Golf – PGA Tour:With the Masters looming large on the horizon, Padraig Harrington may still be ironing out the glitches in his game but the portents continued to look favourable at the Transitions Championship in Florida.
The Dubliner, whose afternoon tee-time allowed him attend a St Patrick’s Day reception at the White House on Wednesday night without disrupting his preparations unduly, had barely taken to the course at Palm Harbor before Garrett Willis set the clubhouse target at six under.
Having initially struggled to make ground on the American, Harrington proved once again that patience on the golf course is a virtue he possesses in spades. After grinding out 10 straight pars, Harrington finally got into red figures on the par five 11th as he chipped in from behind the green.
That eagle was promptly followed with a birdie at the next, a 38-foot putt eliciting a wry smile from playing partner Kenny Perry, but a rare miscue led to him blotting his copybook at the 14th. With another shot dropped at the 17th, and the daunting 18th to come, Harrington appeared to be heading for a mediocre finish.
But he carded one of just a handful of birdies at the last to finish on two under and remain in the hunt heading into tomorrow’s second round. On six under, Willis led by two with defending champion Retief Goosen and Jim Furyk among a logjam of players on four under.
Ian Poulter, meanwhile, is in a fight to survive the halfway cut in his last Tour event before next month’s Masters. The World Match Play champion managed only a two-over-par 73 today and is eight adrift of Willis.
Poulter, who matched the best round of the week with a closing 64 at the WGC-CA Championship in Miami on Sunday, dropped a stroke on his opening hole and followed birdies at the 11th and 17th with a bogey each time.
Another shot then went on the 434-yard second after he pulled his approach long and left of the green.
The world number six plays in the unofficial Tavistock Cup — a match between the Isleworth and Lake Nona clubs which this year will not feature Tiger Woods — on Monday and Tuesday before taking two weeks off to prepare for Augusta.
Playing partner Sergio Garcia, who has gone nearly 18 months now without a win, also had to settle for a 73, as did Justin Rose.