Tour News
Bubba takes a 3-shot lead into Saturday
You know and I know that it won’t truly begin until Sunday’s back nine. And yet… we want to believe that something that happened on Friday just might be the lynchpin in the whole mechanism.
Bubba Watson took a three-stroke lead over John Senden on day two at the 2014 Masters, thanks to a sublime, mid-round transition. His tranquil front nine exploded in roman candles with a five-birdie run on holes Nos. 12 through 16, allowing the 2012 champion to seize the lead. A final-hole bogey brought him back to the field, but his tidy 68 brought him some china as the midway leader.
On Thursday, Watson opened with a three-under 69 and proclaimed “It was really solid. You know, my whole goal? I’m not trying to look at leaderboards. I don’t want to give my secret, but I’m trying to just hit greens.” It’s the simple stuff, right? Remember when John Daly won the PGA Championship from east of nowhere in 1991? It was his caddie, the late Jeff “Squeaky” Medlin who revealed that “Kill, John. Kill.” was the only bit of advice he offered. If Bubba keeps it simple for two more rounds, watch out.
Australian John Senden made some noise of his own on Augusta National’s inward half. Birdies on Nos. 11, 14 and 15 elevated him from 1-under to a much-more-proximate 4-under, just three strokes behind the 2012 Masters champion. Senden has two PGA Tour wins to his credit, the 2006 John Deere Classic and the 2014 Valspar Championship. His record in Georgia is less than stellar, as his three missed cuts are only balanced off by a T-35 finish in 2013. So far off the radar screen was Senden that he was not one of the forty players interviewed on Thursday. And here we are, halfway through the first major of 2014 and John Senden figures prominently. After beginning Round 2 with bogeys on two of the first four holes, the Aussie played the remaining 14 holes in 6 birdies and 8 pars for a tidy 68.
Marc Leishman electrified the crowd early with birdies on his first three holes. Then came a power outage, with bogeys on Nos. 4, 5 and 7. Things continued to sour for the Aussie as he bled more strokes away on the back nine, finishing at 5-over to miss the cut by one slim stroke. In contrast, Louis Oosthuizen gave strokes back on holes Nos. 4 and 7 but never lost his resolve. A birdie on No. 8 and an eagle on No. 13 brought him to the top at 4-under. On the dangerous 15th, Oosthuizen gave three strokes back with a two-ball rinse and an unpalatable snowman 8. One more bogey on No. 18 dropped the 2010 British Open champion from his once-lofty perch to even par after two rounds.
Thomas Bjorn and Jonas Blixt, from the traditional golfing countries of Denmark and Sweden (respectively), find themselves in a tie for third place at 3-under. Bjorn has had much success across the hills of Augusta National, but has never found the recipe to complete the main course. Is it possible that, at age 43, he has reached a place in life where his emotions and his game reach equilibrium? Bjorn has placed in the top four in five major championship; 2014 might herald his arrival, as 2011 did for Darren Clarke at the British Open.
Jonas Blixt, who will turn 30 later this month, heralded his potential last Augusta at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. His fourth-place finish at the PGA Championship augured the realization that Sweden might have two contenders (Henrik Stenson being the other) for golf’s major championships. Blixt reached 4-under by the third hole on Friday, then gave back three strokes by the No. 11. With characteristic stoicism, he reached down deep and made two birdies on the way in to match Bjorn through 36 holes.
The names who missed the cut are legion: In addition to the pre-tournament favorite firm of Johnson & Johnson (2007 champion Zach and Dustin), former champions Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, Angel Cabrera and Trevor Immelman, along with 2013 PGA Champion Jason Dufner, will spend the weekend searching their swings and their souls for what went wrong. Did we forget Sergio Garcia, Graeme McDowell, Keegan Bradley, Ernie Els and Webb Simpson? Those pre-tournament favorites are also at the airport, a stroke or few too high to survive the midway pink slip.
Once again, amateurs fared poorly at Bobby Jones’ event. Of the six who received invitations, only Oliver Goss of Australia survived to play the final two rounds. The U.S. Amateur runner-up improved from an opening 76 to a 71 to survive by two strokes. As a result, he is guaranteed the Silver Cup that is annually awarded to the low amateur. Despite a valiant finish that included a birdie on the par-five 15th, U.S. Amateur champion Matthew Fitzpatrick was cut by the slimmest of margins at 5-over: one stroke.
Tied for third with Bjorn and Blixt are defending champion Adam Scott and wunderkind Jordan Spieth. Scott signed for a card of even par on Thursday, while Spieth went around in 70 strokes to match the 2013 recipient of the Green Jacket. Behind them are the ageless Fred Couples, the resilient Jim Furyk and the journeyman champion, Jimmy Walker. Fifty-one players will play on the weekend, with one solitary figure draped in a deep, leafy emerald on Sunday evening.
Care to venture a guess? Neither do I.
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.
As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.
Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.
General Albums
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Monday #1
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Monday #2
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Tuesday #1
- 2024 Zurich Classic – Tuesday #2
WITB Albums
- Alex Fitzpatrick – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Austin Cook – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Alejandro Tosti – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Davis Riley – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- MJ Daffue – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Nate Lashley – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- James Nicholas – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Kevin Streelman – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Rasmus Hojgaard – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Tom Whitney – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- SangMoon Bae – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Daniel Berger – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Rory McIlroy – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Russ Cochrane – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Aldrich Potgieter – WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Steve Stricker WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Drew Brees WITB (Legendary New Orleans Saints QB) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Derek Carr (New Orleans Saints QB) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Thriston Lawrence WITB – 2024 Zurich Classic
Pullout Albums
- MJ Daffue’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Cameron putters – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Swag covers ( a few custom for Nick Hardy) – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Custom Bettinardi covers for Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Doug Ghim’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
- Patrick Cantlay spotted testing a Scotty Cameron blade putter – 2024 Zurich Classic
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage
GolfWRX is on site this week at Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island for the RBC Heritage. Plenty of golfers who competed in the Masters last week will be making the quick turnaround in the Lowcountry of South Carolina as the Heritage is again one of the Tour’s Signature Events.
We have general albums for you to check out, as well as plenty of WITBs — including Justin Thomas and Justin Rose.
We’ll continue to update as more photos flow in from SC.
Check out links to all our photos, below.
General Albums
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Monday #1
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Monday #2
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Tuesday #1
- 2024 RBC Heritage – Tuesday #2
WITB Albums
- Justin Thomas – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Justin Rose – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Chandler Phillips – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Nick Dunlap – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Thomas Detry – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Austin Eckroat – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Xander Schauffele – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Jason Day – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Will Zalatoris – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Patrick Cantlay – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Ludvig Aberg – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Collin Morikawa – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Sam Burns – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Stephen Jaeger – WITB – 2024 RBC Heritage
Pullout Albums
- Wyndham Clark’s Odyssey putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- JT’s new Cameron putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Justin Thomas testing new Titleist 2 wood – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Cameron putters – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Odyssey putter with triple track alignment aid – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Scotty Cameron The Blk Box putting alignment aid/training aid – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Cameron putter – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Odyssey Ai One Eleven T putters – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Christian Bezuidenhout – testing new Callaway Ti 340 mini driver – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Xander Schauffele testing the Callaway Ti 340 mini driver & the DUW – 2024 RBC Heritage
- Byeong Hun An, two new L.A.B. Golf putter builds with “T” alignment – 2024 RBC Heritage
See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 Valero Texas Open
GolfWRX is on site this week at the Valero Texas Open.
The event has been around since 1922, making it one of the oldest on the PGA Tour calendar. Over the years, it’s been held at a variety of courses across the Lone Star State, but it’s found its home at TPC San Antonio in recent years. Some of the biggest names in golf have taken home the title here, including Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Lee Trevino, and Ben Crenshaw.
GolfWRX has its usual assortment of general galleries, WITBs and special pull-out albums. As always, we’ll continue to update the links below as more photos come in from TPC San Antonio.
General Albums
WITB Albums
- Ben Taylor – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Paul Barjon – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Joe Sullivan – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Wilson Furr – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Ben Willman – SoTex PGA Section Champ – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Jimmy Stanger – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Rickie Fowler – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Harrison Endycott – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Vince Whaley – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Kevin Chappell – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Christian Bezuidenhout – WITB (mini) – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Scott Gutschewski – WITB – 2024 Valero Texas Open
Pullout Albums
- Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Ben Taylor with new Titleist TRS 2 wood – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Swag cover – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Greyson Sigg’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Davis Riley’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Josh Teater’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Hzrdus T1100 is back – – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Mark Hubbard testing ported Titleist irons – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Tyson Alexander testing new Titleist TRS 2 wood – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Hideki Matsuyama’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Valero Texas Open
- Cobra putters – 2024 Valero Texas Open
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
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Ronald Montesano
Apr 13, 2014 at 6:58 pm
Well, he played better and that took care of that. Thanks for reading, Fred. Keep commenting.
Ron M.
Fred
Apr 13, 2014 at 12:23 am
If Bubba doesn’t play any better Sunday than he did Saturday, Adam Scott may be putting the green jacket on Jordan Spieth.