Cantlay ties course record with 62 and leads at Pebble Beach
Patrick Cantlay follows his shot from the seventh tee of the Pebble Beach Golf Links during the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021, in Pebble Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Patrick Cantlay looked just as good Thursday at Pebble Beach as the last round he played 18 days ago. That tied the course record at Pebble Beach last matched 24 years ago by David Duval, and it gave Cantlay a two-shot lead in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Bhatia hit all 18 of the small greens at Pebble Beach, the first player to do that at Pebble since Ryan Palmer in 2008. AdIt helped being at Pebble Beach, typically the easiest course when the weather is dry and relatively calm. The AT&T Pebble Beach and Honda Classic offered him exemptions.
Rory McIlroy, David Duval suffer horror holes at The Open
And as if to prove the point, David Duval and Rory McIlroy both showed that even past Open champions can be made to look like weekend hackers. Duval, the winner in 2001, notched up a sizable 13 on the seventh hole, while 2014 champion McIlroy opened with a four-over-par eight at the first on day one of the 148th Open Championship. Duval had started with two birdies but made his own eight at the fifth and then outdid that in spectacular fashion at the long seventh. The seventh is one of two new holes -- along with the eighth -- at Royal Portrush for the 2019 Open and Duval has written a dramatic first chapter in its history. Things barely got better for the pair, with McIlroy finishing the first day eight-over-par as Duval finished on an astonishing 19 over.