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Post by The Boss on Jan 3, 2022 0:41:21 GMT
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Post by The Boss on Jan 6, 2022 10:17:25 GMT
Round 1 - Unusually, there was not a breath of wind for the opening round, but the greens will be lightning fast with a few tricky pins to negotiate. Bob Fletcher had a complete nightmare of an opening round, everything that could go wrong did go wrong, and his week was effectively ended by a 78. Les Souter started perfectly with an eagle on the first hole, then struggled for the remainder of the round and could only card a 74. Hans Kunok's game also wasn't quite there and he wouldn't be pleased with his eventual 73. The unpredictable Randy Grant had a satisfactory opening round of 70, while Ian McKinley's solid 68 saw him well-placed. Rich Urban looked like he'd put in some serious practice over the holiday season, and it paid dividends by helping him to a fine opening 66. Charlie Roberts showed real intent today, firing a magical 63, devoid of any dropped shots, to head the field by one stroke, and he even claimed a HOLE-IN-ONE on the 6th!! I think we have another fascinating week in store...   
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Post by The Boss on Jan 7, 2022 11:24:00 GMT
Round 2 - A bit of wind greeted the players this morning, but the greens were not as fast as they were yesterday, although they were faced with tricky pin positions. Bob Fletcher put his poor opening round behind him by hitting a pretty solid 68, but last place is still beckoning. Les Souter shot a steady 69 which included a 3-putt on the 11th, the only blemish on his card. The other guests all feature near the competitive end of the leaderboard. Ian McKinley's second 68 saw him tied 9th with a number of tour pro's as well as Charlie Roberts, who described his poor 73 as "forgettable" and identified the problem as not getting the putting distances correct. Randy Grant recorded the equal best score of the round, a super 65, to slide into a share of 6th spot, just 2 strokes off the pace, while Rich Urban's 68 saw him currently positioned as the best guest, having moved into a tie for 3rd, just 1 shot behind the co-leaders. A 70 from Tiger Woods saw him languishing unusually back in a big group tied for 27th place, so this is an opportunity for the guests to gain ground in the earnings table...   
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Post by The Boss on Jan 9, 2022 11:56:11 GMT
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Post by The Boss on Jan 10, 2022 11:53:37 GMT
Round 4 - A little wind and very fast, firm greens were on the menu for today's climax to the tournament. Bob Fletcher failed to avoid finishing in last place, in spite of an improving 71. Les Souter's putting issues continued and he finished the week as he had started it, with an unsatisfacory 74. Hans Kunok, however, had his best day of the event, carding a good 68, but which still only elevated him into a share of 47th spot. Charlie Roberts again failed to recapture the form that saw him record the best score of the tourney in the opening round, carding a disappointing 72 to finish in a tie for 8th place. Overnight leader Rich Urban had a 2-shot lead going into the final round, but he suffered a mini-collapse today and, although it was not quite of Greg Norman-esque proportions, his 75 saw him drop down into a share of 5th. One of Rich's main threats, Ian McKinley, usually loves the kind of conditions we had today, but his game failed him and his 71 was always going to be too high to taste victory, so again he was the bridesmaid instead of the bride, ending the tournament tied 2nd with tour pro Kirk Triplett. He can sparkle, he can be as dull as dish water, you never quite know which Randy Grant is going to turn up. But this week he held everything together, playing consistently to sign off with a very good 67. His winning margin of 4 strokes was not flattering at all, and this first win of the season for him almost certainly won't be his last! See you in Arizona next week...   
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