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Aces from No. 17 at The Honda Classic
Category Archives: Tournaments
Atlanta Athletic Club to Host 3 USGA Amateur Championships
By: Jonathan Coe
The Atlanta Athletic Club, in Johns Creek, Ga., has been chosen by the USGA as the host site for three future amateur championships: the 2025 U.S. Girls’ Junior, 2030 U.S. Amateur and 2035 U.S. Women’s Amateur championships. The club has previously hosted six USGA championships.
“We are thrilled to return to Atlanta Athletic Club to conduct these three USGA championships,” said Mark Hill, USGA senior managing director, Championships. “The USGA is looking forward to continuing our strong relationship with this famed club, which has been home to so many memorable USGA championships and legendary champions.”
These will be the seventh, eighth and ninth USGA championships held at Atlanta Athletic Club, including the 1976 U.S. Open, captured by Jerry Pate with a dramatic 5-iron shot on the 72nd hole. The club also hosted the 2014 U.S. Amateur (won by Gunn Yang), the 2002 U.S. Junior Amateur (won by Charlie Beljan), the 1990 U.S. Women’s Open (won by Betsy King), and the 1984 U.S. Mid-Amateur (won by Michael Podolak). The club was also the host of the 1950 U.S. Women’s Amateur (won by Beverly Hanson) on its original course, which is now known as East Lake Golf Club.
Atlanta Athletic Club has also hosted the 1963 Ryder Cup, three PGA Championships (1981, 2001 and 2011) and most recently, the 2021 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, won by Nelly Korda. In 2023, the club will celebrate its 125th anniversary.
“Atlanta Athletic Club is proud to continue its tradition of hosting national championships,” said Kevin Costello, club president. “Building on our enduring relationship with the USGA, it’s an honor to showcase our golf courses to the world and play host to these prestigious championships that truly embody the spirit of the amateur game and support the next generation of golfers.”
Located 25 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta, the Atlanta Athletic Club is a private 36-hole club founded in 1898 and the home club of four USGA champions: nine-time champion Bob Jones, three-time U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Alexa Stirling, and U.S. Women’s Amateur champions Dot Kirby and Martha Kirouac.
The club’s Highlands Course and Riverside Course were designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., with Joe Finger assisting on the Highlands Course. Rees Jones redesigned both courses, completing his work on the Riverside Course in 2003 and the Highlands Course in 2016. The Riverside Course is currently being renovated under the guidance of Tripp Davis, work that is scheduled to be completed by the end of this summer.
The U.S. Girls’ Junior will be contested at the club July 14-19, 2025. The USGA will name a competition course at a later date. First conducted in 1949, the U.S. Girls’ Junior is open to female amateurs who have not turned 19 on or before the final day of the championship and have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 9.4. U.S. Girls’ Junior champions earn an exemption into the following year’s U.S. Women’s Open. Notable champions include Mickey Wright, JoAnne Gunderson Carner, Hollis Stacy, Nancy Lopez, Inbee Park, Lexi Thompson and Ariya Jutanugarn.
Atlanta Athletic Club will host its second U.S. Amateur Aug. 12-18, 2030, which will mark the 100th anniversary of Bob Jones’ completion of the “Grand Slam” (victories in the U.S. Open, U.S. Amateur, British Open and British Amateur). Jones was a past president and an active member of Atlanta Athletic Club until his death in 1971.
One of the USGA’s three original championships, the U.S. Amateur is open to amateur golfers who have a Handicap Index not exceeding 2.4. A field of 312 golfers will play two 18-hole rounds of stroke play on each of the Highlands and Riverside courses before the championship is cut to 64 players for match play on the Highlands Course. The championship is decided by a 36-hole final, and the champion and runner-up are invited to the following year’s U.S. Open Championship.
The U.S. Women’s Amateur will be held on the Highlands Course from Aug. 6-12, 2035. It is also one of the USGA’s first three championships, having debuted in 1895 along with the U.S. Amateur and the U.S. Open, marking the beginning of women’s competitive golf in this country. The U.S. Women’s Amateur champion and runner-up receive exemptions into the following year’s U.S. Women’s Open.
Men’s Golf Catches Fire Late for Third-Place Finish at Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate
Byline: Old Dominion Sports
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Propelled by a late outpouring of birdies, the Old Dominion men’s golf team shot a final-round 289 to jump six spots into third place at the Golden Horseshoe Intercollegiate. Reigning individual medalist Jakob Henriksson tied for fourth place, and Rasmus Konradsson was tied for sixth.
It was really tough yesterday with the wind and the cold,” head coach Murray Rudisill said. “The guys played today like I thought they should have the entire tournament, but something clicked today.”
ODU’s scoring four of Henriksson, Konradsson, Gustav Fransson and Jakob Chicoyne all finished out on a tear, going a combined 13-under par down the closing stretch. Henriksson birdied two of his last six holes for a final-round score of 2-over 73 and a 54-hole total of 220 (+7). Konradsson eagled the par-5 second hole and added a birdie on the sixth, his final hole of the day, for a 74 on Tuesday and finished the two-day event at 9-over 222.
Fransson played his last four holes at 5-under and carded a 1-under 70. Like Konradsson, he eagled the second hole and then closed out with three straight birdies. Tuesday’s 70 was a six-shot improvement from the second round and helped Fransson finish tied for 25th at 229 (+13).
Chicoyne used an eagle on the second hole to ignite a late run as well, playing his last seven holes at 5-under to finish the day with a 1-over 72. He tied for 35th at 232.
Filip Wetterqvist rounded out the Monarchs with a 79 on Tuesday and a two-day total of 243, good for a share of 62nd.
ODU’s 289 in the final round was the third-best round by a team at the event and the second-lowest score on Tuesday. The Monarchs were the third-best team on the par-71, 6,817-yard Golden Horseshoe Gold Course’s par-4 holes and were tied for fourth in par-5 scoring as well (-4). ODU also logged the most birdies by any team in the field with 45 and had three eagles.
Towson won the team championship with a three-round score of 882 (+30). Georgetown finished second seven shots behind the Tigers and 10 strokes ahead of the Monarchs.
Villanova’s Peter Weaver earned individual medalist honors at 1-over 214. He edged out Georgetown’s William O’Neill by a single shot. Will Halamandaris of George Mason rounded out the top-three at 6-over.
Robb Kinder and Alex Price Play Sudden Death Playoff as Captains Golf Wins Glenn Heath Memorial by Forty Strokes
Byline: Christopher Newport Sports
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — The Christopher Newport men’s golf team added to it’s first round lead and dominated the 2022 Glenn Heath Memorial by forty strokes on Tuesday after wrapping up the 36-hole event with a 26-over 602 (293-309). CNU scored four of the top five finishing scores with Robb Kinder and Alex Price tying for the individual medalist honors. On the second playoff hole, Kinder notched a championship-winning par putt from 15-feet to edge out his teammate for the top spot on the individual leaderboard.
After matching each other shot for shot through the first 36 holes, Christopher Newport veterans Robb Kinder and Alex Price were still deadlocked at the conclusion of the second round. Headed to a sudden death playoff, both players delivered long drives off the first tee. Kinder found himself just off the fairway to the left about 145 yards from the pin; Price was in the middle of the short grass a yard or two back and took the second shot first.
The lefty stared down the green with a heavy contingent of onlookers as the two Captains vied for the individual medalist honors and delivered a picture-perfect iron pin-high. Moments later, Kinder matched his roommate and teammate with a beautiful second shot up the hill and the gallery streaked up the fairway to find both balls on the green in regulation. Kinder stepped up to his putt first and opened the door for Price with a tap-in for the two-putt par. With his birdie putt, Price slid the attempt just right of the hole and the playoff would continue on.
No way that one playoff hole would be enough for the two in match play, the Captains’ duo headed to the second for what would prove to be a decisive hole in the match and tournament. The second hole — a 210-yard Par 3 — saw both players with challenging second shots. Kinder’s tee shot found a greenside bunker and Price was long and forced to chip on as well. A beautiful out from Kinder set up a par putt and applied the pressure on Price to get close and potentially force another head-to-head hole. Price got on, but the fast green betrayed the Captains’ all-time scoring leader and the ball trickled 20 feet past the hole. He lined up a solid par putt, but would be forced to settle for bogey.
With medalist honors on the line, Kinder needed to sink a 15-footer to close out the win. Wasting little time, the CNU junior lined up and slammed in a match-winning par off the back of the cup.
Playing at the Williamsburg Club, Christopher Newport had the support of the CNU Women’s Golf team as well as other fans throughout the day and into the playoff. The conditions were tough with gusting winds and temperatures in the low 40’s, but CNU persisted for a second-day 309 on the Par 72 Black tees.
Price and Kinder fired matching 147’s (72-75) to lead the way for Christopher Newport. Aidan Baron and Jackson Gessaman also finished in the top five at ten-over par for the tournament. Baron finished 154 (76-78) and Gessaman also signed for a 154 (73-81).
In addition to the counting scores for CNU on day two, Carrter Morris rounded out the CNU starting lineup and tied for 16th with a 163 (82-81). Three Captains finished the evenet as individuals with Michael Thomas tying for 11th at +16 with a 160 (80-80) and Drew Parr tying for 16th at +19 with a 163 (83-80). Bobby Stribling finished in 30th with a 169 (90-79) after shaving 11 strokes off his opening day score. The 79 is a career-low round for Stribling.
Christopher Newport will close out the spring season at the Camp Lejeune Intercollegiate from April 8-10.
MEAC Conference Tournament
Byline: Xavier Williams
March Madness is finally upon us. The time of the year where we see Cinderella stories, the time of the year where we watch basketball games all day instead of working, the time of year where we watch teams cut down the nets and punch their tickets to the big dance. Selection Sunday is fast approaching and the question looms who will punch their ticket from the MEAC. The MEAC basketball tournament will look a little different this year with the departure of North Carolina A&T, Bethune Cookman, and Florida A&M to other conferences but the show must go on. The 2022 MEAC tournament will return to Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia where Norfolk State is not only the hometown favorite and defending MEAC champion but also the No. 1 seed. Norfolk State, led by conference player of the year Joe Bryant, capped its regular season hotter than any team in the country winning 13 of their last 15 games. Howard is the No. 2 seed, who finished conference play at 9-5. Howard ended the season on a high note after only losing one game in the month of February. North Carolina Central is the No. 3 seed after going 8-5. Morgan State earned the No.4 seed over South Carolina State based on winning percentages. Maryland Eastern Shore is the No. 6 seed and Coppin State is the No. 7 seed after each team went 6-8 in the conference but Eastern Shore gains the seed advantage based on their head-to-head match-up. Delaware State is the No. 8 seed after failing to win a conference game all season. The conference tournament begins Wednesday, March 9th with Norfolk State taking on Delaware State at noon followed by Howard and Coppin State at 8 p.m. The tournament champion will be decided on Saturday, March 12th at noon. All games will be televised on ESPN+. Should be a great week of college hoops.
Can Rafael Campos finally get it done
Byline: Xavier Williams
Rafael Campos is now 33 years old. He will be making his 13th start at the Puerto Rico Open this week, missing it just one time in his career a couple of years ago. Since Rafael turned pro there has been immense pressure on him to win as he is the only professional golfer from Puerto Rico on the PGA Tour, especially on a course that is an hour from where he grew up. “I know they’ve been waiting for this for 13 years. Obviously it’s a dream of mine to hold this trophy, especially here in my home, where I live. For me, hopefully it’s a one-day celebration and I get back to work. But I know they’ll be ecstatic…” Last year Campos almost made this dream a reality. He had a share of the lead going into the final round on Sunday of the Tournament. He would finish T-3 after a sizzling 66 on Sunday by Branden Grace saw him lose his home tournament by three strokes. There’s no doubting how much pride Rafael has for playing for his country but he has even admitted at times that he can get ahead of himself and try too hard. He spoke to this fact last year before the final round on how dependent he was on his caddy to “keep me focused.” Rafael Campos’ focus and mental fortitude would be tested once again when he teed it up on Thursday in front of a home crowd. The question isn’t whether Rafael can get it done as he has proven he can win on the professional level with a win on the Korn Ferry Tour. The question is can he handle the pressure of Puerto Rico sitting on his shoulders as he tries to break through for the first time on the PGA Tour.
The Path to The Country Club Begins Today
LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. (Feb. 23, 2022) – The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced that online entry applications are available now for the 122nd U.S. Open Championship, to be contested from June 16-19 at The Country Club (Championship Course), in Brookline, Mass.
Thousands of golfers will once again attempt to qualify for the championship through a two-stage process in which eventually 156 players will advance to The Country Club and one will be crowned U.S. Open champion. Non-exempt players will compete in one of 109 local qualifiers hosted throughout the United States (with one in Canada) between April 25 and May 23. Nearly 1,000 players will then compete in final qualifying, scheduled at 11 sites worldwide on May 23 and June 6.
Final qualifying will not take place in England for the second consecutive year due to continued international travel requirements, but as was done in 2021, an exemption category will allow players to earn entry based on a four-event U.S. Open 2022 European Qualifying Series. The top 10 aggregate point earners from those DP World Tour events (Betfred British Masters, Soudal Open, Dutch Open and Porsche European Open, which take place between May 5-June 5), who are otherwise not exempt, will earn spots in the U.S. Open field.
Exemptions will also be awarded to the 2020-21 top finisher on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, the 2021-22 top finisher on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit and the 2021-22 top finisher on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, who are not otherwise exempt as of May 23.
Entry applications along with a list of qualifying sites can be accessed at champ-admin.usga.org, and entries will be accepted through Wednesday, April 13, at 5 p.m. EDT. To be eligible for 2022 U.S. Open qualifying, a player must have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 1.4, or be a professional.
Allied Golf Associations (AGAs) in the United States, the Japan Golf Association and Golf Canada are working together to provide thousands of entrants from across the globe and from all backgrounds with the opportunity to compete for a spot in this major championship. This collaboration with AGAs allows for an open qualifying process in all four USGA Open championships. Since 2010, the U.S. Open has averaged 79 players in the final field who have advanced through one or both stages of qualifying.
Entry applications for the other three USGA Open championships are also available. The 77th U.S. Women’s Open Championship will be played June 2-5 at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, in Southern Pines, N.C. The 42nd U.S. Senior Open Championship will be contested June 23-26 at Saucon Valley Country Club (Old Course), in Bethlehem, Pa., and the 4th U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship will be held Aug. 25-28, at NCR Country Club (South Course), in Kettering, Ohio.
The Country Club will host the U.S. Open for the fourth time. The champion was determined in a playoff in all three previous Opens at the club, with amateur Francis Ouimet (1913), Julius Boros (1963) and Curtis Strange (1988) winning the title.
Power Rankings: The Honda Classic
By Rob Bolton
The PGA TOUR’s annual migration east to Florida lands familiarly at The Honda Classic, but the 144 in the field are advised not to hit the ground running as much as to build a stance. No, not that kind, you aficionados of the rules, the kind that wards against careening out of control like a beach chair in the wind.
The Champion Course at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens hosts the 50th edition of the tournament. It was the most difficult par 70 among all non-majors in each of the last four completed season, and in six of the last seven, and it’s been groomed for a stiffer challenge yet this week. You’ll find that detail, where the course compromises and more beneath the ranking of projected contenders.
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The Genesis Invitational co-runner-up Cameron Young, Matthew Wolff, Gary Woodland and Lee Westwood will be among the notables reviewed in Tuesday’s Draws and Fades.
As if PGA National isn’t tough enough, the rough has been allowed to grow as much as another inch from previous years. Now upwards of three inches, the overseeded bermuda framing the landing areas figures to have a direct impact on what already is poised to log as the most challenging test in relation to par of the first 23 courses of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season.
Last year’s scoring average of 71.102 was typical. So was the invisible variable among the elements. This week’s forecast is favorable in that rain is not expected and daytime highs will touch 80 degrees throughout, but if you ever wanted to witness what wind does to decisions on tees and approach, this will check that box.
That said, given the early peek at what’s in store, it could be worse, but forever respecting how gusts wreak havoc, it will be at times. At least the constant of winds pushing in from east and southeast align with the prevailing direction. That should be valuable for returning competitors who already have hit shots in these conditions on this course.
Of course, The Bear Trap doesn’t care who navigates it, but it’s a shade more bark than bite. The attention to the par-3 15th, par-4 16th and par-3 17th holes is aided by the seven-foot, bronze statue of a bear standing on its hind legs and sporting a menacing mug, which is anything but average, but the none of the three holes is the hardest of its par on the course. It’s just that they’re in succession and at a time on a Sunday afternoon when it pays to be smarter than it.
As a trio last year, the aggregate par 10 averaged 0.546 strokes over par. En route to his five-stroke victory, Matt Jones played the stretch in 2-under for the week with three birdies, eight pars and a bogey.
Jones didn’t let The Bear Trap complicate his quest for the title because he, as the saying goes, golfed his ball. The Aussie led the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. He also paced it in par-4 scoring, which is common for winners on tracks with as many as a dozen par 4s.
The soft underbelly of the Champion Course is the pair of par 5s. Surrendering an average of 4.45, Nos. 3 and 18 tied for the fifth-easiest set among 51 courses used in the super season of 2020-21. That’s easily the easiest they’ve played since PGA National debuted as host in 2007, but it probably had more to do with the unusual timing of the tournament being contested in mid-March than its customary position in late February or very early March.
ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE
PGATOUR.COM’s Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives. Look for his following contributions as scheduled.
MONDAY: Power Rankings
TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Draws and Fades
WEDNESDAY: Pick ’Em Preview
SUNDAY: Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Rookie Ranking
* – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.
Scottie Scheffler gets it done at WM Phoenix Open
By Cameron Morfit
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Ted Scott thought he was done as a caddie.
The Lafayette, Louisiana, resident had racked up double-digit wins over a long career carrying the bag for Paul Azinger and then, most famously, Bubba Watson. It had been a good run.
Then Scottie Scheffler, who birdied the third hole of a sudden-death playoff against Patrick Cantlay to make the WM Phoenix Open his first PGA TOUR victory, hit his radar. Scheffler needed a caddie last fall, and they shared the same faith, which seemed like a good start.
“The other thing he said is, ‘I really like competing,’” Scott said. “I said, ‘I like competing. Sounds like it could be a fun thing.’ So, we hashed out the details.”
They started at The RSM Classic last November. First round: 63. The rest: forgettable (T57).
Faith was at a premium as Scheffler made four bogeys in the middle of the final round Sunday, but he and Scott knew the game was there. After all, this was a player who had hit all 18 greens and shot a best-of-the-week, 9-under 62 just the day before. They just had to hang in there.
They did, and the partnership yielded a victory for the first time as Scheffler birdied four of his last six holes in regulation – nearly winning it in regulation from just inside 5 1/2 feet – before ending it with a birdie putt from 25 feet, 7 inches on their third extra crack at the par-4 18th hole.
Scott reminded Scheffler that one putt, the miss at the end of regulation, didn’t define him.
“Yeah, you know, it’s tough to really say exactly what’s going on between us,” said Scheffler, who goes to fourth in the FedExCup, ninth in the world. “But I think we kind of sit on the same wavelength. We get along really well. He does a good job keeping me level-headed and making jokes and having fun.
“He’s a really, really hard worker, which I appreciate,” Scheffler continued. “I have a lot of faith in him as a caddie and I trust him on the golf course, and it really helps me kind of believe in myself. Just having him out there by my side is extremely helpful.”
Scheffler, 25, held the outright 54-hole lead at the Hewlett Packard Enterprise Houston Open last fall before finishing T2. That marked his second career runner-up on TOUR and first since the 2021 World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play.
But he wasn’t obsessed with winning, seemingly the only thing he hadn’t done after shooting 59 in a TOUR event, coming so close at the WGC-Dell Technologies in Austin, Texas – where he was a star for the University of Texas – and beating world No. 1 Jon Rahm at the Ryder Cup.
“The only time I thought about it was when you guys asked about it,” he said of the hole in his resume.
Now, though, he’s done it, hoisting his first trophy one week after Tom Hoge broke through at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am and two after Luke List won the Farmers Insurance Open.
Scheffler’s victory marks the first string of three straight first-time winners in standalone events on TOUR since Nate Lashley, Mathew Wolff and Dylan Frittelli won the 2019 Rocket Mortgage Classic, 3M Championship and John Deere Classic, respectively.
It also validated Scott’s eye for talent, plus a lot of opinions that Scheffler was good enough to win.
The caddie’s first indication of how good Scheffler is: Partners Scheffler and Watson tied for eighth in the two-man Zurich Classic of New Orleans last April. Scott, then still on the Watson’s bag, saw the game.
Still, it was not until the Ryder Cup last fall, when Scheffler beat Rahm in singles and Scott watched it all on TV, did the caddie realize the full breadth of Scheffler’s skillset.
“I was like, Wow, he’s really good,’” Scott said.
Now everybody knows it – if they didn’t already. Because friends are the shock absorbers of life, and player and caddie were too united to fall apart even after bogeys on 5, 7, 8 and 12.
“We had a lot of fun together even through all the bogeys and stuff,” Scheffler said. “We never felt totally out of the golf tournament, and I looked at him on 14 green, we were only I think maybe two back at the time, and I think I was a little bit surprised still to be that close to the lead.
“He just did a good job keeping me in it mentally and keeping me focused on the task at hand.”
Tom Hoge shoots 9-under 63 to lead by one after Thursday at AT&T Pebble Beach
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Tom Hoge enjoys being at Pebble Beach even in a frigid wind and relentless rain. He loved it even more Thursday in brilliant sunshine, especially with nine birdies on his card.
Hoge began his day along the Pacific Ocean with a 30-foot birdie putt on No. 10 at Pebble Beach. He made the last of six straight birdies with a 40-foot putt on the daunting eighth hole. It added to a 9-under 63, by four shots his best score at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
“It’s hard to be in a bad mood out here,” Hoge said. “I mean, Pebble Beach and perfect weather is about as good as it gets.”
He had a one-shot lead over Seamus Power of Ireland, whose round was equally stout. Power birdied his last four holes at Spyglass Hill, traditionally the toughest of the three courses in benign conditions. It was the only course that played over par Thursday.
Jonas Blixt had a 7-under 64 on the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula. Patrick Cantlay, the reigning FedExCup champion, birdied his last three holes for a 65 on the Shore.
Hoge has played just over 200 times on the PGA TOUR without winning, though he’s getting closer. He finished runner-up by two shots in Palm Desert two weeks ago.
Whether he gets another shot, that’s still a long way off, with two more courses to get through before Hoge gets back to Pebble Beach.
The coastline along the peninsula and the desert tucked amid the Santa Rosa Mountains are nothing alike, although Hoge managed to make one comparison. Scoring is on the low side.
Along with very little wind, the area has gone more than a month without rain and the courses are firm, without the greens being too fast because of amateurs in the field. To have greens running firm and fast, they might never finish.
“I was in the situation a couple weeks ago in Palm Springs — scores were a little bit better there — but you keep switching golf courses and you fee like you’ve got to keep making birdies the whole way because there’s a lot of great players out here,” he said. “Conditions look pretty good for the weekend, so I know that I’ve got to keep moving forward.”
There was no need to check the forecast and hope for the best — and this tournament, that means getting Pebble Beach and Monterey Peninsula on the calmest day and Spyglass in the wind. But it’s supposed to stay gorgeous all week.
Cantlay nearly had his round ruined around the turn when he squandered a good start with a pair of bogeys and began the back nine at the Shore by failing to birdie the par 5s. He made up for it with three straight birdies to finish his round, one of them on the 17th when his tee shot was about 6 feet from going into a small creek, and he hit a towering wedge over a pine to 12 feet for birdie.
Jordan Spieth, still trying to recover from an intestinal infection, had a 68 at Monterey Peninsula. He had hoped to be at full strength, but probably wasn’t quite there.
Otherwise, it was as perfect a day as the Pebble Beach Pro-Am can offer. About one-third of the field broke 70, and no one was terribly grumpy.
Power won an opposite-field event last year for his first PGA TOUR victory. He tied for third in the Sony Open in Hawaii and now sits at No. 50 in the world, needing to hold that position for two months to earn an invitation to the Masters.
He played in an all-Irish pairing with John Murphy, who went to Louisville and made his PGA TOUR debut, along with Irish amateurs Dermott Desmond and Gerry McManus. That added to a day that felt like more fun than work.
“I’m playing in a shirt. Normally I have a sweater and other stuff on,” Power said. “So it was nice, wind was minimal. It was a perfect day for scoring.”
His best moment was scrambling for par at the par-3 fifth hole, the last that runs along the Pacific on Spyglass Hill. He went from a fairway bunker on the uphill sixth to 25 feet and made that, and then finished with three more birdies.
“It’s always funny with the three courses,” Power said. “It’s great to have a good start but you’re on to a completely different challenge. Tomorrow I’m playing Pebble and it’s going to be a completely different course to today. So kind of makes it easier to reset, and hopefully we can kind of keep doing the same thing tomorrow.”
Will Zalatoris out of AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am after testing positive for COVID-19
Will Zalatoris, fresh off a runner-up finish at the Farmers Insurance Open, has withdrawn from the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am after testing positive for COVID-19.
Zalatoris lost a playoff to Luke List on Saturday at Torrey Pines Golf Course after leading for much of the final round. Zalatoris barely missed an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation that would have given him his first career TOUR title.
“I thought I made it,” he said. “I just needed a hair more speed. I’ve seen enough putts through the years coming down that hill to know that that putt just doesn’t go left. And it happened to go left.”
He and List returned to 18 for the sudden-death playoff. List hit his approach within tap-in distance and won his first PGA TOUR title after Zalatoris missed his 15-footer for birdie.
Though he did not collect his first win, Zalatoris’ year is off to a solid start. The runner-up finish came after a T6 at the previous week’s The American Express. Zalatoris saw immediate dividends from a recent switch to a driver that was an inch longer. He also gained 15 pounds in the offseason. The additional 10-12 yards off the tee are a strong complement to Zalatoris’ iron play, which is among the best on TOUR.
Zalatoris, last year’s PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year, is 17th in this season’s FedExCup standings. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is something of a hometown event for Zalatoris, who lived in the San Francisco Bay Area until moving to Dallas at the age of nine. He started playing golf at the California Golf Club of San Francisco, where he received early tips from fellow Cal Club member Ken Venturi, the 1964 U.S. Open champion.
