PENDRITH UP ON FINAU IN DETROIT
Taylor Pendrith grew up getting breaks from golf, putting the clubs away each winter in Canada.
That may have helped him when he had to miss nearly four months of competition due to a painful injury earlier this year.
Pendrith shot a 7-under 65 on Friday to take a one-shot lead over Tony Finau in the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club.
Pendrith and Finau shared the first-round lead at 8 under and will be in the final group today, pairing a 31-year-old PGA Tour rookie with a 32-year-old veteran coming off his third career victory.
Pendrith is playing in his third tournament after being unable to swing a club for 12 weeks due to a broken rib, a break reminiscent of his youth.
“We have a long offseason in Canada, so I didn’t touch a club all winter basically growing up so I guess I’m kind of used to it in a way,” he said.
Pendrith tried to pull away Friday, opening with four straight birdies and six in his first 10 holes.
Finau, meanwhile, started slow with only one birdie on the front nine before carding five on the back. He has a shot be the first player to win two straight regular season tournaments since Brendon Todd in 2019.
Rookie Lee Hodges (66) was three back. Cameron Young tied a course record with a 63.
Potter just short at Juinors
Luke Potter of Encinitas was within reach of his second consecutive semifinal appearance in the U.S. Junior Amateur, but Wenyi Ding of China advanced in their quarterfinal match, 1 up.
Potter and Ding were tied until Ding birdied No. 16 at Bandon Dunes, Oregon, and both players had pars on the way in, leaving Ding with the slimmest of margins of victory. Potter, who prepped at Classical Academy, is headed to Arizona State.
Notable Henrik Stenson
had a happy return to golf after being removed as European Ryder Cup captain, making eight birdies in his LIV Golf Invitational
debut at Bedminster for a 7-under 64 to share the 18-hole lead with Patrick Reed.
Phil Mickelson’s return to the area wasn’t entirely happy. As he was teeing off at Trump National Bedminster, a spectator yelled out, “Do it for the Saudi royal family!” Mickelson shot a 75.
• Lydia Ko shot a second straight 7-under 65 to lead by two strokes after two rounds of the LPGA Scottish Open. Ko remains bogey-free. American golfer Lilia Vu shot 67 and was alone in second.
• American golfer Sean Crocker held his one-stroke lead at the Hero Open after shooting 6-under 66 in the second round of the European tour event at Fairmont St. Andrews.