DETROIT – Taylor Pendrith fractured his fifth rib on the left side while hitting golf balls in March.
“I noticed it at the Players during the third round, just some pain in kind of my back,” he said.
He spent 12 weeks mostly sitting on the couch, watching the NHL Playoffs, and helping his wife decorate their new home. Not much one can do other than sit and let one’s ribs heal.
“I guess it fueled me a little bit to get back and play well,” Pendrith said.
The 31-year-old rookie Canadian is doing just that. In just his third start since the injury, Pendrith is the 36-hole leader at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. He followed up his opening-round 64 with a birdie-binge out of the gate. Birdies at his first four holes lifted him ahead of overnight-co-leader Tony Finau, and Pendrith signed for 65 and a tournament record 36-hole total of 15-under 129, a stroke ahead of Finau.
“If you can get it in the fairways here, you can kind of attack,” said Pendrith, who finished T-13 and T-11 in his first two starts back from injury and is seeking his first Tour title.
Rocket Mortgage Classic: PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ | Saturday tee times