Golf Links: Friday, July 28 news and notes
Senior Open Championship
Bernhard Lander has set the pace at European Tour’s Senior Open Championship that’s being contended at Royal Porthcawl.
Langer has tamed Royal Porthcawl before. He won the 2014 Senior Open here, and the 59-year old German has been on a rampage this season. He edged out Fred Couples at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai in January, trounced the field at the Regions Tradition in May and then turned around and won the Senior PGA Championship, edging out Vijay Singh by a single shot.
Playing in incredibly testing conditions – Carl Mason described them as “relentless” – Langer put on a masterclass in course management and physical endurance to claim a 1-shot lead over Argentina’s Mauricio Molina and England’s Mason with a 2-under par 69. In fact, only Langer, Molina and Mason found red numbers on Thursday.
Langer took the situation in stride – there’s still much golf to be played at Porthcawl.
"I do like the golf course; I think it’s very challenging. You can be aggressive at times and you’ve got to be cautious at other times. I think my game plan is pretty good; it’s just a matter of executing the shots and the putts."
WATCH: Highlights from the first round of the Senior Open Championship Presented by Rolex #SeniorOpen pic.twitter.com/NCZrBM0TzI
— Legends Tour (@euLegendsTour) July 27, 2017
Second round play begins at 7am local time (GMT +1). Follow this link for pairings and tee times. Golf Channel is carrying 2nd round play at the Senior Open Friday, July 27, 7-9am ET.