Watching a Jordan Spieth round nowadays is like being on a roller coaster.
For one golf fan during Friday’s second round at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, watching Spieth also came with a surprise bruise.
As the Texas native teed off on the 16th hole, his tee shot went so far right that he hit a spectator directly on the elbow. Luckily for Spieth, the ball bounced off the fan’s elbow right onto the green.
The spectator was thankfully O.K., even though he is walking away from the tournament with a huge welt near his elbow. Spieth gave him a signed ball and glove to apologize for the injury but also thanking him for help on the shot.
The fan appeared to be in good spirits despite the unfortunate injury.
Spieth ended up bogeying the 16th hole even with the fan’s help to put him on the green. He missed the cut for this week’s tournament after finishing four-under par.
Last week: Jake Knapp won the Mexico Open at Vidanta.
Notes: The tournament again leads off the Florida swing under a new name. Cognizant takes over as title sponsor of what previously was the Honda Classic. ... Rory McIlroy is playing to beef up his pre-Masters schedule. He last played the tournament in 2018. ... Six of the seven winners on the PGA Tour this year were outside the top 50 in the world ranking. The exception was Wyndham Clark, No. 10 when he won at Pebble Beach. ... This is the last tournament for the leading top 10 in the FedEx Cup and the leading five players in âswing categoryâ to earn a spot in Bay Hill next week. ... Since turning pro after winning The American Express, U.S. Amateur champion Nick Dunlap finished in last place at Pebble Beach and missed the cut at Riviera. He is in the field this week. ... NCAA champion Fred Biondi, who turned pro last year, received a sponsor exemption. ... The field features five of the top 25 in the world ranking.
Last week: Patty Tavatanakit won the Honda LPGA Thailand.
Notes: This is the second of three straight weeks in Asia. The HSBC Womenâs World Championship dates to 2008 and typically gets a strong field. ... Jin Young Ko is going for her third straight title in Singapore. ... Lorena Ochoa set the course record of 268 in 2008, the inaugural year of the tournament. ... The field features eight of the top 10 in the womenâs world ranking, missing only Nelly Korda and Charley Hull. ... Atthaya Thitikul, No. 11 in the world, has an injured left thumb and does not plan to return until the end of March. ... Former U.S. Womenâs Open champion In Gee Chun is playing on a sponsorâs invitation. ... Minjee Lee is in the field, playing for the first time this year on the LPGA Tour. ... Solheim Cup captain Stacy Lewis has named Paula Creamer, Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome and Morgan Pressel as assistants for this yearâs matches in Virginia.
Last tournament: Dustin Johnson won LIV Golf Las Vegas.
Notes: Brooks Koepka is going for his third straight LIV victory in Saudi Arabia. The tournament was played in the fall the last two seasons. ... Anthony Kim is expected to make his LIV debut as an individual. Kim has not competed anywhere since May 2012 at the Wells Fargo Championship. He is now 38. ... Dustin Johnsonâs victory in Las Vegas makes him the first player to win in each of the three seasons of LIV Golf. Among those with a chance to match him this week are Koepka and Cameron Smith. ... Johnson, Graeme McDowell, Harold Varner III and Abraham Ancer have all won in Saudi Arabia outside the LIV Golf League. ... Jon Rahmâs new team is leading the standings after two events. ... Joaquin Niemann was the only LIV Golf player who received a special invitation to the Masters based on his European tour performances in the offseason. ... Patrick Reed is no longer among the top 100 in the world.
Last week: Darius van Driel won the Magical Kenya Open.
Notes: The tournament is co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour of South Africa. ... This is the second of three straight tournaments on the African continent. ... The field features only four players from the top 100 in the world. The highest-ranked player is Rikuya Hoshino, who is at No. 81. ... South Africa only has five players in the top 100 in the world. Christiaan Bezuidenhout, who plays the PGA Tour, is the top-ranked South African at No. 59. ... Only two players from Nos. 126-200 in the FedEx Cup last year are in the field, Matthias Schwab and Jonas Blixt. Dylan Frittelli was in that category until winning earlier this year to get full European tour membership. ... Keita Nakajima, a former world No. 1 amateur, is in the field. He is eligible from winning the Japan Golf Tour money title last year. ... The tournament only became part of the European tour schedule last year.
Asian Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia: New Zealand Open, Millbrook GC (Coronet and Remarkables), Arrowtown, New Zealand. Defending champion: Brendan Jones. Online: https://asiantour.com/ and https://pga.org.au/.
COBRA PUMA Golf ambassador, Brice Butler, treats fellow football legend Eric Ebron to a custom club fitting at Cobra Golfâs new fitting studio located at their headquarters in Carlsbad, CA. Watch as Ebron gets dialed for his metalwoods, irons, and putter.
Click HERE to explore Cobra Golfâs lineup of clubs.
We are halfway through the 2024 edition of the Memorial Tournament and low and behold, the No. 1 ranked golfer in the world, Scottie Scheffler, has a commanding lead heading into Saturday's Round 3.
He has a three-stroke lead at nine-under par after the second round. Viktor Hovland and Adam Hadwin are tied in second place at six-under par. Keegan Bradley and Christiaan Beuidenhout round out the top five, each at five under par.
If you haven't placed a bet on the event yet or if you want some more action heading into the weekend, you've come to the right place. Let's take a look at the live odds via DraftKings Sportsbook and then I'll break down two golfers you should consider betting on before the leaders tee off on Saturday.
Scottie Scheffler enters the weekend as the -190 favorite, which means he has an implied probability of 65.52% of capturing his fifth win of the 2024 calendar year.
Ludvig Aberg +2000
Ludvig Aberg is a driving and ball-striking machine, but that's been his weakness through the first two rounds. It's his short game that has helped him sit at four-under-par, good for solo sixth place ahead of Saturday's round. He has gained over a stroke per round both around the greens and on the greens so far in this event.
There are questions surrounding the health of his knee, which could be the cause of his ball-striking not being as sharp as we normally see it. If his knee holds up and he starts striking the ball on Saturday and Sunday as well as he can, he's one of the few people in the top 10 who have the firepower to catch Scheffler.
He's five strokes off the lead ahead of Round 3.
Adam Hadwin +2500
Adam Hadwin is T2 ahead of Round 3 but is still available at 25-1. The Canadian is an interesting golfer to handicap because he doesn't have any kind of consistent form, but when he randomly finds his game in a tournament, he contends. To illustrate that point, just consider the fact he has only finished inside the top 30 five times in 2024, but those five finishes were T14, T6, T4, T5, and solo 10th. When his game is on, it's on.
We could be seeing another example of that at the Memorial. He is second to only Scheffler in strokes gained: approach in this tournament, averaging +3.22 strokes per round with his irons heading into the weekend.
Don't underestimate the Canadian. He's worth a sprinkle at his current live odds.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
