Things were just as the Maui Chamber Of Commerce ordered them Thursday as the PGA Tour cranked up its 2019 calendar year.
Winners only, plenty of sunshine, 75 degrees, blue waters in the distance, wide-open fairways and those wonderful 20-mile-per-hour Trade Winds, just to keep things interesting.
Cameron Champ got the festivities going — first guy off — and of course a 355-yard drive, just for the heck of it. More on Champ later.
It was a 34-man roster that quickly fell to 33. Kevin Na’s right pinky finger is broken. He thought it was simply jammed but there was enough pain to indicate a fracture and now he’s out for four weeks. Didn’t want to pull a Ronnie Lott and cut it off so he could play — that won’t work in golf.
It was nearly 32. Kevin Tway was all sorts of dizzy on Wednesday and had to pull out of the pro-am after a few holes. Went to the doctor and found out he had a double-whammy — sinus and ear infection and if that wasn’t enough, the brave doc pulled a bunch of impacted ear wax out of young Kevin’s ear. Yuck!
Tway made it to the first tee on Thursday and he’s glad he did. He went out and put up five birdies over the first nine holes and that spurred him on to an opening 66, which is seven-under par on this par 73 Plantation Course.
Tway, who is nearly as long as the new bomber, Champ, took advantage of that fast start, managed to find a couple more coming home and promptly went back to his room to pop more antibiotics and get some sleep.
The leader was probably catching some much needed rest by the time the Boss Of Maui got into his round. Yeah, no one handles the Plantation Course like Dustin Johnson. Did we mention that D.J. only won this one by eight shots last year?
D.J. was at it again, last man off with Bryson DeChambeau. DeChambeau made things totally interesting like he always does. He said last year that he just might leave the flagsticks in when he putts but to check back with him while he computed the COR (co-efficient of restitution) for said flagsticks. His math and research told him that he just might make more putts with those flagsticks in, as the new rules allow.
DeChambeau, a first-timer at the event like Tway, fared pretty well with his methodology. “I maximized my potential,” he declared after four back nine birdies landed him a 69, just three back of young Tway.
Bryson probably picked up some tips from his playing partner. D.J. was up to the task in the Trade Winds. He put up six birdies and his only problem came on the sixth hole where his tee shot caught the edge of that chest-high Hawaiian grass. He nearly saved par but didn’t. “Conditions were pretty tough,” D.J. later surmised and also pointed out that the course was a bit damp and tee shots weren’t going as far as they do on dry days.
There was another first-timer of note. That would be Rory McIlroy. And during the first round it was pretty much Rory being Rory. He crushed a bunch of drives past the 350 mark. He had a bunch of wedge shots, too many were mediocre, typical Rory. But he did birdie three of the four par fives and played well enough to put himself in the hunt with a 69.
This one will get interesting, thanks to new rules, Flagstick Bryson and D.J. The Maui Mauler.
Maui Kevin hasn’t been very good after good first rounds. Tway’s been better coming from behind.
But the last place the field wants to be is behind D.J. come Sunday.
This is his track, his kinda place.
Aloha.
