Detry gets first Tour win with Phoenix Open romp

SAN ANTONIO – For the third time in five weeks, the PGA TOUR is in Texas. That generally means lots of wind. Tricky winds – the kind that tested the field Thursday at the Valero Texas Open. Grayson Murray handled it the best, shooting a 5-under 67 to take the first-round lead at TPC San Antonio. It’s a bit of a surprise, considering three days ago he contemplated walking off the range because it was so windy. “Just going to make me frustrated,â€� he told himself. But he worked through it, stayed on the range — and something started to click. His payoff was seven birdies, a terrific result in tough conditions. “That’s probably why I played well today, just because that gave me confidence that I’m now compressing the ball,â€� Murray said of his Monday practice. “If you don’t compress the ball, if you start coming out of it, start hitting these short weak right shots, the ball’s going to do whatever it wants to do in the air.â€� So just how was the wind Thursday? Let Keith Mitchell, making his first career start at TPC San Antonio, explain: “The wind blows 5 mph. Then it blows 20. Then it was from the northeast. Then it blows from the east-northeast. It’s not consistent out there. It’s so hard to pick a club from the fairway,â€� Mitchell said. He did just fine, though – a 2-under 70 that has him tied for 12th. Chesson Hadley shot a 68 that puts him in a five-way tie for ninth. One of his five birdies was at the par-4 ninth, the second toughest hole on the course, yielding just 12 birdies to the field. The 68 isn’t his lowest round of the season, but it might’ve been his most impressive. “Yeah, that could have been maybe the best round I played this year just from how hard it was and how difficult the course is,â€� Hadley said. Billy Horschel knows a thing or two about winning in Texas – he won last year in Dallas at the AT&T Byron Nelson. He also has three top-5 finishes in his last five starts in San Antonio. He may be headed for another good finish after his 68. “People ask me how you do it,â€� Horschel said about playing in the wind. “You keep the ball down … but if you don’t hit it solid, the wind’s going to take over. So always been a good wind player. I think it’s because I’ve always been a good ball-striker and hit it solid.â€� The wind will remain a factor the rest of the week, particularly in Sunday’s final round when gusts are expected to reach 30 mph. Patience will be tested. “I’m a lot more comfortable in the wind,â€� said Murray, who broke through last year with a win at the Barbasol Championship. “I’m starting to stripe it a lot better, which my ball doesn’t really get affected in this type of wind.â€� That was certainly the case Thursday. MISSED CUT STREAK IN JEOPARDY Jon Curran is tied for seventh after a 3-under 69. That’s significant on several levels. Curran has missed the cut in each of his first 10 starts this season. He’s had a couple of close calls. At the Houston Open three weeks ago, 90 players made the cut at 3 under. Curran was on that cutline with four holes to play in his second round – until a triple bogey. At the Sony Open in Hawaii, he was 6 under in his final 11 holes on Friday but missed the cut by a stroke. “Just been a really weird year,â€� he said. “… I may look like I’m not playing well but I’m doing all right.â€� Curran’s playing this year on a Major Medical Exemption, with 18 starts to make approximately 305-1/2 FedExCup points to retain membership. Ten starts in, he’s hasn’t made a dent – but he’s got a chance with another good round Friday. “It can be frustrating at times but I feel like I’ve gotten over it,â€� said Curran, who battled a rib injury last year. “I’ve definitely matured as a player. That’s just part of the game. … You can play well and miss the cut. That’s just how it goes.â€� NOTABLES Josh Creel is making his PGA TOUR debut this week. He won the Monday qualifier at Briggs Ranch, and then immediately made the 45-minute trip to TPC San Antonio. “I was so excited,â€� he said. “I put on two different tennis shoes – one white high top and one black low top. It wasn’t even close.â€� On Thursday, it got better – he shot a 3-under 69 to finish his first competitive round on TOUR tied for seventh. “It’s awesome,â€� he said. “Been a dream come true. Just soaking it all in.â€� Andrew Landry went through a stretch of four consecutive missed cuts earlier this season. He had a good excuse – his wife Elizabeth was about to give birth to their first child. Brooks Ryan Landry was born on March 20, and in Andrew’s return to the TOUR at last week’s RBC Heritage, he not only made the cut but was T-12 after three rounds before fading on Sunday. Now he’s in contention after opening with a 3-under 69 while playing with new shafts. “It wasn’t like I’ve been playing bad golf,â€� Landry said. “I think I had a lot on my mind. Now that the baby’s here and everybody’s healthy and everybody’s good, I think I can just go out and pin my ears back and play some golf.â€� Zach Johnson was 3 over without a birdie after saving par with an 8-1/2 foot putt at the par-4 13th. That lit the fire … and he proceeded to eagle the 14th, then birdie his last three holes to move to 2 under. “Just a matter of staying patient and waiting for it,â€� Johnson said. “I felt like I was hitting good shots and not being rewarded.â€� Defending champion Kevin Chappell suffered a double bogey on his second hole of the day, but fought back to shoot an even-par 72. … Sergio Garcia, making his first start since 2010, shot a 2-over 74 with just one birdie … Adam Scott, the 2010 champ who’s playing here for the first time since his title defense in 2011, did not record a birdie in shooting 3-over 75. He needed 19 putts on his first nine holes and 3-putted the 16th from 35 feet. … Another past champion, Jimmy Walker (2015), was going well until finding trouble off the tee on his ninth hole (the 18th), leading to a double bogey. He finished with a 71. … Besides Jon Curran, Kyle Thompson is the only other player who’s made 10 or more starts without making a cut this year. Thompson shot 73 on Thursday and is also inside the cutline (T-64). QUOTABLES Kind of the hard days like this is when you really want to buckle down and try to get as much out of it as you can because days that don’t blow well, it’s just going to be bunched up. We’re all too good out there to shoot 3, 4 over when it’s calm.I stole one there. That’s probably the hardest hole on the course.When things are going great, it’s the best game in the world. When things are going tough, it’s one of the hardest games in the world to play.I hit it close on almost every hole. That’s what you’ve got to do out here. SHOT OF THE DAY CALL OF THE DAY

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Phil Mickelson was 11 shots worse than his previous round at Quail Hollow. Bryson DeChambeau made an 8 on his 16th hole and headed straight for the exit. RELATED: Leaderboard | Rory McIlroy makes move at Wells Fargo Championship Turns out nothing was as bad as it seemed Friday in the Wells Fargo Championship. Morning gusts gave way to a relentless wind in the afternoon and had just about everyone trying to finish without too much damage. Former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland had a 2-under 69 in the morning and shared the 36-hole lead with Matt Wallace (67) and Patrick Rodgers (68). No one in the afternoon could catch them at 6-under 136. Rory McIlroy will be playing on the weekend for the first time in two months. He shot a 66, and by the end of the day, that was good for a tie for fifth, two shots out of the lead. As for Mickelson? Never mind that he followed a 64 with a 75, losing a little focus at the end when different swing thoughts entered his head on holes with water, the wrong kind of ripple effect. “I’m excited to be in contention heading into the weekend, and I know I’m playing well,” Mickelson said. DeChambeau had reason to leave. Two balls in the water on the par-5 seventh led to his triple bogey and sent him to a 74. He was just inside the top 100 when he left without speaking. And then the wind arrived, the scores shot up and he made the cut on the number at 2-over 144. “The hardest conditions I’ve played in a while,” Justin Thomas said after a 73 that included a three-putt double bogey on the par-3 13th. His downhill putt from 18 feet caught a gust so strong it stopped 4 feet short. “Even the downwind holes were hard,” said Carlos Ortiz of Mexico, who has lived in Texas the last 12 years where he described typical conditions as “windy or windier.” Being used to it doesn’t make it easy, though Ortiz managed a 68, the best score in the afternoon. That left him in the group at 4-under 138. Mickelson was in the group another shot behind, determined to put an end to a drought so severe that he hasn’t finished among the top 20 in nine months. Everything felt and looked so easy when he opened with a 64. This was more of a challenge, particularly late in the round, and Mickelson felt his focus lapsing again. He hit into the water on the 14th while deciding whether to hit a draw or a cut (he still managed par; his wedge game is still among the best). After a good tee shot on the par-5 16th, Mickelson wasn’t quite sure what to do with his next one. He pulled it well right of the green, and his high flop shot landed too far and went over the edge. He chipped poorly to about 12 feet and turned what looked to be a sure birdie into a bad bogey. Two holes later, he found the water on the par-5 17th for a double bogey. “The back nine, I just wasn’t sharp,” Mickelson said. “I think an example of what I’ve been talking about is on 17, we’re standing over the ball and I’m changing my mind and I’m changing the shot, moving the clubhead a little bit. Instead of backing away and kind of refocusing, I just hit it and I’m not really aware of what I’m doing. So I’ve got to fix that.” In his mind, he threw away two shots on both the 15th and 17th holes, the difference of a score at par. “I just can’t keep doing that,” Mickelson said. “I’m optimistic for the weekend, though. McIlroy started the second round outside the projected cut line. He has not made it to the weekend since Bay Hill two months ago, which is factual and lacking context. That amounts to only three tournaments — missed cuts at THE PLAYERS Championship and Masters, not advancing from his group at WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. He turned it around quickly, starting with one of his few bad drives. This one on the 14th sailed well to the right of the bunkers, gallery, everything but the mansions just outside the property. He tried to land his wedge anywhere near the green, and just his good fortune, it trundled onto the putting surface and stopped a foot away. That sent him to five birdies over his next eight holes, and right in the mix. “That was probably the catalyst to going on a nice little run,” McIlroy said. Woodland was all smiles. He missed the cut badly last week at Innisbrook, called Butch Harmon and decided to go back to his previous coaches, Harmon and Pete Cowen. It didn’t take long for him to feel better. His hip isn’t bothering him and his swing feels great. Woodland still hasn’t figured out the final stretch, Nos. 16-18, playing them in 3 over through two rounds. But he likes where he’s headed. “I’ve seen some shots this week that I just haven’t seen in a long time,” he said. “The golf swing feels so much better. Confidence has gone way up, which I did not have really in the last year. … It’s exciting right now.” Not so excited was Jon Rahm. He made a late charge until finishing with two bogeys for a 70 to miss the cut for the first time in 11 months.

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