Coleader Fowler stays hot in the desert
Rickie Fowler came to The American Express for the first time in six years to prepare for the next two weeks at Torrey Pines and TPC Scottsdale.
He’s ahead of schedule, shooting 8underpar 64 on Friday at PGA West’s Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course at La Quinta (Riverside County) for a share of the secondround lead with Scottie Scheffler (64).
At 15under 129, Fowler has the lowest 36hole score of his PGA Tour career. Andrew Landry was a stroke out of the lead after a 64.
“It was nice to get a little work in, get some good practice and play out here in the desert to get used to being back in the desert,” said Fowler, who grew up about an hour away in Murrieta. “It’s been very beneficial. I looked at that as something that was going to be the best opportunity for me to go into this West Coast swing to get the game where I want to and to play well.”
Tournament host Phil Mickelson needed a low round Saturday at the Stadium Course to make the cut after rounds of 70 and 72 in his first start of the year.
LPGA Tour: Canada’s Brooke Henderson parlayed four birdies and a late eagle into a share of the lead at the seasonopening Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions at Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Henderson, No. 3 in the Rolex Rankings and the highestranked player among the 26 LPGA players in the field, had a 5under 66 to join seventime major champion Inbee Park (68) of South Korea at 9under 133 heading to the weekend at Four Seasons Golf and Sports Club Orlando.
In the 49player celebrity and entertainment division, which competes for a purse of $500,000 (the LPGA’s purse is $1.2 million), Baseball Hall of Famer and Fox analyst John Smoltz, the event’s defending champion, surged into a threeway tie for the lead with former tennis player Mardy Fish and U.S. military veteran Chad Pfeifer, who plays with a prosthetic left leg.
Champions Tour: Woody Austin scrambled for birdie on the par4 18th to take the lead into the final round of the seasonopening Mitsubishi Electric Championship in Hawaii.
After the wind carried Austin’s drive far right, he hit a low 4iron out of the rough to 12 feet to set up the closing birdie at windy Hualalai. He had a 4under 68 to get to 11under 133, a stroke ahead of Bernhard Langer. Ernie Els, making his senior debut, followed a 72 with a 65 to get to 7under.
European Tour: Francesco Laporta earned a oneshot lead halfway through the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship after carding a 9under 63 to move to 10under, while topranked Brooks Koepka struggled to a 75.
Koepka, who was tied for 35th, is playing his first tournament since October, when he aggravated a knee injury that caused him to miss the Presidents Cup.
Briefly: Reliever Craig Stammen, 35, on Friday finalized a twoyear, $9 million contract to remain with the Padres, who hold an option for a third season that could make the deal worth $12 million. Stammen led the Padres with 76 appearances last season, going 87 with four saves and a 3.29 ERA. To make room for Stammen on San Diego’s 40man roster, lefthander Nick Margevicius was designated for assignment . ... The Cubs acquired reliever Casey Sadler from the Dodgers for minorleague infielder Clayton Daniel. Sadler had been designated for assignment Wednesday after spending most of last season with the Dodgers (40, 2.33 ERA in 24 appearances) . ... The Red Sox acquired lefthander Matt Hall from the Tigers for minorleague catcher Jhon Nuñez.