Large Crowds visit Arnold Palmer Invitational on first day of competition
The first day of the 2015 Arnold Palmer Invitational opened to large crowds eager to see their favorite golfers. World number one Rory McIlroy was in the field and it seemed all the spectators were eagerly awaiting his 12.56pm tee time as Tiger Woods sized crowds greeted him and fellow playing partners Jason Day and Rickie Fowler.
It was an odd day on the PGA Tour in many ways as following the news that Bubba Watson had decided to withdraw yesterday to mourn the death of a childhood friend who passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, Morgan Hoffman’s day began with news that his 97-year-old grandmother died earlier on Thursday morning.
Hoffman began his round with a 35-foot birdie putt on No. 10 and finished it with a 9-iron that touched the hole before stopping inches away for birdie. He also holed a bunker shot for eagle on the par-5 sixth, leading to a 6-under 66 and a one-shot lead in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It ended with his first lead on the PGA Tour.
Ian Poulter also had reason to have more on his mind than simply making a good start as his three-year-old son, Joshua, was admitted to an Orlando hospital on Wednesday evening with dangerously low oxygen levels. He was diagnosed with pneumonia and although Poulter Jnr was home and showing signs of improvement by the time his father left for work, the stress attached to such a scenario cannot be underplayed, regardless of profile or profession. It was perhaps understandable that Poulter snapped a little at a spectator on the 6th hole who had attempted to take a photograph with an i-phone.
Poulter gave his young lad something to smile about as a flawless opening round of 67, five under par, maintained the impressive start to the Englishman’s 2015 and left him just one stroke off the lead with 54 holes to play here.
Rory McIlroy’s played well in hitting 17 of 18 greens in regulation en route to a first round score of 70. A run only broken by an errant shot into water on the par five 16th and had he made it 18 from 18, the 25-year-old would have been the first player to achieve such a feat on this course during tournament play since 1995.
McIlroy was frustrated that he took 34 putts but even that is hardly a cause for concern as the Bay Hill greens are in a poor state and according to Arnold Palmer at yesterday’s press conference, will be ripped up and replaced in the aftermath of this tournament.
“I was hitting a lot of shots I really liked and was turning the ball over a lot easier,” McIlroy said. “So there’s a lot of the game that’s right there. I’m pleased that there are a lot of positives. I’m just trying to clean up a few areas that I didn’t do so well in today and it could be a really good week.”
Leaderboard:
1 Morgan Hoffman -6
T2 Ken Duke -5
T2 Ian Poulter -5
T2 Kevin Na -5
T2 Jason Kokrak -5
T2 John Peterson -5
T7 Padraig Harrington -4
T7 Henrik Stenson -4
T7 Adam Scott -4
T7 Hunter Mahan -4
