By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- A year ago, Roberto Castro had modest goals when he played in the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation.
After all, the popular stop in the desert was just the second event in Castro's rookie year. He wanted to stay patient, and he felt if he could just break par for each nine he would be "hanging in there."
But Castro, who ended up tying for 42nd in 2012, has a different mindset this year. You've got to "get it going and keep it going," Castro learned, and that's exactly what he's done over the first two rounds.
Castro played the Palmer Private Course on Friday and shot 67 that enabled him to maintain a share of the lead with James Hahn, who shot the same score at La Quinta. Both players had opened with rounds of 63, as did Jason Kokrak.
Scott Stallings and Darron Stiles, who both played La Quinta, and Richard H. Lee, who birdied the last hole at the Palmer Course, are all one shot off the lead after rounds of 65. Kokrak is among nine players tied at 12 under, two strokes off the pace.
Joining Kokrak in a tie for sixth are rookies Lee Williams and David Lingmerth, Zach Johnson, Kevin Stadler, Charles Howell III, Greg Chalmers, Charley Hoffman and Aaron Baddeley. The best rounds among that group came from Lingmerth, who shot 8 under, and Williams and Howell, who shot 65s -- all on the Nicklaus Course.
Russell Henley, last week's winner who only had three bogeys in the first 90 holes of his rookie campaign, had a more adventurous round on Friday but remains in contention at 11 under. Henley had four birdies and an eagle in the second round but also dropped three shots to par.
The cut will be made on Saturday after everyone has played each of the three courses. Phil Mickelson, who is tied for 91st, still has some work to do -- although his round of 67 was five strokes better than his opener and a definite step in the right direction.
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- Roberto Castro, who leads the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation, has just made the turn as the second round continues.
Castro, who opened with a 63, shot 4 under on the back nine of the Palmer Private course and now stands 13 under for the tournament. He's two strokes ahead of rookies Lee Williams and Russell Henley, who won last week's Sony Open in Hawaii.
Williams is playing the Nicklaus Course and is 6 under through 11 holes. The red-hot Henley is through eight holes on the Palmer Course and is 3 under for the day.
The other players in double figures at 10 under are overnight co-leaders Jason Kokrak and James Hahn, Kevin Stadler, Ricky Barnes, Scott Stallings and Charley Hoffman.
Phil Mickelson continues to battle after opening with a round of even par. He's played 12 holes on the Nicklaus course in 4 under after making six birdies, two bogeys and four pars.
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- Don't look now but Robert Garrigus is cllmbing the leaderboard at the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation.
Garrigus, you might remember, tied for second at last year's tournament in the desert -- one of four runner-up finishes he had in PGA TOUR events last year. He also tied for second in Malaysia.
Garrigus, who is making his 2013 debut at the Humana Challange, started on the back nine at La Quinta on Friday and has gone birdie-eagle-birdie to move to 10 under. He's tied with overnight co-leader, Jason Kokrak, and the two are one shot off the lead.
Roberto Castro and James Hahn, who were the other two first-round pacesetters, have played five and four holes, respectively, and are both 2 under for the day and 11 under for the tournament. Castro is playing the Palmer Course at PGA West while Hahn is at La Quinta.
Russell Henley, last week's stunning rookie winner at the Sony Open in Hawaii, continues to play well. He's 1 under through four holes at the Palmer Course and tied with Ryan Palmer and Greg Chalmers at 9 under.
Phil Mickelson, who struggled with his putter and shot even par on Thursday, is giving himself a shot at playing the entire weekend. He's on the Nicklaus Course and has birdied four of his first seven holes to move to 4 under, which is currently tied for 62nd. The cut will be made on Saturday after everyone has played each of the three courses in the rotation.
Roberto Castro, Jason Kokrak and James Hahn
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
LA QUINTA, Calif. -- The youth movement continued on Thursday during the opening round of the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation as one PGA TOUR rookie and two in their sophomore seasons claimed shares of the lead at 9 under.
James Hahn, who is playing in just his third TOUR event, fired his 63 on the Palmer Course at PGA West, which is generally considered the most challenging of the three courses used in the rotation. Roberto Castro's came on the Nicklaus course while Jason Kokrak shot 9 under at La Quinta.
Russell Henley, the rookie who won last week's Sony Open in Hawaii, showed no signs of slowing down, either, as he heads a group of four players at 8 under. He's tied with Greg Chalmers, Doug Labelle and Aaron Baddeley, who finished birdie-eagle on the Palmer course.
"I'm feeling very confident," said Henley, who set the tone when he hit the pin for eagle on the first hole. "I definitely wasn't going to be upset either way. I feel like of how my score went, I think that's the last thing I want to do is waste any energy and be emotional right now. I think I got to conserve all my emotions and my energy as much as I can so I can play another full golf tournament."
Henley's fellow rookie, Hahn, blistered the front nine of the Palmer Course with a 30 on the way to his 63. He chipped in twice for birdies -- the first time he'd holed two like that since he was 9 years old.
"For me it was just fairways, greens, and then trying to make a putt," Hahn said. "I think a lot of the times, we as professionals, try to take in too much information. That's not necessary, what it is to the water on the left or how far to carry this particular tree, and for me some of my best rounds have come from not even seeing golf course for the first time.
"So for me it's a little bit of an advantage, it gives me tunnel vision, I don't want to know or I don't have the information of how far the trouble is, I just know fairway, green, and try and make a putt."
Kokrak, who averaged 304 yards off the tee last season, played the par 5s at La Quinta in 4 under on the strength of two eagles. He birdied his first hole and then eagled his second to get things going and didn't drop a shot to par.
"The course over at La Quinta is in great shape," Kokrak said. "Greens are not overly fast, so you can be somewhat aggressive out there. The greens are holding. So you can be aggressive with the iron shots out there."
Castro and the other pro in his group, Daniel Summerhays, fed off each other in the first round. Summerhays is among a group of nine players who are tied at 65, two strokes off the pace.
"I got off to a good start, I birdied the first two with kick-ins, basically," Castro said. "And then just played well after that. Didn't make any long putts until the 18th hole I rolled in like a 40, 50 footer. .. So this tournament you kind of got to get it going and keep it going. We both got it going early, which was good."
Thursday was a perfect day for scoring in the desert and all but 22 of the 156 players in the field broke par. Among those with ground to make up are reigning U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson, who opened with a 73; former PGA champ David Toms, who had a 75; and and defending champion Mark Wilson, who shot 77.
Two-time Humana champ Phil Mickelson shot even par 72 at La Quinta in his 2013 debut.
All three courses played well under par 72 with the Nicklaus course the easiest at 68.231. The Palmer course clocked in at 69.712 while La Quinta was 69.769.
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
For those players currently not inside the top 70 in FedExCup points, this week’s Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston represents a last chance to move up and secure a spot at the third stop in the Playoffs, next week’s BMW Championship.
Here’s a closer look at five players who I think could move from outside the top 70 in the FedExCup standings to inside the top 70 and advance to Crooked Stick. Fill out the form below and let me know if you agree or disagree with my picks.
Charl Schwartzel (No. 71): The biggest reason I think Schwartzel moves on? He’s just one spot outside the magic number. The South African doesn’t have much of a Playoffs history -- last year was his one and only year in it -- but he’s missed just one cut since April. If that trend continues, he should move up at least one spot and advance. Three of Schwartzel’s last four finishes have been in the top 25.
Roberto Castro (No. 80): The 27-year-old already busted the bubble once, tying for 24th at The Barclays to move up 20 spots in the FedExCup standings and advance to TPC Boston. Prior to that, the rookie had missed his last three cuts. But in the two starts before that, he finished seventh and 18th. More to like about Castro: He’s 19th in total driving and 13th in greens in regulation.
Charley Hoffman (No. 86): After missing his fourth consecutive cut last week, Hoffman fell from 67th to 86th. On the bright side, a return trip to TPC Boston should conjure up some good memories and hopefully good play. Hoffman won the Deutsche Bank Championship two years ago and earlier this year he finished second at the nearby Travelers Championship. Whatever the reason, the Californian seems to play well in the New England area.
Jason Day (No. 88): Like Castro, he tied for 24th at The Barclays to make it to the Deutsche Bank Championship. Last year, Day tied for third at TPC Boston. Of course he was also playing a lot better then, too. The Aussie has good history there, however, tying for second in 2010 and 19th the year before.
Jonas Blixt (No. 97): A rib injury derailed what was a successful rookie campaign for Bilxt, who was sidelined two months. Prior to getting hurt, Blixt had strung together three straight top 10s at the Wells Fargo Championship, HP Byron Nelson Championship and Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. He also tied for 13th at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. He’ll need a similar performance to advance, but as one of the game’s best putters he certainly has a chance.
Check out the top five shots of the week from The Barclays, featuring highlights from Roberto Castro (ace), Rickie Fowler, Pat Perez, Tiger Woods, and winner Nick Watney.
Robert Castro aced the 14th hole during Friday's second round of The Barclays.
Chris Kirk had aced the 17th hole on Friday morning.
Castro came into The Barclays as the bubble boy, ranked No. 100 in the FedExCup standings. Only the top 100 after competition concludes on Sunday advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship.
When he made the ace, Castro was projected at No. 102. But that hole-in-one moved him above the cutline so depending on what happens over his last four holes, Castro may get the weekend to improve his position.
The PGA TOUR rookie had opened with a 76 that included three birdies, six bogeys and a double bogey. He’s 5 under through 14 holes in his second round, though, after the ace, two birdies and an eagle, with just one shot dropped to par.