Bay Hill highlights busiest week of golf this year and LIV returns in Hong Kong

ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL

Site: Orlando, Florida.

Course: Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Yardage: 7,466. Par: 72.

Prize money: $20 million. Winner's share: $4 million.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 2-6 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 12:30-2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2:30-6 p.m. (NBC).

Defending champion: Russell Henley.

FedEx Cup leader: Jacob Bridgeman.

Last week: Nico Echavarria won the Cognizant Classic.

Notes: This is the third $20 million signature event of the year, part of a stretch in which four of five tournaments have prize funds of at least $20 million. ... The field features 19 of the top 20 in the world, missing only Patrick Reed, who can't return to the PGA Tour until September. ... Adam Scott parlayed his sponsor exemption to Riviera into a fourth-place finish, which qualified him for Bay Hill through the “Swing 10” based on FedEx Cup standings. ... Jordan Spieth received a sponsor exemption for the first time this year to a signature event. Spieth did not get one for Bay Hill last year. ... Fifty players in the 72-man field already are eligible for the Masters. ... Scottie Scheffler has not broken par in the opening round of his last three tournaments. He is a two-time winner at Bay Hill in the last four years. ... The last two PGA Tour winners were outside the top 50 in the world, Nico Echavarria (59) at PGA National and Jacob Bridgeman (52) at Riviera.

Next week: The Players Championship.

Online: https://www.pgatour.com/

LIV GOLF HONG KONG

Site: Hong Kong.

Course: Hong Kong GC (Fanling). Yardage: 6,711. Par: 70.

Prize money: $20 million. Winner's share: $4 million.

Television: Thursday, 12-1 a.m. (FS2), 1-5 a.m. (FS1); Thursday, 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. (FS2), 1-4 a.m. (FS1); Saturday, 12-5 a.m. (FS1); Saturday, 10:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. (Fox One), 1-4:30 a.m. (FS1).

Defending champion: Sergio Garcia.

Points leader: Jon Rahm.

Last event: Anthony Kim won LIV Golf Adelaide.

Notes: Anthony Kim is coming off his first win in 16 years when he rallied to win in Australia two weeks ago. ... This is the third straight year playing in Hong Kong. The Fanling layout is the same used for the Hong Kong Open. ... LIV Golf opened the year with first-time winners in the opening two events (Elvis Smylie and Kim). ... Jon Rahm has not won since late in the 2024 season. He has been runner-up in his last four LIV Golf events, and five of his last six. He won the points title last year without winning, and leads the list this year after two events. ... Tom McKibbin won the Hong Kong Open last year to earn a spot in the Masters. ... Ian Poulter also is a former Hong Kong Open champion (2010). ... LIV Golf still has two more international stops in Singapore and South Africa. The first U.S. tournament is not until May 7-10 outside Washington. ... No one has made eagle at the 288-yard fourth hole (par 4) the last two years.

Next week: LIV Golf Singapore.

Online: https://www.livgolf.com/

BLUE BAY LPGA

Site: Hainan Island, China.

Course: Jian Lake Blue Bay GC. Yardage: 6,712. Par: 72.

Prize money: $2.6 million. Winner's share: $390,000.

Television: Wednesday-Friday, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Rio Takeda.

Race to CME Globe leader: Jeeno Thitikul.

Last week: Hannah Green won the HSBC Women's World Championship.

Notes: One week after the LPGA had its strongest field with nine out of the top 10 in the women's world ranking, only Ruoning Yin from China is among the top 10 playing at Blue Bay. ... The China Golf Association has a category to fill with 20 of its members. ... Six other players from China received sponsor invitations, including former USC golfer Muni He. ... This is the third straight week as part of the Asia swing. The LPGA Tour will have a week off after Blue Bay before resuming the domestic schedule in the San Francisco area. ... The tournament began in 2014 but this is only the eighth edition because of years canceled by travel restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic. ... Bailey Tardy in 2024 is the only American to have won Blue Bay. ... Auston Kim was runner-up last week in Singapore. She is No. 4 in the Solheim Cup standings. ... Nelly Korda played the Seminole Pro-Member on Monday in Florida. She will have been off six weeks when she returns to the LPGA.

Next tournament: Fortinet Founders Cup on March 19-22.

Online: https://www.lpga.com/

PUERTO RICO OPEN

Site: Rio Grande, Puerto Rico.

Course: Grand Reserve CC. Yardage: 7,506. Par: 72.

Prize money: $4 million. Winner's share: $720,000.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 2:30-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Karl Vilips.

FedEx Cup leader: Jacob Bridgeman.

Last week: Nico Echavarria won the Cognizant Classic.

Notes: This is the first week on the PGA Tour schedule that has two tournaments. The winner in Puerto Rico gets a two-year exemption and a spot in the PGA Championship, but not an invitation to the Masters. ... Eugenio Chacarra was given a sponsor exemption, the first former LIV Golf player who got an exemption. ... This year's event is marked by youth. John Daly II, the son of two-time major champion John Daly, and 17-year-old Chinese player Zhou Yanhan, were given exemptions. Zhou won seven times on the China tour last year. That got him onto the European tour. ... Also in the field is 17-year-old Miles Russell, the No. 11 amateur in the world who has committed to play at Florida State next year. ... The Puerto Rico Open has been part of the PGA Tour schedule since 2008. Among its past champions are Viktor Hovland, Tony Finau, Branden Grace and Cognizant Classic winner Nico Echavarria.

Next week: The Players Championship.

Online: https://www.pgatour.com/

JOBURG OPEN

Site: Johannesburg.

Course: Houghton GC. Yardage: 7,241. Par: 70.

Prize money: 20.5 million rand ($1.28 million). Winner's share: 3.42 million rand ($213,366).

Television: Thursday-Friday, 5:30-10 a.m. (Golf Channel), 10-10:30 a.m. (Golf Channel app); Saturday, 5-5:30 a.m. (Golf Channel app), 5:30-9:30 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 5-10 a.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champion: Calum Hill.

Race to Dubai leader: Patrick Reed.

Last week: Casey Jarvis won the Investec South African Open.

Notes: Patrick Reed makes his debut in the Joburg Open, the American's second straight week playing in South Africa. He tied for 29th in the South African Open. Reed still has a comfortable lead in the Race to Dubai. ... A pair of South Africans chasing Reed on the Race to Dubai also are playing. Jayden Shaper and Casey Jarvis also are two-time winners on the European tour this year. ... Eddie Pepperell of England narrowly missed out on a British Open spot when he shot 64 on Sunday in the South African Open and finished in fifth place. ... Jarvis winning back-to-back weeks means South Africa now has six players among the top 100 in the world ranking. ... This is the third straight week for the European tour to be in Africa. It will have two tournaments in Asia in the weeks leading to the Masters. ... The Joburg Open began in 2007 and when Johan Immelman, the father of CBS Sports analyst Trevor Immelman, was Sunshine Tour commissioner.

Next tournament: Hainan Classic on March 19-22.

Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/ and https://sunshinetour.com/

JAMES HARDIE PRO-FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME INVITATIONAL

Site: Boca Raton, Florida.

Course: The Old Course at Broken Sound Club. Yardage: 7,008. Par: 72.

Prize money: $2.2 million. Winner's share: $330,000.

Television: Friday-Sunday, 3-6 p.m. (Golf Channel app), 7-9 p.m. (Golf Channel-Tape Delay).

Defending champion: Angel Cabrera.

Charles Schwab Cup leader: Stewart Cink.

Last tournament: David Toms won the Chubb Classic.

Notes: Former Masters and British Open champion Zach Johnson turned 50 last week and will make his PGA Tour Champions debut. ... The tournament features a 78-man field playing alongside 26 football greats the opening two rounds. ... Among the NFL stars in the field are Marcus Allen, Lawrence Taylor, Anthony Munoz, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith, Steve Largent and Thurman Thomas. ... Olin Browne is an alternate in the tournament and listed as being part of the field for the Puerto Rico Open on the PGA Tour. ... Among those who received sponsor exemptions are Ken Duke, Gene Sauers and Glen Day. ... Stewart Cink, who won the Champions opener on the Big Island in Hawaii, is making his second start of the year. He leads the Charles Schwab Cup. ... Cabrera has finished in the top 10 in both of his PGA Tour Champions starts this year. ... The course previously hosted a Schwab Cup postseason event.

Next tournament: Cologuard Classic on March 20-22.

Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions

ASTARA CHILE CLASSIC

Site: Santiago, Chile.

Course: Prince of Wales CC. Yardage: 7,134. Par: 71.

Prize money: $1 million. Winner's share: $180,000.

Television: None.

Previous winner: Logan McAllister.

Points leader: Ian Holt.

Last week: Alistair Docherty won the Argentine Open.

Next tournament: Club Car Championship on March 26-29.

Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour

Epson Tour: Atlantic Beach Classic, Atlantic Beach CC, Atlantic Beach, Florida. Previous winner: Laetitia Beck. Online: https://www.epsontour.com/

Japan Golf Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia: ISPS Handa Japan-Australasia Championship, Royal Auckland GC and Grange GC. Auckland, New Zealand. Defending champion: New tournament. Online: https://www.jgto.org/en/ and https://golf.com.au/

Ladies European tour: Australian Women's Classic, Magenta Shores Golf & CC, New South Wales, Australia. Defending champion: Manon De Roey. Online: https://ladieseuropeantour.com/

Japan LPGA: Daikin Orchid Ladies, Ryukyu GC, Okinawa, Japan. Defending champion: Chisato Iwai. Online: https://www.lpga.or.jp/en/

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Shane Lowry of Ireland hits from the 12th fairway during the final round of the Cognizant Classic golf tournament, Sunday, March 1, 2026, in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem testified in the Senate on Tuesday in her first congressional appearance since the shooting deaths of two protesters in Minneapolis galvanized widespread opposition to how the Trump administration was executing its mass deportation agenda.

Noem's appearance in front of the Judiciary Committee also comes after a weekend shooting at a bar in Texas that is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, leading to concerns that the escalating conflict in Iran could have repercussions for security in the U.S.

Her department's immigration tactics triggered a clash in Congress over its routine funding, which remains unresolved, although a spending bill passed last year granted it a significant infusion of cash for the Republican administration's mass deportation policy.

Noem defended her agency’s treatment of immigrants caught up in enforcement activities, and blamed activists and others for attacks against officers. She also lashed out at Democrats for the congressional funding showdown.

“The latest Democrat-led shutdown of DHS is reckless,” Noem said. “It’s unnecessary, and it undermines the American national security, and it harms the men and women who work at DHS and their families.”

Noem last appeared in Congress in December. But since then, President Donald Trump's immigration agenda and its enforcement by Noem's department have met fierce resistance in Minnesota, culminating in the deaths of two protesters, both U.S. citizens, at the hands of federal immigration officers.

In what was initially billed as an effort to root out fraud in Minnesota, Homeland Security eventually sent hundreds of officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection to the state. They were met by protesters who organized marches, patrolled neighborhoods for ICE activity with whistles and ferried food to immigrants too afraid to leave their homes.

Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE officer on Jan. 7, setting off intense protests by Minnesota politicians and residents pushing for Homeland Security to end its operation in the state. Then on Jan. 24, Customs and Border Protection officers opened fire on another Minnesota resident, Alex Pretti, who had been filming enforcement operations.

Those deaths led to cries for accountability and transparency. Noem, whose initial comments portrayed both Good and Pretti as the aggressors, has come under withering criticism by Democrats and even some Republicans, who have called for her to resign.

After public outrage over the deaths, Trump sent border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis to take control of operations on the ground there. Homan has since announced a drawdown of the ICE and CBP officers who had been sent to Minnesota to carry out what had been dubbed Operation Metro Surge, although he's been adamant that the president's mass deportation agenda will continue.

Noem faced questioning from Democrats who say officers under her control have abused their power, used excessive force and violated people's constitutional rights in carrying the Trump administration's agenda.

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the committee, repeatedly questioned Noem about comments she made immediately after the deaths of both Good and Pretti that cast them as the aggressors in the events leading up to their deaths. He called on her to apologize.

“You and your agency rushed to brand these victims as, quote, domestic terrorists," Durbin said. “We have ample video evidence and eyewitness testimony proving you are wrong. Your statements caused immeasurable pain to these families.”

Noem said she was relying on information from people on the scene and blamed “violent protesters” for contributing to the chaos officers encountered.

“I was getting reports from the ground from agents at the scene, and I would say that it was a chaotic scene, as you’ve seen in Minneapolis and St. Paul," she said. Her officers “worked at targeting the worst of the worst” and many times faced violence from protesters, she added.

Homeland Security has often blamed conflicts in places like Minneapolis and Chicago where it's carrying out immigration enforcement activities as the fault of Democratic politicians who they say encourage people to oppose officers as they try to make arrests.

Noem is also slated to appear Wednesday in front of a House committee.

Angel Moms, parents whose children have died because of illegal immigrants, listen as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is sworn in before appearing for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is seen before President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)