AUSTRALIAN golfers will be hoping to break their duck on the US PGA Tour so far this year with both Adam Scott and Jason Day recent winners of the upcoming event in Irving, Texas.
Scott hasn’t played in the Byron Nelson Championship since he won it in 2008 and was also tied for third in 2006.
The event was Day’s maiden US Tour victory in 2010 and he went close to repeating the win when he was just a couple of shots off the playoff won by Keegan Bradley last year.
Both were feeling confident about their games in the lead up to the event this week, staged at the TPC Four Seasons Resort.
The highest ranked golfer in the field is last weekend’s winner Matt Kucher who has moved up to world No.5 and there is also world No.10 Phil Mickelson to contend with.
Other notables include major winners Ernie Els, Louis Oosthuizen, Vijay Singh and Padraig Harrington while Steven Bowditch, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Mathew Goggin, Nathan Green, Greg Chalmers, Nick O’Hern, Gavin Coles, Pampling and Monday qualifier Stuart Deane round out the Australian contingent.
There is one more Aussie with British Amateur winner Bryden McPherson receiving a late sponsors’ exemption to make his professional debut at the event.
Scott will play the first two rounds in a feature grouping with Mickelson and Els and comes fresh from a T15 finish at the Players on Sunday. He feels his 9th tour victory is not far off.
“My game is all right there. I just have to tighten it up a little bit somehow. It feels like I’m almost perfect for 65 of 72 holes,” Scott said this week. “I play so many good holes every week but just a couple of mistakes cost me.”
The 31-year-old disagrees with suggestions he just isn’t playing enough golf with this being just his 6th start this year.
“I don’t think so. I’m more prepared than I’ve ever been to play,” he said. “I believe this year my putting hasn’t been as good as last year and that has been what hasn’t allowed any momentum, or created some, or kept it going. My proximity to the hole is probably not quite as close as well and it puts a little bit more pressure on. But I know it’s really close to coming all together.”
2012 Byron Nelson Championship TV Times
The event is being telecast in Australia on Fox Sports with live coverage beginning early Friday morning.
1st Round, Friday 5am – 8am; 2nd Round, Saturday 5am – 8am; 3rd Round, Sunday 5am – 8am; Final Round, Monday 5am – 8am.
2012 Byron Nelson Championship Leaderboard
Byron Nelson Championship Leaderboard