LPGA Tour ANA Inspiration leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/ana-inspiration/leaderboard
First I will report that Alena Sharp had one of her best rounds of the year at this ANA Inspiration, moving 25 spots up the board to T11 with -4 68 -5 total (71 68)
She is seven strokes behind Sweden's Pernilla Lindberg (65 67) and South Korean Sung Hyun Park (68 64), who set a tournament record -12 total heading into the weekend. Both displayed a dazzling iron game, constantly hitting it within 10 feet to set up birdie putts. Park won the CP Women's Canadian Open last year. Jessica Korda is next at 67 68 -9. There are 4 players at -7.
Brooke Henderson went the wrong way with a + 3 75 and just made the cut on the number at +1.(70 75)
One of the pre tournament favourites Lexi Thompson putted poorly on her way to E 72 and is -4. The weather at Mission Hills is scorching hot 97*F yesterday which left Michelle Wie amongst others feeling dizzy.
I've been asked what ever happened to a few of the games hotties !! Where is Suzann Pettersen, Natalie Gulbis, and Anna Rawson.
Norway's Pettersen got married and is now pregnant so that is why you haven't seen her.
Gulbis who turned pro back in 2001 has been trying to become pregnant in recent years after she slipped below #400 in OWGR after several back injuries, and in 2017 was reported to be interested in running for congress in Nevada, She and her husband live in Lake Las Vegas and are staunch supporters of Donald Trump.
Anna Rawson the 5'11" Aussie beauty is doing an MBA program at Columbia University, an Ivy League school in New York. She had 4 rather uneventful years on the LPGA Tour after a glittering amateur career down under. She's been a model, professional golfer, entrepreneur and now a university student.
There you go !
Bryan Angus
Saturday, March 31, 2018
Spieth, Stenson, Fowler rounding into Masters form at Houston Open
PGA Tour Houston Open leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/houston-open/leaderboard.html
Young Beau Hossler with scores 65 68 sits in the lead at -11 as this last weekend gets under way before the chosen few fly across the country from this Houston Open to Atlanta, then up to Augusta for the Masters.
Hossler who is coached by legendary Jim Flick has played beautifully, and he will need to continue this form if he wants to hold off the jam packed leaderboard behind him which includes some of the big boys rounding into Masters form. He is 23, ranked #214 from California, and had 2 top 10's during the wrap around part of this season.
Rickie Fowler 66 68 is at -10 and was in the lead until he found the water at the 18th. Jordan Spieth at home in Texas is putting like the Spieth that dominated the tour in 2015, 68 67 -9, Henrik Stenson 68 68 -8, Justin Rose 69 68 -7 will all be in your Masters pool sheets.
How about Ian Poulter, bidding to win to get to Augusta. After being told he was in last week, then cruelly advised he wasn't at #51, he opened on Thursday with 73, but bounced back yesterday with the low round of the day -8 64 to sit at -7.
Ben Silverman made the cut on the number, 73 68 -3. Nick Taylor, Mac Hughes and Corey Connors have gone home for Easter.
It will be another sunny, hot day in Houston with a little breeze picking up as the day goes on. With so many players in contention, and no bad weather to thin them out it promises to be a cavalry charge to the finish line come Sunday afternoon.
Bryan Angus
Young Beau Hossler with scores 65 68 sits in the lead at -11 as this last weekend gets under way before the chosen few fly across the country from this Houston Open to Atlanta, then up to Augusta for the Masters.
Hossler who is coached by legendary Jim Flick has played beautifully, and he will need to continue this form if he wants to hold off the jam packed leaderboard behind him which includes some of the big boys rounding into Masters form. He is 23, ranked #214 from California, and had 2 top 10's during the wrap around part of this season.
Rickie Fowler 66 68 is at -10 and was in the lead until he found the water at the 18th. Jordan Spieth at home in Texas is putting like the Spieth that dominated the tour in 2015, 68 67 -9, Henrik Stenson 68 68 -8, Justin Rose 69 68 -7 will all be in your Masters pool sheets.
How about Ian Poulter, bidding to win to get to Augusta. After being told he was in last week, then cruelly advised he wasn't at #51, he opened on Thursday with 73, but bounced back yesterday with the low round of the day -8 64 to sit at -7.
Ben Silverman made the cut on the number, 73 68 -3. Nick Taylor, Mac Hughes and Corey Connors have gone home for Easter.
It will be another sunny, hot day in Houston with a little breeze picking up as the day goes on. With so many players in contention, and no bad weather to thin them out it promises to be a cavalry charge to the finish line come Sunday afternoon.
Bryan Angus
Friday, March 30, 2018
Henderson and Sharp in play at ANA Inspiration
LPGA ANA Inspiration leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/ana-inspiration/leaderboard
Brooke Henderson (-2 70 T20) and Alena Sharp (-1 71 T36) are the two Canadians in the first major of the LPGA 2018 season, the ANA Inspiration on the fabled Dinah Shore Course at Mission Hills Country Club with 43 of the top 50 players in the world in attendance.
You may remember the drama last year with Lexi (Legsy)Thompson well on her way to victory on Sunday before she was assessed a four-stroke penalty on the 12th hole, for marking her ball incorrectly the day before, after a viewer called in. She fought back, forced a playoff with So Yeon Ryu, who beat her with a birdie on the first playoff hole.
She is at 68 -4 this week after the first round, using her new Cobra driver and Bridgestone ball, and averaging 325 yards on a course that rewards length of the tee. Jessica Korda who has never won a major was in the group at -5 67.
I watched Brooke Henderson's presser this week and she did talk about that length and it's importance this week. She is 13th on Tour with a driving average of 268.39 yards, and had this to say.
"Brittany Lincicome, Lexi (Thompson), they hit it a really long way, and they’ve won here or been close the last ten years very often, so there is something to that, I think it’s so they can reach the par 5s a little bit easier. I think if you can birdie all the par 5s every single day, you’re going to put yourself in a good position"
Then she talked about how she is learning that staying patient is important for her.
"So try to keep the patience. If things aren’t going to go perfect, because at some point during the four days there’s going to be a rough patch, especially in a major championship. So just trying to persevere through that, stay patient, and when good things happen, hopefully take it on the run.”
The leader is Sweden's Pernilla Lindberg who had bogey free -7 65 to lead the tightly packed field into the second round under typically hot, sunny desert conditions.
By the way, Lydia Ko, who was by far the best player on this tour 2 years ago, (and the winner here in 2016) before firing her caddy, her coach, changing equipment, her swing and losing her game in the process, is at -2 70 along with Brooke. She has let the rest of the women in, and I often wonder if she will ever recover her game, her confidence. She has slipped from the undisputed world #1 to #15.
Bryan Angus
Brooke Henderson (-2 70 T20) and Alena Sharp (-1 71 T36) are the two Canadians in the first major of the LPGA 2018 season, the ANA Inspiration on the fabled Dinah Shore Course at Mission Hills Country Club with 43 of the top 50 players in the world in attendance.
You may remember the drama last year with Lexi (Legsy)Thompson well on her way to victory on Sunday before she was assessed a four-stroke penalty on the 12th hole, for marking her ball incorrectly the day before, after a viewer called in. She fought back, forced a playoff with So Yeon Ryu, who beat her with a birdie on the first playoff hole.
She is at 68 -4 this week after the first round, using her new Cobra driver and Bridgestone ball, and averaging 325 yards on a course that rewards length of the tee. Jessica Korda who has never won a major was in the group at -5 67.
I watched Brooke Henderson's presser this week and she did talk about that length and it's importance this week. She is 13th on Tour with a driving average of 268.39 yards, and had this to say.
"Brittany Lincicome, Lexi (Thompson), they hit it a really long way, and they’ve won here or been close the last ten years very often, so there is something to that, I think it’s so they can reach the par 5s a little bit easier. I think if you can birdie all the par 5s every single day, you’re going to put yourself in a good position"
Then she talked about how she is learning that staying patient is important for her.
"So try to keep the patience. If things aren’t going to go perfect, because at some point during the four days there’s going to be a rough patch, especially in a major championship. So just trying to persevere through that, stay patient, and when good things happen, hopefully take it on the run.”
The leader is Sweden's Pernilla Lindberg who had bogey free -7 65 to lead the tightly packed field into the second round under typically hot, sunny desert conditions.
By the way, Lydia Ko, who was by far the best player on this tour 2 years ago, (and the winner here in 2016) before firing her caddy, her coach, changing equipment, her swing and losing her game in the process, is at -2 70 along with Brooke. She has let the rest of the women in, and I often wonder if she will ever recover her game, her confidence. She has slipped from the undisputed world #1 to #15.
Bryan Angus
Heavy rain delays play at Houston Open
PGA Tour Houston Open leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/houston-open/leaderboard.html
PGA Tour rookie Sam Ryder really had to be a good golfer with a name like that. Samuel Ryder of course is the founding father of the Ryder Cup.
He holds the clubhouse lead at -8 through 15 holes after the first round of this rain delayed Houston Open down in Humble Texas. He's back early this morning (8.30 EST) to finish up along with the others who didn't finish. 2" of rain fell overnight softening up the greens and delaying play for 2 hours.
As a result Bob Tway Jr and Lucas Glover shot -7 65 early in the day.
With the Masters looming next week, some guys like Phil Mickelson (68) and Jordan Spieth (68) choose to play here this week, others like Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy just take it off and go to Augusta early to prepare. Some like Bubba just go on a kindergarten holiday with their kids.
Their are 4 Canadians in the field. Mac Hughes got his round in -3 69. The other 3, Ben Silverman, Nick Taylor and Corey Connors are all +1 through 13 holes and will be out early this morning, weather permitting, and there is nothing but blue skies in the forecast for today and tomorrow.
Bryan Angus
PGA Tour rookie Sam Ryder really had to be a good golfer with a name like that. Samuel Ryder of course is the founding father of the Ryder Cup.
He holds the clubhouse lead at -8 through 15 holes after the first round of this rain delayed Houston Open down in Humble Texas. He's back early this morning (8.30 EST) to finish up along with the others who didn't finish. 2" of rain fell overnight softening up the greens and delaying play for 2 hours.
As a result Bob Tway Jr and Lucas Glover shot -7 65 early in the day.
With the Masters looming next week, some guys like Phil Mickelson (68) and Jordan Spieth (68) choose to play here this week, others like Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy just take it off and go to Augusta early to prepare. Some like Bubba just go on a kindergarten holiday with their kids.
Their are 4 Canadians in the field. Mac Hughes got his round in -3 69. The other 3, Ben Silverman, Nick Taylor and Corey Connors are all +1 through 13 holes and will be out early this morning, weather permitting, and there is nothing but blue skies in the forecast for today and tomorrow.
Bryan Angus
Monday, March 26, 2018
Despite sensational play, WGC Dell Technologies Match Play Championship a TV flop.
After another year of watching this event, sponsored by Dell Technologies this year, I am still of the opinion that as a TV event, like its final match, it's a flop.
Here's why. The Ryder Cup is the most compelling 3 days of golf television in the game, and of course it's match play, which is far more compelling than stroke play because every shot, every hole means something.
However the crucial difference is the Ryder Cup is a team game for your country, with all the history of David (Europe) overcoming Goliath (USA) that like a great soap, has captured the golfing world.
This WGC event had a week of sensational play, but it's like watching a great horse race with no money on your favourite. You just watch the beautiful horses parade in the paddock, then watch the race with interest but no passion.
Now the minute you put $100.00 on the #5, you are down by the rail screaming for it to cross the finish line first !
I think the technical coverage is a good as it can get with 32 matches on the go on Wednesday making it impossible to do anything but cherry pick, the storylines for each match became better as the number of matches declines to 4, then 2, we can follow the story of each more closely.
Having Jim Bones McKay, David Feherty and Roger Maltby out on course with pairings is the way to go, it gave us a break from the in studio crew watching, like us, on TV. They are good for relaying interesting tidbits provided by the production team, but are just sterile at best.
I never want to hear Steve Sands or Jimmy Roberts commenting while watching TV for a whole week again. Please use them to go out and do features of interest regarding guys like Aphibarnrat, or Sharma that nobody in the USA knows anything about.
Sadly as been the case in this event many times, when there was at least one compelling finalist in Bubba, and all the lights came on one match, it was a flop since Kisner just got creamed.
1999 Jeff Maggert beat Andrew Magee, 2001 Steve Stricker beat Pierre Fulke, 2002 Kevin Sutherland beat Scott McCarron all in front of less people than watch 5 pin bowling.
Tiger arrived to save it in 2003 and 2004 then in 2008, but the event can't just rely on him for ratings.
Under the WGC rules of inviting the top 64 players I'm not sure what the solution is to be honest.
However I would scrap the WGC title and make it the World Team Match Play Championship with 2 players representing their country, seeded, like the old days. Imagine a USA vs Spain final.
Now you'd get the passion back in it.
Bryan Angus
Here's why. The Ryder Cup is the most compelling 3 days of golf television in the game, and of course it's match play, which is far more compelling than stroke play because every shot, every hole means something.
However the crucial difference is the Ryder Cup is a team game for your country, with all the history of David (Europe) overcoming Goliath (USA) that like a great soap, has captured the golfing world.
This WGC event had a week of sensational play, but it's like watching a great horse race with no money on your favourite. You just watch the beautiful horses parade in the paddock, then watch the race with interest but no passion.
Now the minute you put $100.00 on the #5, you are down by the rail screaming for it to cross the finish line first !
I think the technical coverage is a good as it can get with 32 matches on the go on Wednesday making it impossible to do anything but cherry pick, the storylines for each match became better as the number of matches declines to 4, then 2, we can follow the story of each more closely.
Having Jim Bones McKay, David Feherty and Roger Maltby out on course with pairings is the way to go, it gave us a break from the in studio crew watching, like us, on TV. They are good for relaying interesting tidbits provided by the production team, but are just sterile at best.
I never want to hear Steve Sands or Jimmy Roberts commenting while watching TV for a whole week again. Please use them to go out and do features of interest regarding guys like Aphibarnrat, or Sharma that nobody in the USA knows anything about.
Sadly as been the case in this event many times, when there was at least one compelling finalist in Bubba, and all the lights came on one match, it was a flop since Kisner just got creamed.
1999 Jeff Maggert beat Andrew Magee, 2001 Steve Stricker beat Pierre Fulke, 2002 Kevin Sutherland beat Scott McCarron all in front of less people than watch 5 pin bowling.
Tiger arrived to save it in 2003 and 2004 then in 2008, but the event can't just rely on him for ratings.
Under the WGC rules of inviting the top 64 players I'm not sure what the solution is to be honest.
However I would scrap the WGC title and make it the World Team Match Play Championship with 2 players representing their country, seeded, like the old days. Imagine a USA vs Spain final.
Now you'd get the passion back in it.
Bryan Angus
Connors struggles, Garnett wins Corales Punt Cana Resort Championship
PGA Tour Corales Punta Cana Resort Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/corales-puntacana-resort-club-championship/leaderboard.html
Although he would have liked a different finish on Sunday at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship, Corey Conners has many reasons to smile.
The 26-year-old began the day two strokes off the pace in second, but struggled in the finale with a +4 76, soured by a double-bogey on par-4 18th. This marks the second consecutive tournament where Conners’ showed his ability to rise to the top of leaderboards and struggle in the final-round. He’ll leave Punta Cana with a T13 finish which is his best on the PGA TOUR in this rookie campaign. It also marks the second consecutive top 20 finish for the Team Canada program graduate.
Conners was chasing champion Brice Garnett, who shot -2 70 in the wind and rain to finish four strokes ahead of runner-up, Keith Mitchell. Garnett led the WEB.com tour last year with 2 wins.
Bryan Angus
(files from CanadianPress and golfcanada.ca)
Although he would have liked a different finish on Sunday at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship, Corey Conners has many reasons to smile.
The 26-year-old began the day two strokes off the pace in second, but struggled in the finale with a +4 76, soured by a double-bogey on par-4 18th. This marks the second consecutive tournament where Conners’ showed his ability to rise to the top of leaderboards and struggle in the final-round. He’ll leave Punta Cana with a T13 finish which is his best on the PGA TOUR in this rookie campaign. It also marks the second consecutive top 20 finish for the Team Canada program graduate.
Conners was chasing champion Brice Garnett, who shot -2 70 in the wind and rain to finish four strokes ahead of runner-up, Keith Mitchell. Garnett led the WEB.com tour last year with 2 wins.
Bryan Angus
(files from CanadianPress and golfcanada.ca)
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Bubba wins Dell Technologies Match Play
WGC Dell Technologies Match Play Championship final scoreboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/leaderboard.html
Bubba Watson just crushed quiet Kevin Kisner 7&6 to win the Dell Technologies Match Play. After a week of mostly terrific golf, Kisner's game deserted him, Bubba won the first 5 holes and the match ended in a flop on the 12th green.
Don't get me wrong, I thought the most sensational golf of the week came from Watson, I've always said he's one of a few guys I'd pay to watch live and this week his shot making was at his best. More importantly as he talked about in his post match interview, "his focus was intact' all seven rounds. It's well known that Bubba's mind tends to wander, giving him an "I don't care" demeanour at times.
Bubba's status amongst many of his fellow pros rose when after he was spurned from the 2016 Ryder Cup by captain Davis Love not once but twice, he insisted he still wanted to go in any capacity, and was given a 5th assistant captains role, and became an integral part of that winning USA squad.
I felt badly for Alex Noren, who put on such a display of power and precision all week, he led the field in putting and opened everybody's eyes on this side of the Atlantic. He had the upper hand in the morning semi final vs Kisner in a terrific match which featured 4 holes halved with birdies, but he just started missing a few from inside 10 feet and Kisner hung in after he tied the match with an eagle on the 12th. Kisner won it on the 19th when Noren made a bogey 5.
Noren beat Justin Thomas 5&3 for 3rd place. Thomas by the way was sensational until he lost 3&2 to Bubba in the semi final when his putter went cold, much to his frustration.
So Bubba heads off on holiday for a week before he will re surface at Augusta, likely as the new favourite, which he will hate, to win his 3rd green jacket.
Bryan Angus
Bryan Angus
Bubba Watson just crushed quiet Kevin Kisner 7&6 to win the Dell Technologies Match Play. After a week of mostly terrific golf, Kisner's game deserted him, Bubba won the first 5 holes and the match ended in a flop on the 12th green.
Don't get me wrong, I thought the most sensational golf of the week came from Watson, I've always said he's one of a few guys I'd pay to watch live and this week his shot making was at his best. More importantly as he talked about in his post match interview, "his focus was intact' all seven rounds. It's well known that Bubba's mind tends to wander, giving him an "I don't care" demeanour at times.
Bubba's status amongst many of his fellow pros rose when after he was spurned from the 2016 Ryder Cup by captain Davis Love not once but twice, he insisted he still wanted to go in any capacity, and was given a 5th assistant captains role, and became an integral part of that winning USA squad.
I felt badly for Alex Noren, who put on such a display of power and precision all week, he led the field in putting and opened everybody's eyes on this side of the Atlantic. He had the upper hand in the morning semi final vs Kisner in a terrific match which featured 4 holes halved with birdies, but he just started missing a few from inside 10 feet and Kisner hung in after he tied the match with an eagle on the 12th. Kisner won it on the 19th when Noren made a bogey 5.
Noren beat Justin Thomas 5&3 for 3rd place. Thomas by the way was sensational until he lost 3&2 to Bubba in the semi final when his putter went cold, much to his frustration.
So Bubba heads off on holiday for a week before he will re surface at Augusta, likely as the new favourite, which he will hate, to win his 3rd green jacket.
Bryan Angus
Bryan Angus
Henderson, LeBlanc out of contention at Kia Classic
LPGA Tour Kia Classic leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/kia-classic/leaderboard
This hasn't been the week for the Canadian women at the Kia Classic. Alena Sharp and Anne Catherine Tanguay missed the cut, Brooke Henderson 69 70 73 -4 is T35, while Maude Aimee LeBlanc 70 70 74 -2 is T55.
Overnight leader Cristie Kerr buoyed by a Saturday 64 started play 5 shots clear of the field. Saturday was a different story with 3 bogey's and a double she was 11 shots worse at 75 falling to T4 at -10, letting the rest of the chasing pack back in contention.
Lizette Salas 69, Eun-Hee Ji 67 and In-Kyung Kim 69 chased down the 36-hole leader to take the lead at -11 with the final round today out in Carlsbad, California.
Bryan Angus
This hasn't been the week for the Canadian women at the Kia Classic. Alena Sharp and Anne Catherine Tanguay missed the cut, Brooke Henderson 69 70 73 -4 is T35, while Maude Aimee LeBlanc 70 70 74 -2 is T55.
Overnight leader Cristie Kerr buoyed by a Saturday 64 started play 5 shots clear of the field. Saturday was a different story with 3 bogey's and a double she was 11 shots worse at 75 falling to T4 at -10, letting the rest of the chasing pack back in contention.
Lizette Salas 69, Eun-Hee Ji 67 and In-Kyung Kim 69 chased down the 36-hole leader to take the lead at -11 with the final round today out in Carlsbad, California.
Bryan Angus
Stephen Ames in contention at Rapiscan Systems Classic
PGA Champions Tour Rapiscan Systems Classic leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/champions/tournaments/rapiscan-systems-classic/leaderboard.html
Every time I hear Biloxi, Mississippi I think of the devastation that city endured from Hurricane Katrina on August 31, 2005 when 90% of the buildings along the coast in Biloxi and neighboring Gulfport were destroyed. Several of the "floating" casinos were torn off their supports and thrown inland, contributing to the damage.
This week the Champions Tour has arrived for the Rapiscan Systems Classic and I wanted to report that Stephen Ames is right in contention for today's final round T4 71 68 -5 just 2 shots behind leader Steve Stricker 69 69 -7 who won for the first time on this Tour 3 weeks ago.
"It was a tough day today. It was a grind out there,” Stricker said. “The wind made it very difficult. The greens are very quick, you just had to hit some shots"
Ames best finish this season was T12 in Hawaii at the Toshiba Classic. Joe Durant and Jeff Sluman are at -6.
Rod Spittle is T21 71 73 E.
By the way, since you always ask. Rapsican Systems manufactures security equipment and systems designed for checkpoints, cargo, vehicle, baggage, parcel, and air cargo security inspection.
Bryan Angus
Every time I hear Biloxi, Mississippi I think of the devastation that city endured from Hurricane Katrina on August 31, 2005 when 90% of the buildings along the coast in Biloxi and neighboring Gulfport were destroyed. Several of the "floating" casinos were torn off their supports and thrown inland, contributing to the damage.
This week the Champions Tour has arrived for the Rapiscan Systems Classic and I wanted to report that Stephen Ames is right in contention for today's final round T4 71 68 -5 just 2 shots behind leader Steve Stricker 69 69 -7 who won for the first time on this Tour 3 weeks ago.
"It was a tough day today. It was a grind out there,” Stricker said. “The wind made it very difficult. The greens are very quick, you just had to hit some shots"
Ames best finish this season was T12 in Hawaii at the Toshiba Classic. Joe Durant and Jeff Sluman are at -6.
Rod Spittle is T21 71 73 E.
By the way, since you always ask. Rapsican Systems manufactures security equipment and systems designed for checkpoints, cargo, vehicle, baggage, parcel, and air cargo security inspection.
Bryan Angus
How about Corey Connors at the Corales Punta Cana Resort Championship
PGA Tour Corales Punta Cana Resort Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/corales-puntacana-resort-club-championship/leaderboard.html
With the wind gusting and blowing up to 25mph on this Punta Cana resort golf course Corey Connors continued his fine run of form with a solid -5 67 -14 to start today in 2nd place, 2 shots behind leader Brice Garnett.
"I'm very confident right now, and am very happy the way I struck the ball and got up and down when I had to today. I made a bunch of birdies on the front and kinda hung on in the back"
Connors will be in the final group today as he was after leading the Valspar 2 weeks ago where he finished with a 75. " I learned a lot from that day. Just stay relaxed, slow down and enjoy the day "
He’ll tee off at 11:25 a.m. ET alongside Garnett, who by the way won twice on the Web.com Tour to get here this year. The third in the group has a Canadian connection. Tyler McCumber played on the Mackenzie Tour. He is at -12.
Bryan Angus
With the wind gusting and blowing up to 25mph on this Punta Cana resort golf course Corey Connors continued his fine run of form with a solid -5 67 -14 to start today in 2nd place, 2 shots behind leader Brice Garnett.
"I'm very confident right now, and am very happy the way I struck the ball and got up and down when I had to today. I made a bunch of birdies on the front and kinda hung on in the back"
Connors will be in the final group today as he was after leading the Valspar 2 weeks ago where he finished with a 75. " I learned a lot from that day. Just stay relaxed, slow down and enjoy the day "
He’ll tee off at 11:25 a.m. ET alongside Garnett, who by the way won twice on the Web.com Tour to get here this year. The third in the group has a Canadian connection. Tyler McCumber played on the Mackenzie Tour. He is at -12.
Bryan Angus
Thomas, Bubba, Noren, Kisner to decide Dell Technologies Match Play
WGC Dell Technologies Match Play scoreboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/leaderboard.html
After 5 rounds and 64 players it has come down to the final four today at this Dell Technologies Match Play Championship.
Justin Thomas vs Bubba Watson is one semi final with Thomas set to become the world #1 while Alex Noren plays steady Kevin Kisner who edged out Adam Hadwin in the group stage to get this far.
Kisner beat Ian Poulter 8&6 after Poulter with his storied Medinah putter working wonders had been one of the stars of the week, never having lost and buoyed by the chance to turn his year around and get into the Masters at #50 or better.. So I wondered why he lost by such a wide margin.
Poulter sent out a tweet afterwards which explains in part why, although he says it had no bearing. “I gave him no fight at all. It was rubbish,”
He was told after he beat Louis Oosthuizen in the morning that reaching the quarterfinals was enough for him to be in the top 50 at the end of the week, which would get him into the Masters. He was on top of the world !
Moments later, he received a text that he needed to win his match against Kisner. What !? You know he had to a least been set back emotionally. He handled it like a gentleman.
“Next time I won’t listen to other people. I’ll do my bit and focus better,” Poulter said. “I mean, I can’t put that down as an excuse. It would be an excuse if I said it. So it’s disappointing to be given the wrong information, but that wasn’t part of this afternoon" He will now decide if he wants to play in Houston next week or not, or even if he is eligible.
18 countries were represented back on Wednesday but today there are 3 Americans and Noren, who lives in Florida although he is from Sweden.
Watson was due to fly out with his wife on holiday at 9am this morning...those plans have been put on hold as the eccentric lefty is having a great week. When asked why they booked a flight when he could still be playing? " I think they were cheaper" said the multi millionaire !
I'm picking Bubba and Noren to play for the title this afternoon
Bryan Angus
After 5 rounds and 64 players it has come down to the final four today at this Dell Technologies Match Play Championship.
Justin Thomas vs Bubba Watson is one semi final with Thomas set to become the world #1 while Alex Noren plays steady Kevin Kisner who edged out Adam Hadwin in the group stage to get this far.
Kisner beat Ian Poulter 8&6 after Poulter with his storied Medinah putter working wonders had been one of the stars of the week, never having lost and buoyed by the chance to turn his year around and get into the Masters at #50 or better.. So I wondered why he lost by such a wide margin.
Poulter sent out a tweet afterwards which explains in part why, although he says it had no bearing. “I gave him no fight at all. It was rubbish,”
He was told after he beat Louis Oosthuizen in the morning that reaching the quarterfinals was enough for him to be in the top 50 at the end of the week, which would get him into the Masters. He was on top of the world !
Moments later, he received a text that he needed to win his match against Kisner. What !? You know he had to a least been set back emotionally. He handled it like a gentleman.
“Next time I won’t listen to other people. I’ll do my bit and focus better,” Poulter said. “I mean, I can’t put that down as an excuse. It would be an excuse if I said it. So it’s disappointing to be given the wrong information, but that wasn’t part of this afternoon" He will now decide if he wants to play in Houston next week or not, or even if he is eligible.
18 countries were represented back on Wednesday but today there are 3 Americans and Noren, who lives in Florida although he is from Sweden.
Watson was due to fly out with his wife on holiday at 9am this morning...those plans have been put on hold as the eccentric lefty is having a great week. When asked why they booked a flight when he could still be playing? " I think they were cheaper" said the multi millionaire !
I'm picking Bubba and Noren to play for the title this afternoon
Bryan Angus
Saturday, March 24, 2018
Cristie Kerr 5 shots ahead, Henderson leads Canadians at Kia Classic
LPGA Tour Kia Classic leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/kia-classic/leaderboard
lpgatour.com Cristie Kerr, in her 22nd season on tour has fired bogey-free rounds of 67-64 to take a five-stroke lead into this weekend at the Kia Classic. Her second round, 64 was one stroke shy of matching the Tournament course record at Aviara Golf Club.
She sits at -13 through 36-holes, with In-Kyung Kim, Lizette Salas, Hee Young Park and Caroline Hedwall her closest competitors at 8-under par.
“I'm trying not to put limits on myself right now,” Kerr said after Friday’s round. “I've got some good things going on with my swing. I had a great round.”
Kerr has found a lot of good things with her game in Carlsbad. In 2015, she won the Kia Classic with a final round, 65 and set a new 72-hole tournament scoring record at 20-under par.
Canadian Scores: Brooke Henderson T15 69 70 -5, Maude Aimee LeBlanc T21 70 70 -4, Anne Catherine Tanguay 73 73 and Alena Sharp 71 76 both missed the cut.
Bryan Angus
lpgatour.com Cristie Kerr, in her 22nd season on tour has fired bogey-free rounds of 67-64 to take a five-stroke lead into this weekend at the Kia Classic. Her second round, 64 was one stroke shy of matching the Tournament course record at Aviara Golf Club.
She sits at -13 through 36-holes, with In-Kyung Kim, Lizette Salas, Hee Young Park and Caroline Hedwall her closest competitors at 8-under par.
“I'm trying not to put limits on myself right now,” Kerr said after Friday’s round. “I've got some good things going on with my swing. I had a great round.”
Kerr has found a lot of good things with her game in Carlsbad. In 2015, she won the Kia Classic with a final round, 65 and set a new 72-hole tournament scoring record at 20-under par.
Canadian Scores: Brooke Henderson T15 69 70 -5, Maude Aimee LeBlanc T21 70 70 -4, Anne Catherine Tanguay 73 73 and Alena Sharp 71 76 both missed the cut.
Bryan Angus
Connors stays in contention at Corales Puntacana Resort Championship
PGA Tour Corales Puntacana Resort Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/corales-puntacana-resort-club-championship/leaderboard.html
Corey Connors backed up his opening -8 64 with a -1 71 on Friday to stay in contention T6 -9 at this Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship.
With 14 pars 2 birdies and a bogey this rookie Canadian has continued his impressive run, now making 12/13 cuts and of course leading the Valspar Championship for 3 rounds 3 weeks ago.
The lead as I suggested yesterday is at -13, Brice Garnett 63 68 has a one shot lead, so Corey is 4 shots behind when play begins in the Dominican Republic this morning.
There are all kinds of players here this week only the most devout golf fans have heard of mixed in with some aging pros like Dicky Pride trying to get back into the big time. Xinjun Zhang ? is -10, Seungsu Han ? is -10, Denny McCarthy ?-9, Tom Loveday ? -7, Lanto Griffrin ?-7 and the list goes on ..
There are thunderstorms in the forecast for later today and Sunday.
Bryan Angus
Corey Connors backed up his opening -8 64 with a -1 71 on Friday to stay in contention T6 -9 at this Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship.
With 14 pars 2 birdies and a bogey this rookie Canadian has continued his impressive run, now making 12/13 cuts and of course leading the Valspar Championship for 3 rounds 3 weeks ago.
The lead as I suggested yesterday is at -13, Brice Garnett 63 68 has a one shot lead, so Corey is 4 shots behind when play begins in the Dominican Republic this morning.
There are all kinds of players here this week only the most devout golf fans have heard of mixed in with some aging pros like Dicky Pride trying to get back into the big time. Xinjun Zhang ? is -10, Seungsu Han ? is -10, Denny McCarthy ?-9, Tom Loveday ? -7, Lanto Griffrin ?-7 and the list goes on ..
There are thunderstorms in the forecast for later today and Sunday.
Bryan Angus
Hadwin edged out of the sweet sixteen matches at Dell Technologies Match Play
WGC Dell Technologies Match Play leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/leaderboard.html
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/weather.html
Adam Hadwin was not beaten this week at the Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas after halving with Berndt Wiesberger last evening to run his record to 1-0-2, 4 points but he was edged out by Kevin Kisner who beat an out of sorts Dustin Johnson 4&3 for a 2-0-1 record worth 5 points.
Click the link above for the 32 players remaining who begin their 16 knock out matches at 9am (EST) this morning. It also has all the results from Friday's play which include:
Rory McIlroy being soundly beaten 5&3 by the little lefty Brian Harmon
Phil Mickelson over Rafa Cabrera Bello 1up
Kiradech Aphibarnrat going undefeated beating Jon Rahm 4&3
Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Justin Thomas also completing an undefeated week
Patrick Reed edging Jordan Spieth 2&1
Here are some thoughts on today's matches.
Brian Harmon and Bubba Watson are both lefty's and that's where the comparison ends. They are the first match out. Harmon is short off the tee relying on a deadly short game and of course Bubba is simply Bubba.
Sergio Garcia is the favourite to beat Kyle Stanley who squeaked in via a playoff.
It will be a significant upset if Si Woo Kim beats Justin Thomas
Patrick Reed is the pick of many to win this tournament, but do not underestimate Alex Noren the Swede who lives in Florida, he is a very tough opponent and has only had 1 bogey all week and is leading the putting stats.
Ian Poulter is trying to turn his year around and so far is 3-0 with confidence surging. I think he will beat Louis Oosthuizen who also has a magnificent match play record for the President's Cup team
Bryan Angus.
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/weather.html
Adam Hadwin was not beaten this week at the Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas after halving with Berndt Wiesberger last evening to run his record to 1-0-2, 4 points but he was edged out by Kevin Kisner who beat an out of sorts Dustin Johnson 4&3 for a 2-0-1 record worth 5 points.
Click the link above for the 32 players remaining who begin their 16 knock out matches at 9am (EST) this morning. It also has all the results from Friday's play which include:
Rory McIlroy being soundly beaten 5&3 by the little lefty Brian Harmon
Phil Mickelson over Rafa Cabrera Bello 1up
Kiradech Aphibarnrat going undefeated beating Jon Rahm 4&3
Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Justin Thomas also completing an undefeated week
Patrick Reed edging Jordan Spieth 2&1
Here are some thoughts on today's matches.
Brian Harmon and Bubba Watson are both lefty's and that's where the comparison ends. They are the first match out. Harmon is short off the tee relying on a deadly short game and of course Bubba is simply Bubba.
Sergio Garcia is the favourite to beat Kyle Stanley who squeaked in via a playoff.
It will be a significant upset if Si Woo Kim beats Justin Thomas
Patrick Reed is the pick of many to win this tournament, but do not underestimate Alex Noren the Swede who lives in Florida, he is a very tough opponent and has only had 1 bogey all week and is leading the putting stats.
Ian Poulter is trying to turn his year around and so far is 3-0 with confidence surging. I think he will beat Louis Oosthuizen who also has a magnificent match play record for the President's Cup team
Bryan Angus.
Friday, March 23, 2018
Corey Connors in contention again at Corales Puntacana Championship
PGA Tour Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/corales-puntacana-resort-club-championship/leaderboard.html
As Golf Canada tweeted yesterday "He's at it again !" after young Corey Connors continued his stellar play on this PGA Tour with an opening 9 birdie -8 64 to start play today just a shot out of the overnight lead of -9 63 held by an unknown American, Brice Garnett.
Connors led the Valspar Championship 3 weeks ago for the first 3 rounds and has made 10/11 cuts in his his rookie season.
Mike Weir 71 71 -1 is right on the projected cut line, David Hearn -3 69
Round two is well underway and Hunter Mahan, one of many former stalwarts trying to catch lightning in a bottle this week at this alternate event to the WGC, is the clubhouse leader 70 65 -9.
Scoring is low at this resort course that hosted the Web.com in past years. It has generous fairways so everyone is in play off the tee. Second shots are the key, because it's just a putting contest after that.
Names like Geoff Ogilvy 69 67 -8, Frank Lickliter -1 71, Daniel Chopra -1 71 Dickey Pride 71 70 -3 have all come to resurrect their careers.
I expect the lead to be around -13 come this evening.
Bryan Angus
As Golf Canada tweeted yesterday "He's at it again !" after young Corey Connors continued his stellar play on this PGA Tour with an opening 9 birdie -8 64 to start play today just a shot out of the overnight lead of -9 63 held by an unknown American, Brice Garnett.
Connors led the Valspar Championship 3 weeks ago for the first 3 rounds and has made 10/11 cuts in his his rookie season.
Mike Weir 71 71 -1 is right on the projected cut line, David Hearn -3 69
Round two is well underway and Hunter Mahan, one of many former stalwarts trying to catch lightning in a bottle this week at this alternate event to the WGC, is the clubhouse leader 70 65 -9.
Scoring is low at this resort course that hosted the Web.com in past years. It has generous fairways so everyone is in play off the tee. Second shots are the key, because it's just a putting contest after that.
Names like Geoff Ogilvy 69 67 -8, Frank Lickliter -1 71, Daniel Chopra -1 71 Dickey Pride 71 70 -3 have all come to resurrect their careers.
I expect the lead to be around -13 come this evening.
Bryan Angus
Brooke Henderson leads the Canadians at the Kia Classic
LPGA Tour Kia Classic leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/kia-classic/leaderboard
With round 2 now under way at the Kia Classic out in Carlsbad California, Brooke Henderson leads the Canadians with an opening -3 69 and she is in the early wave today, currently +1 in her 2nd round with a bogey 6 on her first hole as she teed off on #10.
Maude Aimee LeBlanc is right behind at -2 70, Alena Sharp played better golf with -1 71, and Anne Catherine Tanguay struggled to +3 75. Thehy are all in the late wave today.
The current leader is Sweden's Caroline Hedwell on course at -8, with Cristie Kerr at -7.
Michelle Wie who is sponsored by Kia opened with a -1 71.
The cut line is set to fall at E although it is very early.
Bryan Angus
With round 2 now under way at the Kia Classic out in Carlsbad California, Brooke Henderson leads the Canadians with an opening -3 69 and she is in the early wave today, currently +1 in her 2nd round with a bogey 6 on her first hole as she teed off on #10.
Maude Aimee LeBlanc is right behind at -2 70, Alena Sharp played better golf with -1 71, and Anne Catherine Tanguay struggled to +3 75. Thehy are all in the late wave today.
The current leader is Sweden's Caroline Hedwell on course at -8, with Cristie Kerr at -7.
Michelle Wie who is sponsored by Kia opened with a -1 71.
The cut line is set to fall at E although it is very early.
Bryan Angus
Adam Hadwin beats Dustin Johnson at Dell Technologies Match Play
WGC Dell Technologies Match Play live scoring https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/leaderboard.html
What a feather in Adam Hadwin's cap, beating defending champion Dustin Johnson 4&3 to improve his chances of moving into the weekend as the winner of Group 1. His record is 1-0-1, so is undefeated so far at this WGC Dell Technologies Match Play.
Today he plays Brent Wiesberger who is 1-1-0. Dustin Johnson is out of it with 2 defeats 0-2-0, and he plays Kevin Kisner who is the same as Adam at 1-0-1, so the winner will be decided today, with a sudden death playoff if there is a tie.
Adam, Wiesberger or Kisner could win it today, Johnson cannot.
After his round Hadwin had this to say: " I played extremely solid all day, I made the putts I needed to keep momentum on my side. I expected DJ to play a lot better than he did, but I played really steady golf "
Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed kept their chances alive by winning their matches for a second straight day to set up a big match today to determine who wins the group.
Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson still have life, Ian Poulter is 2-0-0 and with a win today over out of form Kevin Chappell will move into the round of 16 tomorrow. Other European Tour members are also 2-0-0. Alex Noren, Tyrrell Hatton, Paul Casey, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Sergio, and Francesco Molinari.
Justin Thomas is also unbeaten, as is Charles Howell and Tony Finau from the American side of things. It's all to play for this afternoon so follow the live scoring link above for results as they happen.
Bryan Angus
What a feather in Adam Hadwin's cap, beating defending champion Dustin Johnson 4&3 to improve his chances of moving into the weekend as the winner of Group 1. His record is 1-0-1, so is undefeated so far at this WGC Dell Technologies Match Play.
Today he plays Brent Wiesberger who is 1-1-0. Dustin Johnson is out of it with 2 defeats 0-2-0, and he plays Kevin Kisner who is the same as Adam at 1-0-1, so the winner will be decided today, with a sudden death playoff if there is a tie.
Adam, Wiesberger or Kisner could win it today, Johnson cannot.
After his round Hadwin had this to say: " I played extremely solid all day, I made the putts I needed to keep momentum on my side. I expected DJ to play a lot better than he did, but I played really steady golf "
Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed kept their chances alive by winning their matches for a second straight day to set up a big match today to determine who wins the group.
Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson still have life, Ian Poulter is 2-0-0 and with a win today over out of form Kevin Chappell will move into the round of 16 tomorrow. Other European Tour members are also 2-0-0. Alex Noren, Tyrrell Hatton, Paul Casey, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Sergio, and Francesco Molinari.
Justin Thomas is also unbeaten, as is Charles Howell and Tony Finau from the American side of things. It's all to play for this afternoon so follow the live scoring link above for results as they happen.
Bryan Angus
Thursday, March 22, 2018
Adam Hadwin halves his first match at Dell Technologies Match Play
WGC Dell Technologies Match Play Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/leaderboard.html
The vagaries of match play were on display during the first day of matches at this Dell Technologies Match Play Championship non more so than Adam Hadwin, the lone Canadian in the field.
It looked like he was about to lose to American star Kevin Kisner who was 1up on the 17th green with a 10 footer for the win. However he hit it 5 feet past then then missed the par putt coming back to lose the hole. Now all square, Hadwin matched Kisner's par at the last for the halve.
Adam plays Dustin Johnson today at 11.20 local time.
As I mentioned yesterday any of these guys can beat the other over 18 holes in this format and as a result Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Tommy Fleetwood to name a few all lost and will likely need to win the next two matches to win their groups and advance to the round of 16.
Rory lost to Peter Uihlein who went 5-up then withstood McIlroy's late charge to win 2-and-1.
Dustin Johnson hit two shots out-of-bounds on the same hole and ended up losing on the 17th to Austrian Bernd Wiesberger.
Today's matches and yesterday's results are available on my scoring link above.
Bryan Angus
The vagaries of match play were on display during the first day of matches at this Dell Technologies Match Play Championship non more so than Adam Hadwin, the lone Canadian in the field.
It looked like he was about to lose to American star Kevin Kisner who was 1up on the 17th green with a 10 footer for the win. However he hit it 5 feet past then then missed the par putt coming back to lose the hole. Now all square, Hadwin matched Kisner's par at the last for the halve.
Adam plays Dustin Johnson today at 11.20 local time.
As I mentioned yesterday any of these guys can beat the other over 18 holes in this format and as a result Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Tommy Fleetwood to name a few all lost and will likely need to win the next two matches to win their groups and advance to the round of 16.
Rory lost to Peter Uihlein who went 5-up then withstood McIlroy's late charge to win 2-and-1.
Dustin Johnson hit two shots out-of-bounds on the same hole and ended up losing on the 17th to Austrian Bernd Wiesberger.
Today's matches and yesterday's results are available on my scoring link above.
Bryan Angus
Corey Connors at shot off the lead at Corales Puntacana Championship
PGA Tour Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship leaderboard source=hp&ei=4bmzWrr8Kc7IsQXljrLQCg&q=pga+tour+corales+puntacana&oq=pga+tour+Corales&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.0l2.1083145.1088448.0.1091793.20.17.0.0.0.0.146.2050.0j16.17.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..3.17.2152.6..46j35i39k1j0i131k1j0i46k1j0i3k1.119.3Pa7oxTFrF0
David Hearn, Mike Weir and Corey Connors are this week's Canadians down in the Dominican Republic at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship, for those who aren't in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship. Hearn, who has lost his full time status this year will be joining TSN for their coverage of the Masters.
Connors who led the Valspar Championship for the first 3 rounds, has opened with 4 birdies on his front nine and is just a shot off the lead.
The Corales Golf Course measures 7,600 yards this week, including 2 par 5's on the back nine at 620 yards give or take a few.
Round 1 is well underway in calm, sunny conditions.
Bryan Angus
David Hearn, Mike Weir and Corey Connors are this week's Canadians down in the Dominican Republic at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship, for those who aren't in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship. Hearn, who has lost his full time status this year will be joining TSN for their coverage of the Masters.
Connors who led the Valspar Championship for the first 3 rounds, has opened with 4 birdies on his front nine and is just a shot off the lead.
The Corales Golf Course measures 7,600 yards this week, including 2 par 5's on the back nine at 620 yards give or take a few.
Round 1 is well underway in calm, sunny conditions.
Bryan Angus
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
WGC 2018 Dell Technologies Match Play brackets
PGA Tour Dell Technologies Match Play brackets https://fantasybracket.pgatour.com/print
Live scoring https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/group-stage.html
Please click above for a printable brackets sheet for this week's WGC Dell Technologies Match Play which is just underway in Austin Texas at the Austin CC.
Austin by the way is under a real security alert as there have been 4 bombings in the area over the past few days, but I am just hearing the suspect has been caught, shot and killed himself
There are 64 players from the top World golf rankings, Tiger is not playing, in 16 groups of 4 who will all play each other in match play to decide who goes through to the round of 16 knockout
Dustin Johnson (defending champion) returns to action as does Phil Mickelson and Justin Thomas joining Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm.
Adam Hadwin is in group 1 with Dustin Johnson, Brent Wiesberger and Kevin Kisner who he plays today.
I'm always asked to help fill out your brackets but I will say that all 64 of these guys can beat each other on any given day, the gap between 1 and 64 in this format narrows drastically. Some guys like Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, all the Spaniards and others excel at match play, others do not.
At least over the last few years, it's not just 18 holes and out with the new round robin schedule ensuring every player gets 3 matches.
I will be posting each days results with my analysis and have provided a live scoring link above.
Bryan Angus
Live scoring https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-dell-technologies-match-play/group-stage.html
Please click above for a printable brackets sheet for this week's WGC Dell Technologies Match Play which is just underway in Austin Texas at the Austin CC.
Austin by the way is under a real security alert as there have been 4 bombings in the area over the past few days, but I am just hearing the suspect has been caught, shot and killed himself
There are 64 players from the top World golf rankings, Tiger is not playing, in 16 groups of 4 who will all play each other in match play to decide who goes through to the round of 16 knockout
Dustin Johnson (defending champion) returns to action as does Phil Mickelson and Justin Thomas joining Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm.
Adam Hadwin is in group 1 with Dustin Johnson, Brent Wiesberger and Kevin Kisner who he plays today.
I'm always asked to help fill out your brackets but I will say that all 64 of these guys can beat each other on any given day, the gap between 1 and 64 in this format narrows drastically. Some guys like Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, all the Spaniards and others excel at match play, others do not.
At least over the last few years, it's not just 18 holes and out with the new round robin schedule ensuring every player gets 3 matches.
I will be posting each days results with my analysis and have provided a live scoring link above.
Bryan Angus
Monday, March 19, 2018
Great Masters anticipation as Rory was the story at Arnold Palmer Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational final scoreboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/leaderboard.html
Well what great anticipation there is for the Masters which is exactly 18 days away.
Justin Thomas has a win and a loss in a playoff to Phil at the WGC Mexico, Tiger is back with a T2, T5 this weekend, and is the bookies favourite at 8/1 for a 5th title at Augusta, now Rory was the story on Sunday with a scintillating -8 64, 3 shot victory at Arnold Palmer Invitational, which included 5 birdies in his last 6 holes, capped off by a dramatic Tiger like curling 30 footer down the green at the 72nd, followed by the fist pumping celebration.
Those are the biggest names in the game today folks, and they are all in great form just at the right time. The supporting cast is not bad either. Justin Rose was 3rd, Henrik Stenson 4th, Ryan Moore T5, Patrick Reed T7. Then there is always world #1 Dustin Johnson, #3 Jon Rahm, #4 Jordan Spieth, #9 Brooks Keopka #10 defending champion Sergio Garcia, all of whom are playing well and most all of whom have either won or played well at Augusta.
Don't forget the course specialists, like two time winner Bubba Watson, Louis Oosthuizen and Angel Cabrera to name a few.
There are two Canadians in the field so far, Mike Weir and Adam Hadwin.
With Tiger and Phil playing as well as they have in years, the ratings will be right through the roof with many casual fans jumping on board to see how they do.
It's bound to be quite a week and I'll have it all right here.
Oh by the way, did I mention in my last post to watch out for Rory on Sunday ? Hate to say "I told you so".... but I will anyways...!!
Bryan Angus
Well what great anticipation there is for the Masters which is exactly 18 days away.
Justin Thomas has a win and a loss in a playoff to Phil at the WGC Mexico, Tiger is back with a T2, T5 this weekend, and is the bookies favourite at 8/1 for a 5th title at Augusta, now Rory was the story on Sunday with a scintillating -8 64, 3 shot victory at Arnold Palmer Invitational, which included 5 birdies in his last 6 holes, capped off by a dramatic Tiger like curling 30 footer down the green at the 72nd, followed by the fist pumping celebration.
Those are the biggest names in the game today folks, and they are all in great form just at the right time. The supporting cast is not bad either. Justin Rose was 3rd, Henrik Stenson 4th, Ryan Moore T5, Patrick Reed T7. Then there is always world #1 Dustin Johnson, #3 Jon Rahm, #4 Jordan Spieth, #9 Brooks Keopka #10 defending champion Sergio Garcia, all of whom are playing well and most all of whom have either won or played well at Augusta.
Don't forget the course specialists, like two time winner Bubba Watson, Louis Oosthuizen and Angel Cabrera to name a few.
There are two Canadians in the field so far, Mike Weir and Adam Hadwin.
With Tiger and Phil playing as well as they have in years, the ratings will be right through the roof with many casual fans jumping on board to see how they do.
It's bound to be quite a week and I'll have it all right here.
Oh by the way, did I mention in my last post to watch out for Rory on Sunday ? Hate to say "I told you so".... but I will anyways...!!
Bryan Angus
Sunday, March 18, 2018
Stenson stalls, lookout for Rory at Arnold Palmers Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/leaderboard.html
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
Bay Hill's greens are rivaling Augusta in speed as we enter play this Sunday March 18, combine that with one of the sunniest hot springs in years, killer rough and of course water everywhere and it doesn't take many strokes to make up or lose ground.
Yesterday Henrik Stenson (71) -12 and Bryson DeChambeau (72) -11 stalled which has let Rory McIlroy (67) -10 and Justin Rose (67) -9 in particular right back into this race. There are others as well, Charlie Hoffman -8, Rickie Fowler -8, Ryan Moore -9, Ben An -8
Even Tiger with his 69 -7 total is not out of it should his putter arrive at the course today as hot as the weather in Tampa. There won't be a cloud in the sky again today although the breeze from WNW will creep up to 10km/p.
Tiger is off at 1.30 with Bud Cauley and if his history here repeats itself will post a good or maybe great score, what has he got to lose, right.The last of his 8 wins here was in 2013.
Then Rory will be playing with his Ryder Cup pal Justin Rose at 2.10 in the penultimate pairing, and I must say having watched this little guy for all his years, I just have a feeling about him today. He hasn't been dominating or anything near that so far this year, but this week he has very quietly shot 69 70 67 -10 and importantly has been holing putts, which of course is his nemesis when playing poorly. Tiger is stealing all the limelight, and don't you dare think Rory in his own way is saying " ok folks let's just see"
Of course Henrik and Bryson get to see all that is happening before them and a stat that stood out for me yesterday is that since 2012, although he has never won, Stenson has shot more rounds in the 60's here than anybody, and his trusty 3 wood off the tee is better than anyone else's in today's game, which is perfect for Bay Hill. The -8 64 he posted on Thursday was the low round of the week.
So the stage is set, tune in around 4pm when the plot will begin to unravel right until the final curtain. Arnie is having one of his "ice teas" right now in anticipation.
Bryan Angus
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
Bay Hill's greens are rivaling Augusta in speed as we enter play this Sunday March 18, combine that with one of the sunniest hot springs in years, killer rough and of course water everywhere and it doesn't take many strokes to make up or lose ground.
Yesterday Henrik Stenson (71) -12 and Bryson DeChambeau (72) -11 stalled which has let Rory McIlroy (67) -10 and Justin Rose (67) -9 in particular right back into this race. There are others as well, Charlie Hoffman -8, Rickie Fowler -8, Ryan Moore -9, Ben An -8
Even Tiger with his 69 -7 total is not out of it should his putter arrive at the course today as hot as the weather in Tampa. There won't be a cloud in the sky again today although the breeze from WNW will creep up to 10km/p.
Tiger is off at 1.30 with Bud Cauley and if his history here repeats itself will post a good or maybe great score, what has he got to lose, right.The last of his 8 wins here was in 2013.
Then Rory will be playing with his Ryder Cup pal Justin Rose at 2.10 in the penultimate pairing, and I must say having watched this little guy for all his years, I just have a feeling about him today. He hasn't been dominating or anything near that so far this year, but this week he has very quietly shot 69 70 67 -10 and importantly has been holing putts, which of course is his nemesis when playing poorly. Tiger is stealing all the limelight, and don't you dare think Rory in his own way is saying " ok folks let's just see"
Of course Henrik and Bryson get to see all that is happening before them and a stat that stood out for me yesterday is that since 2012, although he has never won, Stenson has shot more rounds in the 60's here than anybody, and his trusty 3 wood off the tee is better than anyone else's in today's game, which is perfect for Bay Hill. The -8 64 he posted on Thursday was the low round of the week.
So the stage is set, tune in around 4pm when the plot will begin to unravel right until the final curtain. Arnie is having one of his "ice teas" right now in anticipation.
Bryan Angus
Saturday, March 17, 2018
Maude Aimee LeBlanc the lone Canadian left at the Bank of Hope
LPGA Tour Bank of Hope Founders Cup leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/bank-of-hope-founders-cup/leaderboard
Maude Aimee LeBlanc 69 71 -4 is the lone Canadian playing this weekend at this Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix, Arizona.
Brooke Henderson 72 72, Anne Catherine Tanguay 72 75, Alena Sharp 75 76 joined notables Lydia Ko 74 73, Nelly Korda, Mirim Lee, Cheyanne Woods, Paula Creamer missing the cut.
The leader is American Cydney Clanton 68 67 -9 a shot ahead of of a tightly bunched pack led by 4 women at -8.
Bryan AAngus
Maude Aimee LeBlanc 69 71 -4 is the lone Canadian playing this weekend at this Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix, Arizona.
Brooke Henderson 72 72, Anne Catherine Tanguay 72 75, Alena Sharp 75 76 joined notables Lydia Ko 74 73, Nelly Korda, Mirim Lee, Cheyanne Woods, Paula Creamer missing the cut.
The leader is American Cydney Clanton 68 67 -9 a shot ahead of of a tightly bunched pack led by 4 women at -8.
Bryan AAngus
DeChambeau, Stenson lead the pack at Arnold Palmer Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/leaderboard.html
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
There was a point in Henrik Stenson's early round yesterday that I thought he was going to waste the brilliant 64 he led with on Thursday. The great Swede couldn't make the birdies that came so easily the day before and standing on the 14th tee, he'd made 13 straight pars.
However with Tiger etal playing late and very aware of the scoreboard, Henrik who was playing the course backwards, rolled in 3 straight birdies at the 5th 6th and 7th to post -3 69 and a -11 total, which made him a lot tougher to catch than the -8 he was stalled on.
Meanwhile steady Bryson DeChambeau flying quietly along in the shadow of the Tiger opened with 67 and yesterday threw 6 birdies and an eagle into the mix for 66 and he will be in the final group with Stenson today at -11.
So there was the clubhouse lead for the late wave to aim at, and they did with varying degrees of success.
Tiger made bogey's at 1 and 9 out in +2 38, then came back with a pair of birdies -2 34 for his grinding E 72 and is paired today with Justin Rose at -4, 7 shots off the leaders.
Someone called Talor Gooch from Oklahoma, fresh off the Web.com Tour, (70) -9, Ben An (68) -8, Charlie Hoffman 66 -7, Rickie 71-6, Patrick Reed (70) -6, Rory and Ernie (70's) -5.
Mac Hughes made the cut 74 69 -1, Nick Taylor MC.
So moving day is well underway on another glorious Florida sunny, hot day, the kind that keeps all we snowbirds driving down the I75 every winter. The slight breeze will pick up a little in the afternoon, but nothing to speak of with Stenson and DeChambeau 2 shots clear of the pack, and if Tiger wants to keep everyone happy he will need one of the Saturday's that have led him to 8 titles here at Bay Hill.
Bryan Angus
Weather forecast https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
There was a point in Henrik Stenson's early round yesterday that I thought he was going to waste the brilliant 64 he led with on Thursday. The great Swede couldn't make the birdies that came so easily the day before and standing on the 14th tee, he'd made 13 straight pars.
However with Tiger etal playing late and very aware of the scoreboard, Henrik who was playing the course backwards, rolled in 3 straight birdies at the 5th 6th and 7th to post -3 69 and a -11 total, which made him a lot tougher to catch than the -8 he was stalled on.
Meanwhile steady Bryson DeChambeau flying quietly along in the shadow of the Tiger opened with 67 and yesterday threw 6 birdies and an eagle into the mix for 66 and he will be in the final group with Stenson today at -11.
So there was the clubhouse lead for the late wave to aim at, and they did with varying degrees of success.
Tiger made bogey's at 1 and 9 out in +2 38, then came back with a pair of birdies -2 34 for his grinding E 72 and is paired today with Justin Rose at -4, 7 shots off the leaders.
Someone called Talor Gooch from Oklahoma, fresh off the Web.com Tour, (70) -9, Ben An (68) -8, Charlie Hoffman 66 -7, Rickie 71-6, Patrick Reed (70) -6, Rory and Ernie (70's) -5.
Mac Hughes made the cut 74 69 -1, Nick Taylor MC.
So moving day is well underway on another glorious Florida sunny, hot day, the kind that keeps all we snowbirds driving down the I75 every winter. The slight breeze will pick up a little in the afternoon, but nothing to speak of with Stenson and DeChambeau 2 shots clear of the pack, and if Tiger wants to keep everyone happy he will need one of the Saturday's that have led him to 8 titles here at Bay Hill.
Bryan Angus
Friday, March 16, 2018
Maude Aimee LeBlanc 3 shots off the lead in round 2 Bank of Hope Founders Cup
LPGA Bank of Hope Founders Cup leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/bank-of-hope-founders-cup/leaderboard
Round two is under way at this Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix Arizona with South Korean Hee Young Park leading at -6.
As for the Canadians, Maude Aimee LeBlanc hasn't started yet after her -3 69 yesterday, 7 birdies, 4 bogey's in her first round of the season. Brooke Henderson and Anne Catherine Tanguay are at E, while Alena Sharp +3 75
On Thursday play was suspended at 6:50 p.m. local due to darkness. The round one scoring average last year was 69.9 compared to 72.4 this year due to the wind and particularly cool temperatures especially in the morning.
The defending champion Inbee Park shot -4 68.
Bryan Angus
Round two is under way at this Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix Arizona with South Korean Hee Young Park leading at -6.
As for the Canadians, Maude Aimee LeBlanc hasn't started yet after her -3 69 yesterday, 7 birdies, 4 bogey's in her first round of the season. Brooke Henderson and Anne Catherine Tanguay are at E, while Alena Sharp +3 75
On Thursday play was suspended at 6:50 p.m. local due to darkness. The round one scoring average last year was 69.9 compared to 72.4 this year due to the wind and particularly cool temperatures especially in the morning.
The defending champion Inbee Park shot -4 68.
Bryan Angus
Sensational Stenson's 64 leads with round 2 underway at Arnold Plamer Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/leaderboard.html
Weather forecast for Friday https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
Round 2 is well under way at this Arnold Palmer Invitational under more gorgeous Florida weather, sunny, no wind just the Bay Hill course with it's thick rough and fast greens for protection.
So to win you have to stay out of the rough and putt well. Henrik Stenson was practising putting with his coach Phil Kenyon in nearby Orlando in preparation for this week and as a result he took only 20 putts, tying his personal best for fewest putts. He made an incredible five straight birdies from 9-13 and added 2 more at 15,16 for a -8 64 for the overnight lead playing in the late wave which produced 13 more rounds in the 60s including Rory McIlroy at 69 and captain Ernie Els. Jimmy Walker, Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau were at -5 67.
When I signed off yesterday I wrote about Tiger having the clubhouse lead at -4 playing early so he is off late today at 1.08 and of course everyone will be watching to see what the Tiger show will produce this afternoon.
Henrik and the late wave yesterday are playing early today and so far the scoring is not quite as low. Stenson for example is -1 thru 14 -9 total. He started on the back nine with 13 straight pars. Marc Leishman the defending champion is -4 so far today at -6. Bryson DeChambeau -4 is currently tied with Henrik at -9.
All the live scoring is on my link above.
Nick Taylor starts the day T48th E72. Mackenzie Hughes T86th +2 74.
Bryan Angus
Weather forecast for Friday https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/weather.html
Round 2 is well under way at this Arnold Palmer Invitational under more gorgeous Florida weather, sunny, no wind just the Bay Hill course with it's thick rough and fast greens for protection.
So to win you have to stay out of the rough and putt well. Henrik Stenson was practising putting with his coach Phil Kenyon in nearby Orlando in preparation for this week and as a result he took only 20 putts, tying his personal best for fewest putts. He made an incredible five straight birdies from 9-13 and added 2 more at 15,16 for a -8 64 for the overnight lead playing in the late wave which produced 13 more rounds in the 60s including Rory McIlroy at 69 and captain Ernie Els. Jimmy Walker, Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau were at -5 67.
When I signed off yesterday I wrote about Tiger having the clubhouse lead at -4 playing early so he is off late today at 1.08 and of course everyone will be watching to see what the Tiger show will produce this afternoon.
Henrik and the late wave yesterday are playing early today and so far the scoring is not quite as low. Stenson for example is -1 thru 14 -9 total. He started on the back nine with 13 straight pars. Marc Leishman the defending champion is -4 so far today at -6. Bryson DeChambeau -4 is currently tied with Henrik at -9.
All the live scoring is on my link above.
Nick Taylor starts the day T48th E72. Mackenzie Hughes T86th +2 74.
Bryan Angus
Thursday, March 15, 2018
Tiger shoots 68 for clubhouse lead at Arnold Palmer Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/arnold-palmer-invitational-presented-by-mastercard/leaderboard.html
With 6 birdies in a round of -4 68 Tiger Woods has just completed his day tied for the clubhouse lead. Patrick Reed also shot 68, and Jimmy Walker is at -4 late in his round.
On a Bay Hill course that he has mastered with 8 wins, matching Sam Snead's record at the Greensboro Open, Tiger who began play on the back nine, only had 1 blemish when he drove out of bounds on the 3rd leading to a double bogey 6.
The coup de grace came on the par 3 7th when he thrilled the huge gallery with a 70 footer, right across the green and right into the cup. I may add the putt would have gone 10' past if it hadn't hit the hole.
It was that kind of round for the man who has been installed as the 8/1 favourite to win his 5th Masters in a months time.
The rough is brutal and the perfect greens are fast so far today. The weather is perfect, sunny, warm and calm. Driver isn't a must off the tee, accuracy is, although the big bombers can pick their line to gain an advantage.
Canadian scores: Nick Taylor has opened E 72, Mac Hughes +2 74
The marquee group this afternoon is Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and defending champion Marc Leishman.
Bryan Angus
With 6 birdies in a round of -4 68 Tiger Woods has just completed his day tied for the clubhouse lead. Patrick Reed also shot 68, and Jimmy Walker is at -4 late in his round.
On a Bay Hill course that he has mastered with 8 wins, matching Sam Snead's record at the Greensboro Open, Tiger who began play on the back nine, only had 1 blemish when he drove out of bounds on the 3rd leading to a double bogey 6.
The coup de grace came on the par 3 7th when he thrilled the huge gallery with a 70 footer, right across the green and right into the cup. I may add the putt would have gone 10' past if it hadn't hit the hole.
It was that kind of round for the man who has been installed as the 8/1 favourite to win his 5th Masters in a months time.
The rough is brutal and the perfect greens are fast so far today. The weather is perfect, sunny, warm and calm. Driver isn't a must off the tee, accuracy is, although the big bombers can pick their line to gain an advantage.
Canadian scores: Nick Taylor has opened E 72, Mac Hughes +2 74
The marquee group this afternoon is Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and defending champion Marc Leishman.
Bryan Angus
Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Brooke Henderson leads Canadians this week at Bank of Hope Founders Cup
LPGA Tour Bank of Hope Founders Cup tee times http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/bank-of-hope-founders-cup/leaderboard
The LPGA returns stateside this week for the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix after their sojourn in the Far East.
Brooke Henderson playing at 12.45 with Lydia Ko and Cristie Kerr will lead the Canadian contingent of Maude Aimee LeBlanc, Alena Sharp and Anne Catherine Tanguay when they tee it up on Thursday.
Incidentally the development tour for the LPGA, the Symetra Tour begins their season this week at the Florida's Natural Charity Classic in Winter Haven where you will find Brittany Marchand, Samantha Richdale, Jennifer Ha, Augusta James, Liz Tong and Lorie Kane.
Bryan Angus
The LPGA returns stateside this week for the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix after their sojourn in the Far East.
Brooke Henderson playing at 12.45 with Lydia Ko and Cristie Kerr will lead the Canadian contingent of Maude Aimee LeBlanc, Alena Sharp and Anne Catherine Tanguay when they tee it up on Thursday.
Incidentally the development tour for the LPGA, the Symetra Tour begins their season this week at the Florida's Natural Charity Classic in Winter Haven where you will find Brittany Marchand, Samantha Richdale, Jennifer Ha, Augusta James, Liz Tong and Lorie Kane.
Bryan Angus
Two Canadians join Tiger etal at Arnold Palmer Invitational
PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill tee times https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard.html
Tiger has been saying it for a while now, how much he misses competing every time he tees it up, that excitement just can't be replaced hitting balls and playing friendlies at his mansion in Jupiter.
Well he's certainly re charging the batteries quickly after his T2 at the Valspar Championship last week in front of record pumped up galleries and of course a world wide audience on TV, then the announcement yesterday of his selection to captain the USA Presidents Cup squad in 2019, and now at Arnie's Invitational this week where he has won on the Bay Hill course 8 times.
He's off the 10th at 8.23 with Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama. Defending champion Marc Leishman, Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler are the featured afternoon pairing at 1.08pm.
There isn't a seat left in the press tent, in fact they could have added another, and all eyes will be on his every step, I'm sure the Golf Channel would have a camera watching him sleep all night if they could.
There are 2 Canadians in the field, Mac Hughes (8.23) and Nick Taylor (7.35am) and there would be more but Arnie was not shy about letting players he invited but didn't show up know about it, so the player attendance at this one, and Jack's Memorial is always high.
I note there is no Jordan Spieth or Justin Thomas..
Bryan Angus
Tiger has been saying it for a while now, how much he misses competing every time he tees it up, that excitement just can't be replaced hitting balls and playing friendlies at his mansion in Jupiter.
Well he's certainly re charging the batteries quickly after his T2 at the Valspar Championship last week in front of record pumped up galleries and of course a world wide audience on TV, then the announcement yesterday of his selection to captain the USA Presidents Cup squad in 2019, and now at Arnie's Invitational this week where he has won on the Bay Hill course 8 times.
He's off the 10th at 8.23 with Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama. Defending champion Marc Leishman, Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler are the featured afternoon pairing at 1.08pm.
There isn't a seat left in the press tent, in fact they could have added another, and all eyes will be on his every step, I'm sure the Golf Channel would have a camera watching him sleep all night if they could.
There are 2 Canadians in the field, Mac Hughes (8.23) and Nick Taylor (7.35am) and there would be more but Arnie was not shy about letting players he invited but didn't show up know about it, so the player attendance at this one, and Jack's Memorial is always high.
I note there is no Jordan Spieth or Justin Thomas..
Bryan Angus
The International team has to start winning to save the Presidents Cup
Presidents Cup https://www.presidentscup.com/
The Presidents Cup is at Royal Melbourne in December of 2019 and Ernie Els will be replacing Nick Price as captain of the International Team and Tiger Woods has been named to replace Steve Stricker captain of Team USA.
Certainly these two guys get everyone's attention when they have most anything to say which will be great for this event and ensures that whomever they ask to make the trek down under will be on board. Tiger hasn't ruled out being a playing captain.
However as I have been saying for far too long, this International Team had better start winning or the Presidents Cup will cease to exist. They only have 1 win and 1 draw win in 11 events. I suggested after last years drubbing in New Jersey that players on the USA Ryder Cup team would not be allowed on the Presidents Cup squad the next year.
That of course would not be a popular decision all around, however remember the Ryder Cup would not be the mega monster it is now, without Jack Nicklaus suggesting the Great Britain & Ireland squad be changed to Team Europe to include rising star Seve Ballesteros back in 1979, to stop the bi-annual thrashing they foisted on the hopelessly out matched British guys.
Tiger and Ernie provided the most exciting finale in 2003 in South Africa when the teams were tied at 17-17 and Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus selected them to decide the match in a playoff which went 3 dramatic holes until darkness fell and Jack and Gary agreed to call it a draw with the two teams sharing the Cup.
I haven't forgot Mike Weir beating Tiger Woods at Royal Montreal in 2007, although USA won that one by 19 1/2 - 14 1/2.
Els has competed in the Presidents Cup eight times (1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013), tied for most by an International Team member. Woods, also an eight-time U.S. Presidents Cup Team member (1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013) and is the only player to clinch the Cup three times. Both Woods and Els served as captain’s assistants for their respective teams in 2017
For 2019 the top eight players for the International and U.S. Team standings will officially qualify following the completion of the 2019 TOUR Championship. Captains will later select four captains’ picks (at date to be determined) in the weeks to follow.
Bryan Angus
(notes from europeantour.com)
The Presidents Cup is at Royal Melbourne in December of 2019 and Ernie Els will be replacing Nick Price as captain of the International Team and Tiger Woods has been named to replace Steve Stricker captain of Team USA.
Certainly these two guys get everyone's attention when they have most anything to say which will be great for this event and ensures that whomever they ask to make the trek down under will be on board. Tiger hasn't ruled out being a playing captain.
However as I have been saying for far too long, this International Team had better start winning or the Presidents Cup will cease to exist. They only have 1 win and 1 draw win in 11 events. I suggested after last years drubbing in New Jersey that players on the USA Ryder Cup team would not be allowed on the Presidents Cup squad the next year.
That of course would not be a popular decision all around, however remember the Ryder Cup would not be the mega monster it is now, without Jack Nicklaus suggesting the Great Britain & Ireland squad be changed to Team Europe to include rising star Seve Ballesteros back in 1979, to stop the bi-annual thrashing they foisted on the hopelessly out matched British guys.
Tiger and Ernie provided the most exciting finale in 2003 in South Africa when the teams were tied at 17-17 and Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus selected them to decide the match in a playoff which went 3 dramatic holes until darkness fell and Jack and Gary agreed to call it a draw with the two teams sharing the Cup.
I haven't forgot Mike Weir beating Tiger Woods at Royal Montreal in 2007, although USA won that one by 19 1/2 - 14 1/2.
Els has competed in the Presidents Cup eight times (1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013), tied for most by an International Team member. Woods, also an eight-time U.S. Presidents Cup Team member (1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013) and is the only player to clinch the Cup three times. Both Woods and Els served as captain’s assistants for their respective teams in 2017
For 2019 the top eight players for the International and U.S. Team standings will officially qualify following the completion of the 2019 TOUR Championship. Captains will later select four captains’ picks (at date to be determined) in the weeks to follow.
Bryan Angus
(notes from europeantour.com)
Monday, March 12, 2018
Four new modified rules of golf released by the R&A
The USGA and The R&A have unveiled the new Rules of Golf, to be implemented on 1 January 2019.
While the majority of proposed Rules remain intact in the final version, several important changes to the initial proposals and further clarification of many Rules were incorporated.
Dropping procedure: When taking relief (from an abnormal course condition or penalty area, for example), golfers will now drop from knee height. This will ensure consistency and simplicity in the dropping process while also preserving the randomness of the drop. (Key change: the proposed Rules released in 2017 suggested dropping from any height).
Measuring in taking relief: The golfer’s relief area will be measured by using the longest club in their bag (other than a putter) to measure one club-length or two club-lengths, depending on the situation, making for a consistent process for golfers to establish their relief area. (Key change: the proposed Rules released in 2017 suggested a 20-inch or 80-inch standard measurement).
Removing the penalty for a double hit: The penalty stroke for accidentally striking the ball more than once in the course of a stroke has been removed. Golfers will simply count the one stroke they made to strike the ball. (Key change: the proposed Rules released in 2017 included the existing one-stroke penalty).
Balls Lost or Out of Bounds: Alternative to Stroke and Distance: A new Local Rule will now be available in January 2019, permitting committees to allow golfers the option to drop the ball in the vicinity of where the ball is lost or out of bounds (including the nearest fairway area), under a two-stroke penalty. This Local Rule addresses the concerns raised at the club level about the negative impact on pace of play when a player is required to go back under stroke and distance. The Local Rule is not intended for higher levels of play, such as professional or elite level competitions. (Key change: this is a new addition to support pace of play)
While the majority of proposed Rules remain intact in the final version, several important changes to the initial proposals and further clarification of many Rules were incorporated.
Dropping procedure: When taking relief (from an abnormal course condition or penalty area, for example), golfers will now drop from knee height. This will ensure consistency and simplicity in the dropping process while also preserving the randomness of the drop. (Key change: the proposed Rules released in 2017 suggested dropping from any height).
Corey Connors posts a winning week at Valspar Championship..
PGA Tour Valspar Championship final scoreboard
https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/valspar-championship/leaderboard.html
Paul Casey closed with a -6 65 and won the Valspar Championship -10 274, as Tiger Woods came up just short of forcing a playoff, most of you know that by now. Tiger supplied one last dramatic twist to his monster week with a 45 foot birdie putt across the 17th green, before coming up short on the 18th. Patrick Reed was also right in contention until he came up short with his approach on the same hole.
Just a note, Tiger will play at Bay Hill next week at Arnie's tournament, which he has won a record 8 times.
Good guy Casey hadn't won on the PGA Tour since 2009, his win moves him to #12 in the world and improves his chances of being selected to the Ryder Cup team in France this fall.
Like most of us this side of the border, I took great pride in the week Corey Connors posted, and he will take all kinds of positives with his stellar performance despite slipping to a T16 77 -3 total,, after he made bogey on 2 of his first 3 holes and sealing his fate with a double on the par 3 13th.
To lead such a strong field, including all the hysteria that accompanies Tiger, for 3 rounds must fill him with confidence. He showed everyone how much moxy he has, conducting himself with poise and a quiet confidence. This week reinforces the knowledge that he can play with these guys. He will learn from the 77, and build on it the next time he is in position to win.
He is just a rookie remember, brand new to this PGA Tour so has all kinds of lessons to learn in his first full season, new courses and how to play them, where to stay, where to eat, how to get there, who the officials are, on and on.
Adam Hadwin who finished with 68 and a T12 -4 total, talked this week about how his win here last year gave him that two year exemption that more than anything else let him pick and choose his own schedule.
Corey will move forward now with a better chance of winning than he did before the week started. That's why this was a winning week for the young man from Listowel.
Bryan Angus
https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/valspar-championship/leaderboard.html
Paul Casey closed with a -6 65 and won the Valspar Championship -10 274, as Tiger Woods came up just short of forcing a playoff, most of you know that by now. Tiger supplied one last dramatic twist to his monster week with a 45 foot birdie putt across the 17th green, before coming up short on the 18th. Patrick Reed was also right in contention until he came up short with his approach on the same hole.
Just a note, Tiger will play at Bay Hill next week at Arnie's tournament, which he has won a record 8 times.
Good guy Casey hadn't won on the PGA Tour since 2009, his win moves him to #12 in the world and improves his chances of being selected to the Ryder Cup team in France this fall.
Like most of us this side of the border, I took great pride in the week Corey Connors posted, and he will take all kinds of positives with his stellar performance despite slipping to a T16 77 -3 total,, after he made bogey on 2 of his first 3 holes and sealing his fate with a double on the par 3 13th.
To lead such a strong field, including all the hysteria that accompanies Tiger, for 3 rounds must fill him with confidence. He showed everyone how much moxy he has, conducting himself with poise and a quiet confidence. This week reinforces the knowledge that he can play with these guys. He will learn from the 77, and build on it the next time he is in position to win.
He is just a rookie remember, brand new to this PGA Tour so has all kinds of lessons to learn in his first full season, new courses and how to play them, where to stay, where to eat, how to get there, who the officials are, on and on.
Adam Hadwin who finished with 68 and a T12 -4 total, talked this week about how his win here last year gave him that two year exemption that more than anything else let him pick and choose his own schedule.
Corey will move forward now with a better chance of winning than he did before the week started. That's why this was a winning week for the young man from Listowel.
Bryan Angus
Sunday, March 11, 2018
It's David vs Goliaths as Corey Connors leads Tiger etal at Valspar Championship
PGA Tour Valspar Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/valspar-championship/leaderboard.html
I will take for granted if I may that you are familiar with the biblical story about how little David with his slingshot slew mighty Goliath and the Philistines, the message being all about good vs evil, the little guy vs the big bully, succeeding despite all odds.... all great stuff !
It's been happening recently in golf and today is another example.
Last week in Mexico City it was a slightly built Indian 21 year old Shubhankar Sharma who led the WGC Mexico Championship for 3 rounds, but on Sunday slipped away under the pressure from the Goliaths behind him, this time in the person's of Phil Mickelson and Justin Thomas, with Lefty winning.
This week it's relatively unknown Canadian playing only his 21st PGA tour event, ranked #608, Corey Connors from a little town west of Toronto called Listowel who has shot 67 69 68 -9 to lead those Goliath's this time, Tiger Woods 70 69 66 -8 and Brandt Snedeker 70 68 67 -8 and Justin Rose 70 69 66 -8.
...and there are lots of others like Patrick Reed at -6, Ryan Palmer, Adam Scott, Jimmy Walker all lurking.
Conners, who ran off 6 birdies, and saved par from the bunker on the 17th for -3 68, will play with Justin Rose today in the last group at 2pm and it will be Tiger and Snedeker again, right in front of them.
Adam Hadwin the defending champion is at -1 as play gets under way today.
It's hot in Tampa today and the breeze will be a factor, up to 16km/h this afternoon.
As I said nobody out there except for Corey Connors himself, expects him to win. However he has dreamt about this all his life and this, as it was for his friend Adam Hadwin last year, would be a life changing round of golf.
Then there is the story of David and Goliath..
Bryan Angus
I will take for granted if I may that you are familiar with the biblical story about how little David with his slingshot slew mighty Goliath and the Philistines, the message being all about good vs evil, the little guy vs the big bully, succeeding despite all odds.... all great stuff !
It's been happening recently in golf and today is another example.
Last week in Mexico City it was a slightly built Indian 21 year old Shubhankar Sharma who led the WGC Mexico Championship for 3 rounds, but on Sunday slipped away under the pressure from the Goliaths behind him, this time in the person's of Phil Mickelson and Justin Thomas, with Lefty winning.
This week it's relatively unknown Canadian playing only his 21st PGA tour event, ranked #608, Corey Connors from a little town west of Toronto called Listowel who has shot 67 69 68 -9 to lead those Goliath's this time, Tiger Woods 70 69 66 -8 and Brandt Snedeker 70 68 67 -8 and Justin Rose 70 69 66 -8.
...and there are lots of others like Patrick Reed at -6, Ryan Palmer, Adam Scott, Jimmy Walker all lurking.
Conners, who ran off 6 birdies, and saved par from the bunker on the 17th for -3 68, will play with Justin Rose today in the last group at 2pm and it will be Tiger and Snedeker again, right in front of them.
Adam Hadwin the defending champion is at -1 as play gets under way today.
It's hot in Tampa today and the breeze will be a factor, up to 16km/h this afternoon.
As I said nobody out there except for Corey Connors himself, expects him to win. However he has dreamt about this all his life and this, as it was for his friend Adam Hadwin last year, would be a life changing round of golf.
Then there is the story of David and Goliath..
Bryan Angus
Matt Wallace beats "Beef" Johnston to win Hero Indian Open
Home favourite Shubhankar Sharma couldn't pull off a win for his New Delhi gallery carding a most unusual 3 double bogey's on his way to T7 75 however such was not the case for England's Matt Wallace (68) and Andrew "Beef" Johnston (66) who tied at -11 forcing a playoff
Wallace crushed a drive on the par 5 18th while Johnston laid back. Wallace played the shot of his life from 240 yards to within 8 feet and 2 putts later after Johnston's birdie try lipped out, he became the 2018 Hero Indian Open champion, his 2nd European tour victory.
Wallace crushed a drive on the par 5 18th while Johnston laid back. Wallace played the shot of his life from 240 yards to within 8 feet and 2 putts later after Johnston's birdie try lipped out, he became the 2018 Hero Indian Open champion, his 2nd European tour victory.
"I hit some really good shots and that play-off: I pumped it down there on the last and it went a long way and then a four iron went even further than I thought it would so I was jacked up a bit. To hit two shots like that is exactly why I play the game."
Wallace was playing on the Alps Tour in 2016 but six wins that season, including five in a row got him onto the Challenge Tour and he continues his meteoric rise following the victory in Portugal in just his fourth European Tour event.
The tour takes a bit of a hiatus with the WGC Dell Match Play in Austin next March 21, then the Masters April 5.
Bryan Angus
(notes europeantour.com)
Saturday, March 10, 2018
Quietly confident Corey Connors leads the Valspar Championship
PGA Tour Valspar Open leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/valspar-championship/leaderboard.html
Today Tiger Woods (68) and Brandt Snedeker (68) will be in the penultimate group at -4, with the usual huge Tiger throng of thousands lining the fairways and greens of this Valspar Championship rushing and jostling for positions to get a glimpse of the man who is writing a sensational comeback, with the Masters and Phil Mickelson etal just a month away.
However the man they will be chasing just happens to be our quietly confident Canadian, Corey Connors, unflustered by all the commotion with rounds of 67 69 -6, he leads by 2 shots going into this weekend.
He played the course backwards starting on #10 and made the turn after 3 birdies 33, and said this afterwards " I got off to a nice start, felt like I was probably in the lead, but so what?. Lots of holes still to play, I really wasn't worried about what the other guys were doing "
If it wasn't for a 3 putt double on the 4th he'd be leading by more, however he really wasn't fazed. "Something that I think I've always been good at getting over pretty quickly"
He will play today with another quiet guy, England's Paul Casey (68) in the final group and it's the first time he has held the 36-hole lead on the PGA tour.
" The nice thing is that there are a ton of Canadians at this resort, and I'm feeling their love. I'm happy with everything in my game. The biggest thing that's helped me is having the ball in play and giving myself a chance to attack some of the pins whenever possible which is a big key on this golf course."
Defending champion Adam Hadwin is also going along nicely, 71 70 -1 T21 and he'll be paired with Branden Grace today at 12.15.
Mac Hughes, Ben Silverman and Nick Taylor all MC as did Rory McIlroy and Henrik Stenson
With Tiger, Snedeker, Palmer etal right on his heels nobody expects this kid from Listowel to win this week, nobody but Corey Connors who may not win, but wouldn't surprise himself if he did !!
Bryan Angus
Today Tiger Woods (68) and Brandt Snedeker (68) will be in the penultimate group at -4, with the usual huge Tiger throng of thousands lining the fairways and greens of this Valspar Championship rushing and jostling for positions to get a glimpse of the man who is writing a sensational comeback, with the Masters and Phil Mickelson etal just a month away.
However the man they will be chasing just happens to be our quietly confident Canadian, Corey Connors, unflustered by all the commotion with rounds of 67 69 -6, he leads by 2 shots going into this weekend.
He played the course backwards starting on #10 and made the turn after 3 birdies 33, and said this afterwards " I got off to a nice start, felt like I was probably in the lead, but so what?. Lots of holes still to play, I really wasn't worried about what the other guys were doing "
If it wasn't for a 3 putt double on the 4th he'd be leading by more, however he really wasn't fazed. "Something that I think I've always been good at getting over pretty quickly"
He will play today with another quiet guy, England's Paul Casey (68) in the final group and it's the first time he has held the 36-hole lead on the PGA tour.
" The nice thing is that there are a ton of Canadians at this resort, and I'm feeling their love. I'm happy with everything in my game. The biggest thing that's helped me is having the ball in play and giving myself a chance to attack some of the pins whenever possible which is a big key on this golf course."
Defending champion Adam Hadwin is also going along nicely, 71 70 -1 T21 and he'll be paired with Branden Grace today at 12.15.
Mac Hughes, Ben Silverman and Nick Taylor all MC as did Rory McIlroy and Henrik Stenson
With Tiger, Snedeker, Palmer etal right on his heels nobody expects this kid from Listowel to win this week, nobody but Corey Connors who may not win, but wouldn't surprise himself if he did !!
Bryan Angus
Shubhankar Sharma leads Hero Indian Open
European Tour Hero Indian Open leaderboard http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2018/tournamentid=2018022/leaderboard/index.html#/leaderboard
He's at it again! 21 year old Indian sensation Shubhankar Sharma's fabulous 2018 season continues after an E 72 he sits atop the leaderboard in New Delhi at the Hero Indian Open along with England's Matt Wallace (70) at -7 with a round to play.
He's at it again! 21 year old Indian sensation Shubhankar Sharma's fabulous 2018 season continues after an E 72 he sits atop the leaderboard in New Delhi at the Hero Indian Open along with England's Matt Wallace (70) at -7 with a round to play.
On a difficult day for scoring with swirling winds and difficult pins, Emiliano Grillo entered round three four shots ahead but he ended it two behind after 4 bogey's and 2 doubles +6 78 that was indicative of the scoring on a day when just nine players broke par.
Sharma will be cheered on by a New Delhi crowd urging him to win for the 3rd time this year. Remember last week at the WGC Mexico Championship he led for 3 rounds before slipping up in the fourth as he was caught and passed by eventual winner Phil Mickelson.
He made headlines all across the USA and around the world when he was offered a place in this year's Masters. He leads the Race to Dubai and had this to say in his post round interview.
" I’m just looking forward to playing out there again. I just want to have fun. It’s the second week in the row I’m in the leading group. I’m going to draw from my experiences last week. I know it’s going to be a battle out there tomorrow and I’ll be ready for it. I kept telling my caddie that this is our home course, you can’t overpower this course. So, I told myself, just hang in there. I will hit a few bad shots and I understand that it’s all part of the game. You just have to stay patient."
Bryan Angus
(notes from europeantour.com)
Bryan Angus
(notes from europeantour.com)
Friday, March 9, 2018
India's Shubhankar Sharma shoots record 64, Grillo leads Hero Open
European Tour Hero Indian Open leaderboard http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2018/tournamentid=2018022/leaderboard/index.html#/leaderboard
Emiliano Grillo as I mentioned yesterday is playing this Hero Indian Open on a sponsors invite this week and is making the very most of his opportunity, posting rounds of -7 65 and -4 68 to get to -11 under with a 4 shot lead, which may have been more if it weren't for Indian sensation Shubhankar Sharma.
Emiliano Grillo as I mentioned yesterday is playing this Hero Indian Open on a sponsors invite this week and is making the very most of his opportunity, posting rounds of -7 65 and -4 68 to get to -11 under with a 4 shot lead, which may have been more if it weren't for Indian sensation Shubhankar Sharma.
Maybe it was jet lag but Sharma, who represents DLF Golf and Country Club struggled to +5 on his first nine holes on Thursday. He fought back and posted +1 73.
Today he was -2 34 on his front nine then the form he displayed for 3 rounds to lead the WGC Mexico came flowing back and he came home in -6 30 to post a new course record of 64 and emerge as the nearest challenger to Grillo at -7.
Today he was -2 34 on his front nine then the form he displayed for 3 rounds to lead the WGC Mexico came flowing back and he came home in -6 30 to post a new course record of 64 and emerge as the nearest challenger to Grillo at -7.
"Today’s round will definitely rank up there as one of my most significant achievements, especially when it is played at this course. This is a tough course and it is not easy to go low here. I’m very happy with the way I played. I've shot a few low numbers in my career and this one is right in my top five.
If you told me I would be seven under par going into the weekend after being five over par on my opening nine holes yesterday, I would just have laughed. To be able to bounce back is really important, I knew I was playing well and I had to push myself a little."
If you told me I would be seven under par going into the weekend after being five over par on my opening nine holes yesterday, I would just have laughed. To be able to bounce back is really important, I knew I was playing well and I had to push myself a little."
Spaniard Pablo Larrazábal and England's Andrew Johnston were then at -6 after rounds of 71 and 66 respectively.
Bryan Angus
(notes from europeanntour.com)
Canadian Connors leading and Canadian Hadwin defending the Valspar Championship
PGA Tour Valspar Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/valspar-championship/leaderboard.html
The wind was swirling all around the tight Copperhead course at Innisbrook making scoring very difficult. As a result only 27 players broke par (71), the average score was 72.86 at this 2018 Valspar Championship.
Corey Connors shot a 71 in Monday qualifying and was waiting to see if that was good enough when his cell phone rang and he was told he was in as an alternative.
The recent graduate from the Canadian National Team program promptly went out and shot the round of the day -4 67, didn't make a bogey until his last hole, on a day when bogey's were the norm and par was your friend.
He had this to say about the National Team program. "They’re helping out some younger guys trying to get some more guys out on the PGA TOUR. That program has been amazing in the development and given me so many opportunities to train and get better. The resources that they have are awesome"
He leads by a shot going into today's play over Nick Watney, Whee Kim and Kelly Kraft. Only three other players scored under 70.
As always Tiger got all the attention, heck the Golf Channel shamelessly showed him practising putting for 30 minutes.
He scrambled well, shot -1 70 which included 5 birdies and had this to say about the course and the conditions. "This is a tough golf course. Not too often in Florida do you find elevation. Great driving golf course. I asked Henrik, ‘What do you around this golf course when there’s no wind here?’ He said it’s still a hell of a test. We can all see that.”
So we have a Canadian leading and a Canadian defending, which is a pretty damn good lead story even with a certain Mr. Woods playing.
Adam Hadwin shot E 71. Mackenzie Hughes and Nick Taylor shot +2 73’s and Ben Silverman who isn't in top form yet had a +4 75.
Scoring soared in the wind, Jordan Spieth the 9-1 favourite and the 2015 champion shot a +5 76. Rory McIlroy +3 74 as did Henrik Stenson.
The weather forecast is for a cool (by Florida standards) relatively calm sunny day (10km/h at the most) so I expect scoring to improve considerably. Tough windy weather always sorts the players out with the best finding a way to cope. Calm conditions let everyone in, so you'll see a lot more red on the scoreboard come this evening.
Bryan Angus
The wind was swirling all around the tight Copperhead course at Innisbrook making scoring very difficult. As a result only 27 players broke par (71), the average score was 72.86 at this 2018 Valspar Championship.
Corey Connors shot a 71 in Monday qualifying and was waiting to see if that was good enough when his cell phone rang and he was told he was in as an alternative.
The recent graduate from the Canadian National Team program promptly went out and shot the round of the day -4 67, didn't make a bogey until his last hole, on a day when bogey's were the norm and par was your friend.
He had this to say about the National Team program. "They’re helping out some younger guys trying to get some more guys out on the PGA TOUR. That program has been amazing in the development and given me so many opportunities to train and get better. The resources that they have are awesome"
He leads by a shot going into today's play over Nick Watney, Whee Kim and Kelly Kraft. Only three other players scored under 70.
As always Tiger got all the attention, heck the Golf Channel shamelessly showed him practising putting for 30 minutes.
He scrambled well, shot -1 70 which included 5 birdies and had this to say about the course and the conditions. "This is a tough golf course. Not too often in Florida do you find elevation. Great driving golf course. I asked Henrik, ‘What do you around this golf course when there’s no wind here?’ He said it’s still a hell of a test. We can all see that.”
So we have a Canadian leading and a Canadian defending, which is a pretty damn good lead story even with a certain Mr. Woods playing.
Adam Hadwin shot E 71. Mackenzie Hughes and Nick Taylor shot +2 73’s and Ben Silverman who isn't in top form yet had a +4 75.
Scoring soared in the wind, Jordan Spieth the 9-1 favourite and the 2015 champion shot a +5 76. Rory McIlroy +3 74 as did Henrik Stenson.
The weather forecast is for a cool (by Florida standards) relatively calm sunny day (10km/h at the most) so I expect scoring to improve considerably. Tough windy weather always sorts the players out with the best finding a way to cope. Calm conditions let everyone in, so you'll see a lot more red on the scoreboard come this evening.
Bryan Angus
Thursday, March 8, 2018
When golf pros bet on their tournaments.. Jordan Spieth the bookies favourite at Valspar
Many of you may not know it but in the UK and other countries around the world it was quite legal for players, caddies as well as the public to place a bet at bookmakers tents right on the golf course.
In fact in the old days when prize money was a pittance, players would bet on themselves, or horror of horrors nowadays, on someone else.
In 1950 the great South African Bobby Locke won his 2nd of four Open's at Troon. The prize fund was 1500 pounds, with Bobby collecting 300 pounds for his efforts.
In fact Sam Snead refused to play the Open in his heyday because it cost him more to sail over from the US and stay than he would have received if he won !!
So professional players could recoup their expenditure with a well placed wager.
All that has changed of course, in fact in 2011 the European Tour banned the practice outright. Now most every pro on tour is a millionaire with very generous sponsorship deals, the need to supplement their income long gone.
For those of us who like to have a flutter here and there, here are some odds for this weeks Valspar Championship.
Adam Hadwin (defending champion) 29-1
Jordan Spieth 9-1
Rory McIlroy 15-1
Sergio Garcia 17-1
Justin Rose 19-1
Henrik Stenson 21-1
Tiger Woods 26-1
Adam Scott 46-1
Louis Oosthuizen 46-1
Jason Dufner 61-1
Zach Johnson 71-1
Bryan Angus
In fact in the old days when prize money was a pittance, players would bet on themselves, or horror of horrors nowadays, on someone else.
In 1950 the great South African Bobby Locke won his 2nd of four Open's at Troon. The prize fund was 1500 pounds, with Bobby collecting 300 pounds for his efforts.
In fact Sam Snead refused to play the Open in his heyday because it cost him more to sail over from the US and stay than he would have received if he won !!
So professional players could recoup their expenditure with a well placed wager.
All that has changed of course, in fact in 2011 the European Tour banned the practice outright. Now most every pro on tour is a millionaire with very generous sponsorship deals, the need to supplement their income long gone.
For those of us who like to have a flutter here and there, here are some odds for this weeks Valspar Championship.
Adam Hadwin (defending champion) 29-1
Jordan Spieth 9-1
Rory McIlroy 15-1
Sergio Garcia 17-1
Justin Rose 19-1
Henrik Stenson 21-1
Tiger Woods 26-1
Adam Scott 46-1
Louis Oosthuizen 46-1
Jason Dufner 61-1
Zach Johnson 71-1
Bryan Angus
Argentina's Grillo ties course record, leads Indian Hero Open
European Tour Hero Indian Open leaderboard http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2018/tournamentid=2018022/leaderboard/index.html#/leaderboard
Emiliano Grillo carded a course-record equalling -7 65 before darkness fell to set the target on day one of the Hero Indian Open.
The Argentinian is an invite this week having only played two European Tour events outside of the Majors and World Golf Championships since 2015 and was making the best of his opportunity at DLF Golf and Country Club, as he leads by two shots from Spaniard Pablo Larrazábal, Italian Matteo Manassero and American Paul Peterson who all shot -5 67.
The Argentinian is an invite this week having only played two European Tour events outside of the Majors and World Golf Championships since 2015 and was making the best of his opportunity at DLF Golf and Country Club, as he leads by two shots from Spaniard Pablo Larrazábal, Italian Matteo Manassero and American Paul Peterson who all shot -5 67.
Frenchman Adrien Saddier was also -5 with one hole to complete, alongside South Africa's Keith Horne who was -5 through 16.
Grillo had this to say after his round. "You have no idea how difficult the course is,I had to play almost perfect golf to shoot a seven under. I think anywhere else it would have been close to a 59 or something. It was definitely a magnificent round of golf."
To his point the reason play was not completed is that the course is so difficult there were more rulings required than usual which backed up the course.
Grillo had this to say after his round. "You have no idea how difficult the course is,I had to play almost perfect golf to shoot a seven under. I think anywhere else it would have been close to a 59 or something. It was definitely a magnificent round of golf."
To his point the reason play was not completed is that the course is so difficult there were more rulings required than usual which backed up the course.
Larrazabal was still sound asleep in his hotel room 40 minutes before his tee time, as his new Iphone had reverted to Spanish time overnight. It was European Tour secretary Dorothy who phoned him and woke him up, readied a courtesy car and got him to the 10th tee 10 minutes before he would have been DQ, a remarkable feat considering the insanity that is New Delhi traffic.
New Delhi is 13 1/2 hours ahead of EST. Round 1 resumes at 7am local tomorrow.
Bryan Angus
(europeantour.com)
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
India's Shubhankar Sharma gets a special invite to the Masters.
European Tour Hero Indian Open tee times http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2018/tournamentid=2018022/leaderboard/index.html?showLeaderboard=Y#/leaderboard
This week's stop on the European Tour is in New Delhi at the Hero Indian Open which may feel like a fifth Major Championship to Shubhankar Sharma but the rising star is already targeting victory in one of golf's big four.
The Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex leader has enjoyed a mereoric rise of late, winning the Joburg Open to earn himself a place at the Open Championship and following that up with a win at the Maybank Championship.
A top ten on debut at last week's WGC-Mexico Championship after holding the 54-hole lead saw his stock rise even further, so much so he has been handed a special invitation to the Masters Tournament in April.
With two wins under his belt and two Majors on his calendar, the 21 year old has every reason to feel confident and he insists he will not just be making up the numbers on the biggest stage.
"I'm very happy. I got the call yesterday after I landed," he said. "I was very tough on myself on the flight, I wasn't too happy with the way I finished the tournament but when I got the call all the pain washed away and I was very happy that I made it to the Masters. It's every golfer's dream to get to the Masters and I'm very happy.
With two wins under his belt and two Majors on his calendar, the 21 year old has every reason to feel confident and he insists he will not just be making up the numbers on the biggest stage.
"I'm very happy. I got the call yesterday after I landed," he said. "I was very tough on myself on the flight, I wasn't too happy with the way I finished the tournament but when I got the call all the pain washed away and I was very happy that I made it to the Masters. It's every golfer's dream to get to the Masters and I'm very happy.
The Open Championship is my favourite Major but you can't compare a Major to another Major. I remember all the nights that I woke up and saw the Masters and the US Open and PGA. The Masters has the same feel to it as Wimbledon for tennis.
It's a dream come true that I'm into Majors and hopefully I'll get into the US Open and the PGA as well. In golf, anything is possible. Now that I've won on a high stage and I've competed with the best in the world at the WGC, I feel like if I play my best for four days it will be good enough to contend anywhere in the world. "
Bryan Angus
(europeantour.com)
It's a dream come true that I'm into Majors and hopefully I'll get into the US Open and the PGA as well. In golf, anything is possible. Now that I've won on a high stage and I've competed with the best in the world at the WGC, I feel like if I play my best for four days it will be good enough to contend anywhere in the world. "
Bryan Angus
(europeantour.com)
Adam Hadwin in good shape to defend his title at Valspar Championship
PGA Tour Valspar Championship tee times https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/valspar-championship/tee-times.html
Adam Hadwin's life changed a year ago this week when he won his first PGA Tour event at the Valspar Championship at this famous Florida resort, Innisbrook.
Besides a million dollar payday he went on to play in his first Masters, got married, bought a house, played in the Presidents Cup, just to name a few.
You'll remember he nearly won his first tourney a few weeks earlier after shooting that "59" at the old Bob Hope (Career Builders Challenge) but lost by a shot to Hudson Swafford.
This year, now ranked 44th in the world and 35th in the Fed Ex Cup he will begin play on Thursday in fine form after placing T9 at the WGC-Mexico Championship this past weekend following T6 the week before at the Genesis Open.
More importantly with his success he is now firmly established amongst his peers, knows he can beat them, and compete with them every time he tees it up. Confidence is everything in this game and armed with that, a settled life and schedule, there is no reason he won't do well this week.
He's off at 12.35pm in the group right before Tiger so will have a huge gallery. His partners Tony Finau (coming off 2 top 6's) and Charl Schwartzel are world class players.
He says he is happy with his game, so we'll see if it's going to be his week or not. It's strong field with Tiger and Rory the headliners. Fellow Canadians Mac Hughes, Nick Taylor, Ben Silverman, and Corey Connors are also in the field.
Bryan Angus
Adam Hadwin's life changed a year ago this week when he won his first PGA Tour event at the Valspar Championship at this famous Florida resort, Innisbrook.
Besides a million dollar payday he went on to play in his first Masters, got married, bought a house, played in the Presidents Cup, just to name a few.
You'll remember he nearly won his first tourney a few weeks earlier after shooting that "59" at the old Bob Hope (Career Builders Challenge) but lost by a shot to Hudson Swafford.
This year, now ranked 44th in the world and 35th in the Fed Ex Cup he will begin play on Thursday in fine form after placing T9 at the WGC-Mexico Championship this past weekend following T6 the week before at the Genesis Open.
More importantly with his success he is now firmly established amongst his peers, knows he can beat them, and compete with them every time he tees it up. Confidence is everything in this game and armed with that, a settled life and schedule, there is no reason he won't do well this week.
He's off at 12.35pm in the group right before Tiger so will have a huge gallery. His partners Tony Finau (coming off 2 top 6's) and Charl Schwartzel are world class players.
He says he is happy with his game, so we'll see if it's going to be his week or not. It's strong field with Tiger and Rory the headliners. Fellow Canadians Mac Hughes, Nick Taylor, Ben Silverman, and Corey Connors are also in the field.
Bryan Angus
Monday, March 5, 2018
Mickelson out guns Thomas in a thrilling Mexican stand-off
WGC Mexico Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-mexico-championship/en/leaderboard.html
Justin Thomas won the Honda Classic last week and this weekend he shot 62 64 including a dramatic holed out wedge for eagle on the 72nd, but it still wasn't quite enough to beat the resurgent Phil Mickelson who shot -5 66 then edged him in a playoff after a thrilling finale to the WGC Mexico Championship.
It was Mickelson ' s first win since the 2013 Open and was his 4th top 10 this season.
Tied for the lead Thomas, sent his shot to the 18th from 120 yards and it landed in front of the pin then drew back and fell into the hole for an eagle, 64, and a 2 shot lead.
Undaunted Mickelson birdied 15 and 16 to tie, then held his nerve with a 6 footer for par at the last to force a playoff. I must mention England's Tyrrell Hatton looked like he might better both of them or at least tie but he made a bogey at the last to fall one shy.
The playoff was the par 3 17th where Mickelson lipped out a 20 footer for birdie and settled for the par, however Thomas finally missed, this time from 10 feet for par after going long with his tee shot.
"I can’t put into words how much this means to me,” Mickelson said. “I knew it was going to be soon – I’ve been playing too well for it not to be. But you just never know until it happens.”
Adam Hadwin had a great weekend closing with 67 66 -10 good for another top 10 finish, this time T9.
So what about Shubhankar Sharma, the 21 year old Indian who had led all three rounds to set up what might have been the biggest story of the day? Sadly after rounds of 65, 66, 69 he slipped to a +3 74 to finish at T9 along with Hadwin.
Bryan Angus
Justin Thomas won the Honda Classic last week and this weekend he shot 62 64 including a dramatic holed out wedge for eagle on the 72nd, but it still wasn't quite enough to beat the resurgent Phil Mickelson who shot -5 66 then edged him in a playoff after a thrilling finale to the WGC Mexico Championship.
It was Mickelson ' s first win since the 2013 Open and was his 4th top 10 this season.
Tied for the lead Thomas, sent his shot to the 18th from 120 yards and it landed in front of the pin then drew back and fell into the hole for an eagle, 64, and a 2 shot lead.
Undaunted Mickelson birdied 15 and 16 to tie, then held his nerve with a 6 footer for par at the last to force a playoff. I must mention England's Tyrrell Hatton looked like he might better both of them or at least tie but he made a bogey at the last to fall one shy.
The playoff was the par 3 17th where Mickelson lipped out a 20 footer for birdie and settled for the par, however Thomas finally missed, this time from 10 feet for par after going long with his tee shot.
"I can’t put into words how much this means to me,” Mickelson said. “I knew it was going to be soon – I’ve been playing too well for it not to be. But you just never know until it happens.”
Adam Hadwin had a great weekend closing with 67 66 -10 good for another top 10 finish, this time T9.
So what about Shubhankar Sharma, the 21 year old Indian who had led all three rounds to set up what might have been the biggest story of the day? Sadly after rounds of 65, 66, 69 he slipped to a +3 74 to finish at T9 along with Hadwin.
Bryan Angus
Sunday, March 4, 2018
Coetzee wins Tshwane Open on home course in Pretoria
European Tour Tshwane Open final scoreboard http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2018/tournamentid=2018021/leaderboard/index.html#/leaderboard
George Coetzee won his second Tshwane Open title as a brilliant birdie burst on the back nine handed him victory in Waterkloof.
The South African is a member at Pretoria Country Club and entered the final round with a two-shot lead, although he found himself two behind Finn Mikko Korhonen after two early bogeys.
He then delivered a putting masterclass, needing just ten strokes on the greens to birdie five of his next eight holes from the eighth and open up a three-shot advantage before play was suspended due to thunder and lightning at 3.37pm.
The victory is Coetzee's fourth on the European Tour, all of those coming on African soil, and his second on his home course after his triumph in 2015. Coetzee who has lost over 50lbs in weight had this to say after his round.
The South African is a member at Pretoria Country Club and entered the final round with a two-shot lead, although he found himself two behind Finn Mikko Korhonen after two early bogeys.
He then delivered a putting masterclass, needing just ten strokes on the greens to birdie five of his next eight holes from the eighth and open up a three-shot advantage before play was suspended due to thunder and lightning at 3.37pm.
The final four groups returned to the course an hour and 34 minutes later and, despite a further 17-minute delay, Coetzee held his nerve to card a 67, stay at 18 under and finish two shots ahead of England's Sam Horsfield. Horsfield moved from England to Florida when he was 4 eventually playing 2 years for the Florida Gators before leaving to turn pro.
The victory is Coetzee's fourth on the European Tour, all of those coming on African soil, and his second on his home course after his triumph in 2015. Coetzee who has lost over 50lbs in weight had this to say after his round.
"A lot has happened since the last time I held that trophy. I broke my ankle and I kind of needed to show myself that I could win on Tour again and it's nice to come and do it again in front of the home crowd. They were amazing, I don't think I could have done it without everybody out here supporting me the whole week."
Bryan Angus
(europeantour.com)
Can Sharma hold off the Sunday cavalry charge in Mexico
WGC Mexico Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-mexico-championship/en/leaderboard.html
You all know who Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia are, most of you will know Tyrrell Hatton and Rafa Cabrera Bello, stars on the European Tour. Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, you've heard of them.
Well they are all within 2, 3 or 4 shots of this 21 year old kid from India, Shubhankar Sharma, playing as a professional on the PGA Tour for the first time, and looking great as he becomes the youngest player to ever lead a WGC event after 54 holes. His 69 leaves him at -13, two shots clear of Hatton, Mickelson, Garcia and Rafa.
As I've been telling you he has won twice this season, the JoBurg Open in Decemeber and last month's Maybank Championship to sit atop the Race to Dubai rankings.
The question is can he hold off the cavalry charge that is coming his way today down in Mexico City. It will be a heck of a story if he does.
Mickelson says he's playing his best golf in years and he'll be a huge favourite playing with Sharma today in the final pairing along with Tyrrell Hatton. Sharma just met him for the first time yesterday.
Adam Hadwin's week so far : 70 71 67 -5 T21 and he plays with Bubba Watson and Kyle Stanley today.
The field will play off split tees in threesomes and the weather will be sunny and hot.
Bryan Angus
You all know who Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia are, most of you will know Tyrrell Hatton and Rafa Cabrera Bello, stars on the European Tour. Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, you've heard of them.
Well they are all within 2, 3 or 4 shots of this 21 year old kid from India, Shubhankar Sharma, playing as a professional on the PGA Tour for the first time, and looking great as he becomes the youngest player to ever lead a WGC event after 54 holes. His 69 leaves him at -13, two shots clear of Hatton, Mickelson, Garcia and Rafa.
As I've been telling you he has won twice this season, the JoBurg Open in Decemeber and last month's Maybank Championship to sit atop the Race to Dubai rankings.
The question is can he hold off the cavalry charge that is coming his way today down in Mexico City. It will be a heck of a story if he does.
Mickelson says he's playing his best golf in years and he'll be a huge favourite playing with Sharma today in the final pairing along with Tyrrell Hatton. Sharma just met him for the first time yesterday.
Adam Hadwin's week so far : 70 71 67 -5 T21 and he plays with Bubba Watson and Kyle Stanley today.
The field will play off split tees in threesomes and the weather will be sunny and hot.
Bryan Angus
Wie rallies to edge Brooke Henderson for HSBC Womens World Championship
LPGA HSBC Women's World Championship leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/hsbc-womens-world-championship/results
Michelle Wie shot a final round -7 65 to edge a group led by Brooke Henderson by a shot in today's final round to win the HSBC Women's World Championship, but it wasn't easy...
As she was on Saturday, Brooke was bogey free again today and the T2 is her third top 10 in her four 2018 events. As I suggested yesterday she'd need a good start to catch Nelly Korda and Danielle Lang ahead of her, and she did, making 4 birdies in 8 holes on the front nine and she was right in it all day, but like a few others she couldn't buy a putt on the back nine until the 18th. She ended up with 28 putts as opposed to 23 on Saturday.
Up ahead of her Michelle Wie put the finishing touches on a -7 65 with a 40' bomb on her 72nd hole, which turned out to be the game winner.
Brooke needed an eagle at 18, the birdie left her one short. Then Nelly Korda who parred her last 8, missed a short birdie putt to tie Wie, as did Daniellle Yang who couldn't make a birdie in her last 14 !! They all finished T2 -16 272 as did Jenny Shin who closed with a 65.
So Wie, who was waiting anxiously in the clubhouse managed to finish at -17, 271 for her first win since 2014, and I must say it's nice to see her healthy and competing again after all her trials and tribulations in front of the cameras over the years.
She summed up her win like this|: "Winning is everything. I mean, there is no better feeling than when you think you sink that winning putt. It’s a high, for sure. You go out there, and it’s this feeling that gets you going. It’s this feeling that makes you practice. It’s that winning putt that makes you practice for hours and hours and hours, and even the hard times, it gets you going back. You know that good feeling is on the other side.”
Alena Sharp finished her week with a 76 to finish +8
The women are off for two weeks now, resurfacing at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix, Arizona.
Bryan Angus
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Michelle Wie shot a final round -7 65 to edge a group led by Brooke Henderson by a shot in today's final round to win the HSBC Women's World Championship, but it wasn't easy...
As she was on Saturday, Brooke was bogey free again today and the T2 is her third top 10 in her four 2018 events. As I suggested yesterday she'd need a good start to catch Nelly Korda and Danielle Lang ahead of her, and she did, making 4 birdies in 8 holes on the front nine and she was right in it all day, but like a few others she couldn't buy a putt on the back nine until the 18th. She ended up with 28 putts as opposed to 23 on Saturday.
Up ahead of her Michelle Wie put the finishing touches on a -7 65 with a 40' bomb on her 72nd hole, which turned out to be the game winner.
Brooke needed an eagle at 18, the birdie left her one short. Then Nelly Korda who parred her last 8, missed a short birdie putt to tie Wie, as did Daniellle Yang who couldn't make a birdie in her last 14 !! They all finished T2 -16 272 as did Jenny Shin who closed with a 65.
So Wie, who was waiting anxiously in the clubhouse managed to finish at -17, 271 for her first win since 2014, and I must say it's nice to see her healthy and competing again after all her trials and tribulations in front of the cameras over the years.
She summed up her win like this|: "Winning is everything. I mean, there is no better feeling than when you think you sink that winning putt. It’s a high, for sure. You go out there, and it’s this feeling that gets you going. It’s this feeling that makes you practice. It’s that winning putt that makes you practice for hours and hours and hours, and even the hard times, it gets you going back. You know that good feeling is on the other side.”
Alena Sharp finished her week with a 76 to finish +8
The women are off for two weeks now, resurfacing at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix, Arizona.
Bryan Angus
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Saturday, March 3, 2018
Rising Indian star Sharma leads big guns at WGC Mexico Championship
WGC Mexico Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-mexico-championship/en/leaderboard.html
Golf fans in Asia and Europe know who Shubhankar Sharma is because he's won twice already on those tours this year, but on this side of the pond, and down in Mexico no less, he is playing for the first time on the PGA Tour, and at 21 years young finds himself leading this star studded WGC Mexico Championship going into this weekends play.
He has eagled the par 4, 1st hole both Thursday (65) and Friday (66) and at -11 has a two shot lead over Spaniards, Sergio Garcia (68,65), Rafa Cabrera Bello (66,67) and American Xander Schauffele who is bogey free so far, (65 68)
Big guns Dustin Johnson (69 66), Bubba Watson (69 66) are back at -7, Jordan Spieth (70 67) at -5 along with Phil Mickelson (69 68), Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm are at -4.
Canada's Adam Hadwin (70 71) is T32 at -1 along with Justin Thomas.
Sharma ranked world #75 had a 61 65 weekend to win the JoBurg Open so he has game. We'll see how he holds up when the big guys start to apply the pressure that seems inevitable this weekend.
Bryan Angus
Golf fans in Asia and Europe know who Shubhankar Sharma is because he's won twice already on those tours this year, but on this side of the pond, and down in Mexico no less, he is playing for the first time on the PGA Tour, and at 21 years young finds himself leading this star studded WGC Mexico Championship going into this weekends play.
He has eagled the par 4, 1st hole both Thursday (65) and Friday (66) and at -11 has a two shot lead over Spaniards, Sergio Garcia (68,65), Rafa Cabrera Bello (66,67) and American Xander Schauffele who is bogey free so far, (65 68)
Big guns Dustin Johnson (69 66), Bubba Watson (69 66) are back at -7, Jordan Spieth (70 67) at -5 along with Phil Mickelson (69 68), Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm are at -4.
Canada's Adam Hadwin (70 71) is T32 at -1 along with Justin Thomas.
Sharma ranked world #75 had a 61 65 weekend to win the JoBurg Open so he has game. We'll see how he holds up when the big guys start to apply the pressure that seems inevitable this weekend.
Bryan Angus
Henderson roars back into contention at HSBC Women's World Championship
LPGA HSBC Women's World Championship leaderbaord http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/hsbc-womens-world-championship/leaderboard
Buoyed by a 23 putt performance Brooke Henderson has fired a superb bogey free, 7 birdie round of 65 to roar right back into contention after 3 rounds of the HSBC Women's World Championship in Singapore.
Going into Sunday's final round she is T3 with Minjee Lee at -11, 4 shots behind red hot Nelly Korda who had a 65 of her own, -15 total. Remember Nelly was right in contention through 3 rounds last week in Thailand where her sister Jessica won setting a new tournament record. Jessica (68) and Michelle Wie (66) are at -10.
Henderson will play in the final group on Sunday with Korda and Danielle Kang (70) -14. So she will be spotting Korda 4 shots and Kang 3, I think she will need another round like today's to win. However she battled back with a pair of birdies on Friday to get in with a par 72, and today was obviously her best performance of the week.
A fast start will be important to apply some pressure. She has played the front nine (36) in 33 today, 38 on Friday, and 35 on Thursday.
After a pair of 75's Alena Sharp had her best outing of the week with -2 70.
Bryan Angus
Buoyed by a 23 putt performance Brooke Henderson has fired a superb bogey free, 7 birdie round of 65 to roar right back into contention after 3 rounds of the HSBC Women's World Championship in Singapore.
Going into Sunday's final round she is T3 with Minjee Lee at -11, 4 shots behind red hot Nelly Korda who had a 65 of her own, -15 total. Remember Nelly was right in contention through 3 rounds last week in Thailand where her sister Jessica won setting a new tournament record. Jessica (68) and Michelle Wie (66) are at -10.
Henderson will play in the final group on Sunday with Korda and Danielle Kang (70) -14. So she will be spotting Korda 4 shots and Kang 3, I think she will need another round like today's to win. However she battled back with a pair of birdies on Friday to get in with a par 72, and today was obviously her best performance of the week.
A fast start will be important to apply some pressure. She has played the front nine (36) in 33 today, 38 on Friday, and 35 on Thursday.
After a pair of 75's Alena Sharp had her best outing of the week with -2 70.
Bryan Angus
Friday, March 2, 2018
Henderson slips down field at HSBC Women's World Championship
LPGA HSBC Women's World Championship leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/hsbc-womens-world-championship/leaderboard
With the leaders shooting 64 66's and 67's Brooke Henderson has slipped from a T4 to T15 after an E 72 that included a bogey 6 on the par5 5th and a double bogey 7 on the par 5 8th. She is at -4, 8 shots behind leader American Danielle Kang who had the best round of the day -8 64 to tie the Sentosa GC course record. She is 4 shots clear of the field at-12
Alena Sharp is T62 at +6, (75-75).
Nelly Korda, -6 66 is T2 at -8 with Alex Marina (67). Minjee Lee (66), Cristie Kerr (67) and Chella Choi (69) are all -7.
The Korda's are a really athletic family. Peter Korda their father won the Australian Open 20 years ago, his son Sebastian won the Australian Junior Boys this year and his other daughter Jessica won last week with a tournament record total of -25 last week.
Bryan Angus
With the leaders shooting 64 66's and 67's Brooke Henderson has slipped from a T4 to T15 after an E 72 that included a bogey 6 on the par5 5th and a double bogey 7 on the par 5 8th. She is at -4, 8 shots behind leader American Danielle Kang who had the best round of the day -8 64 to tie the Sentosa GC course record. She is 4 shots clear of the field at-12
Alena Sharp is T62 at +6, (75-75).
Nelly Korda, -6 66 is T2 at -8 with Alex Marina (67). Minjee Lee (66), Cristie Kerr (67) and Chella Choi (69) are all -7.
The Korda's are a really athletic family. Peter Korda their father won the Australian Open 20 years ago, his son Sebastian won the Australian Junior Boys this year and his other daughter Jessica won last week with a tournament record total of -25 last week.
Bryan Angus
Thursday, March 1, 2018
WGC Mexico Championship live scoring..
WGC Mexico Championship leaderboard https://www.pgatour.com/competition/2018/wgc-mexico-championship/en/leaderboard.html
This year's WGC Mexico Championship is underway, no Rory or Jason Day however the feature group has the world's top 3, Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas off the back nine at 11.51am
Justin Rose, Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler are at 12.51.
The lone Canadian Adam Hadwin is off at 1.15 with long bombers Thomas Pieters and Daniel Berger
They are playing in Mexico City which is an hour behind EST.
Bryan Angus
This year's WGC Mexico Championship is underway, no Rory or Jason Day however the feature group has the world's top 3, Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas off the back nine at 11.51am
Justin Rose, Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler are at 12.51.
The lone Canadian Adam Hadwin is off at 1.15 with long bombers Thomas Pieters and Daniel Berger
They are playing in Mexico City which is an hour behind EST.
Bryan Angus
Henderson off to a great start in Singapore
LPGA HSBC Women's World Championship leaderboard http://www.lpga.com/tournaments/hsbc-womens-world-championship/leaderboard
With the first round 2 hour weather delay completed Brooke Henderson with a T4 -4 68 is off to another great start, this time in Singapore at the sumptuous HSBC Women's World Championship on the Sentosa GC.
With seven birdies, but 3 bogey's Brooke hit 13/14 fairways and used 28 putts, and as always is amongst the leaders in distance off the tee with an average of 280 yards.
Asian-American Jennifer Song has the 2 shot lead at -7 65. She had the same number of birdies as Brooke, but was bogey free. She hasn't won yet after 8 years on tour.
Michelle Wie's resurgence continues, she is T2 -5 67 along with Eun Hee Ji as she looks for her first win since 2014's US Women's Open.
Alena Sharp continued her early season struggles with +3 75.
Bryan Angus
With the first round 2 hour weather delay completed Brooke Henderson with a T4 -4 68 is off to another great start, this time in Singapore at the sumptuous HSBC Women's World Championship on the Sentosa GC.
With seven birdies, but 3 bogey's Brooke hit 13/14 fairways and used 28 putts, and as always is amongst the leaders in distance off the tee with an average of 280 yards.
Asian-American Jennifer Song has the 2 shot lead at -7 65. She had the same number of birdies as Brooke, but was bogey free. She hasn't won yet after 8 years on tour.
Michelle Wie's resurgence continues, she is T2 -5 67 along with Eun Hee Ji as she looks for her first win since 2014's US Women's Open.
Alena Sharp continued her early season struggles with +3 75.
Bryan Angus
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