Leaderboard: DJ surging, Koepka stumbling

Click here to read the full article…

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic – After a disappointing finish Thursday at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, Graeme McDowell knew exactly what he needed to work on before teeing off on Friday. The pre-round range session did wonders, as McDowell shot an 8-under-par 64 in the second round – his lowest round on TOUR in relation to par since an 8-under 63 at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in 2015, which he went on to win – that included hitting 17 greens and making no bogeys. McDowell made a double-bogey on the par-3 9th Thursday – his final hole of the day – and used that as motivation for this morning’s practice session. He said his ninth hole Thursday (he lost a ball off the tee) was a reflection of how his iron play was in general in the opening round. “(My iron play) wasn’t good enough and (the double bogey) made sure that I had something to work on this morning before I went on the golf course,â€� he said. “So I was able to just focus on fixing that left shot that I had. I hit it several times yesterday and it got me in trouble of couple of times. I kind of needed a rescue today.â€� McDowell is exempt into this year’s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach – where he won in 2010 – but has yet to earn a spot in The Open Championship at Royal Portrush, his pseudo home club in Northern Ireland. He played the Puerto Rico Open last month as well as this week’s alternate-field event with a specific goal in mind – he needs to earn more FedExCup points. Related: Three tied for lead after Round 1 | Romo ready for Friday “I would rather be at the Match Play, of course, but coming down here it’s so important to get the mentality right. … This is an opportunity to come here and play great, and I came here last year with that attitude and I’m down here again with this attitude, probably even more so this year,â€� he said. McDowell was in contention at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard a few weeks ago before he faltered Sunday. He admitted he got ahead of himself in the final round and is now trying to stay in the present. “I’ve got to just focus on every hole, every round at the minute and try and just … I want to be back up there in the top 50 in the world competing against these guys week in and week out. I believe I’m still good enough and I believe that I’m still motivated enough to do that,â€� said McDowell. “It’s been a frustrating few years, but I’m enjoying the challenge of digging myself out of this hole that I’ve got myself into and I really am starting to play well.â€� McDowell’s 8-under-par 64 has been the round of the tournament so far, and he said his ability to go low Friday was the positive feedback he needed. Golfers on the PGA TOUR, he said, will work with sports psychologists to feel good about their mental approach, but on-course outcomes are important as well. “It’s important to get that little bit of feedback that you’re on the right track,â€� he said. “That was nice. I’ll bank that 8-under from this morning, feel good about it, go back and chill this afternoon, get ready, and let’s have a big weekend.â€�

Click here to read the full article…

There’s something about the additional (colloquially known as opposite) events that’s as irritating as they are fun to play. Only one time has a golfer successfully defended his title in one of the tandems to the weekly doubleheader, and that was way back in 2005 when Vaughn Taylor went back-to-back at the Barracuda Championship. It’s not guaranteed that last year’s winner or an additional event will qualify for the more prestigious tournament the same week as his title defense, but that he’s back to defend at all likely means that he’s not as attractive due to a dip in form. Case in point, Cody Gribble is back in Jackson, Mississippi, to defend his breakthrough crown at this week’s Sanderson Farms Championship. Note the absence of depth in Future Possibilities below. Gribble is omitted. Speaking of which, he hit a wall post-victory to the extreme that he was the only rookie who won a tournament last season who wasn’t a finalist for the Rookie of the Year award. He also wasn’t one of my 10 in the Power Rankings this week. Needless to say, I’m not endorsing the lefty in PGA TOUR Fantasy One & Done presented by SERVPRO no matter the positive vibes he must have this week. Even if he was worthy of pause, his duties as a first-time defending champ would generate enough distraction from the job at hand to dissuade me. Call it an abstention by default. The pick du jour is the rangy Chesson Hadley. Ever since he renewed his outlook over the summer, he’s been nails. It’s so similar to his public admission (on Twitter) about losing focus early in 2014 when he missed several consecutive cuts. Within a matter of weeks (but essentially overnight), he turned his freefall into fortune and emerged with his first TOUR title in Puerto Rico. Chris Kirk has owned this tournament regardless of its location. He captured his first TOUR title at Annandale Golf Club in 2011, but also shared second place in his debut at the Country Club of Jackson last year. What’s scary about him coming in is that he entered the 2016 edition in a groove. That’s not the case this time around. So, while he’ll be inspired by the digs and local hospitality, we need to let him go it alone. If you’re compelled to play the contrarian and sidestep Hadley, who will saturate the landscape, think about attaching to the trend that’s developed at the CC of Jackson. Each of the three champions was a first-time winner on the PGA TOUR. There are three non-winners in my Power Rankings: Andrew Landry (No. 3), Jason Kokrak (No. 5) and Bronson Burgoon (No. 6). While I’m endorsing Kokrak to fill in your blank in the One & Done (because he’s the known value), the other two don’t have the kind of baggage that Kokrak has lugged around sans hardware now 158 starts into his professional career. Landry has made only 20, Burgoon just 28 as a pro. Both are fresh and in form. Fantastic. The incentive to take a flier is that it’s an additional event with the fewest FedExCup points and earnings of any tournament other than the other three additional events later in the season. This is why these concurrent contests are so much fun. Two-man gamers can hedge with the a combo of, say, Hadley and Burgoon or Kevin Streelman (No. 4 in the Power Rankings) and Kokrak. FUTURE POSSIBILITIES NOTE: Select golfers committed to the tournament are listed alphabetically. Future tournaments are sorted chronologically and reflect previous success on the courses on which the tournaments will be held in 2017-18. All are pending golfer commitment. Chris Kirk … RSM; Valero; PLAYERS; DEAN & DELUCA William McGirt … Sanderson Farms; Genesis; Heritage; Memorial Kevin Streelman … Shriners; CareerBuilder; Pebble Beach; Wells Fargo; Memorial; Travelers

Click here to read the full article…