Tour Championship. Patrick Cantlay Leads.

Patrick Cantlay leads the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia.

Patrick started the day with a two shot lead, at -10 under par, over his nearest rival, curtesy of the staggered scores system. His -3 under 67 consolidated his position at the top of the FedEx Cup rankings, still a  lead of two shots over World #1 Jon Rahm, from Spain, who fired the low round of the day -5 under par 65, for a -11 under total.

Patrick is not easing off, he is concentrating on the job un hand;

“I think being in the spot that I’m in, it would be easy to get ahead of yourself and easy to maybe stray from your game plan because you feel like you’re ahead, and that’s just not helpful, so I’m not going to do that.”

Jon was not fazed by the task ahead of him, he started the day four back of Patrick;

“It’s very easy to get caught up on how far back you start, I don’t think I really once thought about it out there. I was just trying to post a score.”

“My job is to hit the best shot I can each time, and that’s all can I control. So I can’t be thinking of what the people ahead of me are doing. And I think that applies to tomorrow as well.”

“Maybe on the weekend you think about who is leading, who is not, but try to think about it as a regular event and not how much distance I got to make up.”

“Obviously, 72 holes, it’s a lot of holes and four shots is not that much.”

Sharing third place, five shots back of the leader, at -8 under par are; Harris English, who carded a Hole In One at the par three 15th hole, signing for a -4 under 66 today, and Bryson DeChambeau who only manage a -1 under 69 for his opening round.

Harris mentioned his Ace;

“Making a hole-in-one there is pretty special. Number 15 you’re just really trying to make par, just trying to hit it to 20 feet.”

“I don’t know how loud I got. I kind of blacked out there for 15 seconds.” 

If anyone is to catch the two leaders they are going to have to go very low tomorrow.

Omega European Masters. Rasmus Højgaard Wins.

Rasmus Højgaard of Denmark wins the Omega European Masters at  Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club in Switzerland.

Rasmus carded a bogey free final round -7 under par 63, five under for his last six holes, to win the Omega European Masters by one shot at -13 under par;

“I‘m very proud. It’s very special. It’s an amazing place and I can’t wait to come back again.”

“At the moment it’s a bit surreal. I didn’t expect to be in this position but it’s amazing.”

“I knew I had to make a birdie at the 18th to have a chance to maybe get in the play-off, so we were just trying to set up a chance.”

“I made a birdie and then we had a bit of a strange ending. It was crazy.”

“That’s by far the most nervous I’ve been the whole day, over the putt at the 18th, but it’s so nice to have the crowds back to cheer you on. That was a great moment.”

Bernd Wiesberger from Austria claimed second place at -12 under par, with a last round -5 under 65, after carding a double bogey 6 on the last hole.

Henrik Stenson of Sweden was alone in third place at -12 under par, a final round -7 under 63 elevating him up the leaderboard;

“Two strong rounds this week, even though I still feel like I want to have a bit more security in my long game. That’s really the area that I’m focusing on.”

“We’ll take the positives once again and move on to Italy and hopefully we can keep on getting better.”

Volunteers of America Classic. Matilda Castren Leads.

Matilda Castren of Finland leads the Volunteers of America Classic after the second round start was held up for six hours due to rain at Old American Golf Club in Texas.

Matilda has finished her bogey free second round with a -5 under par 66 to post -10 under par at the top of the Volunteers of America Classic leaderboard, a lead of two shots. A new set of Titleist irons working very well, and Matilda, fresh off her first LPGA Tour win three weeks ago;

“They felt so good. I tried them on the range and played the practice rounds with them.”

“The only little difference was they were a little bit higher flight, maybe couple yards longer. I thought it was perfect.”

“I’ll have a little bit more rest compared to the girls that have to wake up really early tomorrow.”

“I can just sleep in tomorrow and have a nice breakfast and just chill out before the afternoon.”

Currently tied in second place at -8 under par are; Lucky Lee6, South Korea, with a completed second round of -1 under par 70, and Jin Young Ko, South Korea, who was at even par through 4 holes of her second round.

Some ladies have not yet even started their second rounds, so it will be a long day for them tomorrow.

WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. Rory Recovers With A Win.

Rory McElroy defeated Lanto Griffin in the second round of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club in Texas,

Rory had a 4-3 win over Lanto, but he still has problems progressing to the later stages because Poults had a another win today, 1 up over Cameron Smith. That puts Poults at the top of group11 with two points, and another win tomorrow would seal his place in the knock-out stages.

World @1 Dustin Johnson battled to finished all square with Robert Macintyre, and if they both win tomorrow will face each other in a play-off to go through.

Robert reflected on his lost opportunity to win today;

“You know, he holed putts when he had to hole putts. He does that to win numerous majors.”

“I’m young. I’ve got plenty of time ahead of me.”

“Obviously I was dying to win that match. I was in such a great position to do it. But he threw everything at me, and I can be proud of finishing there all square, but obviously inside I’m a little disappointed not to win.”

Dustin was very happy with the outcome;

“It was a tough match, ended up making a really good half, and definitely pleased with it.”

Justin Thomas lost again and can not now qualify for the knock-out stages.

Tomorrow is an important day for many top players, will be interesting viewing.

The Honda Classic. Matt Jones Regains Lead.

Matt Jones of Australia has the 54 hole lead at The Honda Classic, being played on the Champion Course at PGA National in Florida. Saturday was moving day, but just about everyone moved in the wrong direction, especially over the Bear Trap holes.

Matt carded a third round of -1 under 69, but is was good enough to give him The Honda Classic lead, by three shots, at -10 under par, the 40 year-old said he has plenty of experience playing in the wind;

“I got a lot more experience, a lot more gray hair, and I’ve been in this situation before, so hopefully I can just draw from that, and look back on that, and learn from that, and figure it out.”

“When you get to the back nine, you know what you’re going to expect, it doesn’t matter what the wind is doing on the back nine, it’s going to be tough no matter what.”

“I’m happy to go low with the ball flight, and I’ll probably play a little more conservative when the wind is up.”

“I’ll probably play a little safer than normal. I’m naturally a very aggressive player. I think in the wind I have a tendency to manage the golf course differently.”

Tied in second place at -7 under were Aaron Wise. +5 over 75 today, and JB Holmes with his round of -3 under 67.

Aaron was six ahead of the field at one point, then could do nothing but watch as he conceded a seven stroke turnaround over ten holes;

“It just played really, really hard, I honestly feel like I played well. The only thing I didn’t do well was manage the wind.”

“I felt like I hit it great with my irons, and not so great off the tee. I was out of position a lot. It added up to a big number.”

“Luckily, with how I played those first two days, I’m still in it, and still have a chance tomorrow.”

Magical Kenya Open. Justin Harding Has 54 Hole Lead.

Justin Harding of South Africa has the 54 hole lead at the Magical Kenya Open at Karen Country Club in Africa.

Justin had a third round -7 under par 64 to top the Magical Kenya Open leaderboard by two shots at -16 under par;

“I’ll give it my best effort, the golf course lends itself to a bunch of birdies. If you execute your golf shots and roll in a couple of putts you can certainly post a score.”

“It’s just a matter of really taking advantage of the par fives and a couple of the driveable par fours and at the end of the day just being one shot better than the next guy.”

“It’s just going to be a matter of executing plans and trying to get over the line.”

Three players are tied in second place those two strokes back at -14 under par, Scott Hend, Australia, -3 under 68 today, Kurt Kitayama, USA, -5 under 66, and a charging Johannes Veerman, USA, carding a bogey free -9 under par 62.

Alone in fifth spot is Callum Hill of Scotland he had a third round -4 under par 67.

Magical Kenya Ope. Scott Hend & Kalle Samooja Share Half-Way Lead.

Scott Hend, Australia and Kalle Samooja from Finland share the 36 hole lead at the Magical Kenya Open at Karen Country Club in Africa.

Kalle was at -5 under 66 today while Scott signed for -7 under par 64 to both be at the top of the Magical Kenya Open leaderboard with -11 under par totals.

Kalle had a hot start to his round;

“I got off to a flying start, opening with three birdies, and then I was struggling a little bit to get quality shots.”

“I don’t know why but I played the sixth hole really badly. It was just a bit of bad luck from the rough and then a bit unlucky with the second shot, coming back into the bunker and then I struggled with the short game.”

“Then a huge bonus at seven from the front of the green, I don’t know how long it was, 50 meters, maybe more, for an eagle and then a good birdie at the last so I’m really happy with how I finished the round today.”

 Connor Syme, -4 under 67 and Richie Ramsay, -6 under 65, both from Scotland, share third spot at -10 under with South African Dean Burmester, who had a second round -7 under par 64.

 

Honda Classic. Matt Jones Leads.

Matt Jones of Australia tied the course record to lead The Honda Classic by three shots on day 1 at PGA National on The Champion course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Matt was bogey free today for his -9 under 61, and tops The Honda Classic by three shots on day one, having a good day;

“It was a very good day. I struck the ball well, actually all day, and it was probably one of the better ball-striking days with my irons that I’ve had for a long, long time.”

“I actually didn’t know I made four birdies in a row until I saw it on the scoreboard on 18. I didn’t even think about it. You can’t think about that on this golf course because every hole can bite you.”

“I play golf for a living, I mean, I should be able to shoot a good golf score occasionally!”

“Now I’m done for the day. I’m going to go rest, go FaceTime my kids, and wish me luck!”

Sharing second place at -6 under par were; Russell Henley and Aaron Wise, both with first round scores of 64.

Lee Westwood had an even par round of 70, to be T43. Adam Scott, a previous winner of the tournament found water on the  par-4 11th hole, he stripped off his shoes and socks, rolled up his trousers, was allowed to move some electrical cables, and played out, to save par

   Adam finished with a -1 under par 69 to be T24.

Magical Kenya Open. Benjamin Herbert 1st Round Leader.

Benjamin Herbert from France leads the Magical Kenya Open at Karen Country Club.in Africa.

Benjamin carded a first round -7 under par 64 to lead the Kenya Open by one shot, with a birdie on the last hole;

“It was a fantastic day, I played very solid all day long. It’s been a long time since it has been like this.” 

“I played well all day, so I’m very happy.”

“My strategy worked well. I didn’t play too aggressive or hit many drivers.”

“In the morning it’ll be a little bit wetter, so maybe we can be more aggressive with the pins, we’ll see tomorrow.”

Seven players share second place at -6 under par following opening rounds of 65;Raphaël Jacquelin, Sam Horsfield,  Adrian Meronk, Bernd Ritthammer, Kalle Samooja  Calum Hill and Connor Syme.

Raphaël has not been playing too well for a while but did make the cut last week in Qatar;

 

“Qatar was my first cut in a long time, I haven’t played that great over the last two years. It’s good to be back, I feel a bit of confidence.”

“If you putt, it’s a lot easier, that’s what I did last week and today. Let’s keep that going and have some fun, fun is the key,”

“I haven’t had a lot of that over the last two years, so we’ll try and get that first.”

Sam Horsfield from England is returning to golf following an injury;

“I tore a disc in my back in Cyprus at the end of last year, then I was just getting treatment and stuff like that and I didn’t feel like I was ready for the Middle East.”

“It’s nice to be back out here with the boys competing.”

 

 

Fairway Divot Debate.

Last week Lee Westwood of England hit a perfect tee shot, on the 18th hole, needing a birdie to possibly get into a play-off. The chance was taken away from him because the ball ended up in divot, preventing Lee from playing the shot he wanted to.

Lee was very philosophical about it;

“The game was never meant to be fair.”

The rules state that you can not get relief from a fairway divot, but the rules also state that you can not improve the lie of your ball. Why is it then that after playing from a bunker the surface is then raked, to give a player a perfect lie in the bunker, a penalty area.

Is there a rule allowing raking of bunkers? after all rakes were not around in the early years of golf.

Bunkers are supposed to be a hazard, the fairway is not classed as a penalty area.

What is your view on this issue?