Notebook: Brandt Snedeker injures knee hopping off Segway in China

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Brandt Snedeker injured his left leg when he lost his balance and landed awkwardly when he hopped off a Segway in China.

Snedeker was at a corporate outing at Sheshan International on Monday when he injured himself. He immediately withdrew from the Australian PGA Championship and returned home to Nashville. Doctors say he bruised his left tibia and strained the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Snedeker says surgery will not be required. He says his injuries could heal in a couple of weeks, or it might take as much as two months. He is scheduled to play the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge in California on Dec. 5-8, and the Franklin Templeton Shootout a week later in Florida.

Snedeker missed six weeks earlier this year when he cracked a rib.

FARMERS INSURANCE RENEWS AT TORREY PINES: Farmers Insurance stepped in at the last minute in 2010 when the PGA Tour event at Torrey Pines risked going without a sponsor. Now the company is in for the long haul.

Farmers Insurance and the Century Club of San Diego, which runs the tournament, announced Tuesday that it will extend its title sponsorship for five more years through 2019. The new agreement starts after next year's tournament in January.

COMING TO AMERICA: Fernandez-Castano eager to settle his family in Miami

That will give Farmers a 10-year run at Torrey Pines, which previously had Buick as a title sponsor for 18 years until the downturn in the auto industry.

Tiger Woods is the defending champion, winning last year for the seventh time. He also won a U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in 2008, the last of his 14 majors.

Along with typically attracting the game's two biggest stars – Woods and Phil Mickelson – the tournament has one of the larger fields on the West Coast swing because it uses the North and South courses at Torrey Pines.

WGC SWEEP: The United States captured a Grand Slam of sorts in the World Golf Championships by winning all four of them this year.

Matt Kuchar won the Accenture Match Play Championship. Tiger Woods won the Cadillac Championship and Bridgestone Invitational. Dustin Johnson made it a clean sweep by winning the HSBC Champions.

It's the first time Americans have swept the WGCs since 2005 (David Toms won Match Play, Woods won the other two). The other sweeps were in 2001 (Woods and Steve Stricker – the other was cancelled by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks) and in 1999 when they began (Jeff Maggert at Match Play, Woods the other two).

As for the real slam?

The Americans last won all four majors in the same season in 1982: Craig Stadler (Masters), Tom Watson (both Opens) and Raymond Floyd (PGA Championship).

DIVOTS: Phil Mickelson had his old Ping Eye-2 lob wedge in his bag at the HSBC Champions. It's the same wedge he used in 2010 with square grooves no longer approved by the USGA. An exception is made for this wedge because it was made before April 1, 1990. ... Jim ''Bones'' Mackay was awarded ''Caddie of the Year'' during the HSBC Champions caddie night. His boss, Phil Mickelson, won three times this year, including the British Open ... The Volvo Golf Champions in South Africa is raising its purse to $4 million, making it even more attractive for European players in a Ryder Cup year. It's the first European Tour event of 2014. ... The LPGA Tour has signed a four-year extension that keeps the popular Kingsmill Championship on the schedule through 2017. It will feature a $1.3 million purse when it is played May 15-18. ... Graham DeLaet and Jonas Blixt have been added to the field of the Franklin Templeton Shootout next month in Naples, Fla. Chad Campbell also will be playing as the replacement for Stewart Cink, who withdrew. ... Jason Day, Billy Horschel and Boo Weekley will represent the PGA Tour in the Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge to be played Nov. 12 at Rio Secco in Las Vegas. ... Rory McIlroy won the match. When it comes to an auction, however, Tiger Woods is no match. A driver signed by Woods went for $45,600 after their duel at Mission Hills. McIlroy's driver that he signed went for $13,100.

STAT OF THE WEEK: Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell are the only players from Europe's winning Ryder Cup team at Medinah who have won tournaments this year.

FINAL WORD: ''It's always a tricky thing when you're a young guy. You might think you're good and you find out you're not that good. Or they find out they're better than they think they are.'' – Thomas Bjorn.