Valspar Championship Wide Open Going into the Weekend
Mar 12, 2015; Palm Harbor, FL, USA; Padraig Harrington stops to watch a Florida softshell turtle on the 5th hole during round one action on the Copperhead Course during the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
With Adam Scott, John Senden, Boo Weekley, Ernie Ells, Padraig Harrington, and John Daley taking the weekend off at Innisbrook and with Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy otherwise occupied, and with Tiger Woods still trying to find his game, the last 36 holes are offering a wide-open opportunity to notch the win at the Valspar Championship.
More from Golf News
- Golf Rumors: LIV set to sign Masters Champion in stunning deal
- Brutal return leaves Will Zalatoris looking towards 2024
- Stars You Know at World Champions Cup Starts Thursday at Concession
- 2023 Hero World Challenge Predictions: The Return Of Tiger Woods?
- RSM Classic Brings the controversial 2023 PGA Tour Season to a close
So far as Tiger’s concerned, that’s going to be the case at Bay Hill next weekend as well. The eight-time Arnold Palmer Invitational champion is still trying to recover that elusive magic that made him the best in the world. What about Augusta? We just don’t know right now.
What we do know is that this is the second year in a row that Tiger’s missed Bay Hill, and that there are only two events remaining before Augusta and The Masters. Woods hasn’t typically played either the Valero Texas Open or the Shell Houston Open, preferring to go into Augusta rested and primed. But this isn’t a typical year for Tiger and there’s not much time to get matters in shape and start challenging that fall from the pinnacle all the way down to the 79th rank; and that’s what Tiger wants to occur.
Tiger aside, it’s hard to know what happened out there with Adam Scott, who couldn’t get his flat stick going. To be sure, it’s that short handle v belly putter thing, and I admire Scott for taking this equipment change-over into competition maybe just a little bit before the short handle’s ready for public use. It just makes sense to take that new putter out there and use it, over and over and over, successfully or unsuccessfully. By the time Scott rolls his first putt at Augusta National I’m betting he’s going to have drained away all the fear and hesitation and doubt that always comes with an equipment change.
Brendon de Jonge. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Liles-USA TODAY Sports
In contrast to Scott, Brendon de Jonge’s putter was working, at least when and where it counted, and so with a couple of nicely rolled putts de Jonge carded a 69 and took the 36-hole lead with 6-under par.
It’s nice to go into the weekend with the lead but it would be a whole lot nicer for de Jonge, who’d like to put a Tour win on his resume, if there was a bit more distance between him and a field that’s tightly bunched. Only 7 shots separate de Jonge from the guys who made the cut on the number, the tightest best-to-worst grouping since the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St Georges when Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke beat back the likes of Dustin Johnson and Phi Mickelson.
Whether de Jonge can summon Clarke’s mojo at the Valspar Championship over the next 36 holes remains to be seen, but he’s going to have to stay out in front of some big guns who’d also like to take it all home Sunday afternoon.
Among the Gang of Five who trail de Jonge by one shot, I see Henrik Stenson and Jordan Spieth as his most likely immediate challengers today. But for Ian Poulter and Lucas Glover, who trail de Jonge by 2, getting to the top of the board by the end of 54 holes wouldn’t be much of a stretch either. I don’t count out Patrick Reed either. He’s 4 shots back going into Saturday, but if he catches fire he can easily span that distance.
The bottom line is that things are wide open at the Valspar Championship going into the weekend.