Tag: Travis Huston

Steven Alker and Padraig Harrington, 1-2 in the points race, are 1-2 on the leaderboard at Charles Schwab Cup Championship

Steven Alker and Padraig Harrington are separated by just a shot.

PHOENIX — It should come as no surprise that two of the best players on the PGA Tour Champions in 2022 are dominating the field at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

It should also come as no surprise that the golfer who has taken this tour by storm in the last 15 months has put himself in the driver’s seat to claim his first series title.

Steven Alker, tied for the tour lead with four wins this season, including a major at the Senior PGA Championship, came into the playoffs leading the points race. Padraig Harrington, in his first full season on the tour, is No. 2 in points and has won three times, including a major at the U.S. Senior Open.

Once the computers crunched all the numbers, Alker and Harrington were the only ones mathematically alive who could claim the season title. After the two pre-tournament favorites went shot-for-shot on a sunny Friday afternoon at Phoenix Country Club, it’s Alker and Harrington atop the leaderboard.

Harrington, playing in the third-to-last group in the second round, posted a birdie-birdie finish to shoot a 64, tied for low round of the week. He is at 12 under after 36 holes. For Harrington to claim the Cup, however, he needs to win but he also he needs Alker to finish outside the top five.

That’s starting to look like a long shot.

“Steve is relentless,” Harrington told Golf Channel after his round.

Alker was tied for the lead after 18 holes and after a 7-under 64, he holds the outright lead. Alker opened his round Friday with a pair of birdies, took his first outright lead with another birdie on No. 5. For the next couple hours, he would share the lead with Harrington a couple more times. Birdies on 15 and 17 got him to 13 under for the week so far. Alker has 13 birdies over two days and has yet to bogey a hole.

“I know what I’ve got to do, the numbers are all there. It’s kind of black and white. I just try and put myself in position to win a golf tournament, that’s big for me,” Alker said. “I’ve got to keep hammering those birdies out.”

Alker, a New Zealander who moved to Scottsdale in 2002, has his family following him this week, including his wife Tanya, son Ben and daughter Skye. That rooting section will be down one Saturday as Skye, a member of the Fountain Hills High School cross country team, will be competing in the state championships.

“Go Falcons,” Alker said.

Alker and Harrington are the only two golfers who can win the Cup this week. Even if Harrington wins this tournament, he needs Alker to finish outside the top five.

What about Langer?

Bernhard Langer, the ageless wonder who at 65 won for the 44th time on the Champions tour last week, has posted scores of 66 and 69 and is tied for eighth at 7 under. A 45th win would tie Hale Irwin’s mark set 15 years ago, but he’ll start Saturday’s third round six shots off the pace.

Lots of birdies but just one eagle

The quirky stat of the week after 36 holes: it took until late in the day Friday for the first eagle to be finally recorded.

Thongchai Jaidee rolled in a birdie putt on the par-5 18th hole to give him a second-round 68 and move him into the top 10. It’s the only eagle after 1,188 holes of competition. There have been 284 birdies so far this week.

What’s on the line?

First place this week is good for $440,000. The winner of the Cup race banks a cool $1 million bonus.

In fact, the top five finishers in the Cup standings will earn a lump sum deposit into a Schwab brokerage account:

First place: $1,000,000

Second: $500,000

Third: $300,000

Fourth: $200,000

Fifth: $100,000

[vertical-gallery id=778306999]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=none image=https://golfweek.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

John Huston needs just two hours, 17 minutes to shoot a 6-under 65 at Charles Schwab Cup Championship

John Huston’s caddie has seen this act before.

PHOENIX — John Huston’s caddie has seen this act before.

Travis, in his first full year caddying for his dad, laughed when asked about their two-hour, 17-minute first round Thursday in which he posted a 6-under 65.

“He’s well-known for how fast he plays and our whole family is that way, so it’s a good way to be,” Travis said.

There were 36 golfers who qualified for the PGA Tour Champions season finale at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship but only 33 arrived at Phoenix Country Club this week.

Because of the odd number, Huston, who was the last golfer to qualify in the field, went off alone at 10:20 a.m. local time (12:20 p.m. ET). He quickly birdied the first two holes and he was off and running. OK, not quite running but he was quickly making his way around the golf course.

“There’s not that many guys that like to get around, but there’s a few,” John said. “It was pretty nice just to play at my own pace.”

He’s making his first appearance in the Schwab Cup final, something he might not have imagined after undergoing two brain surgeries, the first of which he stayed awake for, in 2015 and 2016.

Huston has a neurological condition called cervical dystonia which causes the neck muscles to contract involuntarily, which in turn can force the head to twist or turn to one side, or tilt forward or backwards. It is also painful.

Huston, 61, said he first started noticing symptoms about 15 years ago but wasn’t diagnosed till he was 52.

“I can’t believe I’m still playing,” he told the PGATour.com. He also had neck fusion surgery in November 2021 and didn’t get his 2022 season going until May. A late-season charge of five top-25 finishes in his last six events put him on a path for Phoenix, where he posted seven birdies in his opening round, including one on the par-5 closing hole. That final putt dropped at 12:37 p.m. local time, just in time for a late lunch.

“The faster he plays, the better I’ve seen him play. I kind of expected him to play pretty good,” Travis said.

Even with his putting, there’s no time wasted.

“He says while he’s walking up to the green he’s already reading it so he already has an idea when he gets there. He doesn’t tend to go around the other side or anything. He just looks from behind and goes. It’s worked pretty good.”

John said it’s not the quickest competitive round he’s ever played.

“I played a round faster than this on the regular Tour, but it was a Sunday get out-of-town round,” he said, proclaiming “I think it was 1:40-something.”

Was a marker made available today?

“They didn’t ask. They probably knew,” Huston said, smiling.

If his scores holds up, he’ll go from the first one out Thursday to playing in the final group Friday.

“Maybe they’ll go the other way and let me play by myself in the last group,” he joked.

Huston will indeed be in the last group, where he’ll play alongside Stephen Ames, who also shot a 65.

Series leader Steven Alker was the last golfer on the course when he made a short par putt to also card a 65, which forged a three-way tie for the lead.

“I’m pleased. One down, three to go, pleased with my start,” Alker said. “The golf course is totally different to the pro-am yesterday with the rain and the wind. Just have to stay patient and just take your birdies when you could.”

Bernard Langer and Padraig Harrington are tied for fourth after shooting 5-under 66s.

“I’m in a good place in the tournament. I’m in a bad place in the Schwab Cup. That’s the way it is,” said Harrington, who is second in the series points race. However, for him to win the Cup championship, he needs to win and he needs Alker to finish outside the top five.

“Steven [Alker] played very nicely today, very steady. Doesn’t look like, you know, he’s going to do much wrong between here and the end of the week going on today, so it would be hard to see him not finishing in the top five.”

Friday’s second round starts at 12:10 p.m. ET with the final group starting at 2:50 p.m. ET.

[vertical-gallery id=778306999]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=none image=https://golfweek.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]