The third round of The Greenbrier Classic is in full swing and there’s already been plenty of movement on the leaderboard with Jimmy Walker carding a 62 to get in the clubhouse at 7 under.
Now it’s Anthony Kim’s turn -- he’s 8 under for the tournament after six birdies, including three in a row on his last three holes, through his first 12 holes.
Kim’s season has been wildly up and down: He’s missed eight cuts in 21 starts and was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard after shooting an 81 in the second round in Canada last week, but he also has two top-10s including a tie for fifth at the British Open two weeks ago.
Will this be the week breaks through and wins for the first time since last year’s Shell Houston Open?
Ever play in a charity scramble where you get a free throw of your golf ball? Well, that wasn’t exactly on the rules sheet for Monday’s Telus Skins Game in Alberta, Canada, but avid cricket player Paul Casey saw a 132-yard par-3 and could only think of one thing.
“I played a lot of cricket growing up and I am good at throwing balls … it just looked like the perfect yardage and I thought ‘why not,’” Casey told The Canadian Press.
Playing in a group with Jhonattan Vegas, Lucas Glover, Anthony Kim and Canadian Stephen Ames, Casey figured he’d make things interesting with the throw – which sailed over a pond and landed on the green, some 30 feet from the hole. He then hit a wedge which landed closer to the pin, but spun into the rough.
“I was a little disappointed I didn't get the wedge shot closer than my throw,” he said.
He had hoped to get his partners to bet him on whether he could throw the ball on the green – and his partners wisely declined. In the official action, Jhonattan Vegas was the big winner with $55,000 won on the first nine holes of competition.
The event raised $28,000 for charity on the first of two days of play, which concludes Tuesday.
A significant number of players headed directly from the British Open to the RBC Canadian Open -- a 4,758-mile flight from Sandwich, U.K., to Vancouver, B.C. Among those are three players who finished in the top five last week at Royal St. George’s: Anthony Kim, Rickie Fowler and Chad Campbell.
Kim and Fowler are both on the course early in the opening round, while Campbell will tee off this afternoon.
Kim actually had a share of the lead at 2 under through five holes, but he double bogeyed the sixth hole to fall back to even par. He’s through seven holes so far.
Fowler, meanwhile, is coming off his best finish in a major and is 1 over through seven holes after a bogey on No. 6.
As for the top of the leaderboard, there’s a logjam of players that includes Lucas Glover at 2 under in the early going.
IN POSITION: Two players in the field this week at the RBC Canadian Open have an opportunity to move atop the FedExCup standings with a victory. Luke Donald (currently 6th) and Matt Kuchar (No. 8) are both within striking distance of FedExCup leader Nick Watney.
NEEDING A MOVE: Of the 31 players ranked between 110th and 140th in the FedExCup standings, 20 will be playing this week at Shaughnessy. Spots in the top 125 will be there for the taking with four players ranked between 121st and 125th not playing this week. Stephen Ames, playing in his homeland, 2010 regular season points leader Ernie Els and 126th-ranked Steven Bowditch are among those within 75 points of the top 125 with a chance to move up this week. More on the Playoffs bubble
CROSSING THE LINE: There was just one change to the top 125 last week. George McNeill, who tied for 2nd at the Viking Classic, moved from 132nd to 92nd. Falling back was Zack Miller, who dropped from 124th to 127th.
WHO’S UP, WHO’S DOWN? McNeill’s 40 position leap was the second biggest of the week but 10 spots shy of the 50-position move from Tom Pernice Jr., who went from 212th to 50th after a T2 at Annandale. Anthony Kim moved inside the top 100, to 85th, after a top 10 at the British Open. Camilo Villegas, down seven spots to 114th, is among the players who fell furthest last week. More movers
NEW ARRIVALS: Nine players earned their first FedExCup points of 2011 last week during the dual tournaments at Royal St. George’s and Annandale. Tom Watson posted a T22 finish at the British Open and debuts at 214th in the FedExCup standings while Peter Lonard tied for 9th at the Viking Classic to reach 221st.
A YEAR OF CHANGE: If the season were to end today, two of the 30 players in last year’s TOUR Championship (Paul Casey and Ernie Els) would miss out on the Playoffs altogether. Interestingly, Els and Casey will be playing in the same group during Rounds 1 and 2 this week. A total of 34 of the top 125 in the FedExCup standings were not in the Playoffs a year ago, highlighted by former leader and current No. 7 Mark Wilson, who has won twice in 2011.
MORE ON LAST WEEK’S WINNER: Chris Kirk became the fifth rookie to win on TOUR in 2011 with his victory at the Viking Classic. Kirk, who was the No. 2 graduate on the Nationwide Tour last year, is currently second in the Rookie Rankings behind Masters champion Charl Schwartzel. Kirk has four top 10s on the year including his win and a tie for second behind Phil Mickelson at the Shell Houston Open.
BETHESDA, Md. -- The second round is starting to wind down -- bad weather held up play for just over 40 minutes earlier in the day -- and still no one has been able to come close to catching leader Rory McIlroy and his 11-under total.
Y.E. Yang had the best chance, but as he finishes up on the 18th he’s still six shots back.
Others in contention -- if you could being nine shots back in contention -- include Sergio Garcia and Matt Kuchar, among others. They’re tied for third at the moment but as mentioned are well back.
At the other end of the board, a number of notables are fighting to make the cut or are already outside it.
The cut is at 4 over. Among those on the wrong side of that number are Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan, Paul Casey and Nick Watney, to name a few.
Meawhile, Bubba Watson, Adam Scott and Anthony Kim are all right on the number as they finish their rounds. Stay tuned.
BETHESDA, Md. -- Four players competing in the 111th U.S. Open are celebrating birthdays this week.
Fred Funk turned 55 on Tuesday and is the oldest player in the field while Hiroyuki Fujita and Phil Mickelson turn 42 and 41, respectively, on Thursday. Anthony Kim is the final birthday boy – celebrating his 26th on Sunday, which also happens to be Father's Day.
A win on Sunday at Congressional would make this a memorable week for anyone, of course, but especially the birthday boys.
Nike has provided a preview of what some of their players will be wearing this week for the U.S. Open. Here’s a look at the clothes Anthony Kim, Paul Casey, Lucas Glover and Stewart Cink are expected to wear for each of the four rounds (should each make the cut, of course) at Congressional.