Corey Conners rallies late at The Open, Nick Taylor leaves Portrush frustrated
Article content
Conners made back-to-back birdies and hole Nos. 15 and 16 to reach one-over par and make the 36-hole cut right on the number
Article content
'I did kind of know where I stood, especially on 16,' the Canadian told the Toronto Sun after his round. 'I saw that the cut was still at one over. I thought it would have moved to two. I saw that and kind of knew that I had to give myself some birdie looks.'
Article content
One hole earlier on the 15th tee, Conners caddie Danny Sahl told his player, 'We got lots of golf left.'
Article content
'I don't really know why I said it,' Sahl said after the round, but it didn't hurt as Conners' rally was about to begin.
Article content
It was a tough two days with the putter for the 33-year-old from Listowel, Ont.
Article content
'I just feel like I'm not making great strikes on it,' Conners said about his putting. 'With the greens being slower here I have to pick up the pace on the stroke a little bit and I don't feel like the ball is coming off solidly.'
Article content
Article content
The good news is after some struggles with his irons trying to navigate the firm links turf, Conners has his trademark ball-striking dialled in heading to the last two days.
Article content
'I hit the ball really wonderfully today, a lot of great iron shots,' he said. 'So the plan is to keep going that and get the putter going and I'll be all right.'
Article content
The weather brought a little bit, and in some cases a lot, of everything on Friday.
Article content
'It was beautiful in the warm-ups and then started pouring when we started the round. Then it got nice again, and then it rained again. Umbrella up and down all day.'
Article content
The end result after 36 holes for Conners was a chance to play another two days, which is something none of the other three Canadians will do.
Article content
Article content
Taylor Pendrith never recovered from beginning his Open Championship career on Thursday morning with an out-of-bounds tee shot. After starting Thursday four over through four holes, Pendrith played the next 32 holes in one-under par, but it wasn't enough as he missed the cut by two at three over.
Article content
'I made a couple of steps forward this year but I missed two of the four cuts,' Taylor told the Sun. 'It sucks. I know my game is good, I just have to clean up the dumb stuff like yesterday to compete.'
Article content
Taylor won the Sony Open in January and entered the week 15th in the FedEx Cup standings.
Article content
'At majors the line between a decent shot and the spot where you're probably going to make bogey is finer than at regular tournaments,' he said. 'And it's not that I have to learn that, I know it. I just have to not do it.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
2 days ago
- CTV News
Akshay Bhatia shoots career-best 62 to lead in Memphis. Scottie Scheffler is 5 back
Akshay Bhatia hits out of the bunker on the second hole during the first round of the St. Jude Championship golf tournament Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV) MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Akshay Bhatia had a blazing finish to get his PGA Tour postseason off to a good start, closing eagle-birdie-birdie for an 8-under 62 to post his career low and take a one-shot lead over Tommy Fleetwood in the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Scottie Scheffler, playing for the first time since winning the British Open for his second major of the year, made bogey on the final hole for a 67, his 10th straight round in the 60s. Bhatia comes into the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 45, with only the top 50 advancing to the second of three tournaments in the lucrative postseason. The idea is to be among the top 30 who reach East Lake for a shot at the $10 million bonus. He was paired with Harry Hall of England, who is at No. 44. Hall was matching Bhatia until the final two holes, when Bhatia rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th and stuffed a short iron into 2 feet on 18. Bhatia said he has been spending too much time thinking about numbers, whether it's his score or his world ranking or his position in the FedEx Cup. The goal is to keep his mind peaceful. 'I felt pretty relaxed, and I'm just not trying to force anything,' he said. 'It's OK to get mad at golf shots but not at yourself.' Justin Rose and Bud Cauley, who is at No. 53, also were at 64 on a TPC Southwind that has 18 new greens and a course with much thicker rough. Fleetwood is all but set for the FedEx Cup finale at No. 9, though he would love to get that first PGA Tour title to go along with European tour wins against strong fields. He hit 13 out of 14 fairway, and the one he missed led to a birdie when he holed a bunker shot on No. 9. 'People talk about this golf course as a second-shot golf course, but it's only a second-shot golf course if you're in the fairway,' Fleetwood said. 'I hit the ball so well off the tee that I was always giving myself an opportunity.' And then it helped to see the putts drop, four straight birdies to close out his round. Fleetwood has the right outlook for this postseason series. Asked if he looked at the three weeks as one big event or each tournament on its own, Fleetwood said, 'It really day to day.' Projections can fluctuate with shots from anyone on any part of the course. Rickie Fowler, who missed the top 70 who qualify for the postseason last year, came in at No. 64 and shot 66, which projects him inside the top 50. Jordan Spieth was at No. 48. He had to rally on the back nine for a 69 that put him out of the top 50, and then back to No. 50 by the end of the day. Scheffler is assured the No. 1 seed for at least another week. He looked plenty sharp, giving himself a lot of looks at birdie and converting four of them. He missed out on a good birdie chance at the par-5 16th when he drove into the rough and sent the next shot into a bunker about 100 yards short of the green. He also took three putts from 70 feet on the final hole. 'Today was a good day. I did some solid stuff,' Scheffler said. 'Felt like I was close to playing a really great round but ended up with a solid round. Overall a decent start.' Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., shot 67, Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., had a 69, while Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., and Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., each had a 71. This is one of the more important weeks of the PGA Tour because of what's at stake. Not only do the top 50 advance to the BMW Championship, they are assured of being in all the $20 million signature event for next year. Among those on the bubble, Si Woo Kim (No. 46) opened with a 65 and former U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark had a 67. 'It's kind of like dicey spot right now,' Kim said. 'And started struggling, so I was like, 'I don't know if I can get through to next week.' But tried to keep it as simple as possible, and that helps me a lot. I had a great round, so hopefully I've got more room the next couple days. Just trying to make it simple and not much think about next week.' Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who might be the first playing captain since 1963, opened with a 72. Bradley is No. 10 in the Ryder Cup standings. He played with Maverick McNealy, who is 11th in the standings. McNealy shot 66. ___ AP golf: The Associated Press
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Globe and Mail
Akshay Bhatia shoots career-best 62 to lead in St. Jude Championship
Akshay Bhatia had a blazing finish to get his PGA Tour postseason off to a good start, closing eagle-birdie-birdie for an eight-under 62 to post his career low and take a one-shot lead over Tommy Fleetwood in the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Scottie Scheffler, playing for the first time since winning the British Open for his second major of the year, made bogey on the final hole for a 67, his 10th straight round in the 60s. Bhatia comes into the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 45, with only the top 50 advancing to the second of three tournaments in the lucrative postseason. The idea is to be among the top 30 who reach East Lake for a shot at the US$10-million bonus. He was paired with Harry Hall of England, who is at No. 44. Hall was matching Bhatia until the final two holes, when Bhatia rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt on the 17th and stuffed a short iron into two feet on 18. Bhatia said he has been spending too much time thinking about numbers, whether it's his score or his world ranking or his position in the FedEx Cup. The goal is to keep his mind peaceful. 'I felt pretty relaxed, and I'm just not trying to force anything,' he said. 'It's OK to get mad at golf shots but not at yourself.' Justin Rose and Bud Cauley, who is at No. 53, also were at 64 on a TPC Southwind that has 18 new greens and a course with much thicker rough. Fleetwood is all but set for the FedEx Cup finale at No. 9, though he would love to get that first PGA Tour title to go along with European tour wins against strong fields. He hit 13 out of 14 fairway, and the one he missed led to a birdie when he holed a bunker shot on No. 9. 'People talk about this golf course as a second-shot golf course, but it's only a second-shot golf course if you're in the fairway,' Fleetwood said. 'I hit the ball so well off the tee that I was always giving myself an opportunity.' And then it helped to see the putts drop, four straight birdies to close out his round. Fleetwood has the right outlook for this postseason series. Asked if he looked at the three weeks as one big event or each tournament on its own, Fleetwood said, 'It really [is] day to day.' Projections can fluctuate with shots from anyone on any part of the course. Rickie Fowler, who missed the top 70 who qualify for the postseason last year, came in at No. 64 and shot 66, which projects him inside the top 50. Jordan Spieth was at No. 48. He had to rally on the back nine for a 69 that put him out of the top 50, and then back to No. 50 by the end of the day. Scheffler is assured the No. 1 seed for at least another week. He looked plenty sharp, giving himself a lot of looks at birdie and converting four of them. He missed out on a good birdie chance at the par-five 16th when he drove into the rough and sent the next shot into a bunker about 100 yards short of the green. He also took three putts from 70 feet on the final hole. 'Today was a good day. I did some solid stuff,' Scheffler said. 'Felt like I was close to playing a really great round but ended up with a solid round. Overall a decent start.' This is one of the more important weeks of the PGA Tour because of what's at stake. Not only do the top 50 advance to the BMW Championship, they are assured of being in all the US$20-million signature event for next year. Among those on the bubble, Si Woo Kim (No. 46) opened with a 65 and former U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark had a 67. 'It's kind of like dicey spot right now,' Kim said. 'But tried to keep it as simple as possible, and that helps me a lot. I had a great round, so hopefully I've got more room the next couple days. Just trying to make it simple and not much think about next week.' Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who might be the first playing captain since 1963, opened with a 72. Bradley is No. 10 in the Ryder Cup standings. He played with Maverick McNealy, who is 11th in the standings. McNealy shot 66.
Edmonton Journal
3 days ago
- Edmonton Journal
Former Maple Leaf, two-time Stanley Cup champion officially retires
The worst kept secret in the Toronto Maple Leafs player development department is official. Article content After winger Kyle Clifford was spotted by the Toronto Sun and others working with the club's prospects before and during the July development camp, the 34-year-old two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Los Angeles Kings told multiple outlets he's retiring to be added to assistant general manager Hayley Wickenheiser's office. Article content Article content With his 160 points came a robust 982 career penalty minutes as one of the league's most diligent energy forwards. Article content The Ayr, Ont., native, a former Barrie Colt, was the 35th overall pick in the 2009 draft by the Kings. He was acquired for Trevor Moore and draft picks to join former King and Cup champ Jake Muzzin in Toronto. Article content Beginning in 2022-23, Clifford began a mentor's role with the farm team Marlies, was an alternate captain and played a total of AHL 126 games, with just 17 last season. Article content
