In her first international championship since the Presidents Cup, where she earned two points, Taylor Pendrith hit the nail on the head at the Shriners Children's Open on Thursday.
The Canadian shot a 10-under 61 in a round with 10 birdies and zero bogeys. matched the lowest score of his career. His remaining 61 came in the second round of the 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
“Honestly, I wasn't expecting 10 under,” Pendrith admitted.
“I thought I was going to get a little more rusty. Obviously, I'm very excited. And I've got to keep getting back into the rhythm of things over the next few days. But I feel good.”
Starting on the back nine, Pendrith birdied five of the first seven holes. Two pars followed on the 17th and 18th holes. He then hit three more par breakers on Nos. 1, 3 and 4. his I got a birdie on the 4th hole and came close. No need to stop at Eagle Two.
When Pendrith arrived on the fifth tee at 8 under with five holes to go, a sub-60 round suddenly seemed possible. After making two putts on the par-3 5th hole, he added two more birdies on the 6th and 7th holes, advancing to the difficult 8th hole with a total of 10 under for the day. He will be in a tense mood if he finishes the last two holes, a long par 3 and an easy par 5, at 2 under.
The Canadian two-putted No. 8 from 55 feet and turned his attention to No. 9, which measured 558 yards Thursday. After a 356-yard drive down the middle of the fairway, Pendrith had just 203 yards left. However, the second shot just missed the mark.
“I tried to be aggressive and hit some good shots, but I just couldn't get everything in. I ended up getting too close in the bunker,” Pendrith said.
“My caddy and I didn't talk much about it.” [the idea of shooting 59]but we both knew I was going to hole a bunker shot. Obviously, it was a very solid round. Yeah, it feels good. ”
Indeed, despite the three-week layoff since the Presidents Cup, Pendrith should feel great about the current state of his game. He hit all but one green on Thursday and led the field in strokes gained putts. No wonder why he threatened 59.
But his strong start to the season shouldn't surprise anyone. Pendrith had a career year, winning the CJ Cup Byron Nelson and finishing inside the top 50 in the FedEx Cup standings for the first time. He also finished in the top 10 six times and tied for 16th at the U.S. Open.
“I think my confidence level has definitely gone up. I was able to win last year and this year and have some really solid finishes in some big events, so that's a big confidence booster. ” Pendrith said when asked what was different this year.
“I think my putting has improved the most. That's been the biggest improvement in my game over the last few seasons. I've been able to make some good putts. Just seeing them go in gives me confidence. I’ll get there.”
His putter continued Thursday in Las Vegas, with Pendrith holding a three-shot lead over six players with 54 holes remaining.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through. Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.
