Dufner turns soft day into historic one at PGA

Dufner turns soft day into historic one at PGA


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DOUG FERGUSON (AP Golf Writer) August 9, 2013AP - Sports









PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) -- Jason Dufner lost his chance to make history in the PGA Championship.

And then he lost his shirt.

He still walked away from Oak Hill late Friday evening with a round he won't forget - a 63 - and a place in the record book with some of golf's greatest players. The moment was big enough that Dufner even agreed to show a little emotion.

Prompted in a television interview, Dufner flashed a smile. But only for a second.

''To join history, to shoot 63 in a major, pretty unbelievable,'' he said. ''And to be leading the tournament, even better. So hopefully, it will propel me to a great weekend.''


There was nothing dull about his golf. If anything, it was historic.

Dufner holed out from the fairway for eagle, rolled in a putt across the green for par and kept making birdies until he stood 12 feet away from a shot at the lowest score in the 153 years of championship golf. One last birdie attempt didn't even get to the hole, and Dufner had to settle for a 7-under 63.

''You couldn't have a better putt for a 62,'' he said. ''And I left it short in the jar.''

He also left behind his shirt, his cap and the glove he was wearing, which he signed with the date, the course and the score. The PGA of America shipped the items to its museum in Florida to put on permanent display.

It was the third time in the last seven years at the PGA Championship that a player had a putt at becoming the first player to shoot 62 in a major. Tiger Woods circled the hole at Southern Hills in 2007. Steve Strickernarrowly missed at Atlanta Athletic Club two years ago.
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Adam Scott, of Australia, celebrates after a birdie on the sixth hole during the second round of the …

Dufner didn't feel disappointed for long.

On a rain-softened Oak Hill, where pelt-sized divots were flying and birdies were falling, Dufner surged to a two-shot lead over Masters champion Adam Scott, Jim Furyk and Matt Kuchar. At 9-under 131, Dufner tied the 36-hole record at the PGA Championship he now shares with six other players.

Dufner was alone at the top, and in the company of some big names in history.

His 63 broke the course record at Oak Hill held by Ben Hogan, Curtis Strange and Webb Simpson, who shot 64 about five hours earlier. Dufner became the 24th player to shoot 63 in a major - Greg Norman and Vijay Singh, both in the Hall of Fame, did it twice.

And through it all, he barely cracked a smile.
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Tiger Woods stands on the 18th green during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament …

''He's very calm,'' said Stricker, who played alongside Dufner. ''I'm sure he was churning on the inside. He just told me while we were signing our cards, he was like, 'This is a lot for a Friday.'''

The possibilities were endless on a day that began with three hours of a steady rain until the sun broke through and took all the bite out of Oak Hill.

Simpson also had a chance at 63 until he made a bogey on the 16th hole of his round. U.S. Open champion Justin Rose shot 29 on the front nine to get back into contention. When the second round finally ended, 27 players remained under par - this on a course that is stubborn when it comes to par. In five previous majors at Oak Hill, only nine players have finished the tournament in red numbers. Jack Nicklaus did it twice.

The cut was at 143, the lowest at the PGA Championship since 2001 at Atlanta Athletic Club.

For all the low scores, Woods and Phil Mickelson were left behind.
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Jim Furyk waits to putt on the forth hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tourn …

Woods couldn't get anything going, exchanging birdies with bogeys during a poor putting round that led to an even-par 70. He was at 1-over 141 and 10 shots back going into the weekend. Woods went to the range with his swing coach, trying to find answers. He has only one score in the 60s in 14 rounds at the majors this year.

''Obviously, I'm going to have to put together a really good weekend,'' Woods said. ''This golf course is pretty soft. It's definitely gettable. Got to hit the ball in play and keep the ball near the hole so I can be aggressive with my putts.''

Mickelson's swing apparently went missing in the three weeks since he won the British Open. He was all over Oak Hill and still managed a 34 on the back nine until his wild shots caught up with him. Another 71 left him 11 shots out of the lead.

Dufner was in prime position to win the PGA Championship two years ago when he had a four-shot lead with four holes to play, only to be tracked down by Keegan Bradley and then beaten in a playoff. Dufner said that day he would only be disappointed ''if I never get another chance.''

And here he is, in record fashion.
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Jason Dufner hits from the fairway on the eighth hole during the second round of the PGA Championshi …

Dufner's popularity has grown the last two years because of his zombie state. He was responsible for the craze known as ''Dufnering'' in April when someone took a photo of him slumped against a classroom wall, eyes in a daze, during a charity event at an elementary school as the teacher taught children how to relax and concentrate.

But there were nerves, no doubt, and Dufner showed them at the very end.

A 6-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole put him at 7 under for the round, and his 15-foot birdie putt on the next hole grazed the cup. He followed with two flawless swings on the tough 18th hole, which had yielded only four birdies at that point. That left him about 12 feet below the hole.

And he left it short by about 18 inches. There even was a nervous moment on the tap-in, when the ball came off the putter weakly and dove in the right corner of the cup.

''It's tough when you're chasing history,'' Dufner said. ''You will be the first one to do something. I don't think I've been the first to do anything in my life. So it was a little nerve-racking for a Friday. It's usually the pressure you might feel toward the end of the tournament.''
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Jason Dufner lines up a putt on the eighth hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf …

That part is still to come.

Low scores were available to anyone. Even after Dufner finished his round, K.J. Choi had an 18-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole to reach 7 under. It narrowly missed, and Choi made bogey on the next hole to end that threat.

Scott is swinging the club beautifully, and his only flaw Friday was not holing enough birdie chances when the rain stopped. Even so, he was in the hunt on the weekend for the fourth time in the last six majors. He will be in the final group with Dufner on Saturday.

Henrik Stenson, a runner-up at Muirfield, had a 66 and joined Rose at 6-under 134, only three shots behind. Stricker and Robert Garrigus were another shot behind.

Dufner is a student of golf history and was thrilled to part of it. But while that 63 put him in the record book, it doesn't guarantee the trophy. Of the 25 previous times that someone shot 63 in a major, only five players went on to win - Nicklaus and Johnny Miller in the U.S. Open, Norman in the British Open, and Woods and Raymond Floyd in the PGA Championship.
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Jim Furyk hits his tee shot on the ninth hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf t …

Now that's some elite company.

Chen reaches US Women's Amateur semifinals

Chen reaches US Women's Amateur semifinals
August 9, 2013AP - Sports








CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) -- Taiwan's Doris Chen beat Lauren Diaz-Yi 4 and 3 on Friday in the U.S. Women's Amateur quarterfinals, avenging a blowout loss in the Public Links final.

In June in the Public Links, Diaz-Yi, from Thousand Oaks, Calif., routed Chen 10 and 9.

''I did pretty well,'' Chen said ''I just changed my practice approach a bit. I'm happy it worked out.''

The 20-year-old Chen, a member of Southern California's NCAA championship team, will face 17-year-old YueerCindy Feng of Orlando, Fla., on Saturday at the Country Club of Charleston.

Feng, born in China, beat Annie Park of Levittown, N.Y., 6 and 4. Park won the NCAA individual title this year as a freshman at Southern California.


In the other quarterfinals, 18-year-old Alison Lee of Valencia, Calif., beat Katelyn Sepmoree of Tyler, Texas, 4 and 3; and 19-year-old Emma Talley of Princeton, Ky., edged Su-Hyun Oh of Australia with a par on the 19th hole.

Talley is coming off freshman season at Alabama. After she holed a 4-foot par putt on the 18th hole to keep the match alive, some fans chanted ''Roll Tide! Roll Tide!''

''I don't know if they are Alabama fans or SEC fans,'' Talley said. ''There's definitely a connection there.''

Talley advanced when the 17-year-old Oh, No. 2 in the Women's World Amateur Golf Ranking, missed a 4-foot par putt on the 19th hole - No. 10 on the course.

''I know everything I need to do,'' Talley said, ''So, now when I come out here, I just want to have fun and do my best because I can't do anything else.''

Lee will be a freshman at UCLA. She holed out from 75 yards for eagle on the par-5 ninth.

''I felt really confident,'' Lee said. ''I just hit a really good shot.''

Kuchar again in contention, looking to close

Kuchar again in contention, looking to close

PGA.COM August 9, 2013







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Matt Kuchar"s second round was nearly flawless until a bogey on the 18th hole.(Edward M. Pio Roda/Turner …


By Stan Awtrey, PGA.com Contributor

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Matt Kuchar has been in this position before. This time he hopes the results are a little more favorable.

The popular Georgia Tech grad shot a 66 on Friday and is tied for second, two shots off the lead, at the midway point of the PGA Championship. It's very similar to the 2010 PGA Championship, when he was the leader after the first and second rounds. That year he couldn't close the deal, settling for a tie for 10th at Whistling Straits.

That was when Kuchar was still in the process of proving himself. Since then he's played on two Ryder Cup teams, won the Players Championship, won a World Golf Championship event and has risen to No. 6 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He's among a handful of players mentioned when the topic of "best player without a major championship" is discussed.

"I'm playing some great golf," he said. "It's been a fantastic season."

Kuchar will start the third round at 7-under 133, two shots behind Jason Dufner, who set an Oak Hill course record with a 63 on Friday.

Kuchar's round on Friday was nearly flawless until he made bogey on the 18th hole - his first 17 holes had yielded five birdies and no bogeys. He didn't have a bogey on his Thursday scorecard, either.


Kuchar was strong with his approach shots. He hit 14 of 18 greens in regulation, tied for seventh best on Friday. He had eight one-putt greens, and his only stumble was at the 18th, where he found a bunker off the tee, was forced to lay up and failed to scramble for par.

"It was a bummer to finish with a bogey," Kuchar said. "I knew I was bogey-free through 35 holes and really hoping to make that par putt on the last hole and be in the last group with Jason Dufner."

Kuchar and playing partners Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler were playing in the group behind Dufner and had a front-row seat to his record round.

"The three of us on the 18th tee were kind of talking about the ramifications of what Jason Dufner could do with a birdie on the last and set the all-time scoring record," Kuchar said.

The threesome watched Dufner hit his approach shot and were paying attention as he hit his birdie putt, which he left short.

"As we walked down to the fairway, all kind of hoping," Kuchar said. "I know for me it would have put him an extra shot ahead, but it would have been pretty cool to see a 62. ... It was kind of too bad that he missed it."

Kuchar has finished among the top 25 in 11 of 18 starts this season. Seven times he's been in the top 10, most recently when he tied for second at the RBC Canadian Open. He's won twice and hasn't missed a cut all year.

"At Bridgestone I finished just better than the middle of the pack, but really felt good about how I was hitting it," he said. "I was excited coming into the Championship."

No regrets for Furyk after runner-up finish at Oak Hill

 

Mark Lamport-Stokes August 11, 2013

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Jim Furyk (R) of the U.S. stands on the 15th tee with his caddie, Mike Cowan, during the final round …

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

ROCHESTER, New York (Reuters) - Jim Furyk has endured his share of agonizing close calls at the majors but said he would reflect on a week of positives after finishing second to Jason Dufner at the PGA Championship on Sunday.

The PGA Tour veteran had led by one shot going into the final round at Oak Hill Country Club but was outplayed by his fellow American Dufner, who carded a two-under-par 68 to claim his first major title by two strokes.

"I was going to have fun. I have no regrets. I played my heart out," Furyk told reporters after dueling with Dufner for the lead over the first nine holes before being effectively shut out after the turn.

"I played a very, very solid tournament. If I could go back, I would love to make par on 17 and 18 and put some heat on him and I wasn't able to do that."

Dufner, whose approach play was in top order, held a two-shot lead after he and Furyk had birdied the par-four 16th and they both went bogey-bogey over the notoriously difficult finish at Oak Hill's East Course.

"That's the one thing, it's a little bit of a thorn in my side, but he played well," said Furyk, who had been seeking to add a second major title to his 2003 U.S. Open victory.

"He hit it to a foot on five. He hit it to a foot on 16, and he hit it a foot somewhere else today, on eight."

SQUANDERED OPPORTUNITY

At last year's U.S. Open, Furyk squandered a golden opportunity to win a second major title when he bogeyed three of his last six holes to wind up in a five-way tie for fourth, two shots behind winner Webb Simpson.

"I don't mean any disrespect to Webb, he played great," Furyk reflected. "He played better than anyone down the stretch. But at the end of that tournament, I felt like I lost the tournament.

"Today, I feel like I got beat. I didn't beat myself, I don't think. I felt like I got beat by Jason."

Since winning his first major, Furyk has recorded seven top-10s in golf's elite championships and is now placing much more emphasis on trying to enjoy the whole process of jockeying his way into contention.

"My attitude is a little down now," said the 43-year-old, a 16-times winner on the PGA Tour. "If I continued down the same road with the attitude I had 10 years ago, it wasn't as much fun as it needed to be.

"I just didn't want to be that way anymore, so I've kind of made a commitment this year to start trying to enjoy myself and have a little better time on the golf course."

Furyk has not triumphed on the PGA Tour since his golden 2010 campaign when he piled up three wins but he has been encouraged by his improved form over the past three weeks after missing the cut at both the U.S. Open and British Open.

"I feel good about my chances in the future," he said. "I'm disappointed it's been a while since I've won, and I've had some chances to close the door and haven't done it, but I guess it's days like this that will make the next one sweeter."

(Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes; Editing by Julian Linden)

Scott finds way to peak on game's biggest stages

 

Frank Pingue August 11, 2013

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Australia's Adam Scott looks at his putt on the third hole during the final round of the 2013 PGA Championship …

By Frank Pingue

ROCHESTER, New York (Reuters) - Adam Scott has enjoyed top-five finishes in three of the year's four major championships, including his breakthrough Masters win in April, but the Australian feels his best is yet to come.

 After becoming the first golfer from his country to triumph at Augusta National, Scott went on to finish in a tie for third at last month's British Open at Muirfield and on Sunday earned a share of fifth at the PGA Championship.

 "Obviously I'm peaking at the right times," Scott, who ended the year's final major five shots behind winner Jason Dufner, told reporters.

"It's hard to stay there for four days and have the lead the whole time, but I feel like I'm improving still. So it's something to build on for next year's season."

Fellow Australians Jason Day finished a further two shots back in a tie for eighth place after firing a three-under 67 in Sunday's final round while Marc Leishman closed with a two-under 68 to grab a share of 12th.

Not including the Americans, no other country was as well represented among the top-12 finishers at the PGA Championship, which to Scott is a sign of things to come.

"We've got a whole host of guys with the experience. It's just a matter of form," said Scott. "We have got the guys with the talent. That never goes away; it's just their form.

"When that comes back, we're going to be really strong. It wouldn't surprise me, you know, seeing Jason or myself or Leish do well to get right back in the mix."

Scott, who led the British Open by one shot with seven holes to play, had a fighting chance of winning at Oak Hill, or at least forcing a playoff, though he needed to navigate the East Course's challenging closing holes better with the leaders faltering.

Two under for the day when he arrived at the 16th tee, Scott was unable to find a fairway or hit a green in regulation the rest of the way.

He would go on to make bogeys at 16 and 18 which left him with no chance of catching Dufner, who was playing in the final group and went on to finish at 10 under.

"It was a bit of fun, the last glimmer of hope, you know. But then I had three poor drives to finish with," said Scott.

"I don't know what happened the last few holes, but I felt like I may as well have a go at it down 16.

"If I drive it in the fairway, it's just a wedge. If I could birdie them all, I would have finished 10 under and you never know."

(Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)

Steinhauer wins on Legends Tour

August 11, 2013AP - Sports

JACKSON, Mich. (AP) -- Sherri Steinhauer won a playoff Sunday in the Legends Tour's Wendy's Charity Challenge, beating Christa Johnson on the second extra hole.

Steinhauer and Johnson shot 4-under 68 in the one-day event at Country Club of Jackson. Steinhauer has two victories on the Legends Tour after winning eight times on the LPGA Tour.

Sherri Turner was third at 69, Lorie Kane and Barb Moxnessshot 70, and Jane Crafter had a 71.

Golf-European Tour to return to Prague with 2014 Czech Open

 

August 16, 2013

Aug 16 (Reuters) - Prague will stage a European Tour event for only the second time when the Albatross Golf Resorthosts the Czech Open in August 2014.

The tournament, carrying a prize fund of one million euros ($1.33 million), is due to be held for the next five years.

 "The Tour always strives to stage tournaments in different cities and I'm sure the people of Prague will enjoy watching some of Europe's best golfers in action," European Tour chief operating officer Keith Waters said in a news release on Friday.

The Czech capital last staged a tour event when the Prague Karlstein Golf Club hosted the 1997 Czech Open.

The city of Celadna hosted the event the last time it was played in 2011.

($1 = 0.7500 euros) (Reporting by Tony Jimenez, Editing by Tony Goodson)

Golf-Europe lead U.S. 3-1 after opening Solheim foursomes

 

August 16, 2013

Aug 16 (Reuters) - With Swedes Anna Nordqvist andCaroline Hedwall setting the tone in the first match, holdersEurope seized a 3-1 lead over the United States after Friday morning's opening foursomes at the 13th Solheim Cup in Parker, Colorado.

 The statuesque Nordqvist rolled in a six-foot birdie putt at the par-five 16th to seal a 4&2 win over Women's British Open champion Stacy Lewis and Lizette Salas, earning the first point for Europe on a sunny day at the Colorado Golf Club.

 World number three Suzann Pettersen and Cup rookieBeatriz Recari of Spain followed suit with a 2&1 victory over Americans Brittany Lang and Angela Stanford, a sizzling putting display by the Norwegian making the difference in a tight match.

 Morgan Pressel and Jessica Korda put the first red number on the board for the U.S., beating Catriona Matthew and Jodi Ewart-Shadoff 3&2, before Europe ended a memorable morning with Azahara Munoz and Karine Icher upsetting Cristie Kerr and Paula Creamer 2&1.

Former major winners Kerr and Creamer, playing in the anchor match as the most experienced U.S. duo, had not previously lost in three encounters together but were undone as their opponents took control with three successive birdies from the eighth.

 "We just didn't seem to get any momentum right off the bat," said Kerr who is playing in her seventhSolheim Cup.

"We missed a couple of greens and they threw some long bombs at us on eight, nine and 10. We really didn't get the momentum until the last few holes and then it's too late," she said greenside.

PERFECT START

 Europe are bidding to win the trophy on American soil for the first time and Nordqvist and Hedwall gave the visitors a perfect start as they dovetailed superbly in the top match.

"We have been playing pretty solid the last couple of weeks and I think we were both very excited," said Nordqvist, 26.

"It feels like both our forms are really good. It was just so much fun out there today."

Lewis, who made her Solheim Cup debut two years ago at Killeen Castle in Dunsany, Ireland where Europe beat the U.S. 15-13 to regain the trophy, paid tribute to the Swedish duo.

"They played great," said the 28-year-old Lewis. "They were fairway and green every time.

"It never looked like they were ever going to make bogey. They put a lot of pressure on us.

"We had a couple of putts lip out and not go our way so we've got to go out there this afternoon and really go after it," added Lewis, referring to Friday's fourball matches.

Pettersen, a veteran of seven Solheim Cups, was a dominant figure as she and 26-year-old Spaniard Recari outplayed Lang and Stanford in the second match.

"It will be a day that I will never forget," said rookie Recari. "This is just so much bigger than anything you can experience. You don't feel as much pressure as you do here at the Solheim Cup.

"It was great to play with Suzann. She just played amazing today and putted incredibly well. We're just really happy to get another point for Europe." (Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Tony Jimenez)

Golf-Rookie Reed shoots 64 to seize early Wyndham lead

 

August 16, 2013

By Andrew Both

 GREENSBORO, North Carolina, Aug 16 (Reuters) - PGA Tour rookie Patrick Reed took advantage of ideal scoring conditions to grab an early two-shot lead after his second round at the $5.3 million Wyndham Championship on Friday.

 American Reed birdied his final two holes for a bogey-free, six-under-par 64 on a calm, mild morning at Sedgefield Country Club.

"To be able to putt on really fast greens like this, it's a treat," Reed told reporters after posting an 11-under 129 halfway total.

 Fellow American Jordan Spieth carded a 66 to sit a further two strokes back at nine under, two better than South Korean Charlie Wi (65) and Englishman Ross Fisher (69).

 Defending champion Sergio Garcia, among a large group in joint third place overnight, shot a respectable 70 to slip six strokes off the pace.

Reed, 23, made his first cut on the PGA Tour here two years ago, but he has his sights set far higher this week after finishing in the top 10 in his past two events.

"We've been working extremely hard trying to fine-tune everything, and lately with how I've been hitting the ball and how I've been putting, it just seems to all be clicking," he said.

"I just need to put four rounds together and hopefully that's this week."

If Reed wins, he will happily give his caddie 100 percent of his prize money, because his wife Justine carries his bag.

"She knows just as much about the golf swing, why I hit it left or right or anything like that, so if I ever get out of whack she can fix me immediately," Reed said.

Garcia, meanwhile, lamented a cold putter, not for the first time in his career, after missing five putts from inside seven feet.

"I would have loved to shoot at least a couple under (par) today. I feel I played well enough to do it but I didn't," the Spaniard said.

"I wasn't able to hole it as well as yesterday from four, five, six feet."

 American journeyman Chris Stroud, co-leader overnight with Fisher after opening with a 64, was among the day's late starters. (Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)