 449 | 2 | $850,000 |
| 7 | Joaquin Niemann | 697 | 1 | 2 | 465 | 8 | $700,000 |
| 8 | Cameron Champ | 636 | 1 | 1 | 526 | 6 | $600,000 |
| 9 | Sungjae Im | 636 | — | 2 | 526 | 7 | $550,000 |
| 10 | Xander Schauffele | 630 | — | 3 | 532 | 3 | $500,000 |
The American Express Preview Notable Players
Phil Mickelson
- Entering the week #79 OWGR
- 16 starts at The American Express
- 2 Wins at The American Express 617 PGA TOUR starts
- 44 PGA TOUR wins
- 4 PGA TOUR starts in 2019-20
- 0 Top-10s in 2019-20
- Best 2019-20 results: T28/World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions, T31/THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES
- World Golf Hall of Fame member is a two-time winner of The American Express (2002 and 2004)
- Will serve as the tournament’s official host after acting as an ambassador for a number of years
- The Mickelson Foundation serving as host organization; funds from the event will remain in the Coachella Valley to support local charities
- Making fifth start of 2019-20 season, with T28 at the WGC-HSBC Champions as his best result
- Striving for his 30th consecutive TOUR season with at least one top-10 finish; only two players, Sam Snead (34) and Raymond Floyd (32), have gone longer in TOUR history
- With a win, would become the winningest TOUR player in California since 1983; tied Tiger Woods with 14 titles at 2019 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
- Became the only player to advance to the BMW Championship in each of the first 13 seasons of the FedExCup era, finishing the 2018-19 season No. 47 in the FedExCup standings
Tony Finau
- American Express ambassador
- Owns one top-10 in the 2019-20 season at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open (T9)
- Making third start at The American Express (2015/T59, 2016/MC)
- Made his Presidents Cup debut in Australia with a captain’s pick from Tiger Woods, finishing with a 0-1-3 record en route to a U.S. Team victory
Rickie Fowler
- Finished T5 at the 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions in his most recent start, finishing inside the top six in all four of his starts in Maui
- Making third start at The American Express (2010/MC, 2014/T33)
- Chosen by Tiger Woods as Brooks Koepka’s replacement at the 2019 Presidents Cup; finished with a 1-0-3 record in Melbourne
Adam Long
- Earned first career TOUR victory at The American Express in 2019
- Seeking to join Johnny Miller (1975, 1976) as back-to-back winners of the event
- Has five top-25 finishes during the 2019-20 season, highlighted by his first career runner-up on TOUR at the Mayakoba Golf Classic
- Was one of five rookies to advance to the BMW Championship during the 2018-19 season, finishing No. 69 in the FedExCup standings
Paul Casey
- In three starts at The American Express, missed two cuts (2002, 2015) and finished T58 in 2017
- Owns two top-20 finishes in three starts during the 2019-20 season (T17/ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP, T19/Sentry Tournament of Champions)
- Finished No. 5 in the 2019 FedExCup standings, advancing to the FedExCup Playoffs for the sixth consecutive season (ninth total)
Matthew Wolff
- Agoura Hills, California native making tournament debut
- In four starts during the 2019-20 season, best finish has come at the 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions (T11)
- Claimed first career PGA TOUR victory at the 2019 3M Open playing on a sponsor exemption, becoming the eighth player to win in four career starts or less
Seung-Yul Noh
- Making first PGA TOUR start since completing mandatory military commitment for South Korea
- Competing under the Major Medical Extension category
- Competed in two KPGA events following his service (2019 Shinhan Donghae Open/T45, 2019 Genesis Championship/T6)
- Making sixth start at The American Express, having made two of five cuts (2012/MC, 2013/MC, 2014/T38, 2016/T17, 2017/MC)
- Winner of 2014 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
Aon Risk Reward Challenge (par-5 16th hole)
The Aon Risk Reward Challenge is a unique, season-long competition on the PGA TOUR and LPGA Tour that highlights golf’s best strategic decision makers. The top player, from each Tour, at the end of the season will receive an equal $1 million prize. Brooks Koepka and Carlota Ciganda won the Aon Risk Reward Challenge in 2019. For more information: https://www.pgatour.com/aon-risk- reward-challenge.html
Tournament records and history
- 18-hole score: 59 (David Duval/R5/1999, Adam Hadwin/R3/2017); one of two tournaments with multiple sub-60 scores (other: A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier)
- 72-hole score: 255 (Steve Stricker/2009)
- Largest margin of victory: 6 (Rik Massengale/1977, Tom Kite/1993)
- Best come-from-behind win: 7 (David Duval/1999)
- Playoffs: 21 (most recent: 2018/Jon Rahm def. Andrew Landry)
- Holes-in-one since 1983: 51 (most recent: Steve Marino/R2/2019)
The American Express Preview is via PGA TOUR
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