Flores leads Open by just 1 stroke
Soft greens playing to American’s strengths at RBC Canadian Open
OAKVILLE, Ont. — Martin Flores is the kind of golfer who likes to attack a golf course. Get after every hole, take chances. The unusually soft greens and fairways at Glen Abbey Gold Course are playing right to that instinct.
Flores shot a 6-under 66 on Friday for a 12-under lead through two rounds at the RBC Canadian Open, taking advantage of a playing style he honed on the Web.com Tour last season.
“Playing on the Web last year was a little refreshing in that you have to shoot so low. So no matter if you’re in the lead or if you’re chasing, it’s always — you’re always attacking. You’re always trying to make birdies,” said Flores after his morning round on the rain-softened fairways and greens.
“That’s kind of a similar situation with how the rain has been this week. You just have to keep attacking.”
A rainy summer and a thunderstorm that delayed play on Thursday’s first round left the normally firm Glen Abbey soft, with some of the low ground still muddy by Friday night. That just plays to Flores’s strengths.
“The course is perfect,” he said. “But it is a little soft right now, especially coming into the greens as compared to previous years. So the birdies are going to be out there for sure. Unless the wind picks up, but I think it’s very gettable.”
Flores wasn’t the only one enjoying the conditions. Gary Woodland nearly tied the course record with a 9-under 63 to share second place with Matt Every (68) at 11 under and challenge Flores’s lead.
“I just had everything clicking today,” said Woodland, who wasn’t aware of Leonard Thompson’s record 62 from 1981 until after his round was done.
“I’ve been playing well for a long time and just haven’t put all the aspects together. Today I drove it well. Obviously the ball-striking was good and I saw some putts go in, and that adds up to a pretty good number.
Every started the day in a five-way tie atop the leaderboard with Ollie Schniederjans, Hudson Swafford, Brandon Hagy and Kevin Chappell. Every continued to play well after declaring on Thursday night “I didn’t plan on sucking for the rest of my life,” as the other four fell back on the leaderboard.
On Friday, Every added: “Normally I struggle off the tee. But it’s been pretty good off the tee the last few weeks. I just haven’t made anything. I got a new putter this week, and it’s kind of a placebo effect probably. I’ll make my putts for a couple weeks and then start putting bad again probably.”
Matt Kuchar, who struggled with dizzy spells during the first round, shot a 68 to finish the day in a tie for 46th at 5 under.
Meanwhile, Jhonattan Vegas. as he makes his way around the course, his thoughts are back home in Venezuela.
Vegas, the reigning Canadian Open champion, shot a 3-under 69 on Friday to stand at 9-under through the first two rounds.
But as he spoke to reporters, Vegas talked about the situation in his native land, where opposition leaders in Venezuela have called for nation-wide demonstrations after leftist President Nicholas Maduro dispatched 370,000 troops across the country and has forbidden protests ahead of Sunday's election.
"It's really sad to see what's happening there," Vegas said. "Obviously our government, it's just not doing things right.
"It's really an authoritarian government which they want to do things their way and that's it. As a citizen, it obviously hurts.
“I still have family there that are suffering trying to find food, medicine. Obviously being here and living in the States, it's something sad to see."
Sunday's election was called by Maduro to create a "constituent national assembly" that would rewrite the constitution at his request. Opposition leaders, fearing the electoral process is stacked against them and Maduro would get sweeping new powers, are trying to block the election.