Cink turns back the clock; trio tied for the lead in Memphis

PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Tiger Woods put his name on the leaderboard again, and this time it stayed there. Woods looked sharper as the gallery got louder. He made four birdies, got a few good bounces and kept a clean card at Innisbrook until the last hole for a 3-under 68 that gave him a share of the early lead Friday at the Valspar Championship. Paul Casey and Brandt Snedeker also had 68s, while Ryan Palmer had a 66 to share the lead at 4-under 138. “I don’t think this will be leading, but at least I’m there with a chance going into the weekend,” Woods said. “Today was a good day.” Masters champion Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy were among those playing in the afternoon. Woods also got his name high on the leaderboard when he first returned from his fourth back surgery in the Bahamas, an unofficial event with an 18-man field before as sparse of a gallery as will ever see him play. That didn’t last long. This looked as though it could. Woods has been slowed my mistakes, some leading to big numbers the last time he played at the Honda Classic. The second round at Innisbrook was all about control of his shots that rarely put him out of position off the tee and especially on the green, where he could attack putts from below the hole. He took the lead with a drive that was heading left, struck a cart path and caromed back into the fairway on his 14th hole, the par-5 fifth. That set up a long iron into the front right bunker, and a delicate shot from the sand to about 5 feet for his fourth birdie of the round. He gained even more momentum with a 12-foot par putt from the collar of the fringe at No. 7, and Woods was heading toward a bogey-free round until his wedge on the par-5 ninth rode the shifting wind to the right and into the gallery, his ball on a woman’s bag. After getting a drop, his chip came out too strong and hit the flag, leaving it only 6 feet away. He missed the putt and didn’t seem all that bothered. Just over five months ago, Woods still didn’t have the clearance to begin hitting full shots, much less playing without restrictions. In his fourth PGA TOUR event in seven weeks, he looks like a contender. “I’ve come a long way in that span of time,” Woods said. What’s changed is the energy of the gallery, enormous for the Valspar Championship, all of them looking for any reason to cheer. “The roars are a little louder, and there’s certainly an energy about the gallery that you don’t have anywhere else,” Jordan Spieth said. Spieth missed the cut for the second time this year. He is still trying to rediscover his putting touch, and his iron game left him in the opening round of 76. He didn’t fare much better on Friday with two birdies, two bogeys, a 71 and a phone call to get back to Dallas sooner than he wanted. Henrik Stenson, the other major champion in the group, had another 74 and missed the cut. “I’ve played with Tiger many times. It’s nothing new,” Spieth said. “It kind of feels like you’re playing in a major championship in a normal round, which if anything should bring out better golf for me. I just got way off on my iron play, with putting not improving either. That’s how you shoot over par.” Casey holed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th for his 68, putting him in good shape going into the weekend. Casey has gone nearly four years since his last victory. He was on the opposite side of the course as Woods, though he could hear him. “Feels like the old days,” Casey said. Snedeker holed a 35-foot birdie putt on the par-3 13th and took care the par 5s on the front nine for his 68. Sean O’Hair, a past winner at Innisbrook who lost in a playoff to Spieth here in 2015, had a 68 and was at 3-under 139. Former PGA champion Jimmy Walker reached 6 under with four birdies on his first five holes, only to lose ground the rest of the way for a 71. He was at 2-under 140. Woods never really saw his name on the board. Whenever he glanced at the video board, it was showing Spieth or Stenson putting and their statistics. But he could sense from the crowd that everything was going his way. These last two days have given his comeback some momentum. “To play myself into contention this early into it was nice, and on top of that, to build on what I did a week ago,” he said, referring to the Honda Classic when he was on the fringe of contention going to the back nine. “I feel comfortable out there.”

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How it works: Each week, our experts from PGATOUR.COM will make their selections in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf. Each lineup consists of four starters and two bench players that can be rotated after each round. Adding to the challenge is that every golfer can be used only three times per each of four Segments. The first fantasy golf game to utilize live ShotLink data, PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf allows you to see scores update live during competition. Aside from the experts below, Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton breaks down the field at this year’s the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide in his edition of the Power Rankings. For more fantasy, check out Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers and Reshuffle. THINK YOU’RE BETTER THAN OUR EXPERTS? The PGA TOUR Experts league is once again open to the public. You can play our free fantasy game and see how you measure up against our experts below. Joining the league is simple. Just click here to sign up or log in. Once you create your team, click the “Leagues” tab and search for “PGA TOUR Experts.” After that? Pick your players and start talking smack. Want to represent the fans against our experts? SEASON SEGMENT

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DUBLIN, Ohio – Kevin Streelman didn’t exactly come out of the blocks quickly when the PGA TOUR resumed play after a four-month shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He missed the cut in the Charles Schwab Challenge, as well as the RBC Heritage. But the early exit in Hilton Head proved to be fortuitous when Streelman and Aaron Baddeley got together for a friendly 18 holes on Saturday while everyone else was battling at Harbour Town. “He just saw one little thing in my putting and kind of gave me a little tip, and I’ve been putting beautifully since,” the Duke graduate said. The boost of confidence on the greens was among the keys to Streelman’s second-place finish at the Travelers Championship, his second runner-up of the season. And it’s carried over to the Workday Charity Open where he entered Saturday’s third round tied for second, three strokes off the lead held by 23-year-old Collin Morikawa. RELATED: Full leaderboard | Morikawa builds on lead Streelman made nine birdies in a round of 64 on Friday and stood first in Strokes Gained: Putting through two rounds with a career-best +8.475. The 41-year-old finished four rounds at TPC River Highlands ranked a solid 10th in the same category, as well. Streelman, whose golf bag was signed by his beloved Chicago Cubs starters before the pandemic hit, is now 37 under in his last seven rounds on the PGA TOUR. “I putted beautifully, kept it below most of the pins, was able to give some nice strikes to some putts, but took care of the difficult shots out there and birdied the par 5s and put myself in position,” Streelman said, terming himself “excited.” As for the tip? Well, Streelman declined to share it when he met with the socially distanced media after his round on Friday. It wasn’t anything fundamental, anyway. “It’s actually nothing with the stroke, it’s much more visual and getting out into my spot of how I want it to go in,” Streelman said. “I was more into my stroke, and it just kind of freed it up, to be honest.” Streelman, who is seeking the third win of his career, came to Muirfield Village relaxed after beating the 110-degree heat in Phoenix by spending more time in the pool with his kids last week than playing golf. He finished fourth in last year’s Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide, closing with a 66, and said Jack Nicklaus’ signature layout fits the Midwesterner’s eye. He’s been driving the ball particularly well this week – ranking third in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee and second in fairways hit this week. “There’s just shots you’ve got to step up and hit great shots,” Streelman explained. “… I drive the ball straight. Been able to hit a lot of fairways, and when my putter is on, I know I can compete with most of the guys and (looking forward to) see how I do against these young guys on the weekend.” Streelman finished a distant second to Nick Taylor at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am earlier this year. He had a much better chance at the Travelers Championship where he started the final round three shots behind Brendon Todd and one behind Dustin Johnson, the eventual winner. “I was right there in Hartford,” Streelman said. “I played well enough, and I was bummed to not finish that off. I enjoy that moment. I enjoy having a chance and just going for it. Sometimes you do great and sometimes you don’t, but I enjoyed … having that opportunity to attack and see what you’ve got. “I think that’s my favorite part of this game, playing it professionally, is going head-to-head with the best players in the world when the cameras are on, when the heat is on and just seeing what you’ve got. Like I said, some weeks you’ve got it and some weeks you don’t but being in the moment is what’s awesome about playing this sport competitively.”

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