Billy

Hurley III

After kicking off with 63 (four-ball) and 67 (alternate shot), the duo began T2, one short of leader Rahm and Palmer. They carded six birdies at holes 1, 2, 7, 9, 16 and 18, with Malnati accounting for four of those. Hurley III’s only two birdies the whole round on his ball were important ones, however, circling two of their final three holes. He birdied 16 from 8'5", and got up and down from 72'6" away for a walk-off 4. Malnati’s scoring came at 1, 2, 7 and 9, three from between 10 and 16 feet. The top-5 teams and ties get exemptions into next week’s Wells Fargo (on the top-10 provision), which would be huge for Hurley III, who’s only garnered four individual starts this season on Past Champion status and is not in the Wells Fargo field.

Anything under par at TPC San Antonio is impressive, but consider that the rookie hasn’t signed for an sub-par score in his previous 10 rounds. It’s been that kind of challenging season during which he’s cashed in just three of nine starts and hasn’t posted a top 45. He showcased his scrambling ability today, getting up and down for pars seven of eight times. He started the round with a par save measuring 17'8" at the first hole. Later, he’d bury birdies of 25'6" and 17'11" at the 11th and 17th holes, respectively.

Hurley III was the first alternate when the field was released on Friday afternoon. He gained entry as one of three alternates this morning. He missed the cut by two in New Orleans despite a bogey-free, 2-under-par 70 in his second round during which he converted only two of 16 birdie chances.

The Naval Academy graduate is two for seven on the season in cashing checks with his best finish of the year came at the Mayakoba with a tie for 46th. Even though he’s a rookie, he’s got some experience at Bay Hill off of past sponsor’s exemptions. He ranks fifth in total putting, but 179th in GIR at 58.64 percent.

A weather delay of one hour and 50 minutes made it impossible for the 36-hole cut to fall today. Twenty-two golfers did not complete their second round. They will return at 7:30 a.m. CT on Saturday. Billy Hurley III has five holes remaining, most of anyone presuming to complete two rounds. He’s right on the cut line at 4-over-par. The weather forecast for the weekend is glorious but the wind will remain a factor on Saturday.

Hurley III circled three birdies and squared four bogeys en route to his share of fourth place at Congressional Country Club. He had never recorded a top 25 on the PGA TOUR until this week, so his 4-under 280 total will be remembered by the U.S. Naval Academy grad for a long time to come. He now heads to The Old White TPC at The Greenbrier Classic for his next scheduled appearance.

It makes all the sense in the world that a product of the Naval Academy is contending early at the AT&T National what with the focus the tournament maintains on the military. Hurley’s game caters to shorter tracks but even though he hit only 10 greens today, he suffered just one bogey, and that was a 6 on his final hole -- No. 9 at Congressional. His most notable of three birdies found the cup from six yards just off the green at the 17th hole.

It’s too bad the U.S. Naval Academy graduate didn’t get to play in front of his friends, but the course was closed on Saturday to spectators due to the heavy storm damage from Friday evening. The round of 66 had six birdies with only one blemish and he moved up 14 spots in the field to an overnight tie for fifth place, which is only two strokes off the lead. It been a very rough season for Hurley, with only five made cuts in 17 prior starts, but that will all be forgotten if he can pull off a victory on Sunday.

Just two weeks removed from his career-best T4 at AT&T National, Hurley III circled seven birdies without a blemish. In all, he landed 13 GIR and needed just 23 putts to the tune of a 1.462 average to navigate TPC Deere Run. He will try to follow in Ted Potter Jr.'s footsteps and become the second rookie to win in as many weeks in Sunday’s final round.

Hurley III circled four birdies and squared three bogeys in his tour of TPC Deere Run. The ball-striking was excellent, splitting 12 (of 14) fairways and landing 15 GIR, but the 32 putts required to complete the round held him back. He is not scheduled to compete in the True South Classic.