Click here to read the full article…
| Don't like today's odds? Why don't you step away from sportsbetting for a while and join an exciting slot tournament? Check out this list of online slot tournaments that are currently running and join one! |
RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico — Local favorite Rafael Campos took a share of the lead Saturday in the PGA TOUR’s Puerto Rico Open, waiting out a series of rain delays to shoot a 5-under 67 at windy Grand Reserve. The 32-year-old from San Juan followed a birdie on the par-4 17th with a bogey on the par-5 18th to drop into a tie for the lead with Grayson Murray at 14-under 202. “I know there’s a lot of things that can basically change my life tomorrow,” Campos said. “But truth is, I’m just really happy. I have been playing good golf the last two weeks, and I really want to keep that mindset of the work I have been putting in the last four months, I’m starting to see good results. “I think I will just focus on that, focus on playing the golf course the way I know how to play it, be aggressive when I have to be aggressive, and be conservative when I obviously don’t feel comfortable. So, yeah, I really don’t want to think about tomorrow. I just want to go out and hopefully play some good golf.” Murray bogeyed 17 and birdied 18 in a 65. Cameron Percy (67) and Branden Grace (68) were a stroke back. Play was delayed three times for about an hour total in the afternoon because of the short, heavy downpours. With expected heavy rain overnight and into the morning, the final round will feature threesomes off split tees. Campos has two top-10 finishes in the event, tying for eighth in 2016 and tying for 10th in 2017. After missing the cuts in seven of eight events to start the PGA TOUR season, he tied for seventh last week in Florida in a Korn Ferry Tour event. In 2019, he won the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic to become the first Puerto Rican winner in Korn Ferry Tour history. The former Virginia Commonwealth player played the front nine in 3 under, with birdies on the par-5 second, par-4 third and par-5 fifth. He also birdied the par-4 10th and 12th. “I felt today I hit the ball very well, with the exception of the last couple of holes,” Compos said. “But I’m really happy with where I’m standing right now, and I really think I can’t be in a better position basically for tomorrow. Hopefully, just kind of keep doing the same thing we’re doing. I really feel comfortable with my swing.” He won’t get to play in front of many of his fans Sunday because of coronavirus restrictions. “It feels very weird only seeing them for like three holes out of 18 holes,” Campos said. “So I got my mom, I got my wife, I got family supporting me. So that’s all I really need right now. And, obviously, I feel the great positive energy the fans actually give me, either text messages or out here on the course.” The tournament is being played opposite the World Golf Championships event in Florida. The winner will get into the PGA Championship in May. Murray won the 2017 Barbasol Championship, also played opposite a WGC event, for the 27-year-old former Arizona State player’s lone TOUR title. “It’s been a long time since I have been in a situation like this, but I’m not afraid of the moment,” Murray said. “And at the end of the day, you still got to play good golf, no matter — no matter who’s chasing you or who I’m chasing.” He birdied five of the first nine holes. “I had the putter rolling and just kind of kept it rolling throughout the round,” Murray said. “We had to stop and start. We were a little unfortunate, but they were quick. And the PGA TOUR did a good job of kind of keeping us out there and not bringing us in each time.” Second-round leader Brandon Wu (71) was 12 under with Andrew Putnam (67) and Nelson Ledesma (68). “Had to scramble a little bit harder today,” Wu said. “I think it was playing tougher, the start and the stop, the rain, crazy conditions.”
Rory McIlroy’s win at last week’s RBC Canadian Open included a rare mid-tournament equipment switch. It was the latest edition of a battle between two 3-woods for a spot in his bag. He started the RBC Canadian Open with TaylorMade’s SIM Ti 3-wood before switching to the new Stealth Plus 3-wood over the weekend at St. George’s. The Stealth Plus will remain in his bag at The Country Club, he told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday. Since the Wells Fargo Championship in May, when McIlroy first switched into TaylorMade’s new Stealth Plus fairway wood, he’s been switching back and forth between his old flame and his new one, carrying both options on a weekly basis. “I (used) the SIM (in Canada), I just didn’t hit it much last week,” McIlroy told GolfWRX on Wednesday. “There was honestly no real need for a 3-wood last week, just with the yardage. …I actually have the Stealth (Plus) this week. SIM is almost like a 2-wood. It’s very low spinning. It’s pretty hot. It’s always been a hot head. … I can get high 170 ball speed out of it and carry it over 300 yards. …There wasn’t really much opportunity to hit it last week. It was either lay way back with a 5-wood or an iron, or hit driver. But some weeks, like Memorial, where 310 yards is a really good distance off the tee; it’s good for weeks like that. And this week is a little similar to last week. It’s either you lay back quite a lot with a 5-wood, or you get it up there with a driver. So, there’s just no need for it.” As a quick refresher, TaylorMade’s SIM Ti (Titanium) fairway woods hit retail in February 2020, and McIlroy has been using the 3-wood off and on ever since. The TaylorMade Stealth Plus fairway woods, on the other hand, hit retail more recently in January 2022. This is far from the usual ‘old versus new’ dilemma, though. McIlroy, the 2011 U.S. Open Champion, switches between the options because he uses them for different purposes, and they fly different distances. Based on course setup and his plan of attack come competition time on Thursday each week, he must choose between the two options, since there’s only room for one in his 14-club setup. He travels with both clubs to keep his options open. “The Stealth (Plus), I carry 285 to 290. It’s a little weaker, a little spinnier, sort of more just to get it in play,” McIlroy told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday. “The SIM is a little hotter, a little lower spin, sort of get it out there a little more. … (The Stealth Plus is) a little more workable. A little more spin. A little more in control. That SIM 3-wood I spin it at like 2,600-2,700 rpm. It’s like a mini driver.” According to a TaylorMade representative, although both of McIlroy’s 3-woods have “15 degrees” listed on their heads, McIlroy’s SIM Ti 3-wood measures out at 13 degrees of loft, whereas his Stealth Plus has 13.75 degrees of actual loft. While most of the focus has been on McIlroy’s 3-woods, McIlroy said it’s his TaylorMade Stealth Plus 5-wood that will get the most use among his fairway woods. “There’s a few opportunities to hit drivers here, but I think it’s just so important to get it in the fairway,” McIlroy told GolfWRX. “I can carry the 5 wood 270-275 in the air off the tee. With how fast these fairways are, it rolls out to 290 or whatever. …I’ll hit 3-wood maybe a couple times, but the 5-wood is probably just a better club for quite a few holes here.” While McIlroy’s SIM Ti and Stealth Plus 3-woods are busy battling it out for a place in the starting lineup, it seems the Stealth Plus 5-wood is really the one doing the hard work as he looks to win his second U.S. Open and fifth major.
The Farmers Insurance Open is underway in San Diego, on the course that Tiger Woods once dominated.
