Steve Stricker was unhappy with his play in his last two appearances and was contemplating not playing in the Senior Players.
Stricker’s competitive nature kicked in and he decided to show up at Firestone Country Club for the Senior Players.
On Thursday, he put on a show that left the rest of the field looking up at him as the U.S. Ryder Cup captain went out and shot a seven-under par 63 Thursday.
That sizzling round put Stricker four clear of his closest competition — Ken Duke and Paul Broadhurst. Duke and Broadhurst finished with three-under par 67s.
Four players were tied at one-under par 69 — Marco Dawson, defending champion Jerry Kelly, Bob Estes and Gene Sauers as only seven players managed to break par on a windy Firestone course.
Stricker spent time back in Wisconsin tinkering with his putting, changing grips on his putter until he went back to one that he’d won with before.
“I haven’t been putting like I’m accustomed to putting, so I’ve been really grinding on that a lot at home, changing grips and putters all over the place,” he said. “I got a new grip on the putter this week, but we’ll see. I’m working at it. It hasn’t been great, but today was good.”
Stricker was frustrated after a final round 77 cost him a shot at the Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills. A poor start at the American Family Insurance — an event he hosts in Wisconsin, left him tied for seventh after a nice closing 65.
Bernhard Langer and Jim Furyk signed for 71s, Fred Couples carded a two-over par 72.
