Plenty of Contenders In The Mix At Bay Hill

The Arnold Palmer Invitational is arguably the last marquee event before we head to Augusta for the biggest event of them all. Some of the game’s best are on hand at Bay Hill with hopes of winning Arnie’s tournament and gathering some momentum before heading down Magnolia Lane. After one round the leaderboard is cluttered with some names you know and some you’ll get to know.

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We start with the leader Morgan Hoffmann, who fired a stellar six under 66 today. In just his second full season on the PGA Tour Hoffmann has yet to win, and this week he’s playing with a heavy heart. During the broadcast today, Golf Channel announced that his grandmother passed away prior to the start of the tournament. Hoffmann decided to play on, and played very well in light of the passing.

A number of players are bunched up at -5 just one shot back of Hoffman. That group includes Ian Poulter who is trying to shake off his final round collapse at the Honda. So far so good for Poulter who’s flawless five under 67 could help shake the confidence blowing loss two weeks ago. When he couldn’t keep the ball on dry land at PGA National, Padraig Harrington broke through his slump and now he finds finds himself stuck with a number of big name players at -4, just two shots back of the lead.

Harrington is one of three major winners who fired a 68 today. Former PGA champ Keegan Bradley and Green Jacket holder Adam Scott have nothing to complain about after their rounds. Something to pay attention to here is that both players are transitioning back to the traditional putter with the ban on anchored and belly putters to come into effect next year. So far through one round there’s no issues with the flat stick.

Rounding out the challengers at -4 we have Henrik Stenson, Billy Horschel and Brandt Snedeker. Horschel has yet to find the winning formula that helped him capture the FedEx Cup in 2014, but he’s certainly someone to be reckoned with. Snedeker won this year at Pebble Beach and has a knack for contending in some of the tour’s bigger events. Then there’s Stenson, the guy has only finished in the top five the past two weeks and is already being picked as one of the favorites at Augusta.

Then there is the featured group of the first two rounds, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day and of course Rory McIlroy. We’ll start with Fowler who has yet to shine this season, but he has played well at Arnie’s stomping grounds in the past. Two years ago he was going toe-to-toe with eventual winner Tiger Woods until a disastrous triple bogey on the 16^th hole ended Rickie’s chase. On Thursday Fowler birdied the hole as did Jason Day whose three under round was the best score in the group. The fifth ranked player in the world has already won this year at Torrey Pines and can keep the momentum going with a good finish this week.

Last but not least is McIlroy, who after a hot start to his year in the middle east has struggled in is two stateside tournaments. He missed the cut at the Honda and his 8-iron chuck was the only type of noise he made at Doral. Today it was back to business and after a closing hole birdie Rory feels like he is making progress.

"“I recognized that I was hitting a lot of greens and a lot more quality shots than I did at Doral. I’m seeing signs that I like, hopefully three more days of quality golf will go a long way in helping me to get ready for Augusta.”(Credit Golf Channel)"

Next: Tiger's Real Problem

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