Children's Miracle Network Classic, Round 1
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| Children's Miracle Network Classic | ||
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
UPDATE: LOVE III WITHDRAWS (5:37 p.m.) -- Defending champion Davis Love III withdrew late Thursday due to neck pain. Love, who had shot 73, ends his year with 26 starts and 20 made cuts. His best finish was a tie for second at the season-opening Mercedes-Benz Championship.
PLAYOFF BEARD, KINDA (5:30 p.m.) -- Florida native George McNeill showed up at the Walt Disney Resort on Thursday looking he was getting ready to go deer hunting in Texas. That's because he showed up sporting a new beard, which he began growing during the rain-plagued Viking Classic.
"It's my somewhat pseudo playoff beard, even though we're past the Playoffs," McNeill said. "Yeah. Has is taken more than a day to grow this.
"Basically, I got home from Mississippi and I didn't really shave much in Mississippi, and then I got home and I didn't want to shave again, and I said, 'Well, I'll just keep going.' All my buddies at home said, man, 'It looks good.'"
McNeill, who lost in a playoff to Martin Laird at the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, shot a 68 on the Palm Course in Round 1.
CLUTCH ROUND FOR KRESGE (5:05 p.m.) -- We mentioned Casey Wittenberg earlier, but another money list bubble guy -- Cliff Kresge -- turned in a clutch round in the opener on Thursday.
Kresge, 146th on the money list, fired a 67 on the Palm Course, his lowest round on TOUR since the first round of the John Deere Classic in July. Since his tie for 10th at the FBR Open, Kresge's best finish is a tie for 16th at the AT&T National.
SNEDEKER ALREADY USING NEW WEDGES (5:01 p.m.) -- Brandt Snedeker said on Thursday that he has spent most of the second half with the new groove wedges, which go into effect Jan. 1, 2010.
The PGA TOUR has said that players must play with USGA-approved grooves in higher-lofted clubs no later than Jan. 1, and players like Snedeker have spent time getting used to the new clubs.
"I don't think it'll be a big deal," said Snedeker, who also added that he didn't think it would force players to find the fairway more.
| A sip of Maginnes | |
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DEFENDING CHAMP PLAYING HURT (4:20 p.m.) -- Davis Love III said he awoke Thursday "with a really stiff neck" that limited his time on the range prior to Round 1. He ended up shooting 73 on the Palm Course.
Love said he'd try to rest up before the second round.
"Hopefully it'll loosen up. If not, I may be done for the year," Love said.
NEW LEADER (3:50 p.m.) -- Justin Rose has birdied his last three holes over at the Palm Course, getting him to 7 under as he chases his first PGA TOUR win in his 149th start.
With the high winds today, no one should be surprised that a pair of Englishmen are doing well in Orlando. Rose's countryman Greg Owen is also 6 under.
QUOTE(S) OF THE WEEK SO FAR (3:27 p.m.) -- Will MacKenzie is always good for a funny quote. Some of his gems from his Thursday press conference:
• "The two times I've won, I putted with a Claw, the Claw grip. And my wife thinks I'm an idiot."
• "I'm a pretty bad putter, typically. I mean I'm like 181st. I didn't even know there was that many people on TOUR."
• "It's Golf 101, keep your head still when you putt. I hadn't written it down or something."
• To see what MacKenzie said in his press conference, click here.
TOP 125 UPDATE (3:10 p.m.) -- Some updates from players around the 125 bubble as the final groups make the turn at the Walt Disney Resort ...
| Players on the Top 25 bubble | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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BETTENCOURT ON FOWLER (2:55 p.m.) -- Matt Bettencourt is in with a 67 on the Palm Course, but in the media center he was asked about Rickie Fowler, who is still in the lead after finishing with a 66 two hours ago.
"He's not fearing anything. He's got nothing to lose either," Bettencourt said. "Just turning pro. He had a great tournament there at the Frys.com Open and I played with Rickie earlier in the year in his first TOUR event, we got paired together the first two days in Hartford and obviously I knew about his amateur career and he's just a great kid.
"Rickie's a great person and it's going to be great for this TOUR. He's just a nice guy. He's very approachable and he's got one heck of a game and he plays with no fear, so you can only expect some good things coming from Rickie."
KODAK CHALLENGE UPDATE (2:35p.m.) -- Melanie Hauser wrote this week that Bo Van Pelt, who is in second place behind Kevin Streelman in the Kodak Challenge, must eagle the par-4 17th at Magnolia this week to tie Streelman.
Van Pelt didn't play the Magnolia Course on Thursday, but he received a faint bit of hope on Thursday. As we mentioned below, Charles Warren managed to eagle the hole when he holed his approach from 134 yards out. Still, the hole is playing tough: Besides Warren, only five people have managed to even birdie the hole.
Streelman, who played the Palm Course on Thursday, can clinch the $1 million Kodak Challenge with a birdie on Magnolia's 17th in any of the final three days, assuming he makes the cut. Streelman shot 70 in Round 1, so it looks like he will have the opportunity.
It's been a crazy couple of years for Streelman, who went from q-school graduate to solid PGA TOUR professional in a very short span.
"I was never a silver spoon kid. I was never a country club member anywhere. So it's been a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication," Streelman said. "Winning the Kodak Challenge] would be a huge blessing. We could help out a lot of people and family members, and it would be a huge blessing.
• To view the Kodak Challenge standings, click here.
HOT START FOR WITTENBERG (2:15 p.m.) -- Rookie Casey Wittenberg has just birdied five of his first six holes over at the Palm Course. At 159th on the money list, he will need a finish at least in the top three to have a chance at retaining his card.
Wittenberg has earned $365,277 in 2009. Most of it ($193,500) came when he tied for seventh at the Travelers Championship in June.
TOUGH OPENING DAY (2:05 p.m.) -- High winds in the Orlando area have helped made scores higher this year than in 2008, when the field rolled over both courses at the Walt Disney Resort.
The longer Magnolia Course still yielded a scoring average of 70.378 in 2008. With temperatures breaking cracking 60 and winds in the 15-20 mph range, the field is averaging 71.655 in Round 1.
CAREER YEAR CONTINUES FOR HAAS (1:45 p.m.) -- Bill Haas is 63rd on the money list, a career high, and he's got a shot to move a lot higher after a 68 on the tougher Magnolia Course on Thursday.
As predicted, the longer Magnolia Course isn't giving up a lot of low scores in Round 1. Haas is the only player on the Magnolia Course to shoot 4 under or better.
Haas, one of the longest hitters on TOUR, has drastically improved his short game during his four full years on TOUR. He's also improved his driving accuracy while remaining around the 300-yard mark in driving distance.
Haas will get his hands on the easier Palm Course in Round 2, so look for him to have a major impact on the weekend at Disney.
FOWLER FINISHES WITH FLOURISH (1:10 p.m.) -- Rickie Fowler now has nine straight rounds in the 60s in the Fall Series.
Fowler, fresh off two top-10s, is in good shape for PGA TOUR card after his opening 66 at the Palm Course. It remains to be seen whether his 66 will be good for the Round 1 lead, but for now, he leads at 6 under.
Fowler's hot run in the Fall Series hasn't come as a total shock to the 20-year-old.
"It's not like my game's all of a sudden elevated to come crazy level or anything," said Fowler, who lost in a playoff at the Frys.com Open last month. "You know, I'm just playing my game, and I've put together some pretty good rounds and been able to save myself at times."
DUVAL NEEDS HELP TO MAKE THE CUT (12:47 p.m.) -- David Duval, 125th on the money list, will need to go very low on the Magnolia Course on Friday if he hopes to secure a PGA TOUR card for 2010.
Duval shot a 76 on the easier Palm Course after hitting just four of 14 fairways on Round 1. He made only one birdie and struggled with 31 putts.
It is not known whether Duval will enter the final stage of q-school, but he hinted this week that he is prepared to ask for sponsor's exemptions to get into events in 2010.
"A lot of what the PGA TOUR is about, what professional golf is about, is relationships and loyalties," Duval said. "And you know, I would think that, you know, they know I play in Los Angeles every year and they know I play at Pebble Beach every year. They know I play at, you know, you name it.
"There's certain events I always play, or eight or nine out of 10 times I'm eligible, you know, I'm at those events, supporting them and being there. And I think that goes somewhere."
Here is a look at Duval's card:
THESE GUYS ARE GOOD ... AND SAFE (12:21 p.m.) -- Not everyone around the top 125 bubble this week is playing for a PGA TOUR card. Several players are in the same boat as Will MacKenzie, a 2008 winner who is still leading at 5 under.
Chez Reavie, a 2008 winner who has struggled in his sophomore season, is 147th on the money list but exempt through 2010. The same goes for Carl Pettersson, who won in 2008 but has only recently started to regain the form that made one of the game's brighter young stars.
| I'm glad I won last year | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Players outside the top 125 who are exempt for next year due to PGA TOUR wins in 2008: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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FAMILY AFFAIR (11:55 a.m.) -- Brandt and Haymes Snedeker are paired together in the first round over at the Palm Course as Haymes makes his PGA TOUR debut.
Haymes is currently 3 over, while Brandt is 1 under.
Haymes, a lawyer and judge in Fairhope, Ala., received a sponsor's exemption into the field after winning "The Big Break: X" on the GOLF CHANNEL.
WELCOME BACK, WILL (11:30 a.m.) -- Will MacKenzie is currently 5 under on the day on the Palm Course as he concludes a strange season on TOUR.
MacKenzie has only made eight cuts in 23 starts, but he has three finishes inside the top 15, including a final-round 68 on a tough final day at Muirfield Village that gave him a top-10 at the Memorial.
Since then, there have been mostly lows for the 35-year-old. He went through a four-tournament stretch this summer where he failed to break 70, including an opening 84 at the PGA Championship. He's also made just one cut in the Fall Series.
Even through he's 130th on the money list, his card is secure for next year thanks to his victory in the 2008 Viking Classic.
The key to MacKenzie's struggles this year? Putting. MacKenzie's putting woes -- he's 183rd in Putting Average and 182nd in Putts Per Round -- make it hard for him to take advantage of his remarkable ballstriking ability.
ROUGH START FOR ADAMONIS (11 a.m.) -- Excellent column this week from Craig Dolch on Brad Adamonis, who is fighting to keep his PGA TOUR card after dealing with a difficult year off the course this season.
Writes Dolch: "A month ago today, Adamonis lost his father, Dave, 63, after a four-year battle with cancer that was so severe and up-and-down, the elder Adamonis was given last rites by a priest three times as he fought off five forms of cancer.
"So even though Adamonis is among those players outside the top 125 facing a pressure-packed week at the PGA TOUR's final event at Disney World, he's learned these last 48 months what truly is a tough spot." (read the full column here).
Unfortunately, Adamonis is off to a rocky start on the Palm Course, going 5 over on his first six holes.
FOWLER, LOVEMARK PAIRED IN FIRST TWO ROUNDS (10:37 a.m.) -- Rickie Fowler and Jamie Lovemark, the former amateur standouts who provided the biggest headlines of the Fall Series when they squared off in a playoff at the Frys.com Open last month, are paired together at Disney the first two days.
One has to wonder whether these two will also be paired together on the weekend.
Fowler and Lovemark are both already in red figures as they play the easier Palm Course at the Walt Disney Resort. The shorter Palm Course was by far the easiest course on the PGA TOUR in 2008, and both Fowler and Lovemark will need to take advantage early.
When asked about this week, both players said they were ready for the q-school route if things didn't pan out at Disney.
"I'll just kind of, you know, see what happens," Fowler said. "You know, like I said, if I finish Top 10, we don't have to go, and then if not, we're going to Q-School. So you know, I'm not really expecting to go either way. Just kind of seeing how the week plays out."
Lovemark's path is tougher. If he doesn't perform well this week, he's headed to the second stage of q-school next week at Deerwood Golf Club outside Houston.
"You know, it takes guys out here, four, five, six years to get their TOUR cards," Lovemark said. "No one does it that soon. Anthony Kim did it. Dustin Johnson did it, Webb Simpson did it. Those guys have done great getting past Q-School and the Nationwide Tour, but it's not easy at all.
"It's going to be a grind to get past just Second Stage and finish Top 125 in the Q-School proving grounds out there."
FINAL SHOT FOR A ROOKIE WINNER (10:10 a.m.) -- We have still not had a rookie winner this year, and Derek Fathauer and Jeff Klauk are all near the lead early in the first round. All are currently sitting 3 under.
If Klauk wins, there will be an interesting debate as to who will win Rookie Of the Year. Klauk has made $1.2 million this year to easily retain his card for 2010, but Australian Marc Leishman finished 16th in FedExCup points after catching fire in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. Obviously, a win would give Klauk the outright money title for rookies, and the fact that he was the only rookie to win would play heavily in his favor.
Fathauer sits 203rd on the money list after just eight made cuts all year. Realistically, Fathauer must finish solo second or better to avoid another trip to q-school.
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| Marc Leishman's stellar run in the Playoffs enabled him to take the money lead among rookies: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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EARLY EAGLE BOOSTS WARREN (10 a.m.) -- Charles Warren, 144th on the money list and trying to regain the card he lost after the 2008 PGA TOUR season, is 3 under today after jarring his approach on the 485-yard 17th on the Magnolia Course, which is playing 50 yards shorter after officials opted to use a forward tee. At 34, Warren remains one of the best drivers on the PGA TOUR -- he's 12th in Total Driving -- but his putting has held him back all season.
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