News: HP Byron Nelson Championship
May 16 2012
3:08 pm
Vaughn Taylor lands the big one
IRVING, Texas – Vaughn Taylor is back on the PGA TOUR this week, playing in the HP Byron Nelson Championship.
He wasn’t in the field at last week’s THE PLAYERS Championship, but nevertheless, it was a productive week, as Taylor caught a 56-pound, 2-ounce striped bass on the Savannah River in Georgia, a record for that species at that river.
“My biggest previous one was 11 pounds, so this was huge for me,” Taylor told the Augusta Chronicle. “I had heard of 20 pounders out there and hoped maybe I’d catch one some day.”
Ed Bettross, the Senior Fisheries Biologist with the Wildlife Resources Division at the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources, did the official weigh-in of the fish and took the above photo.
For more on Taylor’s big catch, click for Augusta Chronicle story
2:55 pm
Mickelson, Els discuss Byron Nelson
IRVING, Texas – Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els are past champions of the HP Byron Nelson Championship, and each one was congratulated by Byron Nelson after their respective wins – Els in 1995, Mickelson in 1996.
Both players were asked Wednesday on the eve of this year’s HP Byron Nelson Championship about their thoughts on Nelson, who died in 2006. Here’s what they said:
PHIL MICKELSON: “It was a cool relationship that I had to be able to spend time with him, have dinner with him and talk with him, go out to the golf course and spend time with him.
“I think he was one of the highest individuals‑‑ the most moralistic, most ethical man I have ever met, and he treated people well. He was a credit to the game because he treated people like they should be treated and showed you how to act. His wife Peggy is such a neat lady and has carried on his great tradition.
“I think it’s just the time spent, you know, the time spent asking questions, learning about what it was like back in the 40s, 50s, learning what it was like for him growing up. It was the time to talk to him I think that was my biggest memory.
“He was so sharp and mentally with it even to his last days that it impressed me that he would be able to recollect tournaments from 60 years prior, and that always fascinated me. “
ERNIE ELS: “First of all, the start of my career I started in Dallas, back in ’90 and ’91. I met a lot of great people and went through school from Dallas, and there is a nice connection there.
“I started playing in the early 90s, met Mr.Nelson, and we used to do a clinic on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and I remember in ’95 I had a clinic, and he was sitting behind us and watching us hit balls, and after the clinic was done he came to me and said, ‘You know, I think you swing the club as good as I’ve seen anybody swing the club.’
“And that gave me confidence to know early on, at an early age in my career that I was doing things right. I went on to win the tournament. He was always helping me. “
1:08 pm
Direct Connect: Erik Compton
Direct Connect: Erik Compton
John Swantek interviews PGA TOUR rookie Erik Compton, from the media center at the HP Byron Nelson Championship, and asks him a variety of questions supplied by PGA TOUR fans.
12:30 pm
Watch: HP Byron Nelson preview
Can Bradley defend?
This week the PGA TOUR stops in Irving, Texas for the HP Byron Nelson Championship, where Keegan Bradley looks to defend his title.
News: HP Byron Nelson Championship
May 15 2012
4:09 pm
Kuchar’s challenge: Win two straight
Watch: Kuchar on his consistency
Newly crowned PLAYERS champion Matt Kuchar discusses his consistent play going into this week's HP Byron Nelson Championship.
By Mike McAllister, PGATOUR.COM
IRVING, Texas — Now that he’s won the biggest tournament of his PGA TOUR career, Matt Kuchar faces the challenge of quickly getting refocused again this week at the HP Byron Nelson Championship.
It won’t be easy. No player since Tiger Woods late in the 2009 season has won a TOUR event on consecutive calendar weeks. Rickie Fowler came close last week, finishing tied for second two strokes behind Kuchar, just one week after winning the Wells Fargo Championship.
Kuchar, fresh off Sunday’s win at THE PLAYERS Championship, is trying to get back to a normal routine while still having to pinch himself about his success at TPC Sawgrass.
"Didn’t do much sleeping on Sunday (night)," Kuchar said, "got up early Monday and had to read the paper and and watch the highlight reels just to make sure it really did happen. Had to go through a couple of different checklists to make sure it all did happen."
Of his three previous wins on TOUR prior to THE PLAYERS, Kuchar twice played the following week. After his 2002 win at The Honda Classic, he finished T28 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard. And after his 2010 win at The Barclays to start the FedExCup Playoffs, he finished T11 the next week at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
He said the biggest challenge is trying to get his work in while going through the added responsibilities of media and other obligations, along with meeting with friends and fellow TOUR pros looking to congratulate him. He said a normally three- or four-hour practice routine on Tuesday might turn into seven or eight hours.
"The challenges are the extra distractions," he said. "They’re great distractions … They’re fun stuff. I wouldn’t want it a different way. Having your peers and players come up and congratulate you is a great feeling."
Kuchar said winning such a big event as THE PLAYERS might be reason enough to take the next week off. But his swing coach Chris O’Connell is from the area, giving Kuchar a chance to put in extended work on the range. Plus, Kuchar finished tied for sixth here last year, so he’s encouraged about his chances this week.
Plus, his children like making the trip.
"My kids always want to put on their cowboy boots," Kuchar said. "They know that cowboys live in Texas, so when they come here, they want to be cowboys. So they have a good time coming to Texas as well."
2:21 pm
Make your picks: HP Byron Nelson
Keegan Bradley downed Ryan Palmer in a playoff last year at TPC Four Seasons, and both made our list this week. Check our this week’s Expert Picks to see who did make the cut and scope out our Sleeper Picks for some players who could surprise this week.
Did our experts get it right? Let us know who you think will win this week in the comments section below.
2:12 pm
Notable groups: HP Byron Nelson
Tee times for the first two rounds of the HP Byron Nelson Championship have been released. Check out some of the notable groups and let us know who you are interested in watching in the Comments section below.
Phil Mickelson/Adam Scott/Ernie Els – This group features three former champions. Ernie Els won the tournament in his 1995 debut while Mickelson, who won the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am earlier this year, took the title in 1996 and was runner-up four years later. Scott won in 2008 after tying for third two years earlier.
Jason Dufner/Jhonnatan Vegas/Louis Oosthuizen — Jason Dufner picked up his first PGA TOUR victory in New Orleans, got married the following week and got back into action at THE PLAYERS. Oosthuizen nearly won his second major earlier this year, losing the Masters playoff to Bubba Watson, while Vegas is coming off his best performance of the season, a tie for seventh at THE PLAYERS.
Matt Kuchar/Vijay Singh/Padraig Harrington – Kuchar comes to Dallas with plenty of momentum after winning THE PLAYERS on Sunday, his fifth top-10 in his last seven starts. Singh has missed his last two cuts but he won in Dallas in 2003 while Harrington, a three-time major champion who has two top-10s this season, is making his debut at the HP Byron Nelson Championship.
Keegan Bradley/Rory Sabbatini/Jason Day – This group features the last three champions. Bradley beat Ryan Palmer in a playoff last year before winning the PGA Championship in August on the way to PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year honors. Day made the 2010 tournament his breakthrough PGA TOUR victory. Sabbatini’s 2009 victory gave the Fort Worth resident the Metroplex Slam after winning the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial two years earlier.
1:55 pm
Keegan, TPC Four Seasons a nice fit
Watch: Keegan on HP Byron Nelson
Keegan Bradley discusses returning to the HP Byron Nelson Championship as the defending champ this week.
By Mike McAllister, PGATOUR.COM
IRVING, Texas — Some players are made for certain courses. Keegan Bradley and the TPC Four Seasons Resort course might very well be one of those perfect marriages.
It’s a course that benefits solid performance off the tee, the dog legs requiring precision and the 7,166 yards — often into tricky winds — requiring length. Bradley, the defending champ of the HP Byron Nelson Championship, is one of the TOUR’s best players with driver in his hand.
"I’ve always said on the PGA TOUR, driving the ball is so important because it sets you up for the whole rest of the course," Bradley said Tuesday. "It’s a course that’s demanding off the tee and precise shots that need to be hit."
Bradley won his first TOUR event here last year and eventually added the PGA Championship and TOUR Rookie of the Year honors to his resume. One of the strengths is his game is his ability off the tee.
Last year, he ranked 20th in driving distance and 96th in driving accuracy. Those two categories are combined to make up the total driving statistic, of which Bradley ranked 12th.
He’s even better this year. He ranks 16th in driving distance and 77th in accuracy, which puts him 10th in total driving.
"I like to drive the ball well," Bradley said. "Any course that’s demanding off the tee, like Akron or the PGA, I like them.
"I’m not a player that likes wide-open golf courses. I like ‘em tight."
Although he’s yet to return to the winner’s circle this year, Bradley’s been knocking on the door, with a playoff loss at the Northern Trust Open and two other top-10 finishes. Don’t be surprised if he breaks the drought here this week.
“I feel like my game is in a good spot,” Bradley said. “I feel comfortable, more fit than I ever have in my whole career. Everything seems to be coming together really well.”
1:30 pm
Turf Talk: TPC Four Seasons Resort
By David McPherson, PGATOUR.COM contributor
Growing up in Texas, Rusty Wilson loved watching one of the state’s favorite sons tee it up each year. As the superintendent at TPC Four Seasons Resort, host of this week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship, he’s now fulfilling a boyhood dream.
“It’s the reason I took the job,” said Wilson, who is in his ninth year at TPC Four Seasons Resort. “I grew up watching the Byron Nelson and Colonial and feel lucky and privileged that I’m now in charge of prepping the course for this event with a rich history.”
The tournament course was fortunate to avoid any damage from the Texas twisters that touched down in the Lone Star State back in March. But Texas was not so lucky last summer when it was hit with one of the worst droughts in the state’s history.
The Bermudagrass fairways (which the course converted to from a traditional winter ryegrass between 2008 and 2009) suffered. With irrigation restrictions, the turf didn’t get enough water. Thankfully, this year’s warmer winter — and early spring — brought it back just in time for the tournament.
According to Wilson, good planning and a long-range plan that is strictly followed are the keys to getting the course ready. He’s got an experienced crew to help meet this plan, with his employees having anywhere from 10 to 25 years at the club.
“They know where the course needs to be,” he said.
Leading up to the event, the turf is fed with growth regulators and additional applications get the rough to the right height, which this year is set at 2 inches.
“We test the soil regularly to ensure we’ve achieved the right nutrient levels for the plant on the fairways, tees and in the rough,” Wilson explained. “We also create a custom-blended fertilizer to apply to the greens.”
Since 2011, only a couple of minor changes have been made to the TPC Four Seasons course. Some new trees were added on the right side of the rough at the eighth hole and on No. 14, some smaller trees were planted.
Wilson likens the task of preparing the turf prior to a TOUR event to the care and precision a pharmacist takes to make sure he has the right dose for his patient.
“It’s like filling a prescription,” he said. “You get it down to a science and do only what you truly need to do. There is a lot of science involved. It’s not just mowing grass. The part I love is creating conditions that test the players.”
10:07 am
Reed qualifies for third straight event
INSIDE THE FIELD: Field updates from the HP Byron Nelson Championship
By Michael Curet, Special to PGATOUR.COM
Patrick Reed earned his third straight Monday qualifier berth on the PGA TOUR this year, firing a 64 at Lantana Golf Club to secure a spot in this week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship field.
The 21-year-old native of San Antonio, Texas and former Augusta State golfer is trying to make his fourth consecutive cut on the PGA TOUR. He finished T35 in the Valero Texas Open, T23 in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and T32 at the Wells Fargo Championship two weeks ago at Quail Hollow.
Shooting 5-under 67 to join Reed in the field as qualifiers were PGA teaching professional Stuart Deane of Arlington, Texas and former PGA TOUR member Todd Demsey of Scottsdale, Ariz.. Three-time PGA TOUR winner Robert Gamez shot 4-under and earned the final spot in the field in a playoff with Samuel Cyr, Cole Moreland, and Chris Thompson.
Deane will be returning to his home course at TPC Four Seasons Resort in Las Calinas, where he made the cut in 2008. The 40-year-old Australian spent a number of years on the Australasian Tour before settling in Texas.
Demsey, who turns 40 later this month, was a member of the PGA TOUR in 1997 and 2008, in addition to playing nine straight years on the Nationwide Tour, coming back after two surgeries to remove a brain tumor in 2002 and 2003. He tied for second on the in the 1996 Nike Monterrey Open and at the Buy.com Virginia Beach Open. In his only Nationwide Tour start in 2012, he missed the cut at the Chitamacha Louisiana Open.
The 43-year-old Gamez won twice in 1990 on TOUR (Northern Telecom Tucson Open, Nestle Invitational) and came back in 2005 to win the Valero Texas Open. The TOUR veteran has eight runner-up finishes and has made 271 cuts in 529 events played during his career.
This year, Gamez has played in four PGA TOUR events, with his only cut made coming at the Puerto Rico Open (T58). His most recent top-10 finish on PGA TOUR came two years ago, when he tied for fifth at the Reno-Tahoe Open.
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