 |
| Getty Images |
Padraig Harrington who bogeyed the last and carded four birdies a share of 12th place after day one of the Hyndai Tournament of Champions - courtesy of his win earlier this year at The Honda Classic.
Patrick Reed struck four birdies and an eagle in the final six holes to fire an eight-under 65 and take his place at the top of the first-round leaderboard at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
Patrick Reed struck four birdies and an eagle in the final six holes to fire an eight-under 65 and take his place at the top of the first-round leaderboard at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
The four-time PGA Tour winner was well down the leaderboard after turning on two under, but was in scintillating form on the back nine, reeling off birdies at the 13th, 14th and 15th holes.
After hitting par at the 16th, he was back in the red with another birdie before bringing his round to a close with an eagle on the par 5 18th.
He came home in just 31 shots, six under par.
Reed's playing partner and world number one Jordan Spieth finished one shot behind on seven-under after another blemish-free round, registering seven birdies.
Brandt Snedeker, J.B Holmes and Danny Lee are all placed on six under while two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson is a further two behind after shooting 69.
World number two Jason Day did not enjoy as productive days as Reed and Spieth, but is still well-placed thanks to a bogey-free three under.
Scotland's Russell Knox is the best-placed Brit on two under.
Graeme McDowell struck two double bogeys in his two-over-par 75
Harrington told the Golf Channel after his round: “Last year was quite a disappointing year for me. I didn’t play as well as I would have liked.
“But I liked what I saw today and that’s good enough for me, because it’s all about the moment and what you’re doing.
“I made a few changes during the winter and first week out I’m liking what I see and I hope that it will go from strength to strength during the season.”
Harrington has featured at six Ryder Cups but now finds himself 141st in the world rankings.
While not giving up hope of an unlikely spot on the European team later this year, the 44-year-old has admitted that his focus for the time being is very much on his own individual performances.
“It’s a big ask from the position I’m in,” he added.
“I’m going to have to have a big year.
“I’m literally going to have to win at least twice or a major.
“It really is going to have to be a big year for any guy to get into the Ryder Cup team.
“Especially as I’m not in those World Series events - I wasn’t in the ones at the end of last year.
“So as much as I’d like to play - and it’s a goal of mine - it’s not necessarily on my radar. I’ve got to go out and get a win under my belt and then I’ll start thinking about it.”
No comments:
Post a Comment