A sultry, hot day at the coalface isn't ever an easy ask. Yet, as some floundered in the conditions here at Baltusrol Golf Club - among them Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson - others conspired to find a way to defeat Mother Nature and also the examination presented by this old course in the township of Springfield, the historic site of what's known as the "forgotten war" in America's fight for independence in the 18th century.
For sure, some players here would rather have forgotten their scorecards altogether and started anew. They couldn’t, the damage done. And as McIlroy and Dustin Johnson were among those to in heat that sent the mercury into the 90s Fahrenheit, some somehow managed to remain cool and to keep their drives on the fairways, to find greens in regulation and, most crucially of all, to hole out with putts in this opening round of the 98th US PGA Championship.
Of the first wave, nobody achieved the feat of manoeuvring a route through the tree-lined course better than Jimmy Walker, a player yet to get his hands on any Major title and who seemingly had slipped into an abyss this season. With a top-10 on tour since the WGC-Cadillac back in March, the American clambered his way out of whatever deep hole he had fallen into to sign for a 65, five-under-par.
To rub salt into the wounds of those afforded tee-times in the second wave more difficult conditions, swirling winds added to the challenge. But, to his credit, two-time Major champion Martin Kaymer was one of the few to defy the twin challenges of increasingly bumpy greens and wind to make a fine sand save on his finishing hole for a 66 that moved him alongside Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo and England’s Ross Fisher in a share of second.
Shane Lowry, among those in the second wave, birdied the 18th for an opening round 72, while Jordan Spieth recovered from a double bogey on the eighth to reel off eight straight pars and then birdie two of his closing three holes for a level par 70. Bubba Watson retrieved his round with a birdie-birdie finish for 71.
Traditionally, Walker’s career has been one of hot starts early on in the season only to fade away as the year has gone on.
This season, though, never ignited. “I would have loved to have had a better year than I’ve had so far to this point but I know there’s always time to play well at the end of the year. I haven’t really done that yet, play well at the end of the year. I feel like I’ve started strong and just haven’t quite capitalised on the end of the year. So it would be nice to flip that around. I’ve really been working hard, I have been cranking away and busting it. It just hasn’t showed (so far), which kind of happens sometimes,” said Walker.
In expanding on a disappointing season to date, Walker added: “Sometimes it’s hard, I’m not going to lie. It’s tough. You feel like you’re killing yourself and you’re giving it all you’ve got and you’re just not seeing it. Sometimes hard work doesn’t pay off. But over time, it will I think.”
Finally, it would, seem that work has produced dividends. His perseverance has been rewarded, for now. Yet, Walker only had to look over his shoulder to realise that the hardest part of the challenge lies ahead of him with a number of proven pursers within touching distance, among them Rickie Fowler and Day.
For Fisher, part of the Dublin-based Horizon Sports agency, his driving reaped dividends that manifested most clearly in back-to-back birdies on the Par 5 17th and 18th holes. “My coach (Denis Pugh) has been banging on to me about keeping my swing nice and smooth, so I had that running through my head and it’s paid off very nicely,” said Fisher.
Although playing to a par of 70 on a course measuring more than 7,400 yards, the heat and the firmness of the fairways meant that it played shorter than its true length. “You need to drive the ball well and that was definitely the strongest part of my game,” said Fisher, who only missed one fairway - the 18th - but still managed to manufacture a birdie finish.
Grillo, aware that his game has been in good shape, had concentrated mainly on his putting in the build-up to this final Major of the season. “It’s the most important thing in golf, and the weakest part of my game. This is my third week (playing) and I’m getting really tired going into such a tough week, so I didn’t do much practice, just took it easy.” The upshot was a round that propelled him straight into contention.
