Michael Thompson birdied two of the last three holes to win the 3M Open and secure his first PGA Tour victory since 2013.
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LAS VEGAS - It's hot in Las Vegas but Rickie Fowler is not in the mood for a swim after his chances at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open were sunk by three water balls in four swings on Friday. Fowler led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting during a 4-under 67 on Thursday afternoon, and it looked like his birdie on the drivable par-4 15th, his sixth hole of the second round, could have been the start of a push up the leaderboard. Instead, he imploded on the next two holes at TPC Summerlin to drop five shots and ultimately miss the cut. RELATED: Full leaderboard | Fowler makes putter switch After a great drive down the par-5 16th, the former Las Vegas resident was left with just 218 yards to the hole. His second shot found the pond that guards the front of the green, however. After taking a penalty drop 104 yards from the hole, he dumped his next shot in the water as well. His third attempt found dry land, but he walked away with a triple-bogey 8. The 31-year-old then stood on the par-3 17th tee and promptly pulled his tee shot left into another water hazard to card a double-bogey. It was the second straight day Fowler made 5 on the 17th hole after hitting his tee shot in the water. Fowler's troubles have come during a time he's been trying to implement swing changes. It has seen his accuracy desert him at times. "It definitely has been tough," Fowler said Wednesday before the tournament. "Anyone that goes through changes or even just dealing with struggles, low points, it happens at some point for everyone." The swing changes have been a work in progress for about a year but Fowler still trusts they will cement in soon enough and bring renewed success. "I've never doubted it just because there has been some rounds or some tournaments here and there where seeing the work kind of come through," Fowler said. "Just haven't been able to piece everything together and really put it into a really efficient, consistent form yet. But that is coming. We're just beating down the door." Fowler tried valiantly to make up for his two hole meltdown on Friday, making three birdies in the first seven holes of the front side to give himself a chance at making the weekend. But bogeys on his final two holes, as he tried to press, resulted in a 3-over 74 and an end to his tournament. Fowler won't be the only high profile player finishing up early at Shriners. Jason Day (68-72) will join him and Francesco Molinari (70-68) will need help from the afternoon wave to make his first tournament in seven months extend a further two rounds.
Paul Casey’s quest for a first EPGA title since 2014 began in encouraging style on Thursday with an opening 66 to lead the European Open in Hamburg. The world number 17’s closest challenger was Austrian Matthias Schwab, one shot adrift, with Robert MacIntyre, Englishman Ben Stow and home favourite
Kevin Chappell, in his first PGA TOUR start in 10 months, has returned in spectacular fashion by shooting an 11-under 59. In Friday’s second round of A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, Chappell tied a 10-year-old record by making nine consecutive birdies on his way to being just the 10th player in TOUR history to shoot a sub 60 round. RELATED: Tee times | Leishman WDs with back injury | New members came to play It is the 11th sub 60 round in history – Jim Furyk has managed the feat twice – and the second at Old White TPC course joining Stuart Appleby’s final round 59 from 2010. Chappell had a chance to join or even beat Furyk’s record 58 after he sat nine under through his first 10 holes on the par 70 course. At that stage he had just joined Mark Calcavecchia atop the TOUR record book with his ninth birdie in a row. Calcavecchia made nine straight in the second round of the 2009 RBC Canadian Open. Eight other players in TOUR history have made eight consecutive birdies. Chappell had the chance to make a 10th straight birdie and claim the record alone, but left his birdie putt from 23 feet, 6 inches short at the par-4 second at the Old White TPC course. A birdie on the par-4 fifth hole and another on the par-4 seventh left him two holes to set a new mark. He made a clutch two-putt par on the 8th and had just 10 feet, nine inches to navigate on his final hole to be just the second 58. Instead he settled with joining Furyk, Appleby, Al Geiberger, Chip Beck, David Duval, Paul Goydos, Justin Thomas, Adam Hadwin and Brandt Snedeker as players with a 59 to their names. Chappell is playing in his first TOUR event since last year’s Mayakoba Golf Classic in November. Later that month, he announced he was undergoing microdiscectomy surgery on his back, leaving his return open-ended. His lone TOUR win came at the 2017 Valero Texas Open; later that year he participated in the Presidents Cup as a member of the U.S. Team. After his recovery from surgery, Chappell returned to competitive action on the Korn Ferry Tour, playing two events in late August. He finished T-62 at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, followed by a T-51 at the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft Nabisco. At The Greenbrier, he opened with a 1-over 71 on Thursday but found the hot hand early in his second round and kept it going. Starting his round off the 10th tee in the afternoon wave, Chappell birdied the par-4 11th from 17 feet, 5 inches. He followed with eight more birdie putts: Par-5 12th (3 feet, 6 inches), par-4 13th (3 feet, 3 inches), par-4 14th (15 feet, 10 inches), par-3 15th (16 feet, 5 inches), par-4 16th (6 feet, 8 inches), par-5 17th (6 feet, 3 inches), par-3 18th (28 feet, 7 inches), and par-4 first (13 feet, 3 inches). His last two birdies, outside the streak, were from 11 feet, 9 inches and 12 feet respectively.
