Big finish sends Garcia to big lead at Players Championship
A solid start turned into a brilliant one for Garcia, who finished birdie-birdie-eagle for a 7-under 65, staking the Spaniard to a three-shot lead among the early starters. Garcia was among only five players from the morning draw who broke 70 in what appeared to be ideal conditions, with only a mild breeze and a course in immaculate condition. Ad“For some reason, it just kind of fits my eye," said Garcia, who has a pair of runner-up finishes to go with his victory. He played alongside Rory McIlroy, who began his round with a double bogey from the woods on No. 10 and finish a nine-hole score of 43 by hitting two tee shots into the water on the 18th for a quadruple-bogey 8.
Spieth takes another step with a 67 to lead at Pebble Beach
Whether it's good golf or good breaks, it's making him feel a lot better about his game at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He shot a 5-under 67 at Spyglass Hill on Friday for a one-shot lead over Daniel Berger going into the weekend. Berger shot a 66 at Pebble Beach by going 2-3-2 along the ocean on a day filled will sunshine and a Pacific breeze. Mickelson hit two shots in the ocean on the 18th at Pebble Beach and took a quadruple-bogey 9 for an 80. “It’s just when it happens, it’s obviously really nice.”The cut was at 1-under 143 after 36 holes on Pebble Beach and Spyglass.
Cantlay ties course record with 62 and leads at Pebble Beach
Patrick Cantlay follows his shot from the seventh tee of the Pebble Beach Golf Links during the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021, in Pebble Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Patrick Cantlay looked just as good Thursday at Pebble Beach as the last round he played 18 days ago. That tied the course record at Pebble Beach last matched 24 years ago by David Duval, and it gave Cantlay a two-shot lead in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Bhatia hit all 18 of the small greens at Pebble Beach, the first player to do that at Pebble since Ryan Palmer in 2008. AdIt helped being at Pebble Beach, typically the easiest course when the weather is dry and relatively calm. The AT&T Pebble Beach and Honda Classic offered him exemptions.
Sungjae Im shoots 65, takes lead at The American Express
Im shot a 7-under 65 on Friday at The American Express to take a one-stroke lead over first-round leader Brandon Hagy and four others. “Visually from the tee box, it’s a course that I really like and enjoy to play, so I felt really comfortable throughout the round,” Im said. Emiliano Grillo (66), Francesco Molinari (66) and Doug Ghim (68) were two shots off the lead, and eight more were at 8 under. After splitting the first two rounds over two courses, the players will all play the once-feared Stadium Course for the final two rounds. Taylor, who also led the Sony Open after two rounds last week, shot a 66 with six birdies on the Stadium Course.
Steele takes lead with 61 to get another chance in Sony Open
Brendan Steele lines up his putt on the ninth green during the third round at the Sony Open golf tournament Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)HONOLULU – Brendan Steele knows he can play well at the Sony Open whether it's windy or calm, in sunshine or rain. One year after Steele lost a late lead at Waialae and lost in a playoff, he delivered the lowest score of his career Saturday in ideal conditions with a 9-under 61 that gave him a two-shot lead going into the final round. “You hope that you come back and you play well and erase whatever negative memories there are,” Steele said. It was wide open on Saturday, and it's not likely to be any different in the final round.
Masters field at 84 players heading into the final 3 months
55 after closing with a 77 in the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai to drop to a tie for 23rd. That he accumulated the most world ranking points (463.54) was no surprise. Johnson received credit for the victory with the staggered start based on the FedEx Cup (he tied for third in world ranking points). DIVOTSDustin Johnson earned an average of 25.75 world ranking points in his 18 starts worldwide in 2020. That's more than the total ranking points Tiger Woods earned (19.08) in the nine tournaments he played.
Out of the Woods: Tiger emerges for TV match with Lefty, QBs
Another appeal to the Sunday made-for-TV exhibition, The Match: Champions for Charity, is a chance to see Tiger Woods swing a golf club for the first time in 98 days. One difference is the players will be in their own carts, whereas the four PGA Tour players last week carried their bags. Mickelson won their first made-for-TV match over Thanksgiving weekend in 2018, a pay-per-view event that ran into technical problems and was free for all. Woods was going for his seventh straight PGA Tour victory when Mickelson beat him at Torrey Pines in 2000. After this exhibition, golf has two weeks before the PGA Tour is set to return at Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas.
Nick Taylor takes lead on glorious day at Pebble Beach
Actor Bill Murray hits a tee shot on the third hole of the Spyglass Hill Golf Course during the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am golf tournament Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, in Pebble Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Nick Taylor opened with an eagle, closed with two birdies and made a gorgeous day feel even better with an 8-under 63 at Monterey Peninsula that gave him the lead Thursday in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The iconic scenery is at Pebble Beach, especially when the surf turns a turquoise hue under so much sunshine. “A nice start,” Taylor said, referring to his 4-iron that set up eagle and the 63 that matched his low round on the tour. But we were very relaxed today, joked all day, and I felt like the mood was great.”He led by two shots to par over Patrick Cantlay (Spyglass) and Chase Seiffert (Pebble Beach), who each had a 6-under 66. “But I shot a 4-under par round and it's not going to hurt me.”The hurt belonged to David Duval, whose scorecard contained a 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.