Watson cruises to win at WGC Match Play

The U.S. Open pairings feature stacked groups such as Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Justin Thomas in one, and Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy in another.

Click here to read the full article…

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – Kyle Stanley said Saturday that criticism from one of his playing partners for failing to yell “foreâ€� on an errant shot is a “non-issue.â€� Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, one of Stanley’s playing partners for the first two rounds at The Open Championship, confronted Stanley on Friday after Stanley did not issue the warning after his tee shot at the 17th hole. MacIntryre said the ball hit his caddie’s mom, although no medical attention was required. Related: Leaderboard | Lowry sets 54-hole record, leads The Open by four | Ominous weather moves up final-round tee times  Stanley discussed the situation following his third round Saturday and was perplexed about MacIntyre’s reaction. He said plenty of people yelled “foreâ€� after the tee shot was launched. “I’m not really sure why he decided to make such an issue about it,â€� said Stanley, who shot a 2-over 73 to finish at 2 over through 54 holes. “I know it hit his caddie’s mom’s hands off the bounce, and that’s unfortunate. “But as far I’m concerned, a number of people yelled ‘fore.’ He made the argument that since I hit the ball, that it maybe should have come out of my mouth first. I guess I can see that. “But it’s unfortunate it ended up the way it did. It certainly wasn’t my intention to put anyone in harm’s way. I had my wife in the gallery. My coaches. So I’m surprised it’s kind of come to this point.â€� The 31-year-old Stanley, a two-time PGA TOUR winner, said he usually yells “foreâ€� when he hits a shot off-line. “This was a unique situation,â€� he added. “You have marshals on the tee signaling where the ball is going. You have guys down there in the landing area. Everyone knew the ball was going right. “Like I said, it’s a bad deal. One hopped into his caddie’s mom. But everyone knew the ball was going over there. … Five or six people on the tee yelled ‘fore’ — my caddie did, my two playing partners, a couple of the marshals. I thought that was enough.â€� The 22-year-old MacIntyre spoke to Stanley afterwards. “It wasn’t too pleasant,â€� MacIntyre said. “But you’ve got to tell them.â€� Stanley said the conversation was not heated. “We talked about it briefly,â€� he said. “I was surprised. I was caught off-guard that it even came up, really. I just explained to him my side of it. “I saw what he said last night (to the media). The way things were kind of painted from his perspective … When you tell your story, you’ve got to make sure you have all the details. From what I read last night, he didn’t do that. He’s a young player. I’ve been out here for a while. So I don’t feel the need to be schooled on the rules of golf or what to do when you hit a shot off-line. “So that’s kind of my perspective on it. I don’t know, maybe a good learning experience for all.â€�

Click here to read the full article…

NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. — J.T. Poston shot a 10-under 62 on Thursday to take the first-round lead in the PGA TOUR’s Barbasol Championship. Poston birdied six of the first eight holes at rain-softened Keene Trace, bogeyed the par-3 ninth and added five more birdies on the back nine for his lowest score on the PGA TOUR. “It was one of those days everything clicked,” Poston said. “Hit it good, hit a lot of fairways, a lot of greens. I was hitting it so good I didn’t really have that many lengthy birdie putts that I made until the last hole.” Winless on TOUR, the 26-year-old former Western Carolina player closed with a 27-foot birdie putt on the par-4 18th. “The greens had been a little on the firmer side at the start of the week, firmer than I think most guys would expect,” Poston said. “But a lot of rain last night and so they’re soft, and they’re really good greens and you can make a lot of putts. They’re rolling really well. You hit the fairway and you get a lot of wedges in your hand and guys are going to make a lot of birdies.” Nick Taylor was a stroke back. The Canadian had an eagle and seven birdies in a bogey-free round. “I hit every green, I didn’t miss a fairway, so it was very solid tee to green and putts were going in,” Taylor said. “Everything was kind of clicking today. With the soft conditions, it was different than the practice rounds. I thought it would be a little bit more difficult, and then that rain came in last night and definitely softened things up. ” Wes Roach opened with a 64. “I played solid, hit a lot of fairways, gave myself some good opportunities with some wedges and short irons, and was able to hit some quality shots, and putted nice,” Roach said. Bill Haas was at 65 with Roberto Castro, Jim Herman, Kelly Kraft, Josh Teater, Kramer Hickok, D.J. Trahan and Sebastian Munoz. John Daly shot a 71, following a triple bogey on the par-4 fourth with an eagle on the par-5 fifth. Fighting osteoarthritis in his right knee, Daly was denied a cart by the R&A for the Open Championship, but has been approved for a cart at PGA TOUR events until the end of the year. This is his first PGA TOUR event since he was approved for a cart last fall. “It’s just getting worse every day,” Daly said. “Probably have to go back and maybe duct tape it. I did it in Wisconsin. The knee’s falling, so you could literally pick my knee up and put it back. It’s brutal, but especially downhill and stuff like that.” The tournament winner will receive a spot in the PGA Championship.

Click here to read the full article…