Woods makes winning move with Reed pick

HAMILTON, Ontario – Graeme McDowell has played Royal Portrush upwards of 500 times in his life. He wants to add a few more rounds to that total. McDowell has yet to qualify for this year’s Open Championship in Northern Ireland and with it returning to Portrush for the first time since 1951, McDowell, who grew up there, would love the chance to be in that field. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.   But he said he’s been wrestling for months with “the Portrush dilemmaâ€� and has accepted his fate. “I’m thinking of putting a statement out on Twitter and saying I appreciate everyone’s concern,â€� McDowell said with a smile. “But I’m pretty much come to terms with the fact that if I play well between now and Portrush I will play. “If I don’t play well between now and Portrush I won’t and I’ll deserve not to play. I’m OK with that.â€� McDowell has a chance to earn an exemption into the event if he finishes as one of the top-3 finishers this week (inside the top 10) who haven’t yet earned a spot since the RBC Canadian Open is one of four TOUR events that are part of The Open Qualifying Series. The other events include the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Rocket Mortgage Classic, and John Deere Classic. McDowell was in contention earlier this year at the Arnold Palmer Invitational after the first day, but fell back with an over-par score on Friday. This week, however, he backed up his opening 5-under 65 at Hamilton Golf and Country Club with a 3-under 67 Friday to sit just three shots back of the midday lead. He found the winner’s circle for the first time since 2015 at this year’s Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, but that victory did not earn him a spot in The Open. Although Corales Golf Club could not be more different than Hamilton, through two rounds, McDowell has made the Canadian parkland layout feel like it’s the Punta Cana paradise. He said the speed of the greens is similar, for one. They’re “slow-ishâ€� he said, but that’s mostly a product of how much slope there is to them. “You can’t get them too quick because they would be really silly. They’re at a pace where we’re a little unused to it. But the slope on those greens, when you get an uphill putt, you have to hit it uncomfortably hard. I think growing up on slow-ish greens, I adapt well. The Dominican, when I won there, they were very slow. They are a nice what I call ‘make’ pace,â€� he said. McDowell said in the last two days, he’s also driven the ball the best he has since his win in the Dominican Republic. He’s had a consistent run on the PGA TOUR the last year or so – he’s missed just one cut all season – and he credits his putting for that. He’s in the top-10 in Strokes Gained: Putting this season. But while his steadiness has been rewarded with a solid standing in the FedExCup standings and his first win in nearly four years, there’s still that one tournament that’s not yet locked in on his schedule. McDowell’s best result at The Open Championship is a T-5 in 2012 at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club, and he knows there has never been a special exemption awarded to a player into The Open Championship. But this week he said he’s got his mind on the Canadian Open, and will let the chips fall where they may. “I could be (at Portrush) and miss a cut and think, ‘well, what was all the fuss about?’ I would rather play well this weekend and let Portrush take care of itself,â€� he said. McDowell has a bit of a Canadian connection – beyond just being part of Team RBC – as the best man at his wedding was Tristan Mullally, who is now the head coach of Golf Canada’s National Team. Mullally, a longtime friend, said McDowell knows the process leads to the end goal, so he wasn’t surprised to hear McDowell say he’s shifted his mindset slightly. “That’s what any good athlete would say and think,â€� said Mullally. “The reality is, he was a part of having that Open there and he knows the history and the last time it was there more than anybody. He feels like its something he had to be a part of, not just wants to be a part of, but had to be a part of.â€� McDowell knows if he makes The Open Championship field there will be a lot of hometown pressure. His record at the Irish Open, an event on the European Tour, is “pretty awful,â€� he said, because of the extra focus. “The fans and spectators want you to do well, and you feel that little bit of extra weight on your shoulders. It’s not something I’ve dealt with well with over the years. It could be a mixture of pressure and maybe the Guinness tastes too good in Ireland,â€� said McDowell with a smile. Still, before he has to deal with hometown pressure, he has to get into the event first.

Click here to read the full article…

null

Click here to read the full article…

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic – Chip McDaniel saved the best for last this week in Punta Cana. McDaniel, who was co-medalist at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship Monday Qualifier in Miami two weeks ago, shot a 9-under-par 63 Sunday to move into the top-10. “That was a lot of fun, man,â€� said McDaniel with a smile. “I’ve been hitting it great all week and yesterday I made five birdies and shot one under and didn’t putt very well, just a couple mistakes. I cleaned those up… I saw a few go in today, that’s all it takes.â€� His 63 featured 10 birdies, and was the round of the tournament. It was McDaniel’s second TOUR start – he played the 2018 Barbasol Championship and made the cut after getting a sponsor invite – after a decorated college and junior career that saw him win the Kentucky State Amateur twice. He also was named the Kentucky Junior Amateur Champion for three straight years. McDaniel, who is playing Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada Q-School in April, said his wins as an amateur helped him get into a good mindset Sunday on the PGA TOUR. “The Kentucky Amateur, the last one I won in 2017, that was really big for me because I hadn’t won a golf tournament in two years, so it was nice to close a tournament out,â€� he said. “Just like this, you know, I’m not going to win, but I finished with a great round the right way and that really helps my confidence a lot.â€� The University of Kentucky alum said he put an old putter back in his bag about three days before travelling to Punta Cana, and the return did wonders for him on the green. The native of Manchester, Kentucky had college teammate Evan Cox – who qualified for this season on the Mackenzie Tour via Q-School earlier this year – on his bag this week. The two worked well together, McDaniel said, since Cox knows McDaniel’s game better than almost anyone. McDaniel, via his top-10 result this week, will now tee it up next week at the Valero Texas Open, and is looking to parlay his good play Sunday into more of the same. “I’m just now thinking about it. I’ve seen the golf course on TV a few times,â€� he said. “Not very many times, but I’m excited.â€� This will be the third time this season a Monday Qualifier has finished in the top 10 (Aaron Baddeley, T4 at Safeway Open; Corey Conners, T3 at Sony Open).

Click here to read the full article…