FRYS.COM OPEN, Jonas Blitx wins Maiden Tour Event

 

Jonas Blixt/Laberge/Getty Images

Jonas Blixt won the Fry’s.Com Open, for his maiden US PGA Tour victory, with a tournament total of -16 under par.  Swede Jonas had a half-dozen fans walk the round with him wearing Swedish yellow ribbons, with “Jonas” written on white T-shirts, the support seemed to focus Jonas on the task in hand. He said his putter was a nuclear weapon, and the statistics proved the point, with him returning putting rounds of 25-28-27-25, for a tournament-best total of 105 putts. He finished first in strokes gained-putting and was ranked third in SGP coming into the week, he did not have a three-putt all week. Jonas also sported bright orange shoes, belt and shirt, very sort of  Rickie Fowler.

Jonas said he really wanted to be a hockey player;

” I was more interested in hockey, I wanted to be a hockey player, it’s the greatest sport ever, the lockout just kills me. I never really got big enough or good enough to play. Golf kind of suited me pretty well. The weird part is I’ve been working on some stuff with my swing, and I wasn’t feeling completely 100 % about my swing, I just told myself; Just give it a good hit every time and see what happens. Just focus, you can’t do anything better than your best. That’s what I did on every shot. You learn something every time, last week I didn’t play very well in the final round. I got a little too cute with some shots and wasn’t aggressive enough.”

Tim Petrovic and Jason Kokrak tied for second, with Tim posting a last round of 64, and Jason had  a 68, with both players finishing on -15 under par for the tournament.

Tim eagled the par-5 ninth hole, hitting a 2-iron to 2 1/2 feet, and making the putt to take the lead, he said;

“I think we were about 240 yards into the wind, hit into the bank and it bounced right up there. Almost went in. I played today like I was going to have to Monday qualify next week, and I played it like the Monday qualifier. That was kind of my mindset when I started today. I was going to play like a one-day shootout. Throughout my career I’ve always done well in the Monday qualifiers, I guess because I just kind of dial in, focus. I tried to have that mentality today.”

Jason also had an eagle, on the 17th hole and then closed with a par.

“It’s just nice to play well this week, it gives me confidence going into the rest of the year.”

 

Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Ryan Moore Wins

Ryan Moore/Halleran/Getty Images

Ryan Moore , who lives in Las Vegas, won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on Sunday at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada with a last round of -5 under par 66, and a tournament total -24 under par. This is Ryan’s second PGA Tour title, he finally shook of the challenge from Brendon de Jonge by grabbing a birdie on the par 5 16th hole, to take the outright lead and then finished with two pars for a -5 under par 66 and a one-stroke victory over Brendon. Ryan said the challenge from Brendon was tough;

” The last couple of days were tough, I was shot for shot with Brendon, and he was playing some great golf. I was able to make a birdie down the stretch when it mattered to hold him off at the end. He was playing great and he was hitting the ball really well, and he was making putts, I tried not to get too wrapped up into what he was doing really for the last two days. I just tried to keep my head and just keep hitting my golf shots, and playing the golf course how I wanted to play it and just give myself opportunities.”

Brendon de Jonge, from Zimbabwe had to settle for second place alone, he unfortunately managed to miss the fairway on the 560-yard par 5 16th hole. He eventually finished with a last round of -4 under par a 67 and a total of -23 under par. Brendon rued the missed fairway on 16, he said;

” Today, playing a little bit down breeze, all you’ve got to do is get one in the fairway, it’s almost a mid-iron in there, so that was definitely a turning point, you know, the bad tee shot there. I played nicely all week, hats off to Ryan. He played great, especially down the stretch. He made a couple tough shots in there on 17 and 18, and he pulled them off when he needed to.”

Jonas Blixt finished in third place alone, he had a disappointing last round of -1 under par 70, with a total score of -20 under par for the tournament.

An Acrimonious Aside

Justin Timberlake has been dropped as the Host of this tournament, it is suggested he was not visible enough for the Shriners people. Did not get involved enough with the day-to-day running and promotion of the Children’s Hospitals or the kids themselves  Although Shriners grudgingly announced that Justin did;

“Fulfill his obligations to the tournament and helped raise several million dollars. He wasn’t able to generate greater interest in the tournament, and his star power wasn’t enough to lure bigger-name players to the event on a consistent basis”.

The tournament chairman, Raoul Frevel,  was very specific about why they were not interested in continuing;

“Justin’s a wonderful person. But we tried everything we could to get him more involved with our kids and the hospitals. But it seemed that when the TV cameras weren’t on, he disappeared.“

Last week Justin was unresponsive with the local media at the Ryder Cup, and this week a Charity is suggesting that his volunteer participation was found wanting.

Not sure what the real deal is here, but Justin has been the host of the Shriners Hospitals for Kids for four years, it will be interesting to see who Shriners pick next as the Host, who will bring the “bigger name players” to the tournament.

The Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Three Tied at the Top

Justin Timberlakes Shriners Hospitals for Children Open has three players tied at the top of the leaderboard after the third round at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jonas Blixt/getty images

Rookie Jonas Blixt roared back into contention here at TPC Summerlin converting six birdies in his last seven holes to be tied at the top of the leaderboard with Ryan Moore and Brendon de Jonge at -19 under par for the tournament. Jonas is trying  to join John Huh and Ted Potter Jr. as the only rookie winners this season.

These three players have a five-shot cushion between them and Jimmy Walker and Tim Herron, who are tied for fourth at -14 under par for the tournament. Two shots further back are Colt Knost, Jason Day, Jason Bohn and Russell Knox at -12 under par.

I wish good luck to Jonas Blixt in his quest for his first win on the PGA Tour.

Justin Timberlakes Shriners Tournament, Blixt & Moore Tied at the Top

 

Jonas Blixt of Sweden is tied at the top of the leaderboard after two rounds  at Justin Timberlakes, Shriners Hospitals for Children Open,  at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada. Jonas has produced two very steady rounds of -7 under par 64 and a tournament total of -14 under par. He shares the lead with Brendon de Jong from Zimbabwe, Brendon followed his opening round of -9 under par 62, with second round -5 and 66 for his -14 under par total.

Jonas thinks that having his family and some overseas friends with him this week, has helped him to relax and not think too much about playing golf;

“I think it’s a lot of things that make me play well this week. I got my family in town, my brother and my sister, a couple friends from overseas, which makes it really relaxed. We’re renting a house together and just having a good time. I don’t think about golf at all coming off the golf course. Just hang out with them. It’s easy to think about something else when you’re in Las Vegas, right. I’ve been working a lot on my ball-striking the last few weeks when I’ve been off, it’s not really there yet, but I got a hot putter and it’s been helping me out a lot the last two days.”

Just one shot behind them is first round leader Ryan Moore who had an amazing first round of -10 under par, 61. Ryan followed that with a modest -3 under pa, 68, for his -13 under par total. Ryan is very happy with his position after two days;

“It was a good, solid round, I definitely would have liked to have seen a few more of those putts drop. But I hit good putts all day. They were just burning the edges, lipping out. All in all, I like my position going into the weekend.”

The combination of desert air and altitude in Las Vegas helps the ball fly through the air more easily, there are 82 players that have averaged 300 or more yards per drive. That sort of distance off the tee for these professionals makes TPC Summerlin a breeze for quality players, the top scores are testament to that.

Major winner John Daly had eight birdies, an eagle and two bogeys to match the best round of the day, John said of his round today;

“Today, I hit the ball really well and I putted good the last two days, which is good for me. The greens are rolling really good, so it gives you an opportunity. If you hit it decent, you can make some putts. But on any tour it’s just putting. If you make some putts you can play really well. This course gives you a lot more opportunities than most courses.”

 

HP Byron Nelson Championship, Jason Dufner Wins

Jason Dufner Carroll/Getty Images

Jason Dufner birdied the 18th hole to win the HP Byron Nelson Championship at TPC Four Seasons Resort,  Irving, Texas, by one shot from Dickie Pride. Jason had a last round of -3 under par 67 for a tournament total of -11 under par. This is Jason’s second Tour win in four weeks, and also the second of his career. This win gives Jason the lead in the FedEx Cup standings. Jason was pleased with his weeks work;

 ”Great week for me golfwise. Tough conditions throughout the week. Today was easier. That’s why I think you saw the leaderboard jam up there toward the top, made for exciting golf toward the end. Good bit of guys had a chance to claim the trophy.It was nice to have a birdie putt there at the end to win, and not to be in a playoff for once. So just all in all a great week the last month. You couldn’t ask for anything more professionally or personally, for what’s been going on”

Dickie Pride was alone in second place on -10 after his -3 under par last round. Dickie enjoyed his tournament and also praised Jason;

 ”It was fun. Apparently that was not a very difficult putt on 18, from the long right !!  It was downhill about a cup and a half out, and I made it, and I was pretty happy about that. Jason made a great putt. He’s a really good player.I think we’re all seeing that, we’ve known that, now he’s just winning tournaments, but I have a lot of respect for Jason. When we had our pro-am in Tuscaloosa for Tornado Relief, he was the first guy. He said, “I’m coming, I’m bringing a team and how can I help,” and that says a lot about him. For a guy that doesn’t say much, that says a lot about him. I’m happy for Jason. He went to Auburn, everyone is making a big deal about that, but he married a woman from Alabama to show him around, guys, someone has to do it!

Four players tied for third spot at -9 under par, they were; Joe Durant, Marc Leishman, Jonas Blixt and J.J. Henry. Unlucky J. J. stood on the par three 17th tee with a one shot lead, but an errant club selection saw him airmail the green, and he suffered a double bogey 5, to drop out of contention. The seven iron was way too much club, Phil Mickleson by comparison hit just a wedge onto the same green. Phil finished tied for 7th place on -6 under par for the tournament.

J.J Henry talked about 17;

 ”Obviously it’s disappointing. I played great all day, and to be honesty thought I had a great shot on 17. I hit the line exactly where I tried to, and it carried about 6 or 7 yards too far and it’s disappointing but that’s golf. You take the good with the bad. Great crowds out here. Everybody was very supportive. To play so well for that long, and actually like I said, I thought I had a good shot on 17 but the golf gods thought otherwise. I’m happy. This is the best I’ve played here, carry momentum into Colonial, right there where I live, and it’s always fun to play at home.”

Phil Mickelson enjoyed the week with his family, apart from his poor golf form;

“We had such a great week. There was so much to do here in Dallas: The two Ranger games, water parks. She and I had a special week, and I really had a great time here. This is a well-run event and I’m happy I was able to come back., I didn’t strike it well this week, and when the wind came up this week my misses were magnified and I hit into some crazy spots. Today there wasn’t any wind, they were more playable and manageable, and I was able to get hot with the putter. It’s not like I knocked down the flag by any means, but I tried to make some on the greens.”

 

Ernie Els finished tied for 41st place at 1 over par, another sad tournament for the South African Major winner.

Next week is the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial CC, Ft. Worth, Texas, where the defending champion is David Toms.