JB Holmes is eager to create more happy memories as he returns to the Golf Club of Houston to defend his Shell Houston Open title.
Holmes, who beat Jordan Spieth and 2008 champion Johnson Wagner in a play-off last year, will face some tough competition this week as more than half of the top 50 players in the current FedExCup standings rocket into the 'Space City'.
Recent WGC-Dell Match Play Championship winner Jason Day, Rickie Fowler, Spieth, Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson highlight a strong field that includes nine past champions in the event.
Last week's winner in Puerto Rico, Tony Finau, also lines up as he looks to become the latest player to win back-to-back events.
Recalling his 2015 win, Holmes told pgatour.com: " That day just started off great. I birdied the first five holes out, was seven under through nine and nine under, I think, through 12 and I was just fortunate enough to come out on top."
Spieth will be joined by a familiar face with his room mate Kramer Hickok making his PGA Tour debut after coming through the qualifier on Monday.
Hickok and Spieth are friends from Dallas and the former caddied for the latter at the 2011 Byron Nelson Championship.
Referring to his experience at the WGC-Dell Match Play Championship, Spieth told golfchannel.com: "I feel my game's as solid as it's been since Hawaii (at the Sony Open). I truly believe that and we've been working hard on it.
"I played some really good shots last week in that round-robin format, but had a tough one against Louis (Oosthuizen) where I was a little off."
The Shell Houston Open, which tees off on Thursday, has become the warm-up event for The Masters - so much so it tries to mimic the green speeds of Augusta National and the course will also be mown in the same direction as the fairways and rough at Augusta.
It is the last chance for the players to earn an invite to Augusta National. Whoever wins this week will find themselves in the field to contest the green jacket next week.
Source: PA
