40 Sahara Invitational |

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40 Sahara Invitational Oct 21, 2021 9:30:21 GMT

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Post by The Boss on Oct 21, 2021 9:30:21 GMT

Round 1 - It soon became apparent that Shadow Creek would provide a sterner test to the one the players faced last week! The greens in particular will challenge anyone's putting skills, and that doesn't even take into account the fierce wind forecast to blow this week. Randy Grant suffered the most, scrambling in with a 75, while Ian McKinley and Bob Fletcher barely survived the opening day with a pair of 73's. Mark Lipping had to make do with a level par 72, but the best guest performance today came from Hans Kunok who fought hard for a commendable 70. Even the legendary Jack Nicklaus struggled, finishing the day at the foot of the leaderboard after carding an unusually inept 76!!

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40 Sahara Invitational Oct 22, 2021 11:53:55 GMT

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Post by The Boss on Oct 22, 2021 11:53:55 GMT

Round 2 - The main problem today was the gale force wind. On the plus side the rain slowed up the greens a little to make them less precarious, but care still had to be taken. The best guest performer from the opening day, Hans Kunok, came unstuck and a floundering 78 saw him plummet down the leaderboard. Ian McKinley and Mark Lipping both improved on their Round 1 scores, carding a pair of very respectable 70's to be placed mid-leaderboard at the halfway point. After heeding some good mental advice from Ian, Bob Fletcher put it to good use and confounded everyone, including himself, by firing an excellent 67, lifting him into a share of 16th place and just five strokes off the pace. The tournament is warming up nicely...

Last Edit: Oct 22, 2021 11:54:25 GMT by The Boss

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40 Sahara Invitational Oct 24, 2021 11:27:42 GMT

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Post by The Boss on Oct 24, 2021 11:27:42 GMT

Round 3 - The incessant wind has dropped a tad, but it has rendered the greens very fast and very firm, so players will have to adjust their game accordingly. Hans Kunok remained at the bottom of the leaderboard even though he bettered his second round score by carding an equally poor 77 today. Randy Grant's second 75 of the tourney leaves him just above Hans by two strokes, so this pair now have their own private battle going on to see who can avoid last place. Mark Lipping is improving round by round, and his 69 now places him in a share of 23rd, six shots off the pace, so he can't be removed from the equation just yet. Another gradual improver is Ian McKinley and he played well for a glowing 67 today, just one stroke ahead of Mark and still in with an outside chance. After boosting his position in Round 2, Bob Fletcher became even more upwardly mobile today by blasting a great 65. He is now joint leader with tour profesional Babe Hiskey, and must be feeling confident going into the final day...

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40 Sahara Invitational Oct 25, 2021 17:11:58 GMT

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Post by The Boss on Oct 25, 2021 17:11:58 GMT

Round 4 - The strong winds returned and combined with firm, speedy greens that meant birdies would be hard to come by, as well as pars on some holes. Hans Kunok avoided the ignominy of finishing bottom of the leaderboard by carding his second 70 of the week, a good effort in the conditions. Ian McKinley slumped to a 78 to spoil what was looking to be a pretty good tournament for him. Also struggling was Mark Lipping, who recorded his worst round of the event, a 74, to finish tied 37th. The only guest player who could be reasonably happy was Bob Fletcher, who started the final round as a joint leader. Unfortunately, the weather got the better of him today, and his putter also wasn't working well. He needed to hole a 22-footer for birdie on the 18th to force a play-off but it wasn't to be. His eventual 72 left him in a tie for 2nd, just one stroke behind the winner, Babe Hiskey, who won his second PGA Tour title five years after winning his first.

40 Sahara Invitational

Post by The Boss on Oct 21, 2021 9:30:21 GMT

Post by The Boss on Oct 22, 2021 11:53:55 GMT

Post by The Boss on Oct 24, 2021 11:27:42 GMT

Post by The Boss on Oct 25, 2021 17:11:58 GMT

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