CA Championship, Round 1
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
ROUND 1 FINISHED (6:15 p.m.): The first round of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship is over and this is what we know: The 18th hole is really difficult.
The par-4 finishing hole at TPC Blue Monster at Doral played as the toughest on the golf course, yielding a 4.647 scoring average and just five birdies (one of which came from a bunker hole-out). It also had an effect on the top of the leaderboard with Vijay Singh and Ernie Els both suffering penalties on the hole. In all, there were a dozen balls that found the water.
The result of all that is Charl Schwartzel holding a one-shot lead by himself. Schwartzel didn't make a single bogey on Thursday and took just 25 putts (fourth-best in the field). He has plenty of company, though, with 15 players within three shots -- including Singh and Els. -- Brian Wacker
MICKELSON ADDING ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL (5:35 p.m.): Phil Mickelson didn't play the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship due to a family vacation. He also didn't get off to a strong start on the West Coast with a tie for eighth at Pebble Beach his highest finish.
So Mickelson wanted to add a tournament prior to the Masters -- and he said Thursday he'd chosen the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard. He'll also play the Shell Houston Open the week before the season's first major.
"I feel like that will give me a chance to be a little bit more competitively ready heading in," Mickelson said.
Immediately, reporters wanted to know what he thought about recent reports that Tiger Woods would return to competition there. Mickelson, however, deflected those queries.
"Well, as soon as a statement comes out, I'll talk about it, but since that's not been confirmed, I'll hold off," he said.
Mickelson has played at Bay Hill 10 times, most recently in 2008. He won the tournament in 1997, finished second in 2001 and was third in 2002. -- Helen Ross
MORE FROM SCHWARTZEL (5:10 p.m.): With the wind gusting over 25 mph on Thursday, Charl Schwartzel wasn't exactly expecting a lot when he teed off in the first round. A bogey-free 67, though, had the young South African at the top of the leaderboard when he finished after Robert Allenby closed with four consecutive bogeys.
"I didn't think 67 was out there today at the beginning of the day with the wind as strong as it was," Schwartzel said.
But with three of the par-5s playing downwind there were some opportunities and Schwartzel was quick to take advantage. He started on the back and rolled in a 43-foot bomb at the 11th, then got up and down from beside the green at the par-5 12th.
Schwartzel turned 2 under and promptly added three more birdies in his first four holes. He two-putted from 29 feet at No. 1, holed it from the 58 feet on the fringe at the second and made a 9-footer at the fourth.
"I played a lot of good rounds in my career, and yeah, this one rates right up there," Schwartzel said. "It could even be at the top. It was difficult. You couldn't mess a shot. You miss a shot on this course, as we've seen -- I just saw Robert Allenby, I didn't know he finished 4 under. He was playing some really good golf. But that's what can happen on this golf course. There's so much trouble out there, especially with this type of wind." -- Helen Ross
ALLENBY STUMBLES IN (4:55 p.m.): So much for that hot start Robert Allenby got off to. He went from challenging the course record at one point to bogeying each of his last four holes to finish with a 4-under 68. That's the bad news.
The good news is that Allenby is just a shot back of the lead on what's been a very windy day at TPC Blue Monster at Doral. Allenby hit just one fairway and zero greens in regulation over those four holes and paid the price for it. He also missed a 4 1/2-footer on No. 17 and missed from 5 feet on No. 15. -- Brian Wacker
SCHWARTZEL BOGEY-FREE (4:39 p.m.): Charl Schwartzel, who already has two wins on the European Tour this season, is in the clubhouse with a 5-under 67. Despite hitting just half his fairways and only 11 of 18 greens in regulation, the South African didn't have a bogey in what was a windswept day at TPC Blue Monster at Doral.
Schwartzel isn't the only one without a bogey on the card, though. Ernie Els, who is 4 under through 12 holes, has also yet to make one. -- Brian Wacker
Below is a look at Schwartzel's scorecard from Thursday. Click here to replay his round with Shot Tracker.
STENSON'S STRIP DOWN (4:18 p.m.): A year ago, Henrik Stenson unwittingly became a pin-up calendar candidate when he stripped down to his skivvies to play a shot from the water at the third hole of TPC Blue Monster during the first round.
He managed to avoid the pond there on Thursday, but the reigning PLAYERS champ didn't mind reminiscing about the incident earlier this week.
"That turned into a much bigger thing than I would ever imagine, that picture traveled the world in seconds and made some headlines all over the place," Stenson admitted. "So afterwards, it was a fun thing. You've got to look at the funny side of life, really, and it was definitely something out of the norm, and I guess I've got as much attention for that as the good results in the past."
Stenson said he has a couple of the photos at home. The Swede is interested in getting a full "swing" sequence, though.
"It's funny when you see how focused (caddy) Fanny (Sunesson) is and she doesn't even realize, and I'm standing there in my boxer shorts," he said. "That's dedication for you. " -- Helen Ross
SCHWARTZEL NEAR LEAD (3:55 p.m.): As mentioned earlier, two spots in this week's field went to the top two finishers on last year's Australasian Tour Order of Merit. One of those spots went to Alistair Presnell, who is otherwise ranked 373rd in the world. Another spot went to the top two players on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, which is how Charl Schwartzel got in the field (though he is ranked 35th in the world).
Schwartzel is currently one shot off the lead at 5 under with two holes left in his round. In addition to his world ranking, Schwartzel has also won twice on the European Tour this season with victories at the Joburg Open and the Africa Open. -- Brian Wacker
OGILVY FALTERS (3:43 p.m.): As well as Geoff Ogilvy played his first five holes -- he made four birdies -- he played his last four holes the complete opposite, making two bogeys and a double bogey to fall back to even par through 10 holes.
Ogilvy has struggled with the driver, especially the last few holes. He missed the fairway on Nos. 6, 7, and 8 and also missed the green on 6 and 7. He also missed the green on No. 9. For the day, Ogilvy has hit just two fairways. -- Brian Wacker
THE HOLE STORY (3:35 p.m.): How difficult is the par-4 18th hole at TPC Blue Monster playing? It's the hardest hole on the golf course with a stroke average of 4.690 without a single birdie from the green all day. The one birdie it has yielded? Luke Donald's hole-out from the greenside bunker. The 443-yard hole has also surrendered nearly as many bogeys (11) as pars (12) and there have been five double bogeys made there. -- Brian Wacker
| Inside the numbers: No. 18 at TPC Blue Monster at Doral | ||||||||||||||
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MICKELSON UPDATE (3:25 p.m.): It looks like Phil Mickelson's use of two drivers today -- one high-lofted, the other low -- isn't exactly paying off. Lefty has hit just three of 10 fairways so far. Mickelson has also hit just seven of his 13 greens in regulation and is even for the day with two birdies and two bogeys through 13 holes. -- Brian Wacker
MATCHING EAGLES (3:18 p.m.): At one point today, Lee Westwood was 4 over after four straight bogeys to close out his first nine holes in 40. That didn't last long, though, as he eagled the par-5 first hole and followed with a birdie on No. 2.
Westwood wasn't the only one in his group to eagle the 529-yard first, though. Martin Kaymer did as well. Westwood two-putted from just inside 22 feet, while Kaymer did the same from 15 feet, 5 inches. -- Brian Wacker
BABY BOOM (3:10 p.m.): Henrik Stenson isn't the only new dad is competing in the CA Championship this week.
Luke Donald and his wife, Diane, welcomed Elle Georgina into the world on Feb. 26. Their first child was eager, too -- she arrived four weeks early.
Donald skipped last week's Honda Classic -- a tournament he won in 2006 -- and scaled back his practice time at TPC Blue Monster to spend more time with his family. Not to worry. He's currently 2 under through eight holes in the first round. -- Helen Ross
ALISTAIR WHO? (3 p.m.): Most of the top players in the world are in the field for this week's World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. There are a few exceptions, though, like Alistair Presnell.
The Aussie, who is 373rd in the Official World Golf Rankings, earned a spot for being in the top two on last year's Australasian Tour Order of Merit. So far, he's taking advantage of the opportunity, playing his first eight holes in 2 under to sit in a tie for fifth. -- Brian Wacker
ALLENBY CONTINUES TO GO LOW (2:35 p.m.): Robert Allenby just made his fifth birdie of the day -- he also has an eagle -- to get to 7 under through his first 10 holes. That puts him within two of tying the course record if he find two more birdies the rest of the way. There's still a par-5 left, but not many birdie opportunities beyond that with Nos. 13, 14, 15, 17 and 18 all ranking among the nine most-difficult holes on the golf course right now. -- Brian Wacker
ALLENBY TURNS IN 30 (2:10 p.m.): The wind is blowing at a steady 20 mph, but that hasn't stopped Robert Allenby any. The Aussie -- who grew up playing in the wind in Australia -- has four birdies and an eagle through his first nine holes. The latest birdie came at No. 9, where he hit his approach to 10 feet, 1 inch and made the putt.
How impressive is this, Allenby has missed just one fairway and one green in regulation. He's also taken just 11 putts.
Allenby has company, though, with fellow Aussie Geoff Ogilvy just two shots back after birdies on four of his first five holes. -- Brian Wacker
MCILROY STRUGGLING (1:50 p.m.): The other marquee player in Phil Mickelson's group, Rory McIlroy, isn't faring nearly as well as Mickelson. McIlroy has struggled with his accuracy all day, hitting just two fairways and three greens in regulation through his first eight holes.
McIlroy did birdie the par-5 12th, but he's since given that back and then some with bogeys on three of his last four holes. He missed the green on all three of those holes -- Nos. 14, 15 and 17 -- and wasn't able to get up-and-down on any of them.
McIlroy hasn't exactly played great on the PGA TOUR this season, either. At the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship, he was knocked out in the second round. At last week's Honda Classic, he tied for 40th.
The biggest problem for McIlroy? His driving and his iron play. He's hitting just over 55 percent of his fairways (158th on TOUR) and just under 57 percent of his greens (185th on TOUR). -- Brian Wacker
MICKELSON OFF TO SOLID START (1:35 p.m.): Phil Mickelson is putting on his usual short-game display today at TPC Blue Monster at Doral, where's 2 under through his first six holes. More importantly, though, he's scrambled well after hitting just three of his first six greens in regulation. Mickelson's longest putts of the day? A couple of 9 footers. Other than that, everything else has been 5 feet and in. (Click here to follow Mickelson live with Shot Tracker.) -- Brian Wacker
GOING LOW (1:22 p.m.): Robert Allenby has three top-10s this season and could be headed toward another one with the kind of start he's off to. The Aussie has three birdies and an eagle through his first six holes, missing just one fairway and one green in regulation while taking only six putts.
The course record at TPC Blue Monster at Doral, in case you're wondering, is a 61, shot by Stephen Ames in the second round of the 2000 tournament. Ames went on to finish eighth. -- Brian Wacker
SENDEN, ALLENBY OUT FAST (1:05 p.m.): John Senden and Robert Allenby share the early lead at 4 under here at TPC Blue Monster. Senden has four birdies in his first six holes, which includes a 32-foot bomb on the par-4 second. Allenby, on the other hand, has two birdies and an eagle. The latter came on the par-4 fifth, where Allenby holed out from 114 yards. -- Brian Wacker
TEE TIME UPDATE (1 p.m.): Due to the threatening weather forecast for Friday, tee times have been moved up. Players will be sent off the first and 10th tees from 8-9:55 a.m. There is an 80 percent chance of rain on Friday with an accumulation of between 2-3 inches by Saturday morning. The rain is expected to be heavy at times. -- Helen Ross
YANG'S STRUGGLES CONTINUE (12:40 p.m.): It's still very early in Y.E. Yang's round, but he's off to a slow start at 3 over after a bogey on the par-4 third and a double bogey on the par-4 fourth hole.
Last week, Yang played with a slight muscle tear in his back. He missed the cut in Phoenix then went home to Dallas and didn't touch a club for three days. While Yang says he feels better, he admitted to feeling "undergolfed" coming into this week.
"I've never really played well on this golf course, it's always been an enigma for me," Yang said. "If I finish better than 30th here I'll be very satisfied." -- Brian Wacker
STENSON OFF BABY DUTY, FOR NOW (12:25 p.m.): One of the enduring images of Henrik Stenson's win last year at THE PLAYERS Championship was when his 2-year-old daughter, Lisa, ran out onto the 18th green that Sunday and wrapped his leg in a pint-sized bear hug.
Well, Lisa now has a little brother, Karl, who was born on Friday in Orlando. The Stensons went with the Swedish spelling -- with a K -- for the new baby who weighed in at 7 ½ pounds and 21 inches.
"His grip is getting a little bit weak though so I had to tweak that on Saturday," the proud papa said with a mischievous grin. "But he's learning quickly."
Stenson has taken a break from diaper duty to play in the World Golf Championships-CA Championship this week. The 2007 Accenture Match Play Championship winner just teed off and birdied his first hole, two-putting from 43 feet. -- Helen Ross
KUCHAR OFF TO FAST START (12:10 p.m.): Matt Kuchar didn't waste any time getting to the top of the leaderboard. He just eagled his first hole of the day -- the 551-yard 10th -- with a hole-out from the greenside bunker.
Expect to see a lot of low scores on No. 10, which ranked as the second-easiest hole on the golf course last year. Below is a look at how all the holes played here last year. -- Brian Wacker
| Hole-by-hole summary, TPC at Doral (2009) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WHAT WILL PHIL DO? (12 p.m.): Is this the week that Phil Mickelson wins? He's the defending champion here at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship, but he hasn't exactly had a stellar start to his season with just one top-20 in four events. Not that Mickelson is too worried about that.
"When we come to Doral, that is when kind of the heart of the season is starting to occur," he said in his teleconference for this event a couple of weeks ago. "They react better for iron shots into the greens."
Mickelson didn't arrive in Doral until Wednesday night -- not a huge surprise since he knows the course well enough not to worry about practicing there and there was no Wednesday pro-am.
Here's another inside-golf type reason why Mickelson should fare well here: The MiniVerde-type grass on the greens. "For whatever reason, I've been able to putt these greens much more successfully," Mickelson said.
Though Mickelson ranks 109th on the PGA TOUR in putting this season, his 1.79 average isn't terrible. The real problem has been the driver. Mickelson is hitting just over 51 percent of his fairways. That said, he hit just 29 of 56 fairways in winning at TPC Blue Monster last year. -- Brian Wacker
WEATHER OUTLOOK (11:45 a.m.): The weather for the first two rounds of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship doesn't look too promising. The skies are gray right now, and the possibility of rain increases to 50 percent by 2 p.m.
Friday looks even worse with an 80 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms -- with the rain heavy at times. The total accumulation over the next 48 hours is expected to be between 2-3 inches.
The weekend looks much better, though. The skies will begin clearing on Saturday and the sun will return. Temperatures will be in the upper 70s each day. -- Helen Ross
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