The First Look: Rocket Mortgage Classic

Players took advantage of Augusta National in Saturday’s third round. Will the powers that be allow that to happen again Sunday? Can Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed provide some more Ryder Cup-like fireworks? Can Rickie Fowler make a charge?

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On the PGA TOUR, victories come in astounding fashion, arguably every single day. Sure, one player will be crowned champion each Sunday, but through the unparalleled efforts of its players, so many others reap far greater rewards. Those are the ones who receive the prize of things like food and shelter, medicine – and, even life. More inspiring than the hard-charging assaults TOUR players put on the courses is the collective soft heart they are driven by to turn those courses into platforms. No player on TOUR epitomizes that M.O. more so than Paul Casey. So, here’s the deal with just part of Casey’s commitment to UNICEF. It’s not a well-known tidbit of information, for recognition isn’t what drives the three-time TOUR winner. For every birdie he makes in any professional event – PGA TOUR or otherwise – Casey donates $100 to UNICEF. He doubles the amount for eagles. RELATED: Leaderboard | Amateur with one arm makes hole-in-one | How Phil became a social media star “Paul is a true champion for children in all that he does,â€� said Shanell Mosley, Deputy Director of Sports Partnerships at UNICEF USA. “He wears the UNICEF logo on his golf bag with so much pride and continually educates fans about UNICEF’s work, advocates on behalf of the rights of children around the world and raises crucial funds for the world’s most vulnerable children.â€� Since 2016, Casey has raised more than $300,000 for UNICEF. During the second round of The American Express at PGA West in La Quinta, CA., Casey’s amateur partners were Jimmy Dunne, vice chairman at Wall Street investment banking firm Piper Sandler, and investment banker, Adebayo Ogunlesi, a managing partner at the private equity firm Global Infrastructure Partners. An idea entered Casey’s head. “Yesterday, I asked Steve Squeri, the CEO of American Express, if he wanted to match my pledge, since I’m paired with him on Saturday at the Stadium Course,â€� Casey said. “He said, ‘Yeah, brilliant’.â€� Casey made the same ask of Dunne, with whom he has been friends for years.   “He’s such a good guy,â€� Casey said. “So, I pitched the idea to him this morning, and he goes, ‘Yeah, I’m in. But I’m going to do one better than that,’.â€� Dunne would offer $1,000 for every birdie Casey made and $10,000 for every birdie he made. He also pledged $10,000 for birdie he made himself in Friday’s second round. “I made five, but the beautiful thing about this story is that Jimmy’s a good player,â€� Casey said. “He hit some great shots, but this is a difficult golf course, and I could see him, he was trying so hard. He missed a few putts for birdie, but then we got to the 15th hole and that’s when it all changed.â€� Dunne hit his tee just into the right rough, leaving himself 165 yards from the hole. For an eagle, he holed his approach shot. “He comes running up the hill with the biggest smile on his face,â€� said Casey. “He said we had never discussed eagles. I told him that was completely at his discretion.â€� Dunne would offer up $25,000 for the feat. In addition, Dunne secured a matching amount from Ogunlesi. “And it gets better, because on the next hole Jimmy almost flies it in for an eagle,â€� Casey said. “The ball ran to the back of the green and then he holed it for a birdie, which is another $10,000.â€� When the group finished their round, Casey did some quick math and informed Dunne and Ogunlesi that – all in – they were each in for $40,000. Dunne, though, took issue with Casey. “Jimmy looks at me and says ‘We can’t, 40 is no good’,â€� Casey said. “He looks at Adebayo and suggests $50,000 each…to UNICEF. Adebayo said ‘Sure’.â€� “I was immediately stunned when I heard the news,â€� said Mosley. “In fact, I had no words and it made me rather emotional because I could hear the joy in Paul’s voice.â€� “That’s what’s cool about these events to me,â€� Casey said. “Yes, somebody’s going to win at the end of the week, but it’s the impact that it has on people’s lives that truly makes the difference. Golf and the PGA TOUR are the platforms that allow these kinds of things to happen. It’s the coolest.â€� “He has an incredibly big heart and is so passionate about the work that UNICEF does,â€� said Mosley. “He continues to leverage his platform to make a difference for children and it means so much to the UNICEF family. We speak about the resiliency of UNICEF staff in the field and in a very real sense, Paul is an extension of our team. He won’t stop until every child has their basic needs met such as access to health care, clean water, nutrition, and education.â€�  As is the case for every TOUR player, some finishes are better than others for Casey. But, when he knows his every swing helps give children across the world a greater chance of getting into some swing of normalcy, he carries on, head held high. “He continually uses his platform for good and to raise awareness about UNICEF’s lifesaving work for children,â€� Mosley said. “We are also incredibly grateful to the individuals that accepted Paul’s birdie challenge and for their generous contribution. I can guarantee this is a story that many of us will never forget. Who would have thought a round of golf could literally save a child’s life?â€� Apparently, Paul did. For more information or to donate to UNICEF, visit unicefusa.org/wontstop

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — In what already was the toughest pre-cut round at THE PLAYERS Championship in 15 years, Justin Thomas and Bubba Watson managed to play bogey-free Saturday in ferocious wind on a day of far more spills than thrills. RELATED: Full leaderboard | High winds wreak havoc at THE PLAYERS The rain finally cleared out and the TPC Sawgrass got even more terrifying with gusts that approached 40 mph on a Stadium Course that can be punishing even in calm conditions. Where that leaves Thomas (69) and Watson (68) won’t be determined until Sunday when the second round is completed. The rain-plagued tournament is so far behind that 27 players have yet to start the second round. Thomas and Watson shared the clubhouse lead at 3-under 141. They left in a tie for 15th, and six of the players ahead of them had not finished a single hole. Kevin Kisner reached 6 under in his second round until missing a short par putt on No. 4 and going from rough to water for a double bogey on the next hole. He shot 74 and was at 2-under 142. Dustin Johnson birdied his final hole for a 73 and was at 142, with two double bogeys on the par 5s over 36 holes. The course was so saturated by rain that it took 54 hours, 16 minutes from Adam Schenk hitting the opening tee shot Thursday morning to Brendan Steele holing out early Saturday afternoon to complete the first round. Tom Hoge goes into Sunday with his name atop the leaderboard. He still has played only 18 holes. He opened with a 6-under 66 on Thursday and was tied with Tommy Fleetwood, who was even par through three holes when play was suspended. Those who spent more than six hours on the course Saturday held on for dear life, especially when they came to the notorious island green on the par-3 17th. Over two days, only four players hit into the water. On Saturday when play resumed, the first four players couldn’t find the green. Scottie Scheffler had the wind die and went long into the water. Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka caught a gust and came up short, as did Collin Morikawa in the group behind them. By the end of the day, 29 balls had gone into the water. The average score for the second round when play was suspended was 75.37, and it was certain to go higher Sunday morning. The average was 75.41 for the opening round in 2007, the first year THE PLAYERS was in May. The highest ever for the opening two rounds was 76.19 in 2000 when it was in March. Scoring tends to get lower after the cut. The highest average score for any round was 76.51 in the third round of 2005. “Insane,” Thomas said to describe the challenge. Keegan Bradley (71) spoke of hitting a 9-iron from 96 yards on the 12th hole dead into the wind, and the same club from 206 yards with the wind at his back on the par-5 16th. The forecast was for temperatures in the upper 30s when play was to resume Sunday morning and wind not quite as fierce but still challenging. Thomas thought he was going to end up on the good end of the draw when they started out Friday in soft, still conditions in the rain. Returning to 30 mph wind on Saturday morning to finish the round and then facing 18 holes of that in the afternoon? Not so much. “There’s always one person who play good on the bad side of the draw,” Thomas said. “I kept saying, ‘Be that guy.’ I’m very proud of myself today.” So many others went the wrong direction. Schauffele was 4 under for his opening round, two shots out of the lead, when he hit into the water on the 17th and did well to salvage a bogey. But on the 18th hole — playing so long into the wind that some players needed fairway metal to reach the par 4 in two shots — Schauffele drew such a bad lie in the rough that he advanced it only about 15 yards. From there, he hit into the water. After a drop, his pitch had so much spin into the wind that it rolled back some 75 feet back into the fairway. He finished bogey-quadruple bogey for a 73, and then shot 78 in the second round. Koepka was 3 under when he returned and was just left of the par-5 16th in two. It took him four shots to get down, he put his tee shot in the water on the 17th for double bogey and shot 72. He followed that with an 81, matching his highest score on the PGA TOUR. Asked to describe the 17th, Koepka said, “It’s luck.” He hit 8-iron from 205 yards on the 16th hole in the morning. He estimates his 8-iron on the 17th going the other direction went 105 yards in the air, and then some 20 feet to the bottom of the pond. Tour officials tried to prepare with easier pins for the second round, slightly raising the cut of the greens the last two days by not rolling them since Friday. The second round was to resume at 8:15 a.m. That will be followed by the third round, which would not end until Monday morning. The tournament still was likely to finish Monday evening.

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