The First Look: The RSM Classic

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Lee Westwood isn’t interested in comparing himself with the player who rose to No. 1 in the world a decade ago. All he knows is he’s playing some of his best golf, and he gets another chance to see if it can hold up against the best field. RELATED: Leaderboard | DeChambeau, Rahm lurk at THE PLAYERS Westwood had all the shots Friday in a bogey-free round at THE PLAYERS Championship, with two birdies at the start and a nifty pitch to a troublesome pin on the par-5 ninth to close with a another birdie and a 6-under 66. That gave him a one-shot lead over Matt Fitzpatrick (68) going into the weekend on the Stadium Course at the TPC Sawgrass, with U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau not too far behind. Westwood, who turns 48 next month, played well enough to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard last week at Bay Hill except that DeChambeau was one shot better in a fascinating duel of generations on a course that favors power. Sawgrass favors no particular style, and it produced an eclectic mix of contenders at the halfway point. “I think to compete in any of these tournaments against the best players in the world, you can’t have any weaknesses in your game,” Westwood said. “I wouldn’t be able to say I’m doing this better or that better. There’s not a shot out there I’m afraid of. There’s not a shot out there I’ll walk up to and think, `I haven’t got this one.’ “I’m comfortable out there with everything.” He was at 9-under 135 and will be part of the All-England final pairing Saturday. Sergio Garcia was another shot back after a 72 that looked like it was a lot worse with so many putts the Spaniard missed, including a 23-inch par putt on the 15th hole that followed a 5-foot par putt he missed on the 14th. Still, the 2008 champion showed plenty of game — and enough par putts that went in — to stay in the hunt. He drilled his approach to inches away on the par-5 11th for his third eagle of the week, which already ties the tournament record. And he finished in style with an approach that danced around the flag and settled 5 feet away for birdie on the 18th. “It was a beautiful roller coaster,” Garcia said. “There were a lot of good things. Unfortunately, a lot of bad things. But more than anything there was a lot of fighting, and that’s one of the things that I’m most proud of because when things are not really happening and you miss a couple putts here and there, it’s easy to kind of let the round get away from you.” When the second round was suspended by darkness, 16 players were within five shots of the lead. DeChambeau was in the group three shots behind after a 69 that began with a double bogey from the trees and a muffed chip out of the rough from behind the green. He was bogey-free the rest of the way on a course that doesn’t let him swing for the fences because of water and cross bunkers and other brands of trouble. “I’m happy with the fact that I’ve still been able to keep myself in it and score well,” DeChambeau said. “I’ve been pretty lucky, for the most part. I don’t think that’ll happen this weekend. I’ve got to make sure that my game is good off the tee, so I don’t have those issues occurring and I don’t have to rely on luck for the most part. I have to get it in the fairway.” Kirk holed out from the first fairway for eagle and closed with back-to-back birdies for a 65. Starting with a chip-in for birdie on the 15th, he played six straight holes in 6 under. Sungjae Im tied the tournament record with six straight birdies, a streak that ended when he missed the green to the left on the par-3 third, and even then he nearly chipped in. He had to settle for a 66 and was three shots behind. Dustin Johnson wasted a good start and shot 70, leaving him eight shots behind. Jordan Spieth made his first double bogey in 411 holes — the longest streak of his career — and shot 74 to make the cut on the number. Rory McIlroy, who opened with a 79, wasn’t much better Friday. He made another double bogey on the 10th hole and shot 75. His 36-hole total of 154 was his highest ever in his 11 appearances at THE PLAYERS Championship. He is the first defending champion to miss the cut since Rickie Fowler in 2016. Four players from the top 10 in the world missed the cut — Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay, Tyrrell Hatton and Webb Simpson, whose hopes ended with one of 13 balls in the water at the island-green 17th.

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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Rickie Fowler takes being called the best player without a major championship as a compliment and would rather be remembered for what he does off the golf course than on it. But don’t mistake that for a lack of drive to win on the biggest stages. Fowler opened the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach with an impressive 5-under 66 to tie for the early wave lead with Louis Oosthuizen and Xander Schauffele on Thursday, putting his resume back in the spotlight. The uber popular now 30-year-old has five PGA TOUR wins, including the 2015 PLAYERS Championship, but has had to deal with multiple near misses in major championships. This has seen some claim he may have underachieved. Coming into the 119th U.S. Open Fowler had 10 top-10s in majors to his name without saluting. In 2014 he was inside the top-5 of all four majors. Lately he’s now 20-under in opening rounds at majors since 2017, the best of any player. But so far no trophies. He claims he’s not worried. “Obviously there’s a lot of great players that haven’t won a major. It’s not necessarily something I think about or worry about. I know that when the time is right, it’s going to happen,â€� Fowler said entering the week. “And I’ve been in the position to have a chance and right there in the mix come Sunday. I don’t necessarily put my life on it, looking at what success is. If I don’t win a major, that’s not going to necessarily define me. Do I want to win a major? Yes. I would love to and then knock off some more after that. But it’s not going to define who I am.â€� Fowler is acutely aware Phil Mickelson won his first major in his 30s. Jason Day had nine top-10s in majors before his first win. The examples are everywhere of good players taking time. And the near misses have provided valuable experience as he heads into the next three rounds. He claims he now has a great level of comfort with the nerves. And he’s aware of all the things that can conspire against you. Staying in the moment is important, staying detailed also. If something in the process is off, he will back off and start again. “That gets more and more important, especially when you get to Saturday, Sunday, and things start to speed up,â€� he says. “If you’re walking fast it kind of falls into your swing so the more I can stay at the same pace, breathing the same… It’s a lot easier said than done.â€� Fowler certainly looked calm throughout Thursday’s round hitting 13 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens. He made it look easy at times. “You don’t have to do anything special in majors. It’s just being disciplined and executing the shot that’s at hand,â€� Fowler adds. “It would be nice to see if we can top that, if not just keeping matching it.â€�

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Cameron Tringale (+3000) ... You can't spell his surname without "angel," which is what receives its wings every time a golfer rings the bell for his first victory on the PGA TOUR. Tringale likely would say that he's had a wonderful life, but he's making his 297th career start as a professional without breaking through, as Joel Dahmen was the most recent to accomplish on Sunday in the Dominican Republic and as Valero Texas Open defending champion Corey Conners in 2019. Since Tringale's rookie season of 2010, there have been 135 first-time winners. If he ever were to join the club, it'd make just as much sense at TPC San Antonio as anywhere. He's cashed seven times in 10 trips, thrice for a top 20, including a T17 in the last edition. The 33-year-old also checks all of the boxes for precision and efficiency, and he's fresh off a T13 at The Honda Classic, his sixth top 20 of the season. Aaron Wise (+6600) ... Back in Texas where he broke through for his lone PGA TOUR title (2018 AT&T Byron Nelson). He's returned before, of course, but perhaps not as impressively until now. Currently 12th on TOUR in greens in regulation and 30th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. In his last start in the wind at PGA National just two weeks ago, he finished T13 for his fourth top 20 of the season. For the week, he slotted inside the top 20 in both SG: Tee-to-Green and SG: Putting. Denny McCarthy (+8000) ... Endured a rough four months since a T4 at the Bermuda Championship and at a time when he was in a groove. He got back on bermudagrass in earnest on the Florida Swing and went 3-for-3, punctuating the series with a T3 at PGA National. Now 72nd in the FedExCup and a virtual lock to secure his card, he carries that momentum into San Antonio where he finished T20 in his debut in 2018. His propensity to split fairways and continue to rank among the best putters on TOUR favor him if the course stands taller than it did two years ago. David Hearn (+30000) ... While there must be a sense of national pride to compete alongside defending champion and fellow Canadian Corey Conners, Hearn fits the bill across the board of the quantifiable. In three of his last five trips to TPC San Antonio (2012, 2016, 2018), he's finished inside the top 20. He's also traveling from Corales where he posted a T13 for his third top 15 of the season; his last was at similarly exposed Bermuda (T8). And his combination of accuracy of the tee (17th), precision on approach (T22 in proximity) and putting (12th in Stroke Gained) presents as a triple threat when the winds kick up. Austin Eckroat (+20000) ... The pandemic has yielded unexpected dividends. For example, if the Korn Ferry Tour Finals wasn't canceled and eligibility extended for all PGA TOUR members, Martin Laird, Robert Streb and Branden Grace would've been subject to losing their cards, but each is now fully exempt through 2022-23 as a result of their wins this season. Also, Will Zalatoris is accomplishing more than any other PGA TOUR non-member who hasn't won in memory, in the process proving that there always is opportunity for the strongest talent on this stage. So, it stands to reason that, at a time when the lives of the world's youth are put on hold for a year, a strong talent among the golfers of the generation could break into the winner's column as an amateur. That's heady stuff for Eckroat, the 22-year-old senior at Oklahoma State University. In the world previously known to all, he'd have turned professional by now and would have been plying his craft wherever the game took him. In a peek at his potential, he finished T12 with four sub-70s at Mayakoba in December. That matched the likes of Justin Thomas and Max Homa. Former college teammate and current roommate, Viktor Hovland, prevailed, so Eckroat was first-hand witness to the experience. He's No. 5 on the PGA TOUR University Ranking. NOTE: Sleeper is a relative term, so Rob uses unofficial criteria to determine who qualifies. Each of the following usually is determined to be ineligible for this weekly staple: Winners of the tournament on the current host course; winners in the same season; recent major champions; top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking; recent participants of team competitions. Odds were sourced on Tuesday, March 30 at 5 a.m. ET. For live odds visit betmgm. Visit BetMGM.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ years of age or older to wager. CO, IA, IN,MI, NJ, NV,PA, TN, VA or WV only. Excludes Michigan Disassociated Persons. Please Gamble Responsibly. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-522-4700 (CO, NV, VA), 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI), 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, PA & WV), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), Call or Text the Tennessee REDLINE: 800-889-9789 (TN), or call 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN).

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