Monday Finish: Duncan breaks through for first win at The RSM Classic

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic – For the second day in a row, Mackenzie Hughes ended his round with a little bonus. Hughes, who shot a 6-under-par 66 Saturday to move into the top-10 in Punta Cana, chipped in for birdie on the par-4 18th for his seventh birdie of the day. This came after he ended Friday’s round with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 9th. “I was walking up 18 thinking about what that round could have been,� admitted Hughes, who missed three birdie putts inside of 10 feet on the back nine. “I was kicking myself thinking, ‘man, if I had got a couple more I could have been right there.’ That, on 18, erased a couple of those.� The 66 matched Hughes low round of the season. His first round of 2018-19 at the Safeway Open was also a 66. Hughes finished T-13 last week at the Valspar Championship, which was his best result on TOUR since a T-8 at the 2018 RBC Canadian Open. This year’s Canadian Open is at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, where Hughes – who’s from nearby Dundas, Ontario – has played upwards of 50 times growing up. Although he’s looking forward to a home game that week, he said it was nice to reflect back on a solid result in Tampa as well, which came after missing four-straight cuts. “It’s not like if I miss four cuts in a row I was playing poorly. But you get a little down and the self-talk gets going the wrong way,� said Hughes, who won The RSM Classic in 2016. “Last week I flipped that self-talk around a little bit. Playing with those guys – like Bubba (Watson) on the weekend – seeing your game up against those guys … they’re not doing things much different than I am. It’s a putt here and there, and I felt like I was close. “Seeing that result definitely gave me a boost coming in here.� Hughes admitted he hasn’t yet got fully adjusted from last week’s tight Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort to this week’s wide-open Corales Golf Course. He said Sunday at the Valspar Championship putts that were downhill and down-grain would be rolling about 18 on the stimpmeter. He said this week there likely isn’t a putt over 10 on the stimpmeter. “The greens are good, it’s just a mater of getting yourself to hit it that hard. I’ve left putts inside of 15 short. It’s hard to do on a normal week,� said Hughes. “It’s been the biggest adjustment … a bit more aggression and committing to getting to roll the ball past the hole.� Away from the golf course Hughes has had to make an adjustment to his family’s new normal. The 28-year-old and his wife, Jenna, welcomed their first child (a boy, Kenton Robert) in 2017. He credits Jenna – his “rock-star wife,� he says – for allowing him to do what he needs to do to keep working on his game. After last year, he said he’s in a fun stage of life with Kenton, who is about 18 months old. “He’s talking and walking like a little man,� said Hughes, “it’s been really fun. It’s been a lot easier this year for sure. “It seems very normal, and I couldn’t imagine it any other way than it is now.� Although he admitted it was a steep learning curve last year, Hughes has turned a corner as he looks to build off of a good result last week, and some good play so far in Punta Cana.

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Caddie Confidential: Bonuses and Rory scuttlebutt

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RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico — Brandon Wu birdied the final two holes for a 5-under 67 and the second-round lead Friday in the PGA TOUR’s Puerto Rico Open. Wu played the back nine in 4 under at windy Grand Reserve. He birdied the par-4 12th, par-5 15th, par-4 17th and par-5 18th to reach 11-under 133. “It was kind of a grind,” Wu said. “I missed a short putt kind of early on in the round, made a bogey I think on my fourth hole. I kind of just had to keep my head down and play well on the back.” The 24-year-old former Stanford player got into the field through the Korn Ferry Tour points list. He won the Korn Ferry Tour Championship in August, and tied for 14th last week in Florida in the first Korn Ferry event since early October. “I think my game is in a good place,” Wu said. “It was good to see kind of the things I worked on during the offseason paying off. I did well last week, so that definitely gave me some confidence coming into this week.” Greg Chalmers was a stroke back after a 68. The 47-year-old Australian also birdied his final two holes, the par-3 eighth and par-4 ninth. He had a hole-in-one on No. 8 in the opening round. “The wind was really blowing,” Chalmers said. “I didn’t have the greatest control, and my short game really held me in good stead. I made some nice saves from sort of 6, 8 feet for par. It’s a little tricky to putt when the wind is blowing like this. And then I hung in there and started to see some better swings and better shots going into the back nine.” Home star Rafael Campos and South Africa’s Branden Grace were 9 under. Campos rebounded from a bogey on 17 with a birdie on 18 for a 69. “I think I was just getting a little ahead of myself and I was missing a little bit to the right,” Campos said. “But I was missing in the correct spots. I really was. Which I’m happy with that today. I really never gave myself that many looks to score better, but I managed to deal with the situations as good as I could.” Grace shot 68. Jhonattan Vegas (68) and Cameron Percy (69) were 8 under. First-round leader Tommy Gainey followed his opening 65 with a 76 to enter the weekend at 3 under. Ian Poulter also was 3 under after a 70. The tournament is being played opposite the World Golf Championship event in Florida. The winner will get into the PGA Championship in May.

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