Cameron

Percy

Rai poked his head into contention during a home game at TPC Sawgrass last week. He was T4 thru 54 holes before fading to T19 on Sunday. He jumped from 92nd to 78th in the FedExCup race but won’t add any points this week. Gamers should be willing to hop back on the train when he returns to action. As for Percy, he has a DQ and two missed cuts in three tries at the Valspar.

The Aussie put on a ball-striking clinic today as he peppered 17 greens in regulation, gaining 2.8 strokes on approach with his effort. All of his scoring took place early as he carded five birdies on the first seven holes then traded one birdie and one bogey on the final 11 holes. Before his day was over, he had set up seven scoring chances from inside of seven feet. The highlight on the greens was a 31-footer for birdie, early at the par-4 second hole. The 48-year-old arrived off a mid-tournament WD last week in Detroit and sits at 158th in the FedExCup race. He needs at least a podium finish this week in order to finish inside of the top 125 and crack the FedExCup Playoffs.

Percy opened his week with a 1-over 73 on Thursday. He got back to even par with a birdie at the 4th this afternoon but that is where the fun stopped. Percy three-jacked for bogeys on two of the next three holes and also dropped a shot at the 8th. The 48-year-old is not the longest of hitters but his tee shots at the par-5 seventh and par-4 eighth went just 251 yards and 248 yards, respectively. Sitting six shots off the cutline with nine holes remaining, Percy packed it up at that point. This will be his seventh career mid-tournament WD, in 196 total starts. He entered the week at 156th in the FedExCup race so he’ll likely give it a go next week at the Wyndham Championship even if he’s nursing an injury.

The 47-year-old Percy has made three cuts in seven starts this season, most recently finishing T-4 at the Corales Puntacana Championship last week. He also finished T-7 earlier this month in Puerto Rico. In seven previous Valero starts, Percy has made four cuts, but he was disqualified at last year’s event after signing an incorrect scorecard in the second round. Two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Uihlein will attempt to make his first cut in his fourth start at TPC San Antonio. Uihlein has made the cut in his last three Tour starts and finished T-36 last week at Corales. Additionally, South Africa’s Dawie van der Walt got in on the number and will make his 13th start of the season. Van der Walt has made just two cuts in 12 starts, most recently missing the cut at Corales. He’s made one other start at the Texas Open, missing the cut in 2016.

The 47-year-old Aussie had missed the cut in four of his last five starts but the lone payday was a big one, grabbing a T7 finish in Puerto Rico. A return to coastal conditions with paspalum turf was all he needed to get back in the hunt. Percy ended the week with 19 birdies and a pair of eagles. Both of the big birds came over the weekend. He also picked up some added confidence with the flat stick moving forward, “I’m rooming with Greg Chalmers and he gave me a putting lesson in the room last night and I putted fantastic, to me. Just was way better today.” Percy is playing this season on conditional status but is picking up some momentum, making him a name to watch in weekly fantasy leagues, down the stretch.

The 47-year-old Aussie split 11-of-14 fairways today and landed 10 greens in regulation. He needed just 1.3 Putts per GIR, though, and ranks sixth in that putting category for the week. The highlight of his round was a chip-in eagle at the par-5 14th. Some may consider Percy a journeyman and if that journey is trying to find a win on the PGA TOUR, tomorrow will be a solid opportunity as he starts just four shots off the leader, Ben Martin. Percy has just one career top 5 on his TOUR resume, a runner-up finish at the 2010 Shriners.

Perez went just 1-for-5 in the fall and that included a mid-tournament WD at the Shriners. Steady paydays are usually a staple of his diet so it’s a bit concerning to see him find just one cut made in the fall. A cold putter was much to blame for the slump as he lost 0.775 strokes putting per round in the fall, after gaining 0.372 SGP per round last season. The 45-year-old should make a few appearances on the West Coast but gamers may not want to re-invest until he proves his game is in order.

Percy opened the 2020-21 edition of this event with rounds of 64-68-68 to find himself positioned at T2-T3-T1 as the event progressed. Sleeping on his first 54-hole lead on co-lead on the PGA TOUR, Percy swallowed a closing 74 to settle for a T23 finish. Still, there should be plenty of good vibes as he makes his way back to Silverado Resort and Spa, a course where he also posted a T7 in 2019. Percy finished 135th in the FedExCup race last year so he’ll be playing on conditional status this season. The caveat is that he also has a one-start Minor Medical with 40 FedExCup Points needed in order to regain full status.

The Aussie took 34 swipes with the putter today, losing 2.9 strokes putting. He three-jacked at the 7th, 8th, and 15th. There is no word on whether this WD is injury-related or just frustration from today. Playing his 173rd career event on the PGA TOUR, this will be his sixth mid-tournament WD. He entered the week ranked 129th in the FedExCup race so he has plenty of work to do this summer if he wants to earn a spot in the FedExCup Playoffs.

There wasn’t any further information provided regarding where the error took place, but nonetheless, the 46-year-old had carded an 8-over-par 40-40=80 and was well outside the projected cutline (+2) on 12-over 76-80=156. This is his second DQ in 167 events, first since the 2013 TB (now Valspar) Championship. The Aussie arrived 8-for-13 on the season with four top 25s and two top 10s, and a best of T7 at the opposite-field Puerto Rico Open four starts ago, where he was T3 after 54 holes (67-69-67-71).