DETROIT – Willie Mack III came to the Rocket Mortgage Classic to play a golf tournament, but the first two rounds at Detroit Golf Club turned into more of an endurance test for the Flint, Michigan, native.
Working on about three hours of sleep, Mack returned to the course at 6 a.m. to resume his first round and played 21 holes Friday. He was at 3-under 141 after the second round, having followed a 68 with a 73.
“I’m tired,” he said, “but I think adrenaline kept me going and hopefully it can hold up for the next two days.”
The craziness started for Mack on Thursday, when a 3-hour, 15-minute weather delay pushed his tee time back from 1:50 p.m. to 5:05 p.m. The round was suspended at 9 p.m. because of darkness, forcing Mack to return Friday to resume the final three holes of his first round at 7:15 a.m. He started the second round at 8:35 a.m.
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“I think I had like 25, maybe 30 minutes,” he said of his break between rounds Friday.
“I had three holes left, I played 1 under, played pretty solid,” he said. “I played good all day actually. I missed a lot of putts, so if those went in, it would have kind of been a different story.”
After an excellent first round, the second round was a different story for Mack. Even though he has extensive experience at Detroit Golf Club, the wind wreaked havoc on his game and a few missed putts cost him a much better score.
“Yeah, I played here a million times and I’ve never seen the wind so consistent for two days all day long,” he said. “Yeah, the back nine was kind of rough, but held it together a little bit and came in with an OK score.”
Thanks to saving par with a 4-footer on his last hole Friday, Mack gave himself a chance to play on the weekend. He was on the projected cut line when he finished his second round in the early afternoon.
Mack has had a large contingent following him and cheering him on this week with cheers of “let’s go, Willie Mack” ringing out regularly from the gallery.
“Yeah, I heard some of my friends,” he said with a smile. “I wasn’t looking, but I know their voices, so I heard them. It’s exciting to just be able to play in your hometown amongst friends and family. It was a fun two days.”
Contact Carlos Monarrez at cmonarrez@freepress.com and follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez.
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