Round 1: Hyundai Tournament of Champions
January 6 2012
10:22 pm
Stricker makes a late charge
By Mike McAllister, PGATOUR.COM
KAPALUA, Hawaii — Steve Stricker was just 1 under through 13 holes and coming off a bogey after finding a greenside bunker and failing to get up and down.
Then he got hot.
Four birdies and five holes later, Stricker — at No. 6 the highest-ranked player in this week’s field — put himself firmly in contention after Friday’s first round.
Stricker’s 5-under 68 left him in a four-way tie for second, one shot behind defending champ Jonathan Byrd.
"To finish with four birdies out of the last five holes definitely brings some momentum into tomorrow," Stricker said.
While Byrd did the majority of his scoring on the front nine with six consecutive birdies, Stricker wiped out two early birdies when he double bogeyed the par-3 eighth. His 5 iron failed to carry the hazard. Stricker said he simply pulled the wrong club.
"I wasn’t very happy at the time," he said.
But a bounce-back birdie at nine got him back on track, but it wasn’t until those last five holes that he did most of his damage. On Friday, that five-hole stretch was the easiest on the course.
"You hate to wait like that through the course of your round," he said, "but it does give you a chance to make some birdies coming in."
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stricker is the quality golfer in this field and after such a strong start ….hes very much fancied to get 2012 off to a flier
Steve is still a force as he rebounds from injury. Don’t count him out in 2012.
He would be happy to know that three of us played his home course back in Wisconsin yesterday, it was a confrontable 48 degrees.
Go Strick!
Hope he makes Ryder Cup
Hope he has another great round today. It would be nice to see him do well and possibly win here. I think this year he may be able to finally get a major win as long as his injury gets fully healed. GO STRICKS!!
Great start Steve!! Glad to hear that you’re 100% healthy again…..enjoy the weather and keep up the great golf….Judy and I are back here in Wisconsin rooting for you….we’re wondering what your mom will be baking on monday when you’re in the hunt for the championship…..lol….Go Steve!!
Wow. I’ve been holding my breath going into this first tournament of 2012 and hoping SS would be healthy. When he said he got a cortisone shot I thought: uh, oh. . .a temporary fix. Then my husband reminded me of his own cortisone shot (inflamed shoulder –> skiing injury) 25 years ago and it’s still good. (Of course, SS is using the same muscles daily, whereas my husband gave up skiing for motorcycles.)