Storm washes out play day for amateurs
Stormy weather forced the cancellation of the Shell Houston Open ProAm, as 1½ inches of rain fell on the Tournament Course at the Golf Club of Houston on Wednesday.
Fortunately, the weather forecast for the remainder of the week is better, calling for little chance of rain. At least until Sunday’s final round, when there is a 70 percent chance of showers.
Before the rain arrived, lightning forced a suspension of the pro-am around 10 a.m. Shortly after 1:30 p.m., PGA Tour officials announced the pro-am was canceled and that all facilities were closed.
In the previous 10 years of the SHO, the only weather issue during a Wednesday pro-am was a frost delay in 2013.
Thursday is expected to be partly cloudy, Friday mostly sunny, Saturday partly cloudy and on Sunday, thunderstorms are likely. Wind is expected to be west-northwest at 1020 mph Thursday, southeast at 10-20 mph Friday, southeast at 12-22 mph Saturday and southeast at 10-20 mph Sunday.
Crane hobnobs with the pros
Astros owner Jim Crane was among the many disappointed pro-am golfers who got washed off the course Wednesday. But making it out to the Golf Club of Houston at least gave him a chance to connect with several of the PGA touring pros whom he has gotten to know from playing Crane’s course, the Floridian, in Palm City, Fla., which he bought in 2010.
Crane, in fact, lined up one of them, Rickie Fowler, to throw out the first pitch at the AstrosCubs exhibition game Thursday night at Minute Maid Park.
“I was joking with him, saying, ‘Rickie, how hard can you throw?’ ” Crane said. “He said 78 (mph) and I told him, ‘That won’t cut it. Just flip it in there. Don’t hurt yourself.’ ”
Crane, a 3-handicap golfer himself these days — “I don’t get to play as much as I’d like, so I’ve dropped a little,” he said — was Jimmy Walker’s partner in the AT&T Pro Am at Pebble Beach in February.
Crane was on the course for five holes Wednesday morning before lightning strikes in the area called a quick halt to the proceedings. Drenching rains followed, making the course unplayable
“It’s too bad,” Crane said, “but you don’t want to be out there in that stuff.”
He still has a fun weekend ahead of him. In addition to the Astros being back home to start the season, Crane is holding a private grandopening party at his posh new Italian restaurant, Potente, across Crawford Street from the baseball stadium Friday evening. It was scheduled in order for his golfer buddies — and Astros, too, of course — to be able to attend.
Short game so far Scott’s strong suit
Adam Scott made the decision to add the Shell Houston Open to his 2017 schedule by changing his approach the week before he plays in a major.
“Part of my plan for the rest of the year is to play the week before the majors and doing something a little different than I have the past few years,” Scott said.
Scott, the 2007 SHO champion, is making his first appearance in the SHO since 2010. At one point during a 10-year stretch from 2001-10, Scott played here six times.
In three starts in 2017, Scott finished tied for 11th at the Genesis Open, tied for 14th at the Honda Classic and tied for 45th at the WGC-Mexico. Scott said he has been average from tee to green by his standards.
“My short game has actually been the one thing I’ve been quite pleased with,” Scott said. “If I can bring the striking (of the ball) up to where it’s at, which I feel like it’s pretty much there, then I feel like I can do some good things the next couple of weeks.”
Spieth grew up a fan of event
Jordan Spieth is making his fifth appearance at the Shell Houston Open. But the 23-year-old played on the Tournament Course at the Golf Club of Houston in junior tournaments conducted by the American Junior Golf Association.
“I love this tournament, this golf course,” Spieth said. “It’s a fantastic event, one I grew up watching.”
Playing this tournament as a 14-year-old, Spieth recalls the course, then known as Redstone Golf Club, as being quite long.
“It was a very big golf course,” Spieth said. “Back then, I couldn’t reach a few of the par 4s in two.”
Stenson admires Johnson’s feats
Henrik Stenson has been playing outstanding golf over the last two years. He’s No. 5 in the world rankings, won the 2016 British Open at Royal Troon and finished second to Jim Herman in last year’s Shell Houston Open.
Stenson is somewhat in awe of what Dustin Johnson, the No. 1-ranked player, has been accomplishing on the course of late. Johnson, who withdrew from the SHO on Monday, has won his last three tournaments, including last weekend’s Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin.
“It’s always fun to see when someone gets on a run like that and getting their game together,” Stenson said. “I bet if you ask him, he feels the game is pretty easy at the moment.
“It’s good fun to see. And the rest of us, we’re going to try hard to get in the same place and try to challenge him.”