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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Nick Taylor is aware of TPC Scottsdale just like the again of his hand and it confirmed on Friday.
The Canadian native, who lives not removed from the course and practices right here repeatedly, tied the course document with an 11-under 60 to take a five-stroke lead over 4 golfers after the primary spherical of the WM Phoenix Open.
“I’ve in all probability by no means putted that nicely,” stated Taylor, who made 184 ft, 1 inch of putts utilizing a claw grip within the first spherical, gaining 7.145 strokes on the greens. “Yeah, noticed the strains nice, and it was a continuation of final night time.”
It marked the second straight spherical on the PGA Tour over a span of two tournaments and 6 days {that a} participant shot 60 with most popular lies being in impact resulting from climate situations. (Wyndham Clark shot 12-under 60 at Pebble Seashore on Saturday in the course of the third spherical.) Taylor’s five-shot lead is the most important 18-hole lead in WM match historical past and the most important at any Tour occasion since Jim Gallagher Jr. shot 63 at Olympic Membership to guide by 5 after the opening spherical of the 1993 Tour Championship.
Nick Taylor gained greater than 7 strokes placing in his opening spherical of 60.
It is probably the most strokes gained placing in a single PGA Tour spherical in practically 7 years. Anirban Lahiri is the final participant to realize 7+ in a spherical, selecting up 7.32 in R2 of the Memorial in 2017.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) February 9, 2024
Taylor, who’s making his tenth profession look on the WM Phoenix Open and began on the entrance 9 Thursday, performed simply six holes because of a 3-hour, 30 minute delay resulting from rain, which was adopted by the suspension of play resulting from darkness. Regardless of unseasonably chilly situations that despatched the temperature dipping into the 40s, he was off to a sizzling begin, making three birdies in his first six holes. On Friday morning, there was a 103-minute frost delay however when Taylor began on the par-3 sixteenth, the chilly didn’t hassle the Canadian.
“I’ve performed sufficient in it the place I sort of know what to anticipate,” stated Taylor, who was runner-up to Scottie Scheffler on the WM Phoenix Open.
Taylor planted his tee shot 9 ft from the outlet and sank the putt. Then he began a string of 4 birdies in a row starting at 18, together with draining a 21-foot birdie putt at No. 2 and wedging to a foot on the par-5 third. He cooled off with 4 pars in a row, however the final of them, at No. 7, felt like a birdie. After catching a bit an excessive amount of ball along with his bunker shot, his putter bailed him out and rescued par with a 21-foot putt.
Requested if he had 59 in his thoughts, he stated, “After a missed alternative in all probability on 6 and sneaking away with par on 7, it was sort of achieved there. I needed to maintain the spherical going and end it off.”
Taylor, who turned a nationwide hero final summer time when he turned the primary Canadian to win the RBC Canadian Open in 69 years, tacked on birdies on the remaining two holes, canning putts of 15 ft and 9 ft to tie the course document and shoot a personal-best nine-hole rating of 29 on his second 9. Taylor turned the fourth totally different golfer to shoot 60 in the course of the WM Phoenix Open, becoming a member of Grant Waite, the primary to take action within the remaining spherical in 1996, Mark Calcavecchia, second spherical in 2001, and Phil Mickelson, who did it twice – second spherical in 2005 and first spherical in 2013. It marked the fifty fifth 60 in Tour historical past and the third this season (Nick Dunlap within the third spherical of The American Categorical was the primary).
“I primarily made each putt I checked out,” stated Taylor, who took simply 23 putts, hit 13 of 14 fairways and 16 of 18 greens. “It was a day that you simply don’t need it to finish. Fortunately I’m going to play one other spherical right here, so hopefully I can maintain that going. However every thing has labored very well.”
Taylor had a fast, 30-minute turnaround for his second-round tee time and proceeded to hit his opening drive into the native space and needed to take a penalty stroke. He made his first bogey of the match nevertheless it nonetheless does little to tarnish the bottom spherical of his Tour profession.
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