Windy conditions drive Round 1 scores up
BOCA RATON — It was a “hold on” kind of day for Friday’s first round of the windy TimberTech Championship at Broken Sound Club.
As in hold on to your hat. Try to hold on to a good score. And, hopefully, hold on to a spot in the top 36 of the Charles Schwab Cup standings.
Fittingly, considering the difficult situations, former major champions Padraig Harrington and David Toms were among the four players tied for the lead after 4under 67s. They shared the top spot with Shane Bertsch and K.J. Choi.
“I just kept my head down there in the wind,” said Harrington, who will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame next year. “There were a lot of real tough shots. At times, I felt like I was playing well, but other times you had to do the best you could to somehow make a par on the hole.”
In addition to the wind, the players were also adjusting to the renovations made by Hall of Fame architect Rees Jones last year to the Old Course. The par was dropped from 72 to 71 while the degree of difficulty was increased.
“I knew the setup guys were trying to figure out where to put the tees and pins, and as players, we’re trying to figure it out, too,” Toms said. “I made my only bogey on the 11th hole when they had a back-left pin. I tried to get cute and hit it back there and made bogey instead of just playing to the right and making par. I paid the price.”
Only 19 players broke par on Friday. The average score was 71.96. The field averaged 3.1 birdies a round.
Even the ones at the top of the leaderboard were struggling to hold on to their rounds. Bertsch was 6-under through 15 holes, but failed to birdie the par-5 16th and made bogeys on the last two holes, including a missed 2-footer at No. 18.
“It was a great round, but a little rocky finish there,” Bertsch said. “I kind of lost my focus at the end. Really disappointing to miss that 2-footer on the last hole with some side wind, but I played incredible.”
Choi had the day’s wildest round, making eight birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey for his 67. Choi said back issues led to a couple of errant swings. So did Mother Nature.
“I don’t know why, but I felt very comfortable today with a low, cut shot,” Choi said. “The conditions were very difficult. There are some tough shots out there with the narrow fairways. And the greens are getting firmer every day. They were soft earlier in the week. Now they are taking a hard bounce.”
The 2003 Masters champion, Mike Weir is tied for fifth with Stuart resident Ken Duke and Marco Dawson after 68s. Two other major champions, Tequesta’s Justin Leonard and Vijay Singh, are tied for eighth with 2021 champion Steven Alker at 69.
Hall of Famers Ernie Els, Bernhard Langer are off to so-so starts
Hall of Famers Ernie Els of Jupiter and Bernhard Langer, a three-time TimberTech champion, had so-so starts. Els made two birdies and a bogey for a 1-under 70 and is tied for 14th.
Langer also had an uneventful scorecard with two birdies and two bogeys. He’s tied for 20th with a 71.
“It was tough out there,” Langer said. “I hit some really good shots and hit some poor shots. I had to fight for the score I got. I missed some birdie opportunities, but at the same time, I made some good pars. I didn’t shoot myself out of the tournament. It’s certainly a tougher golf course than it was.”
The conditions are supposed to ease over the weekend, but the Old Course remains a stout test. Reading the new greens has been a struggle for most of the field.
“You’ve just got to keep playing solid golf, picking the spots, and stay in control with the wind,” Toms said. “And I’ve got to hit the ball solid. It always helps to hit it in the middle of the clubface. And if you get in trouble, you’ve got to get it and try not to be too aggressive.”
Four players have the lead after 18 holes. Who can hold it?