On the eve of the Superbowl in the University of Phoenix Stadium, Brooks Koepka breaks free from a five-way tie for the lead to capture the Phoenix Open
Tiger Woods, in his 1,267th round of his professional tournament career, shot his worst-ever score, an 82. It exceed the 81 he made in some epically grotty weather at The Open at Muirfield in 2002. He recorded six bogeys, two double bogeys, a triple bogey, seven pars and two birdies in his second round at TPC Scottsdale.
He made only two out of the 10 up-and-downs that he attempted. He looked a tortured soul around the greens. Was it yips or chips that we were seeing? One attempted chip from a greenside rough was duffed; another was thinned across the green into a bunker on the other side; one from the fairway from a mere 20 yards out did not even reach the green.
For only the 12th time in 322 starts, Tiger, who came joint last, missed the cut. Another who had the weekend off was Phil Mickelson, a three-time winner of the Phoenix Open, most recently in 2013 when he opened with a 60. This time he shot 69 and 76. It’s the first time since July 2012 that Woods and Mickelson have missed the cut together and the first time that Woods has missed consecutive cuts. The most recent tournament win by either of them was in July 2013, when Mickelson won The Open Championship.
Jordan Spieth hits a tee shot on the 16th hole during the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale...
.. and some of the crowd who create an atmosphere at this par-3 hole unlike any other in tournament golf: 17,000 spectators can throng the grandstands, cheering every ball which holds the green and booing every shot which misses it...
...and many of the players hand out gifts to the spectators at the 16th including, here, Bubba Watson who dressed in a Seattle Seahawks jersey to do so...
... and Phil Mickelson who sent an American football into the crowd...
...as did Padraig Harrington.
Brooks Koepka shot 66 in the final round to win the Phoenix Open for his first PGA Tour victory. He had not played since the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa two months ago.
Picture credits: Getty Images
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