The 2016-2017 PGA Tour season officially kicks off Thursday at the Safeway Classic, and with it the PGA Tour’s Fall Series. The seven-tournament stretch starts this week in Napa, Calif., and then takes players around the world and back… literally.

2016-2017 Fall Series

• Oct. 13-16: Safeway Open (Napa, Calif.)
• Oct. 20-23: CIMB Classic (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
• Oct. 27-30: Sanderson Farms Championship (Jackson, Miss.)
• Oct. 27-30:  WGC-HSBC Champions (Shanghai, China)
• Nov. 3-6: Shriners Hospital for Children Open (Las Vegas, Nev.)
• Nov. 10-13: Playa del Carmen, Mexico (OHL Classic at Mayakoba)
• Nov. 17-20: RSM Classic (Sea Island, Ga.)

For the five players on this list, the Fall Series holds a special significance. Here’s who we’ll be watching closely at the Safeway Open and for the rest of the Fall Series.

Keegan Bradley 

Four years ago, Keegan Bradley was Davis Love III’s golden boy at the 2012 Ryder Cup and provided an electric performance. Now he’s largely a forgotten man on the PGA Tour, and dropping down the Official World Golf Rankings at an alarming rate while a new batch of hungry young U.S stars have taken center stage.

Keegan finished the 2015/16 PGA Tour Season with some impressive statistics. He was 1st in Total Driving, T3 in Ball Striking, 17th in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green, 12th in Greens in Regulation Percentage and 16th in Proximity to the Hole, yet his OWGR dropped more than 50 places.

All talk of Bradley’s struggles on the greens have been understated. Statistically, he is just about the worst putter on tour, which contributed to him missing 10 cuts this past season. As solid as his long game has been, it looks unable to save his desperate performance on the greens. Clearly concerned, the American decided to split with long term caddy Steven “Pepsi” Hale earlier this year.

Keegan now sits at 121st in the Official World Golf Rankings. Having not played since The Barclays, he needs something to change… and fast. Otherwise, he could become yet another player scrambling desperately to retain his Tour card.

Kevin Na

Kevin has had so many close calls to get win No. 2 on the PGA Tour. In recent years he’s been a model of consistency, but 2016 was quiet by his standards. He couldn’t get himself into contention for a win despite some good finishes. None were more impressive than his 7th-place showing at the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont.

Win No. 2 surely can’t be too far away, and I’m predicting it happens in the 2016/17 season. It may even happen within the next few weeks, because Na loves this time of year. Barring unforeseen circumstances, he’ll tee it up at the Safeway Open, Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and the CIMB Classic. Last year, he had agonizingly close calls at all three tournaments, eventually settling for two runners-up spots and a 3rd-place finish.

Expect another strong fall series for Na, as he’ll certainly be targeting a place on Steve Stricker’s 2017 Presidents Cup team. As of this week, he’s in 10th place in the U.S Team rankings.

Steven Bowditch 

The sharp-witted Australian has endured a torrid 2016. For whatever reason, his game has completely deserted him. After failing to break 80 at the WGC-Cadillac Championship back in March (posting 37-over par for the event), he went on to miss the cut in 12 of his next 16 events.

Bowditch has opted not to go home to Australia for some big events over the next couple of months. In doing so, he’s signaled his intent to focus solely on trying to recapture his form on the PGA Tour. If he’s looking for some positivity this fall, he can look to his runner-up finish at Napa back in 2014.

While Bowditch has dropped 115 places in the last 12 months in the OWGR, the two-time PGA Tour winner has recovered from big struggles with his game before. A fresh start this fall will hopefully see him fighting his way back to form.

Bryson DeChambeau

Bryson DeChambeau broke onto the professional golf world stage at The Masters, playing himself into contention before finishing T21st. After a T4 start on Tour at the RBC Heritage, his season fizzled out and he failed to play well enough to earn a PGA Tour card. DeChambeau didn’t let it get to him. He took his talents to the Web.com Tour, where he won a four-man playoff at the DAP Championship to earn 2016-2017 playing privileges on the big Tour.

There’s no doubt DeChambeau is one of the most exciting prospects in the game right now. Riding a wave of confidence, he’s already committed to the Safeway Open. Chances are, he’ll add more events this fall. With traditionally weaker fields this time of year the opportunity is there for Bryson to begin his season with a bang.

Tiger Woods 

Withdrawal symptoms after the Ryder Cup? Forget about it. The biggest star in golf is about to return. As he makes another comeback from his ailing back, all eyes will be on the condition of his body, as well as his game in Napa.

With nobody knowing quite what to expect on his return, Jesper Parnevik’s comments this week may have just raised expectations. Parnevik described Tiger as “flushing everything” in practice, and said, “Comebacks are never a sure thing, but something tells me his might be spectacular.”

As it happens, Silverado Country Club’s North Course could be an ideal place for Woods to ease back into the swing of things. An average-length course by PGA Tour standards, Woods may decide to not hit driver (his nemesis) as much as usual. It’s a course that demands strong iron play, a facet of Tiger’s game that has always been both exceptional and reliable.

Free swings, no grimaces and no meltdowns around the greens should leave his legion of supporters satisfied. Throw in a made cut and Tiger fans will have reason to feel buoyant before he heads to Turkey.